Disk health alerts in Windows: When Windows reports that a hard drive is developing bad sectors, what is the first practical action you should take?

Introduction / Context:
Bad sectors indicate media damage or failing flash cells on storage. Acting promptly can prevent data loss. However, the first response should collect evidence, quarantine bad areas, and verify the extent of the problem before replacing hardware.

Given Data / Assumptions:

• Windows has reported bad sectors or I/O errors.
• The user needs an immediate, low-risk next step.
• We assume access to built-in tools like CHKDSK/ScanDisk.

Concept / Approach:

Run a full surface scan (CHKDSK /R on NT-based systems or ScanDisk thorough on older Windows). This checks clusters, marks unreadable sectors as bad, and attempts to relocate data. It provides a diagnostic baseline and may stabilize the system long enough to back up critical data.

Step-by-Step Solution:

Verification / Alternative check:

SMART diagnostics (e.g., CrystalDiskInfo, vendor tools) corroborate failing media. If the surface scan finds more bad clusters over time, replacement is warranted.

Why Other Options Are Wrong:

• Immediate replacement without checks: prudent in data centers, but first verify and back up; a scan helps preserve data by remapping.
• DEFRAG: dangerous on failing media; can stress the drive and worsen loss.
• SECCLEAN: not a standard Microsoft utility for this purpose.
• None of the above: incorrect because a thorough scan is the proper first step.

Common Pitfalls:

Continuing heavy use without backup; running defragmentation; ignoring SMART reallocated sector counts and pending sectors.

Final Answer:

Run ScanDisk or CHKDSK with the thorough surface test option