SMART Test Failure

I have a WD Caviar Blue / SE / SE16 (SATA II) internal hard drive (Model number: WDC WD3200AAJS-00VWA0)

I have run PC Help Tools’ Hardware Diagnostic, Western Digital’s Data Lifeguard, and Advanced System Care to check this hard drive. And I am getting a failure message on all these tests.

When I run PC Help Tools, I get error code of HD 521-2W when I ran a SMART short self-test.

When I run Western Digital’s Data Lifeguard Quick Test, I get the following error message: “Quick Test on drive 1 did not complete. Status Code=07 (Failed read test element, Failure Checkpoint =65 (Error Log Test). SMART self-test did not complete on drive 1.”

My questions are:

 

- Is this a serious problem, or something that is minor in nature?

 

- And would it cause problems with Windows locking up and system restore points disappearing after the PC boots up?

 

I’m having problems with my desktop computer freezing up. It happens during normal usage like surfing the internet (IE Explorer or Firefox) or using applications like MS Word. The screen freezes up and will not respond to any commands, including when I press CTRL-ALT-DELETE. Sometimes, the screen even goes black (not blue screen), as if the monitor is shut off.

I thus have to shut down the computer by pressing the power button on the PC. The computer reboots and goes through Check Disk before I can get into Windows. 

 

This problem only happens intermittently, often when I am multitasking between open windows. And it occurs in both normal Windows and Safe Mode (with networking).

 

I tried to use System Restore, but strangely found that all the previous system restore points were gone, even though I am pretty sure that this function was on. I created a system restore point after these problems started a few days ago, and discovered that even this restore point would disappear after rebooting the PC.

 

My PC:

HP Media Center m8120n desktop.

2.4 Ghz Quad Core CPU.  3 GB RAM.

Windows Vista Home Premium, SP2, 32-bit

Hello

If your drive is under warranty, I’ll suggest you to contact WD for replacement. This unit is about to fail soon. You can do so either by phone or email.

To Contact WD for Technical Support
http://support.wdc.com/contact/index.asp?lang=en