1. PC-3000 complex
1.1. Purpose
The hardware and software complex “PC-3000” version 10.10 is designed for diagnostics and repair of any HDD with IDE interface of all modifications (ATA, ATA-2, ATA-3, ATA-4, UltraATA, E-IDE, UDMA66) and advanced factory mode repairs and restoration of widely used HDDs: Conner, Daeyoung, Fujitsu, Hitachi, IBM, Kalok, Maxtor, NEC, Quantum, Samsung, Seagate, Teac, Western Digital, Xebec, with the help of specialized technological utilities (see utilities list).
1.2. PC-3000 Software, version 10.10
Universal software
PC-3000 SHELL Graphical user interface for PC-3000 complex for fast and convenient start of utilities.
PC-3000AT Ver. 4.05 Universal tester for diagnostics and repair of HDD of any type.
PC-DEFECTOSCOPE Ver 2.10 Universal program for search and hiding of unstable and bad sectors.
PC-ACIDENT Identification utility for Western Digital HDDs of the AC family.
Technological utilities
HDD manufacturer PC-3000 utility HDDs that can be restored
SEAGATE PC-SEAGATE ST38641A, ST36531A, ST34321A, ST32110A, ST33232A, ST32532A, ST31722A, ST31720A, ST31277A, ST31276A, ST31012A, ST3853A, ST3852A, ST3636A
PC-ST51270A ST32140A, ST51270A, ST51080A, ST5851A, ST5540A
PC-ST9810AG ST9810AG, ST9630AG (2” form-factor )
PC-ST9816AG ST9816AG, ST9546AG (2” form-factor )
PC-ST9655AG ST9655AG, ST9550AG, ST9385AG, ST9300AG, ST9240AG, ST9150AG (2” form-factor )
PC-ST3850A ST3850A
PC-ST3630A ST3630А
PC-ST3660A ST3660A, ST3295A
PC-ST3491A ST3491A, ST3391A, ST3250A
PC-ST3290A ST3290A, ST3243A, ST3145A, ST3123A
PC- ST3655A ST3655A, ST3550A, ST3390A, ST3385A, ST3285A, ST3283A
PC-ST3144A ST3144A, ST3120A, ST3096A
PC-ST1144A ST1144A, ST1102A
PC-ST351A/X ST351A/X
PC-ST157A ST157A
WESTERN DIGITAL PC-AC450AA WD450AA, WD300AA, WD153AA, WD75AA
PC-AC307AA WD307AA, WD205AA, WD153AA, WD102AA
PC-AC272AA WD272AA, WD205AA, WD172AA, WD136AA, WD84AA, WD43AA
PC-A205AA WD205AA, WD172AA, WD136AA, WD102AA, WD64AA
PC-A313000 WDAC313000, WDAC310200, WDAC28400, WDAC26400, WDAC14300
PC-A310100 WDAC310100, WDAC38400, WDAC26400, WDAC24300, WDAC13200
PC-A38400 WDAC38400, WDAC37100, WDAC25400, WDAC24300, WDAC12500
PC-A36400 WDAC36400, WDAC35100, WDAC24300, WDAC23200, WDAC12100
PC-A35100 WDAC35100, WDAC34300, WDAC23400, WDAC22500, WDAC11700
PC-A34000 WDAC34000, WDAC33200, WDAC22500, WDAC22000, WDAC11200
PC-A33100 WDAC33100, WDAC32500, WDAC22100, WDAC21600, WDAC11000
WESTERN DIGITAL PC-A32500 WDAC32500, WDAC32100, WDAC21600, WDAC21200, WDAC1850
PC-A31600 WDAC31600, WDAC21000, WDAC1540
PC-A21200 WDAC21200, WDAC1635
PC-A31200 WDAC31200
PC-A31000 WDAC31000, WDAC2700, WDAC1365
PC-AC2850 WDAC2850, WDAC2635, WDAC1425
PC-AC2700 WDAC2850, WDAC2700, WDAC1425
PC-AC2540 WDAC2540, WDAC1270
PC-AC2420 WDAC2420, WDAC1210
PC-AC2340 WDAC2340, WDAC2250, WDAC1170
PC-AL2170 WDAL2170
PC-CU140 WDCU140
PC-AC2200 WDAC2200
PC-AC2120 WDAC2120, WDAC160
PC-AC280 WDAC280, WDAC260, WDAC140
PC-WD9X WD93044A, WD95044A, WD93024A, WD95024A
QUANTUM PCQUCX Fireball CX 20.4, 13.0, 10.2, 6.4
PCQUCR Fireball CR 13.0, 8.4, 6.4, 4.3
PCQUEX Fireball EX 12.7, 10.2, 6.4, 5.1, 3.2
PCQUEL Fireball EL 10.2, 7.6, 5.1, 2.5
PC-QUSE Fireball SE 8.4, 6.4, 4.3, 3.2, 2.1
PC-QUST Fireball ST 6.4, 4.3, 3.2, 2.1, 1.6
PC-QUTM Fireball TM 3840, 3200, 2550, 2110, 1700, 1280, 1080
PC-QUSR Sirocco SR 2550A, 1700A
PC-QUSG Pioneer 2.0, 1.0
PC-QUBF BigFoot 2500, 1250
PC-QUFB Fireball 1280, 1080, 640, 540
PC-QUTR Trailblazer 850, 420
PC-QUMV Maverick 540, 270
PC-QULT Lightning 730, 365
PC-QUTB ProDrive LPS 540, 270
PC-QURR ProDrive LPS 420, 340, 210, 170
FUJITSU PC-FUJMPF MPF3204AT, MPF3153AT, MPF3102AT
PC-FJMPFH MPF3409AH, MPF3357AH, MPF3307AH, MPF3256AH, MPF3204AH, MPF3153AH, MPF3102AH
PC-FUJMPE MPE3273AT, MPE3224AT, MPE3204AT, MPE3170AT, MPE3136AT, MPE3102AT, MPE3064AT, MPE3032AT
PC-FJMPEE MPE3346AE, MPE3303AE, MPE3260AE, MPE3216AE, MPE3173AE, MPE3130AE, MPE3084AE, MPE3043AE
PC-FJMPEH MPE3273AH, MPE3239AH, MPE3204AH, MPE3170AH, MPE3136AH, MPE3102AH, MPE3068AH, MPE3034AH
PC-FUJMPD MPD3173AT, MPD3130AT, MPD3108AT, MPD3084AT, MPD3064AT, MPD3043AT
PC-FJMPDH MPD3182AH, MPD3144AH, MPD3137AH, MPD3102AH, MPD3091AH, MPD3068AH, MPD3045AH, MPD3023AH
PC-FUJMPC MPC3102AT, MPC3096AT, MPC3084AT, MPC3064AT, MPC3043AT, MPC3032AT
PC-FUJMPB MPB3064AT, MPB3052AT, MPB3043AT, MPB3032AT, MPB3021AT
PC-FUJMPA MPA3052AT, MPA3043AT, MPA3035AT, MPA3026AT, MPA3022AT, MPA3017AT
PC-FUJTAU M1638TAU, M1624TAU, M1623TAU, M1636TAU
CONNER PC-CONNER CFA1275A, CFA1080A, CFA850A, CFA810A, CFA540A, CFA425A, CFA340A, CFA170A, CFS1275A, CFS850A, CFS540A, CFS425A, CFS420A, CFS270A, CFS210A, CFS105A, CP30544, CP30344, CP30245, CP30204, CP30124, СP30174E, CP30084E, CP30104H, CP3000, CP3044 CFP2005S, CFP1080S, CFP1060S Seagate CABO: ST31621A, ST31275A, ST31081A, ST3541A
MAXTOR PC-MX7xxx 72004A, 71670A, 71626A, 71336A, 71260A, 71084A, 71050A, 7850AV, 7546A, 7541A, 7540A, 7425AV, 7420AV, 7345A, 7270AV, 7245A, 7213A, 7170A, 7135AV, 7131A
PC-MX7120 7120A, 7080A, 7060A, 7040A
PC-MXLXT MXT-540A, LXT-535A, LXT-340A, LXT-213A, LXT-200A
SAMSUNG PC-SAMSNG SV-1296A, SV-0844A, SV-0643A, SV-0432A, VG-35102A, VG-34202A, VG-33402A, VG-32502A, VG-31702A
PC-SAMVG6 SV-1296A, SV-0844A, SV-0643A, SV-0432A
