11-Cable Test::Write sector error!

WD1001FALS 1TG Black Caviar drive replaced a Samsung 250GB dated 2006.12.  Samsung was 7200rpm and worked fine, replaced for capacity.

Running Windows 7 pro 64-bit.

Data Lifeguard 1.17 release notes (  http://support.wdc.com/download/notes/WinDLG_v1_17_Release_Notes.pdf) include the following:  

New Features:

• Supports all Windows 7 32/64 bit versions, all Vista 32/64 bit versions and all Windows XP

32/64 bit versions

Motherboard is ASUS A8M2N-LA  w/ Award BIOS, GeForce 6150 LE chipset.  Not a VIA chipset.

Right-clicked to run DL, can see drives and start test, but test returns error already described.  Installed this drive yesterday.  If it is faulty, I need to know right away and return.  I tried different SATA cable and also switched SATA connection on motherboard, just in case.  No change.

Since WD has specifically reported that this version of DL is compatible with my Windows version, it appears that this hard drive is faulty after one day.

If no further information is available here within a day or two, I will return this drive.  Please, if someone has better info, save me this nuisance!

Just an off-the-wall question here . . .

I used the Acronis disk cloning software available from WD when I set up this drive.  It was really impressive, and I appreciate that it was available.  I’d tried to start with a different one, Drive Pro, and it could not see either of my drives I probably failed to ‘run as admin’ or something, but too late now!)

Any difference in success rates on cloned drives versus drives with fresh software installs?

Mine is cloned, GeForce 6150 chipset, AMD Athlon 64 X2 4400+.  I pulled the old drive (glad I cloned and didn’t migrate, since WD may be going back!), so this WD is the only drive in the system.  Initial partitions were set in Acronis for primary and recovery.  Used Win 7 Disk Manager to partition the unassigned space.

I have the same problem when i ran the data lifeguard diagnostics on a  Windows 7 -32 bit OS.The quick and extended test gave the same message. I tried with another cable ,still the same. I tried it on a different PC with Windiows Vista -32 bit and the drive passed the tests. I think it is a software compatibility with windows 7.

If you have Windows 7 platform and facing the same problem .Lemme know.

Class Action!  Class Action!

Someone is lying:

Version 1.17:

New Features:

32/64 bit versions

Supports all Windows 7 32/64 bit versions, all Vista 32/64 bit versions and all Windows XP

.

I got the same eroor as you did.  With the WD software.  It passed their general quick test(green check mark).  But when I tried to load the other test I received an immediate error.  Now, I can read the release notse as well as you can for Version 1.17.

However, I spoke to a WD digital rep the other day.  Although he had an accent he told me in absolute terms their software does not work for win7.  He told me I needed to use the dos version: download it, burn it(use something like Alch 120 - was his quote) then test it.  If you receive the same error then the drive is bad.

Comeon WD Win 7 has been out long enough. . .

Anyhow, I know someone has lied to me(and you).  I am not sure if this was their intention.  I know the patch notes say it works. . .   But, I know for sure less that 20 hours ago a WD tech support rep told me their software does not support win 7 - he told me this without skipping a beat.  Has WD addressed this issue anywhere else?

Anyone having BSOD?

My drive is less than a few months old.  I have read some pretty horrible stuff about WD.  However, I have used WD a lot and not had any issues.  I mean come on less than a year, less than 6 months even.  Just pushing the 90 day mark… Isnt that a smidgen obscene for my drive to break?

I already noted this on page 3.  DLG Diagnostics does work, but has an issue that is being fixed now. 

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I am using a wd3200AAJS (320GB 8MB sata2).

os: win7 pro x64

mobo: asus m4a785td-v evo

north: amd785g

south: amd710

lifeguard 1.17

I am getting the same test error code while trying to perform a quick or extended test. But smart test is ok. I am also having this problem while trying to boot lifeguard from a cd:

“Starting Caldera DOS”…

then 2 minutes or so later:

“Unable to locate the license agrement file, DLGLICE.TXT!!
Please make sure the license agrement is located in the same path as DLGDIAG.EXE”

Few minutes later:

“Cannot load the file A:\COMMAND.com”
Insert correct Disk and stike any key"

files on the CD:
DLGDIAG.TXT
DLGDIAG5.EXE
DLGLICE.TXT

IBMDOS.COM

I have tried 3 diffent burning programs and 2 different cd/dvd writers. So i am sure that the iso image is burned ok. I haven´t tried the floppy version because my mobo does not include a floppy controller on board.

Please WD!!!  The hdd is 2 weeks new. My pc keeps rebooting any time and showing blue screens. I know ram is ok. Already tried 3 different ddr3 modules and I get the same result. how can i be sure that the problem is on the hdd if  lifeguard 1.17 seems not to work on win7? Can your company do something? Or perhaps you want all of us to run win vista/xp/98 so your tool will work. In this case i have an idea. When selling a new hdd please include the following message: “Dear user, please don´t install win7 because our dianostic tool will NOT work” That will save our time.

As said before: win 7 wasn´t born yesterday…

This is probably going to be a terribly stupid question, but when burning the DLG Diagnostics ISO image to a CD, are you burning the ISO image straight to the CD?  Or, are you creating the CD from the ISO image?  Because if you are just burning the ISO image to the CD, it won’t work.  You have to use a burning software that gives you the option to create the CD from the ISO image.  Then it will see the software correctly.

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in other words, the writer software has to be (iso) image file aware to burn it properly - only then it works as expected.

that is correct! :slight_smile:

Exactly.  Looks like we’re on the same page.

