The IDE Hardisk

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Integrated Drive Electronics (IDE) hard disks have been around for quite a few years.  Prior to these drives, hard disks were interfaced to a PC motherboard via an extension board known as a hard disk controller.  The drive did most of the mechanical stuff and performed essential electronic/servo functions; the controller told it in detail what to do.  The development of the IDE hard moved most of the electronics and firmware (low-level software on a chip) from the controller to a printed circuit board on the drive itself.  In the process, a buffer/cache’ memory was added to the electronics to speed-up the process of reading and writing hard disk drive data.  The drive got “smarter.”  Overall costs went down and performance went up.
A much simpler board, usually identified as an IDE Controller, interfaced the IDE hard disk to the motherboard bus.  The term IDE Controller is a misnomer.  It is really nothing more than a bus interface and an interface and connector for the IDE cable going to the drive.  The actual controller is on the drive.  

Formatting Hard Drive Myths part 5

It is true that formatting will eliminate the bad sectors and will be replace with good sector on the spare section that part of every hard disk. But the performance will suffer because the heads will seek on the spare section in replacements of bad sectors. Bad sectors are signs of bad hard disk. Basically, it means that there something wrong with the hard disk. Bad sectors create debris on the platter and can cause to damage the hard drive.

Additionally, spare sectors are limited on any hard drive. Then once the hard disk runs out of spare sectors, formatting can not replace those bad sectors.

Formatting Hard Drive Myths part 4

There is a myth that bad sectors can be repaired once it was reformatted. A bad sector is an area where the hard disk cannot be written nor read properly. It may due to program-related problems that result in a logical bad sector. Bad sectors that are software related can be restores by formatting using any logical repair utility.

But in case the problem is due to eroded media or the hardware is directly damaged. Such physical bad sectors can no longer be repaired using any logical repair utility and formatting it will not restore them. Formatting them, however, can replace those bad sectors with spare sectors.

Hard Drive Myths part 3

The truth is current design of hard disk’s head actuators are not power-driven by any motor. Previous design of the head actuators are actually powered by a stepper motor. But currently head actuators use the voice coil instrument that uses electromagnetic power to stir the heads. In short, head actuators don’t have a motor to fail and not powered by any mechanical motor.

In addition, take note that head actuators’ automatically when there are power cuts meaning it is not an active process. Head actuator uses spring to park itself. The spring retracts the actuators when the power is cut while it moved against the spring tension when active.

Hard Drive Myths part 2

Bad sectors of the hard disk will not cause by insufficient power of power cuts. The head actuators automatically park the heads on every occasion there is power cuts so that the platters won’t crashed to head actuators. There is no way that power cuts will cause your hard disk bad sectors but having a bad power supply can fail your hard drive because it will surge the circuit board of it and may fry the motor.

A cheap power supplies do not kill hard drive even slowly killing it. That is a myth. Like any other power supply, when it send and surge the hard disk the disk will be instantly kill.

Hard Drive Myths part 1

One sign of the hard disk’s calibration process is the spin-up and spin –down events. The hard disk recalibrates itself to balance the changes in temperature which is also adjusting the position of data on the platter surface and when the hard disk can not scan the data properly. As a result, if the hard disk recalibrates a lot it might be a symptom of a failing hard disk.

However, take note that there is hard disk that programmed to saves power. In order to saves power the hard disk spin down and when there’s work to be done that’s the time to spin-up again.

Formatting Hard Drive Myths part 3

Anytime bad sectors of the hard drive will suddenly appear whether you just plain using the hard drive or formatting it. The number of bad sectors is definitely will increase as the time goes by.

This myth has some truth in it though. After formatting bad sectors are probably noticeable. This happen because in formatting in formatting the hard drive utility looks for the “new”You will probably notice more bad sectors after formatting. Consequently bad sectors are already there and what happen was revealing them.

So, in a failing hard disk the number of the bad sectors will not increase when you format it. Bad sectors are being revealed in doing so.

Deframenting Hard Drive Myths part 1

Stressing the needle because of defragmenting has some truth in it, though gone astray. Defragmenting the hard disk might require a lot of searching and looking as the hard drive reorganizes its data in a contiguous style. Defragmenting lets the read-and-write heads to scan huge amounts of data without searching over the platters.

On the other hand, right after defragmentation, the hard disk is no longer required to search for all the platters for your data. In this way it lowers the amount of head actuator actions as well as intensely increases the performance of the hard drive. For that reason and technically, defragmenting the hard drive will reduce the workload of the head actuator.

Formtting Hard Drive Myths part 2

Formatting the hard drive will not deposit any layer of “any material” on the platter. The heads of the hard disk do not touch the platter so it is impossible for them leave anything on the surface of the platter.

Additionally, the hard disk is constructed in a sealed environment inside a clean room conditions. There is very a tiny little amount of dust inside the hard disk. Since there is dust formatting doesn’t really put anything on the platter. Platters are continuously spinning, done in a serial order, anything would not be able to itself on the platter to create bad sector.

SyQuest Technology, Inc.

SyQuest Technology, Inc. abbreviated as SYQT Inc was known in making removable hard disk for personal computers. Syed Iftikar started the company back in 1982. It was name in some extent to him, short for Sy’s Quest. SYQT first product were 3.9” detachable hard disk. SyQuest products aim to give personal computer users non-stop storage for data-driven applications like desktop publishing, Internet information management, multimedia, audio, video, digital photography, fast backup, data exchange, and archiving. Nonetheless, they can not capture their target market

Between 1995 and 1997 their sales have been dropping down. It was for the reason that their products have quality issue. Later in 1998 the company filed for bankruptcy.