PC-SAMVG2 VG-35102A, VG-34202A, VG-33402A, VG-32502A, VG-31702A
PC-SAMWA WA-33203A, WA-32543A, WA-32163A, WA31273A, WA-31083A
PC-SAMWNR WNR-32501A, WNR-32101A, WNR-31601A, WN-32543A, WN321620A, WN-31273A, WN-316025A, WN-312021A, WN-310820A, WU-32543A, WU-32165A
PC-SAMSTG STG-31601A, STG-31271A
PC-SAMPLS PLS-31274A, PLS-31084A, PLS-30854A
PC-SAMSHD SHD-30560A, SHD-30420A, SHD-30280A, SHD-3212A, SHD-3211A, SHD-3172A, SHD-3171A, SHD-3122A, SHD-3121A
TEAC PC-TEAC SD-3540N, SD-3360N, SD-3250N
KALOK PC-KALOK KL3120A, KL3100A, KL3040A, KL383A, KL343A
DAEYOUNG PC-DX3120 DX-3120A, DX-3060A
1.3. PC-3000 complex suite, version 10.10
Electronic protection key - 1 piece.
PC-3000AT tester - 1 piece.
PC-KALOK adapter - 1 piece.
PC-CONNER adapter - 1 piece.
PC-SEAGATE adapter - 1 piece.
PC-TEAC adapter - 1 piece.
IDE interface cable (40 pin) - 1 piece.
“COM” cable (9pin) for the connection of PC-KALOK and PC-CONNER adapters to serial RS232 port of the controlling computer - 1 piece.
“HDD” cable for the connection of PC-KALOK and PC-CONNER adapters to the drives’ technological connectors or PC-SEAGATE / PC-TEAC adapters -1 piece.
PC-3000 software - 1 CD.
Technical manuals - 2 books (Russian version).
1.4. Warranty
Research and Production Company “ACE” LLC guarantees normal work of the PC-3000 complex for 12 months since the date of purchase. RPC “ACE” LLC takes the obligation to repair a malfunction or replace defective complex components, if the failure was not caused by the user’s actions. The transportation fees for warranty repair are paid by the customer.
RPC “ACE” LLC - the developer and manufacturer of the PC-3000 complex
ACE Laboratory - trademark of RPC “ACE” LLC.
Mail address: Russia, 344010, Rostov-on-Don, Lermotovskaya Str. 197, of. 412.
E-mail: ace@acelab.ru
Web: http://www.acelab.ru
1.5. Users registration
In order to obtain the official user status after purchase of PC-3000, send the following information to ACE Laboratory via fax (863-2) 64-17-10 or e-mail: ace@acelab.ru:
1. Date of purchase for PC-3000 or PC-3000 Upgrade
2. Version of PC-3000
3. Number of electronic protection key
4. The enterprise that sold the complex
5. The enterprise that purchased the complex
6. Phone number
7. Fax
8. E-mail
9. Regular mail address
The registration can also be performed at our web-server at http://www.acelab.ru by filling the “Users registration” form.
1.6. Registered PC-3000 users support
1. Technical support of PC-3000 users concerning the complex operation and HDD repairs over the phone +7-8632-64-17-10(Russian Users) and e-mail: pc-3000support@acelab.ru; (fax / e-mail for English-speaking users);
2. Free upgrade of new versions of complex utilities (PC-3000 Upgrade) via e-mail and federal mail;
3. 50% discount during purchase of new complex versions (PC-3000 Update);
4. Access to Web conference of PC-3000 complex users - pc-3000user@acelab.ru;
5. Technical support at the web site www.acelab.ru/ts.htm.
1.7. PC-3000 complex installation
Attention! For the operation of PC-3000 complex a PC 386/486/Pentium type computer is required with EGA/VGA/SVGA monitor working under MS-DOS 5.00 or higher. The software of the complex requires not less than 600 Kb of free RAM (this amount can be checked with the mem.exe /f command in MS- DOS). It is able to run the complex under Windows 95/98 OS without loading GUI. The PC-3000AT tester board uses IRQ12 and I/O address range from 100h to 10Fh during work.
Attention! Some programs included in the complex use overlays, therefore the use of SMARTDRV.EXE from MS DOS / Windows is recommended.
1. Insert the PC-3000AT tester board into an empty ISA slot of the controlling computer;
2. Connect the electronic protection key to LPT1;
3. Create PC3000 directory on the hard drive of the controlling computer. Copy into the directory all files from the PC-3000.xxx directory on the supplied CD, where “xxx” is the number of your protection key.
4. Remove the “read only” and “archive” attributes from the copied files.
5. Connect the HDD to be tested to a free power supply plug of the computer and, via the IDE interface cable, to the tester board.
Attention! The drive, which should be tested, must be connected and disconnected from the power supply and the tester board only when the power is switched off on the computer. It is recommended to use a separate power supply block, in that case you can switch the HDD power supply on/off and disconnect the interface cable without switching of the controlling computer.
6. Load the SHELL.EXE file. The complex is ready for work.
Attention! 1. If the PC-3000AT tester board is not inserted into the computer slot, or the tester is not functioning, loading of the SHELL.EXE file and the utilities will lead to a halt of the controlling computer, which can be interrupted by pressing the “RESET” key. 2. If the electronic protection key is not connected or is not functioning, the work of the complex is also impossible. 3. When the latest Pentium-based or later computers are used some difficulties may occur in the work of the complex together with the first IDE hard drives having the capacity of 40-240 MB. PC-compatibles with 386/486 CPU are recommended for work with such drives.
