Hard drive was failing, did a format fix it?

[NineteenHundred]

A few days ago, my PC suddenly slowed to the point that it was essentially non-functional, and some research led me to believe my hard drive was dying. After reinstalling Windows to an old HD and frantically backing up files, I took a look at it in CrystalDiskInfo which was cautioning me about its 'Current Pending Sector Count.' It read 85, 84, 2520, which seemed terrifying. Nothing to lose, so I formatted it and now it checks out OK, 0 issues. I don't think I'll ever put an OS on it, but is it safe for storage? Or did I just give it a band-aid after getting gut shot?

 

[mickypheonix]

Hi NineteenHundred
nothing is ever safe for storage all HDD's SSD's etc die at some point so always backup in a few different places as a precaution.
you could use the drive for storage if it is ok
The operating system on the drive before format may have been corrupt and the drive itself ok

 

[i7Baby]

I'd check it a bit more to feel confident. Try SeaTools

 

[terry4536]

I have had drives with gradually increasing bad sectors. I fixed them with shkdsk and the reformatted the drive. It lasted a while, but it did bite the dust in the end.