Sorry, but have you already fixed the problem or are you still trying to solve it? (didn’t understand your post)

I downloaded version 1.17 for my MyBook Pro (250GB) and installed it on my Win7 32bit machine. Result: the same “cable test write sector error”.

The hint to use version 1.13 helped me! I’m performing now both tests… . The Quick test sounded terribly!! :dizzy_face: It sped up and up and i wasn’t sure if my MyBook would fly away or break down in the next few seconds, but it survived :wink: Really crazy!

But once again the question: is v.1.17 now compatible with Win7? Looking at the supported OS’s not:

Supported Operating Systems

  • Windows Vista (64-bit)
  • Windows Vista (32-bit)
  • Windows XP
  • Windows 2000
  • Windows ME
  • Windows 98SE

As far as i know version 1.17 has not been updated for use with Windows 7.  WD tech support said they would email me when they have an update or fix. Still waiting on that.

Win7 has been out for then to test for 2 years. What’s the hold up? They are about the bigest HD manufacturer and they don;t have cutomer level diagnostics working? If thier driver weren’t so good, this would be laughable. (nuke dukem 2?)

Hope they get this fixed soon, or sooner!  :frowning:

PS I have the samne problem and need to see if the drive is going bad. quick!!

Western Digital just released its Latest DLG Diagnostics version 1.21 update.

Data Lifeguard Diagnostic for Windows, Version 1.21
http://support.wdc.com/product/download.asp?groupid=609&sid=3&lang=en

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Confirmed to work on Windows 7. The bogus Cable Test error is gone.  I’m now getting the same error for the faulty drive as in Windows XP, as expected.

Now let’s see if Write Zeros has improved.

I am having the same problem that many users here describe: my computer seems to freeze up at random intervals, lasting anywhere from a split second up to ten or fifteen seconds. When I originally bought the drive, based on glowing reviews of the company and the recommendation from plenty of tech-heads, I decided that the issue was due to my vid card. I left it alone for months due to school and an impending trip out of the country. Upon returning home I completely changed every piece of hardware in the computer, except, of course, the WD harddrive a good friend emphatically recommended. I trusted the company until the day I assembled the ASUS P6T Deluxe V2 Motherboard,  Radeon HD 5870 Video Card, and Intel Core i7-920 Processor and installed Win 7 64-bit. I don’t know much about computers, really, but I know that 15+ techies have told me that with those specs, and 8 GB of ram, my computer should not be hiccuping while streaming video, watching downloaded video, or playing the oh-so intensive World of Warcraft (those graphics really strain the system, amirite?).

As another user has described, I have checked the system’s resource usage – the I/O Bytes spike like mad, watching Resource Monitor is like watching a rollercoaster. The disk I/O spikes from 0 to 136 to 0 to 136 over and over. The graph spends more time above the graphical upper-limit than it spends within it. The “% Highest Active Time” appears to be more “regular,” but I don’t know what regular is for this. At least this value does not spike off the chart more than once per minute while idling (or typing this).

I have upgraded to DLGDiag 1.21. I receive the infamous cable error. Based on the poor performance of this drive thus far I would never purchase another WD drive. If there is some solution to this problem – more importantly the drive’s hiccups, not so much the cable test error – I would be joyous. If it means I can type essays without having to rewrite entire clauses and/or sentences for the last few weeks of school before I have the time trash this thing and start over, that’d be great. Until then, anyone have a good replacement for the WD1001FALS Caviar Black 1 TB? I have to get started on the research early, apparently.

The update works for me on vista sp2, now passes cable test using mybook essential

I have downloaded version 1.21 and i’m getting Cable Test:: Read diagnostics sector error!

This is on a brand new WD6401AALS.  I have used multiple cables and different SATA ports to make sure it wasn’t an actual cable problem.  I plugged the drive in and upon trying to clone my old data to it, it was giving me issues.  The SMART failure says it’s re-allocated sector count ID 5, Value 42.  I have a failing windows partition that is in serious need of being replaced and to have a brand new drive come in and fail right away is not really that reassuring.  I also purchased two WD100FALS drives.  I hope this doesn’t happen with them as well.

My motherboard is an ASUS P6T Deluxe with the latest firmware.  The test works on all of my other drives.  I have a 5000AAKS, 5000KS, and a 1600YS (the dying drive).

I’m also using 1.21 and I’m getting the Cable Test::Write Sector error as well.  The drive appears to pass the SMART test upon loading the diagnotic but cannot proceed to do any Quick Test or Extended test because of the Cable Test error.  I can browse to the drive just fine and look at the files so its a bit frustrating.  This is a brand new drive but I want to give it a thorough test before using it for back up data.

I should have noted this in my first post, but I replicated the error in Windows 7 64-bit.  Plugging the same drive and cable into a Windows XP laptop, the tests started up just fine, no cable test::write sector error.   What is strange is that I have other Elements drives that I tested on the Windows 7 64-bit OS before and the diagnotics ran fine but are failing the cable test recently.

So there is definitely some capatibility issues here with the lifeguard software and windows and perhaps the USB chipset on the motherboard but the fact that I am able to read and write to the drive under Windows 7 64-bit leads me to believe the incompability is with Lifeguard and Windows 7.

For me, it was because the drive was “offline” according to the disk manager.  On the command line type “diskpart”, then:

DISKPART> san policy=onlineall

That fixed the cable test error for me.  That is probably the command state you want for a desktop or laptop anyway.  Obviously be very careful with the diskpart command.

GW