7. The sequence for drives connection with the help of additional adapters is described in the user manuals for corresponding utilities.
PC-3000 complex usage
You have purchased a wonderful tool for repair of hard disk drives - PC-3000 complex. If you used to repair hard drives before, most likely you can skip this chapter, however, if your experience isn’t very large, the authors recommend to read the chapter “IDE (ATA) HDD technical description. Basics of IDE (ATA) HDD repair” before you start.
This chapter contains a brief “guide” for the complex.
So, you repair a disk drive. Do not hurry to start special technological utilities at once. First of all any drive should be checked with the PC-3000AT universal tester, included in the complex. That may help localize defects and determine the sequence for further actions. In order to achieve that, connect the drive to the tester board PC-3000AT, switch its power supply on and start the PC3000AT.EXE program. After switching on the power supply the disk drive should spin up the spindle motor and perform recalibration (zero track search). During that procedure a typical sound of the positioning device is heard. When the initialization process is complete the drive sends out the readiness signal. If this doesn’t happen (the spindle motor stops or does not spin up at all or you hear a head hit sound) then you should use the method described in part 2.2 of technical appendix.
After drive readiness check (DRDY = DSC = 1, BUSY = 0), the program attempts to read the data from drive description area. If the readiness signal was not returned to the program a corresponding message about that appears. In such case use the methods described in paragraph 2.2.1 of the “IDE (ATA) HDD technical description. Basics of IDE (ATA) HDD repair” chapter. If, although the readiness signal was received, the drive description data cannot be read (the program returns “Drive parameters are not determined”) or the parameters are read incorrectly, it may mean either a reading channel defect or a corruption of disk firmware. (The firmware data can be restored with the help of corresponding technological utility.) However, it is possible, that the disk drive does not have a drive description area (this refers mostly to old KALOK/XEBEC models) or it contains parameters, which cannot be used for drive operation (for example, Conner CP-3000). In such case the parameters should be entered manually or from a PC-3000AT database in order to perform the testing procedure.
After drive testing with PC-3000AT and making a preliminary conclusion about its defects (the methods are described in part 2.1 of the chapter “IDE (ATA) HDD technical description. Basics of IDE (ATA) HDD repair”) you can start a technological utility for more advanced diagnostics or restoration of drive firmware. Detailed description of corresponding methods for drive restoration in factory mode is in the utility description part.
The PC-3000 complex development team wishes you success.
2. Universal tester for diagnostics and repair of HDD of any type
2.1. Purpose
The tester software PC-3000AT is the basic program of the PC-3000 complex for IDE (ATA) HDD repairs and restoration and it is designed for:
1. Diagnostics of defects and repairs of IDE drive in usual mode;
2. Correct restoration of low-level format in drives using 50H command1;
3. Hiding of bad sectors in HDDs that support the assign mode;
4. Automatic drive testing of input/output control type (complex testing).
The tester software PC-3000AT functions together with the tester board PC-3000AT.
Attention! PC-3000AT versions 4.0 and higher allow drive testing using CHS addressing as well as LBA addressing mode. CHS/LBA mode switching of the tester is performed by means of an assignable key in the right numeric keypad (see chapter 3 “Information output during work with the tester”). CHS is the default tester operation mode for PC-3000AT. The differences with LBA-addressing are marked “LBA mode” in the operation modes’ descriptions and information output.
2.2. Preparation for work
1. Connect the PC-3000AT tester board cable to the IDE connector of the drive.
2. Connect the power cable to the drive.
3. Load the complex shell PC-SHELL and launch PC-3000AT program.
2.3. Information output during work with PC-3000AT
For convenient perception of information the tester appears on PC screen in the form of the front panel of the instrument, consisting of the following parts:
Display - displays the information concerning the testing procedure. In the upper part of the display you can see the MODEL line, containing information about the type and parameters of the drive being tested: number of cylinders (CYL), heads (HEAD), sectors (SEC).
“LBA mode” In LBA mode instead of the CYL, HEAD, SEC parameters the total number of available sectors is displayed in the MODEL line.
In the lower part of the display you can see the STATE line, containing the information concerning the drive state: Ready/Busy, duration of current test execution in % (DONE) appears when long tests are performed, current cylinder (CYL), head (HEAD), sector (SEC), number of drive errors (ERRS) detected during the test.
“LBA mode” In LBA mode just one current sector number is displayed instead of CYL, HEAD, and SEC parameters of current sector.
Two rows of LED-s - display the information about the state register and errors register1 of the HDD being tested, which allows to monitor the drive state while testing and determine the cause of malfunctions. The passive LED state is blue, active - yellow or red, red LED being the ones that inform about errors. The state register shows current state of IDE AT HDD. The register value is updated after execution of every command. The errors register shows the HDD state after command execution, if the “Error” bit is set in the state register.
Keypad - corresponds to the right numeric keypad of the keyboard. The purpose of the keys changes depending upon the current state of the tester. The purpose of the following keys remains constant:
[Enter] - Parameter input, start of various tests.
[Cancel] - used to cancel the execution of current test or of the parameter being set (can be substituted with the ESC key).
[Exit] - used to cancel the execution of current test or of the parameter being set with subsequent exit to the “MODE SELECTION” menu.
2.4. Parameter input for the HDD being tested
At the beginning of the test, when the controlling program is started, the tester determines the tested drive type and parameters in CHS mode. After the said determination procedure the drive type and parameters appear in the MODEL line, and the controller program of the tester goes on to the main “MODE SELECTION” menu. Press the [LBA] key in order to enter the LBA mode. If the drive does not support LBA mode, the [LBA] key does not appear on the screen.
Attention! Some old HDD models (Conner CP 3000, for example) do not work with physical parameters. Enter the parameters from the PC-3000AT database for such drives.
If the drive type and parameters cannot be determined because of drive malfunction, the following message will appear:
Drive parameters are not determined
Pressing any key will change the tester mode to:
DRIVE TYPE SELECTION
Identify DRV
User Type
Conner
Fujitsu
Maxtor
Quantum
Using [Up], [Down] and [Enter] keys you can:
- attempt to determine the HDD parameters again by selecting Identify DRV;
- enter the drive parameters manually by selecting User Type;
- select the drive type and parameters from the existing database.
Attention! Incorrect drive parameter input may cause incorrect diagnostics of malfunctions.
“LBA mode” During parameter input or drive type selection from the database the number of available LBA sectors is calculated by multiplication of CYL, HEAD, SEC parameters.
When the drive parameters are determined, the controlling program goes on to the main “MODE SELECTION” menu.
