Secondary HDD 100% usage.

MiniCage

Commendable
Aug 22, 2016
4
0
1,510
Hello everyone,

My 2nd HDD (A 3TB Seagate HDD which I use for file archiving purposes only) has been going up to 100% usage rate every time I try to browse the disk and/or open files on it. If i'm not using the drive it goes back to 0% usage. The drive becomes unbearably slow when I try to browse and/or open files on it. Also the disk still has more than 2tb of free space at this time (Used to be almost full.)

Here's what i've already done and tried to fix the problem:

- Defrag the drive.
- Format the drive.
- Check Task Manager / Recource monitor for any process that might've been using up all recources (There aren't any.)
- A complete HDD overwrite (1 pass).
- Check for disk errors using windows chkdsk.
- Check for disk errors using Seagate software /HDTune Pro (S.M.A.R.T. health check etc.) There aren't any errors and every software claims the disk is completely healthy.
-Physically cleaning the HDD and cables.

Only thing I haven't tried yet is switching the SATA cable to a different port on the motherboard or replacing the SATA cable, but I can't really see this being the problem.

Any ideas on what the problem might be and how I could possibly fix it? All help and answers are very much appreciated.

More info about my system:

Windows 10 64-bit installed on Samsung SSD 840.
MSI Z87-G45.
i7-4770k
GTX 780ti
16 GB Ram
850 Gold PSU

EDIT: Forgot to mention that the drive is around 2 years old and has been working fine up until a couple of weeks ago.
 
Solution
Have you tried all the ports?
Have you updated your MOBO's drivers?

In case you've done that and the issue persists, then I believe you can attach the drive to another system and see whether the same thing happens. You've done extensive troubleshooting. I believe that this way, you will be sure if it is the drive or something in your system.
If the issue persists, you can see if the drive is still under warranty.

D_Know_WD
Hi there MiniCage,

Similar issues could be caused by faulty cables, especially the power one.
So, it would be a really good idea to attach the drive with different cables to another port.

In case the issue persists, my suggestion would be to back up the most important data stored on the drive, test it with a third party software tool and provide a screenshot of the SMART report: http://www.tomshardware.co.uk/forum/282651-32-best-diagnostic-testing-utility

Let me know how this goes,
D_Know_WD :)
 

MiniCage

Commendable
Aug 22, 2016
4
0
1,510


Hello D_Know_WD,

Thank you for the quick response. I have a back up of all my data. I've tried replacing the SATA cable and switched the cable over to a different port on the motherboard. But now, my PC wasn't able to recognise the drive so I switched the cables back to how they were before. Strangely enough the drive is working fine now, though I doubt it will be for long. This leads to me believe that there might be a faulty cable involved?

Also, i've tested the drive using two third party software tools, here are the results from both of them:

HDTune:

HDTune_Health_________ST3000DM001-1CH1-1.png

HDTune_Health_________ST3000DM001-1CH1-2.png


CrystalDisk:

CrystalDiskResults1.png

CrystalDiskResults2.png


Any thing I should be worried about?
 
Well, for some reason, I can't really see the screens. Could you upload them to an image hosting website and post the link?

As this is a secondary drive(no OS, no Win services, etc.), it should be either the connection or the drive itself. In case the SMART data is good, then it should be a cable or a SATA port.

D_Know_WD :)
 

MiniCage

Commendable
Aug 22, 2016
4
0
1,510


Hope these work:

HD Tune:

https://s4.postimg.io/eby4km5yl/HDTune_Health_ST3000_DM001_1_CH1_1.png
https://s4.postimg.io/bvwb6rnvx/HDTune_Health_ST3000_DM001_1_CH1_2.png


Crystal Disk:

https://s4.postimg.io/51m0h2v8t/Crystal_Disk_Results1.png
https://s4.postimg.io/7k7phrgz1/Crystal_Disk_Results2.png


Please confirm if the SMART data is OK or not.

If the SMART data is OK, i'll try formatting the drive, replace all the cables and plug them in a different port. This way, I hope I can get my PC to recognise the drive when I plug it into a different port.
 

MiniCage

Commendable
Aug 22, 2016
4
0
1,510


Hello again!

Thanks for the help so far!

I've replaced all the cables with new ones and connected them to a different port. Unfortunately, this has not fixed the problem. One thing I noticed though, is that the problem doesn't occur immediately after booting up my PC. Restarting my PC also seems to help for a little while, but after an hour or a few hours the drive becomes very slow again and goes to 100% usage every time I try to browse or open files on it... I'm running out of ideas at this point...

Any other ideas on what the problem might be? Maybe the HDD ports itself are faulty?

Thanks again for the help so far,

MC
 
Have you tried all the ports?
Have you updated your MOBO's drivers?

In case you've done that and the issue persists, then I believe you can attach the drive to another system and see whether the same thing happens. You've done extensive troubleshooting. I believe that this way, you will be sure if it is the drive or something in your system.
If the issue persists, you can see if the drive is still under warranty.

D_Know_WD
 
Solution