Hard Disk problem - Uncorrectable data error or media is write protected

Question

Hi,   I got a KERNEL_IN_PAGE_ERROR Blue Screen of Death some two weeks agoand again today while running a clean-up of on the HD, only when I rebooted today, I also got this message at startup :   Windows could not start because  the following file is missing or corrupt: \system32\hal.dll Please re-install a copy of the above file.   So when I went to reboot from CD (i.e. Insert WinXP CD, F12 -> Onboard or USB CD-ROM Drive), system does configuration checks, and go the the Windows setup menu.  When the option to reinstall XP, repair or quit comes up, I choose Repair but nothing happens at all. Same for F3 to quit. I ran Hard Drive Diagnostics from the Boot Device menu and only the CD Rom and DVD drives are found. In Boot to Utility Partion, I ran Cannot Boot the OS tests from the Symtom Tree.  The following tests failed:   SATA Disk S/N- Y45TVVFE  - Read Test SATA Disk S/N- Y45TVVFE  - Verify Test   ...with a number of the following error messages in each case (block number increments with each message).   Error code - 0F00:0244 Msg: Block 568905: Uncorrectable data error or media is write protected   I read around on the net and it looks like my HD is dead/dying.  Can I still get a back up of the files on this HD?   Why doesn't Repair work from Windows setup menu?   If I re-install WinXP will all my original files be erased? FYI, I am running WinXP SP2, Dell Dimension 8400.   regards, Brendan

ejn63 · Answer

You may still be able to save some files, but you will not get everything at this point.

You'll need to disconnect this drive, install a new one, rebuild the OS, and then reattach the old drive as a secondary. Copy what you can.

There is no point in trying to reinstall Windows to this drive - it's dying, and chances are the install will fail and leave you with a totally unreadable drive.

BGALL1976 · Answer

Thanks for that.  Just out of interest,do you know why the repair option wouldn't respond - have you heard of that type of thing happening before?   Thanks again.   Brendan

ejn63 · Answer

Yes; once bad sectors develop, the drive is on its way to complete failure.

Storage, Drives & Media

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