2.5. PC-3000AT operation modes
2.5.1. Operation mode selection
The operation mode selection is performed from the main menu with the help of [Up], [Down], and [Enter] keys. You can leave the selected operating mode by pressing [Cancel] and [Exit] keys.
The main menu:
MODE SELECTION
Drive type selection
Drive test
Controller test
Complex test
Defects relocation
Formatting
Exit
Drive type selection - the mode for the determination of parameters or their input for the drive being tested.
Drive test - test mode for testing and repair of:
- read/write channel;
- positioning system;
- spindle motor and its controller chip.
Controller test - test mode for testing and repair of:
- interface controller;
- MPU;
- Read/write channel;
- buffer RAM.
Complex test - test mode for input/output control of the drive.
Defects relocation - in this mode the tester relocates defective BAD sectors in drives that support assign mode.
Formatting - in this mode the tester performs correct restoration of low-level format in HDDs that support the 50H command.
Exit - exit from the program to PC-SHELL interface or to DOS.
The keys [SMART] and [Passp] allow to view the S.M.A.R.T. parameters of the drive and the drive description area of HDD, which are read with the Identify DRV command and decrypted in accordance with the ATA-4 specification.
2.5.2. Viewing S.M.A.R.T. parameters of the drive
Pressing the [SMART] key brings the following S.M.A.R.T. parameters of the drive on-screen:
ID - the controlled parameter identifier
For Western Digital drives the identifier numbers correspond to the following parameters:
ID Controlled parameter
1 Read Error Rate
4 Start/Stop Count
5 Relocated Sector Count
10 Spin up Retry Count
11 Drive Calibration Retry Count
199 ULTRA DMA CRC Error Rate
200 Multi-zone Error Rate
For Fujitsu drives the identifier numbers correspond to the following parameters:
ID Controlled parameter
1 Read Error Rate
2 Throughput performance
3 Spin up time
4 Number of times the spindle motor is activated
5 Number of alternative sectors
7 Seek error rate
8 Seek time performance
9 Power-on time
10 Number of retries made to activate the spindle motor
12 Number of power-on-power-off times
199 Ultra ATA CRC Error Rate
200 Write error rate
Attention! The same identifiers may correspond to different controlled parameters with different HDD manufacturers .
Attribute value - the attribute values may range from 1 to 253. Initially the attributes have maximum values. With subsequent wear or in case of pre-failure situations the values of reliability attributes decrease. Therefore, large values of the attributes mean low probability of drive malfunction while low attribute values mean low reliability of the drive and high probability of its malfunctions. The top values of reliability attributes are usually equal to 100 (IBM, Quantum, Fujitsu) or 253 (Samsung). However, there are exceptions, for example the first reliability attribute of WDAC34000, WDAC33100, and WDAC31600 models manufactured by Western Digital has the maximum value of 200, while the maximum value of the rest is 100.
Threshold value - the HDD developers determine thresholds for every reliability attribute. If at least one of the attribute values is lower than the corresponding threshold value, it means that the data kept in the drive is endangered. The composition and number of reliability attributes are determined by the manufacturers individually for each HDD type.
“Pre-failure/advisory” BIT - apart from the threshold value an additional parameter is determined for each attribute, and it also indicates the pre-failure drive status. Three states are possible for the drive, characterized by the Pre-failure/advisory BIT:
“Pre-failure/advisory” BIT = 0, the reliability attribute value is above the corresponding threshold value indicating good reliability resource of the drive;
“Pre-failure/advisory” BIT = 0, the reliability attribute value being less than the corresponding threshold value indicating low reliability resource of the drive;
“Pre-failure/advisory” BIT = 1, the reliability attribute value is less than the corresponding threshold value indicating pre-failure drive state.
Result - generalized result for each of the controlled parameters. It may have the following values:
OK - attribute value is higher than the corresponding threshold value;
! - attribute value is less than the corresponding threshold value. Pre-failure/advisory BIT = 0;
!!! - attribute value is less than the corresponding threshold value. Pre-failure/advisory BIT = 1.
If the drive does not support S.M.A.R.T. diagnostics, pressing the [SMART] key causes the drive to initiate the ABRT error and the following message appears on screen:
This drive does not support S.M.A.R.T.
2.5.3. Drive test
Drive test (HDA, PCB) - test mode for testing and repair of:
- read/write channel;
- positioning system;
- spindle motor and its controller chip.
The test information is displayed in the STATE line:
Ready/Busy - determines the drive state using the BSY bit of the state register;
CYL - the value of current (active) cylinder;
HEAD - the value of current (active) head;
ERRS - number of detected errors.
Keys purpose.
Pressing the keys of the right tester keypad (right keyboard keypad) causes execution of the following functions:
[Tran.] - drive translator test
[Step-] - positioning the magnetic heads one step further decreasing the current cylinder value;
[Step+] - positioning the magnetic heads one step further decreasing the current cylinder value;
[X->0] - drive recalibration, i.e. location of the heads over the zero cylinder;
[A<->B] - cyclic positioning between two given cylinders;
[RND] - random positioning between two given cylinders;
[Eras] - writing code 0000 to all sectors of the HDD;
[View] - viewing the contents of the drive sectors on screen;
[Wrt] - writing the selected code to current track;
[Hd] - switching (selection) of magnetic heads;
[T] - measuring the magnetic disk rotation period (ms) and the rotation speed (rev/s) of the disks.
Positioning over given cylinder - positioning over a small number of cylinders can be conveniently performed with the help of [Step+] and [Step-] keys. When positioning over large number of cylinders is required, it is necessary to press the [X->A] key - a screen prompt will appear asking you for the number of cylinder A, over which the heads will be positioned. When the value input is complete, press the [Enter] key. If a symbol has been entered incorrectly, you can delete it by pressing backspace key.
Positioning between two given cylinders - for cyclic positioning between two given cylinders the [A<->B] key should be pressed. A screen prompt will appear inviting you to enter the numbers of cylinders A and B, between which the heads will be positioned. After inputting the values and pressing the [Enter] key the drive will start positioning the heads between two selected cylinders non-stop. The positioning procedure can be interrupted by pressing the [Cancel] key or the [Exit] key with subsequent exit from the test mode. For heads positioning between two random cylinders the [RND] key should be pressed. The value input for the first and the last cylinders is performed similarly to cyclic positioning mode.
Write - pressing the [Wrt] key brings the write code selection menu:
Write code:
0000
FFFF
5555
AAAA
6DB6
9999
After selection of the code for writing press the [Enter] key. Write operation will be performed on all sectors of the current track in the drive.
Attention! Writing over the selected track will destroy the user data.
Viewing the sector contents - after pressing [View] key you’ll have to enter the number of the starting cylinder, head and sector. Than the dump of that sector will appear on screen, the [Up] and [Down] keys will allow you to see previous or the following sectors. You can leave the sector view mode be pressing the [Cancel] or [Exit] keys with subsequent exit to the main menu.
Erase - pressing the [Eras] key will cause the following message to appear:
Are you sure?
Press [Enter] or [Cancel]
After pressing [Enter] the drive will be recalibrated and writing the null value will be started beginning with the zero cylinder and the zero head. The erasure procedure can be interrupted by pressing [Cancel] or [Exit] key with subsequent exit to the main menu.
Attention! Erasing will destroy the user data.
Drive translator test - after pressing the [Tran] key you’ll have to enter the starting and ending cylinders of the tested zone. The test is performed in two passes: the first pass writes to each of the sector its corresponding number while the second reads the written number and compares it with the calculated number. If the numbers do not match, an error is reported.
Attention! Translator test will destroy the user data.
Measuring the rotation period and rotation speed for magnetic disks - when [T] key is pressed, the following message appears:
Index xx,xx ms
Rotations yyyy RPM
where xx,xx is the rotation period of the magnetic disks in milliseconds and yyyy is the rotation speed in rev/min. The testing mode can be interrupted by pressing the [Cancel] or [Exit] keys with subsequent exit to the main menu. Several IDE drives do not form the INDEX signal. It is impossible to measure the rotation period and disks rotation speed in such drives and the tester display remains empty after pressing the [T] key.
“LBA mode” The current LBA sector is displayed in the STATE line in LBA mode instead of the CYL and HEAD parameters. Instead of [Hd] key for switching the magnetic heads, the [Ver.] key appears - which means the current LBA sector verification. All the positioning modes are used for positioning not between the cylinders but between LBA sectors.
2.5.4. Controller test
Controller test (PCB) - test mode for test and repair of:
- ATA interface controller;
- MCU;
- Read/write channel;
- buffer RAM.
Test mode menu:
CONTROLLER TEST
Cyclic reading state register
Sector buffer test
Cyclic writing to a sector
Cyclic reading of a sector
IRQ test
Drive self-diagnostics
Drive reset
Exit
Cyclic reading state register - this test is meant for checking the HOST - the HDD microcontroller bus in cases when the drive does not respond to the incoming commands, erroneously interprets the commands or if the HDD is “busy” all the time - the BSY bit of the state register is active all the time. During testing a short reading cycle is performed over the state register, the malfunction search is performed with the help of an oscilloscope. The cycle is interrupted by the keyboard press.
When the test is started, the following message appears on the tester display:
The state register read cycle
is performed
During the test execution the state register and error register LEDs are inactive. You can interrupt the test by pressing any key on the tester keyboard or the [Exit] key with subsequent exit to the main menu.
IRQ test - the test is meant for checking the interrupt request via the 31 pin of IDE connector of the drive.
Attention! IRQ12 should be unoccupied in the controlling computer in order to perform the test, otherwise the test will result in an error.
Sector buffer test - the test is meant for checking the inner HDD data bus, all the bus drivers located on that bus, inner bus of a ATA interface controller and the sector buffer area - buffer RAM MC (limited access). The test program executes the commands “write buffer” and “read buffer”. First the codes FF, FE, FD, FB, and F7…. (streaming zero) and the codes 00, 01, 02, 04, 08, 10… (streaming one) are written to the sector buffer, with subsequent reading the sector buffer and comparison with the written data.
When the test is started the following message appears:
Sector buffer test is being performed
If no errors were detected during the test, the testing procedure ends with the following message:
Sector buffer test
No errors
Test complete
If an error was detected during testing, the test will end with a message of the following type:
Sector buffer test
ERROR
Code written:0000000000000000
Code read: 0000000011111111
Test complete
Attention! Old models of SAMSUNG and KALOK (XEBEC) HDDs are somewhat different from the ATA standard. When sector buffer test is performed on such drives, an error is reported.
Cyclic writing to a sector - the test is meant for checking the HDD write channel, and write pre-compensation circuit. A short 0000H code write cycle is performed on an HDD sector during testing. The malfunction search is performed with the help of an oscilloscope.
Attention! Writing to the selected sector will destroy the user data.
When the test is started the following message appears on the tester display:
Cyclic writing to a sector
In response you should enter the cylinder number, head number and sector number, where the data should be written. The said cylinder, head and sector numbers are entered according to the formula:
Cylinder: 0 - (N - 1)
Head: 0 - (M - 1)
Sector: 1- K
Where N, M, and K stand for the number of cylinders, heads and HDD sectors respectively.
“LBA mode” In LBA mode in response you should enter the number of LBA sector, to which the data should be written.
When the input is complete, press the [Enter] key - the test will start.
Cyclic writing to a sector
Cylinder: XXXX
Head: X
Sector: XX
Running
Cyclic reading of a sector - the test is meant for checking the reading HDD channel, data separator and idle clock pulse. A short HDD sector read cycle is performed during the test. The malfunction search is performed with the help of an oscilloscope. When the test is started the following message appears on the tester display:
Cyclic reading of a sector
In response you should enter the cylinder number, head number and number of the sector, the data from which will be read. The said cylinder, head and sector numbers are entered according to the formula:
Cylinder: 0 - (N - 1)
Head: 0 - (M - 1)
Sector: 1- K
Where N, M, and K stand for the number of cylinders, heads and HDD sectors respectively.
“LBA mode” In LBA mode in response you should enter the number of LBA sector, from which the data should be read.
When the input is complete, press the [Enter] key - the test will start.
Cyclic reading of a sector
Cylinder: XXXX
Head: X
Sector: XX
Running
HDD self-diagnostics - when this test is started, the 90H command “HDD self-diagnostics” is executed, checking:
- MPU;
- CRC driver circuit;
- Buffer RAM (full access);
- ATA interface controller.
When the test is started the following message appears on the tester display:
HDD self-diagnostics
Running
If no errors were detected during testing the test completes with the message of the following type:
HDD self-diagnostics
Completion code: 01
No errors detected
If an error was detected during testing, the test will end with a message of the following type:
HDD self-diagnostics
Completion code: 03
Buffer RAM error
HDD self-diagnostics completion codes:
01 - no errors detected;
02 - microcontroller error;
03 - buffer RAM error;
04 - CRC driver circuit error;
05 - controlling microprocessor error;
8X - the drive is defective.
HDD reset - meant for resetting the “hanging” drives, during the initiation of which the following is performed:
- hardware HDD reset;
- initialization;
- recalibration.
During resetting procedure the RESET interface signal with the 500 mcs duration is sent , after which the initialization and recalibration command is executed. Execution of an HDD reset procedure is followed with the messages about the reset, initialization and recalibration:
HDD reset
HDD reset
HDD initialization
HDD recalibration
Reset complete
2.5.5. Complex test
Complex test - test mode for input/output type control of the drive.
The following tests are sequentially performed during complex testing:
- controller test
- IRQ test
- Sector buffer test
- Recalibration test
- Format check;
- Random reading;
- Surface scanning.
The testing information appears on the tester display, in the STATUS line and the state register and error register LED-s. The STATUS line contains:
Ready/Busy - determines the drive status using the BSY bit of the state register;
DONE - the current test execution duration in % (appears when long tests are performed)
CYL - current (active) cylinder value;
HEAD - current (active) head value;
ERRS - current number of drive errors detected during each test.
“LBA mode” The current LBA sector is displayed in the STATE line in LBA mode instead of the CYL and HEAD parameters.
The tests are selected from the main “TESTING MODE SELECTION” menu, with the following message appearing on the tester display:
ATTENTION!
Testing will destroy
your data
start cylinder: X
end cylinder: XXXX
do write test: Yes
press [Enter] or [Cancel]
By default the starting and ending test cylinders correspond to the zero and the maximum HDD cylinders.
“LBA mode” You have to enter the starting and ending LBA sectors for testing in LBA mode. By default the starting and ending test LBA sectors correspond to the zero and the maximum LBA sectors of the drive.
Attention! The user data kept on HDD will be destroyed by the last test “SURFACE SCANNING”. In order to cancel writing in the “SURFACE SCANNING” test highlight the “do write test” line and press the “N” key. Otherwise, to turn on writing in the “SURFACE SCANNING” test highlight the “do write test” line and press the “Y” key.
As the testing procedures from the “COMPLEX TEST” go on, the evaluation of their results - PASS or FAIL - appears on the tester display near the name of each test. The mark “running” appears near the name of the test, which is executed at the moment. The COMPLEX TEST can be interrupted by pressing the [Enter], [Cancel] or [Exit] keys, which bring the “OPERATOR INTERRUPT” menu on-screen. The menu allows you to:
- continue testing from the place where it was stopped;
- skip current test;
- skip all tests and finish testing.
When the testing is complete a sound signal is heard and the message appears on the tester screen:
Test complete, press [Enter]
Simultaneously with the test completion an XXXXXXX.DAT text file is created in the DAT sub-directory, where XXXXXXX is the number read from the drive. The file contains test results, this information also appears on the computer screen after pressing the [Enter] key. The results listing contains the information about the type and parameters of the drive being tested, test date and time. It also includes the results of all tests with the PASS or FAIL evaluation and the number of detected errors during each test (ERRS). Each detected error is followed with the value of the state register and the error register at the moment of its detection. Total evaluation of the test results is given in the end of the listing: test interrupted, PASS, FAIL. The FAIL evaluation is given if at least one error was detected during the test process. This is caused by the fact that IDE HDDs have a defects relocation capacity and a completely functioning drive should contain no defects. The listing can be viewed with the help of [Up] and [Down] keys.
If errors were detected during the “Surface scanning” test, the following menu will appear after viewing the test results:
SELECT ACTION
Do not relocate defects
Relocate detected defects
[ESC] - exit
If “Relocate detected defects” is selected - the procedure assign for defects relocation is performed for all defective sectors. If [ESC] is pressed or other menu item selected, the defects are not relocated.
“LBA mode” LBA mode allows to hide not only the defects detected during the “Surface scanning” test, but also during the “Format check” and “Random read”.
2.5.5.1. HDD tests making up the “COMPLEX TEST”
Controller test - when this test is started, the 90H command “HDD self-diagnostics” is executed. If the HDD does not pass the controller test, the FAIL message appears and the completion code is written to the results listing (see completion codes for HDD self-diagnostics in “Controller test” mode).
IRQ test - the test is meant for checking the interrupt request via the 31 pin of IDE connector of the drive.
Attention! IRQ12 should be unoccupied in the controlling PC in order to perform the test, otherwise the test will result in an error.
Sector buffer test - the test is meant for checking the inner HDD data bus, all the bus drivers located on that bus, inner bus of a ATA interface controller and the sector buffer area - buffer RAM MC (limited access). The test algorithm is described in detail in the “CONTROLLER TEST” mode description. After test completion, if an error has been detected, the FAIL message appears on the screen and the written and read codes are included into the results listing.
Code written:0000000000000000
Code read: 0000000011111111
Attention! Old models of SAMSUNG and KALOK (XEBEC) HDD-s are somewhat different from the ATA standard. When sector buffer test is performed on such drives, an error is reported.
Recalibration test - when this test is invoked, the 10H recalibration command1 is executed. After test completion, if an error has been detected, the FAIL message appears on the screen and the state register and error register values are written to the results listing.
Format check - the test is meant for checking the low-level format of IDE drives. When the test is running, the test duration time DONE in %, current active head number (HEAD) and the active cylinder (CYL) are displayed in the STATE line as well as the current number of errors detected during testing. The information displayed by the state LED-s and the error register allows to judge about the causes of the errors detected during format check. After test completion a table of detected errors is created. The table lines contain the information about the cylinder and head number of detected error, as well as the value of state register (status) and the error register (error) at the moment of error detection. The table may contain up to 50 lines. The total number of detected errors is shown in the test results listing after the errors table.
“LBA mode” In LBA mode the lines of the detected errors table instead of the cylinder and head number contains the number of BAD LBA sector. The data of the defective sectors are used for the defects relocation procedure after the format check test.
Random read - the test is meant for checking the positioning system. When the test is running, the cylinder number is selected randomly in the range from 0 to the end cylinder. The head number is selected in a cycle. The number of positioning procedures is equal to the total number of HDD cylinders. During the test the current number of the active head (HEAD) and the active cylinder (CYL) are displayed in the STATUS line as well as the current number of errors (ERRS) detected during the test. Upon the test completion a table of detected error is compiled similar to the errors table of format check. The table may contain up to 50 lines. The total number of detected errors is shown in the test results listing after the errors table.
“LBA mode” In LBA mode the LBA sector number is selected randomly in the range from 0 to maximum. The number of positioning procedures is 1000. The lines of the detected errors table instead of the cylinder and head number contains the number of BAD LBA sector. The data of the defective sectors are used for the defects relocation procedure after the format check test.
Surface scanning - the test is meant for sector-by-sector scanning of the data fields of HDD format. During the test 6DB6H code is written to each sector of the track with subsequent reading and comparison of the written and read information. If write has been switched off during selection of settings for the complex test, only reading will be performed without data comparison. When the written and the read codes do not match, an error code FFH is written to the test results listing. During the test the current number of the active head (HEAD) and the active cylinder (CYL) are displayed in the STATUS line as well as the current number of errors (ERRS) detected during the test. The information displayed by the state LEDs and the error register allows to judge about the causes of the errors detected during format check. After test completion a table of detected errors is created. The table lines contain the information about the cylinder and head number of detected error, as well as the value of state register (status) and the error register (error) at the moment of error detection. The table may contain up to 150 lines. The total number of detected errors is shown in the test results listing after the errors table. The data of the defective sectors are used for the defects relocation procedure after the format check test.
“LBA mode” In LBA mode the lines of the detected errors table instead of the cylinder and head number contains the number of BAD LBA sector. The data of the defective sectors are used for the defects relocation procedure after the format check test.
2.5.6. Defects relocation
This mode is designed for relocation and hiding of defecting BAD sectors with the drives that support the assign mode. Defects relocation can be performed in the automatic surface scanning mode or when the parameters of the BAD sector are input manually.
Defects relocation is impossible in the following cases:
- the drive does not support the assign mode (usually here belong early HDD models with the capacity less than 170 MB, some Fujitsu and Samsung drives and some others);
- the detected error is connected with corrupted servo or a defect in the sector identification area (IDNF is active in the error register);
- the area of the drive reserved for defects relocation by the assign method is full.
Attention! If all the defects cannot be relocated, than you have to use the special utility of the PC-3000 complex designed for that drive model.
When the defects relocation mode is invoked, the following menu appears:
Automatic relocation
Manual relocation
Undo relocation
Automatic relocation - surface scanning is performed within set limits. Detected defects are relocated.
Manual relocation - manual defects input into a table with subsequent relocation.
Undo relocation - automatic surface scanning within set limits with automatic unassigning of the defective sectors.
2.5.6.1. Automatic relocation
After the start of the procedure it is necessary to enter the scanning limits and the number of passes. During scanning a sequential format check is performed, when an error is detected the tester relocated the BAD sector.
Defects scanning is accompanied by the following message on the tester display:
Defects relocation procedure running….
The defects relocation procedure can be interrupted by pressing the [Enter], [Cancel] or [Exit] keys, the menu “OPERATOR INTERRUPT” appears on tester display when this happens. It allows you to:
- continue the defects relocation procedure;
- finish the defects relocation procedure.
When the defects are relocated user’s data does not get destroyed except for the data in the BAD sectors.
The information about defects relocation appears in the STATUS line:
CYL - current (active) cylinder value;
HEAD - current (active) head value;
ERRS - current number of drive errors, which cannot be relocated with the help of assign procedure.
It is recommended to repeat the defects relocation procedure several times, with subsequent complex test for detection of unassigned defects.
“LBA mode” The LBA sector number is displayed in LBA mode instead of CYL and HEAD parameters.
2.5.6.2. Manual relocation
Defective sectors can be relocated by manual input of their following parameters: CYL, HEAD, SEC - in the CHS mode and the defective LBA sectors number in LBA mode.
Attention! If the defective sector search is made not with the help of PC-3000AT attention should be paid to correspondence between the drive parameters during the initialization and drive parameters in the MODEL line of the PC-3000AT tester
2.5.6.3. Relocation undo
After the start of the relocation undo procedure (unassign) you have to enter the scanning limits. Defects scanning is followed by the following message on the tester display:
Defects relocation undo
The STATE line shows the test duration time DONE in %, CYL - the current (active) cylinder value; HEAD - the current (active) head value; ERRS - number of errors detected during scanning.
The defects undo relocation procedure can be interrupted by pressing the [Enter], [Cancel] or [Exit] keys, the menu “OPERATOR INTERRUPT” appears on tester display when this happens. It allows you to:
- continue the defects relocation undo procedure;
- finish the defects relocation undo procedure.
When the relocation undo procedure is complete a signal is heard.
“LBA mode” The LBA sector number is displayed in LBA mode instead of CYL and HEAD parameters.
2.5.7. Formatting
The mode is meant for correct restoration of low-level format of IDE drives with the help of 50H command - track formatting. When the formatting procedure is started, a sequential format check is performed, if an error is detected, the tester attempts to reformat the corresponding track with subsequent testing. The reformatting procedure is repeated several times with the help of different formatting algorithms. If reformatting was unsuccessful, the corresponding track is marked as BAD. During the formatting mode selection the following message appears:
ATTENTION!
Formatting will destroy the data
press [Enter] or [Cancel]
The test information is displayed in the STATE line:
Ready/Busy - determines the drive state using the BSY bit of the state register;
CYL - the value of current (active) cylinder;
HEAD - the value of current (active) head;
ERRS - current number of errors detected during formatting.
“LBA mode” The LBA sector number is displayed in LBA mode instead of CYL and HEAD parameters.
Attention! Most HDD models cannot be formatted by using that formatting procedure. Their formatting is performed in factory mode with the help of additional software utilities and adapters (see description of PC-3000 complex utilities).
The formatting procedure is followed with the following message on the tester display:
The drive is being formatted
The formatting procedure can be interrupted by pressing the [Enter], [Cancel] or [Exit] keys, the menu “OPERATOR INTERRUPT” appears on tester display when this happens. It allows you to:
- continue the formatting procedure;
- finish the formatting procedure.
When the formatting procedure is complete a signal is heard and the following message appears on the tester display:
Formatting complete
press [Enter]
3. PC-3000 SHELL
The PC-SHELL software is designed for more convenient work with the PC-3000 complex. When PC-3000 SHELL is started, a table of drive manufacturing firms and corresponding PC-3000 utilities appears on the screen. The first line in the table is occupied by the UNIVERSAL UTILITIES, PC-3000AT and PC-DEFECTOSCOPE utilities correspond to that entry. Window switching is performed with the help of [Enter] or [Tab] keys - utility selection and start - and the [Esc] key - for going back and exit from PC-3000 SHELL. When a utility is selected, a list of supported drives appears on screen, pressing [Enter] starts the selected utility.
The PC-3000 complex version is indicated in the PC-3000 SHELL title as follows:
PC-3000 Shell Ver.X.XX
where X.XX is the current version of the PC-3000 complex.
shell.exe - starting shell program, always resident in memory;
sh_main.pgm - the main program shell part, unloads from the memory when utilities are started;
shell.cfg - configuration file.
4. PC-DEFECTOSCOPE Ver. 2.10
4.1. Purpose
PC-DEFECTOSCOPE utility is designed for detection and relocation of “unstable sectors” in any IDE HDD that support the assign defects relocation method, the test results can be output to a file with subsequent defective sectors relocation with a specialized utility for the drive (for example, Fujitsu or Western Digital utilities). The “unstable sectors” are those, the read (write) time for which is considerably greater than the average read (write) time for the disk. As a rule, “unstable sectors” appear in those locations, when the defect does not show always or where the defect is connected with a corrupt servo. The test is performed using logical parameters in LCHS or LBA.
4.2. Preparation for work
1. Connect the PC-3000AT tester cable to IDE drive connector.
2. Connect power supply to the drive.
3. Start the pcdfscop.exe utility.
4.3. Work with PC-Defectoscope
The method for detecting unstable sectors can be split into two stages:
a) Detection of unstable tracks;
b) Detection of unstable sectors in the discovered unstable tracks.
When the utility starts you have to select the addressing mode:
LBA addressing
CHS addressing
The mode of drive testing depends upon that choice. It should be kept in mind that early models having the capacity up to 500-850 Mb do not support LBA addressing, while CHS addressing allows you to test drives with the capacity not greater than 8,4 Gb. The output data file (*.dft) format also depends upon the CHS/LBA mode selection. Therefore all those factors should be considered during subsequent relocation of unstable sectors with specialized utilities. For example, the utilities designed for old WD model work with *.dft files in CHS only, the new ones function in LBA only, while Fujitsu drives support both those formats.
Then the following warning appears on screen:
Threshold index (2-9) 3
Dynamic threshold No
Starting cylinder 0
Ending cylinder XXXX
Number of verification passes 1
Turn off the cache Yes
Perform writing No
[Enter] -continue [Esc] - cancel
where:
the threshold index is a number from two to five, which determines the time limit, after which the cylinder glitches will be considered as defects. Before the start of testing procedure an average cylinder or LBA block access time is measured (an LBA block contains 256 sectors). The obtained time is multiplied by the threshold index and is viewed as critical. It is shown in blue color in the graph;
dynamic threshold - the threshold value is determined by constant recalculation of the average value between the average access time for the whole drive and the average access time for the previous cylinder (or previous LBA block).
Starting and ending cylinders - these determine the test limits;
Number of verification passes - setting several passes helps to detect less frequent unstable cylinders, which are not detected at every pass;
Turn off the cache - allows to turn of the drive’s cache. Testing gets slower when this option is used, but the results are more error-free. The cache should always be turned off, if relocation of unstable sectors is required. If you have just to evaluate the drive status without loading the defects, you can turn on the CACHE to increase testing speed.
Mode switching Yes/No is performed with the [Y] - yes and [N] - no keys or with the [Space] key.
4.4. Performing tests
When all the necessary input parameters are entered, pressing the [Enter] key starts the “TRACK TIME VERIFICATION TEST”. Before the test begins, the average track verification time for the drive is determined; for that purpose the track verification time is measured for the start, the end and the middle of the HDD working area. Those values serve as the basis for calculation of the medium verification value (it is shown in red color in the graph). The track is considered defective (unstable) if its verification time is by X times greater than the average calculated verification time, where X is the input threshold index.
During the test a graph is built showing the track verification time for the whole working area of the drive (shown in blue in the graph). If an error is detected during the verification of a track, such track will be marked in yellow color in the graph. After the track verification time test completion a table with the numbers of all unstable tracks is output to the screen.
One more pressing [Enter] starts the “Sector access time test”. When this test is executed, verification, read and (if the corresponding option is turned on in the test start menu) write time for each sector of unstable tracks detected in the previous test is performed with graph creation. Sector read errors are shown in yellow color in the graph. After the test completion you can repeat it using the [R], [A], and [L] keys or proceed to the critical time value selection. The repeat keys have the following functions:
[R] - repeat function, allows to repeat the sector access test with a dump of all previous results;
[A] - repeat function with accumulation, allows to repeat the sector access test with the accumulation of the data from the previous tests;
[L] cyclic repetition function with data accumulation.
The cyclic repetition is interrupted with the [Esc] key. Then you have to select the critical time value, which will be used for the determination of defective sectors. This is done by the [Up Arrow] and [Down Arrow] keys, which allow to move the red line up and down, selecting the required critical time level and the number of defective sectors, indicated in the upper right corner of the screen. The more blue glitches cross the critical time red line, the greater number of sectors will be included into the defects table. During the choice you have to stick to the reserved area size and remember that this program is designed, first of all, for detection and relocation of hardly detectable defects and not for the relocation of all defects in a row. Otherwise the reserved drive area will be quickly filled up.
Pressing the [Enter] key will move all the sectors, which were read with errors as well as those, which had reading time greater than the critical value, to a table. The table can be accepted by pressing [Enter] or cancelled by pressing [Esc]. In the latter case you can repeat the optimal critical time selection. If it is necessary to save the results as text, press [F2]. If you accept the defects table, the following menu appears:
SELECT ACTION
Do not relocate defects
Relocate detected defects (assign)
Write defects to a binary file
[ESC] - exit
If the “Relocate detected defects” menu item is selected, the relocation procedure is performed with the assign method. If you select “Write defects to a binary file”, the defects table will be written to a .dft. file (* means the name entered by the user). If the first menu item is selected or [Esc] is pressed, you will exit the PC-Defectoscope utility.
4.5. PC-Defectoscope use for HDD repair
The PC-Defectoscope utility can be used for hiding the “floating defects” of Fujitsu and Western Digital drives.
For defects relocation in Fujitsu drives it is necessary to select the menu item “Write defects to a binary file” after performing the Defectoscope tests. All the defective sectors will be written to a *.dft file. After than you have to select in the corresponding Fujitsu utility the “Defects Table, Import Log of the Defects Table” menu items and load the defects to the PL table. After that you should perform the low-level formatting procedure.
You can use the method, described for Fujitsu drives in order to relocate defects in Western Digital drives or try using the assign mode - then after performing the Defectoscope tests you should select the “Relocate Detected Defects (Assign)” menu item. This procedure assigns all the defective sectors and includes them into the G-List table of a WD drive. After that you will have to select the menu items “Defects Table, Group into Tracks” in the corresponding WD utility and group the defects into tracks, if they contain 5 or more defective sectors. Then it is recommended to move the G-List in the utility to the P-List and perform low-level formatting taking into account the P-List.
4.6. Exported defects file structure
The defects file (containing the defects exported by the PC-Defectoscope program) consists of the header and the following data proper:
The header format is indicated in Table 4.6.1
Table 4.6.1
Field name Length, bytes
Data format version Current version - 0. In future the data format may change, which will cause an increase of the version number 2
Defects type: 1 - LBA, 0-CHS (Boolean value) 1
Data area length in bytes 4
Reserved area 60
The data area format depends upon the type of defects (CHS or LBA)
It is shown in the following table 4.6.2. for LBA defects:
Table 4.6.2. Data area structure for LBA defects.
Field name Length, bytes
Defect entries array 4000* (size of defect entry)
Number of defect entries in the array 2
Reserved area 256
The defect entry itself has the following format (table 4.6.3.):
Table 4.6.3. Defect entry structure
Field name Length, bytes
LBA 4
Defect length (number of defective sectors, beginning with the position in the LBA field) 4
Error code (returned by the drive) 1
CHS defects have the following data area format (table 4.6.4.):
Table 4.6.4.
Field name Length, bytes
Defect entries array 7000* (defect entry size)
Number of defect entries in the array 2
The table filling attributed (Boolean value) It means that the array of entries is full. 1
The CHS defect entry itself has the following format(table 4.6.5.):
Table 4.6.5.
Field name Length, bytes
Cyl 2
Head 1
Sec 1
Error code (returned by the drive) 1
