Disk read error + corruption

[shake_n_bake]

I need help diagnosing my problem, On startup sometimes i get a "disk read error, press ctrl alt del to restart" This seems to happen 1/5 times i start the computer. Also recently I started having problems with playing games. My starcraft 2 says files are corrupt and it crashed, i have repaired it and reinstalled and i still get the same messege. Tf2, borderlands, css refused to start up for a while. and sometimes my computer blue screens saying something about a memory dump. I have tried sfc /scannow and it detects corrupt files but does cannot fix them, i have checked the log and it does not say anything went wrong during the scan. any help would be nice, im afraid it is a hardware problem

This all started to happen after i updated sc2 lol... the only thing thats not new is i have had the blue screen happen for quiet some time now, it just doesn't happen often.


also i tested my ram using the windows tool and it seemed to work fine, also i did chckdsk /p and i dont thing anything went wrong.

 

[Ric]

Is your hard drive SATA or IDE connected?

 

[shake_n_bake]

Ide

 

[Ric]

Have you tried replacing the cord? Sometimes, the simplest thing is the culprit.
I've had a similar problem, but the HDD wasn't going bad, it was the IDE cord.

 

[shake_n_bake]

hmm ill try that, also another symptom is that all my games load really slow now. i have noticed in Tf2, borderlands, and badcompany, that my once fast load times are really long and sometimes never load.

 

[Ric]

I'm not going to lie..
All of these symptoms indicate hard drive failure..
But, it could also be due to malicious software. Do you currently have any virus/spyware/malware protection?
Have you tried to reformat also?
Do you hear any clicking noises coming from the hard drive itself?

 

[shake_n_bake]

i dont hear any clicking noises, and i too have been suspecting harddrive failure but im afraid it might also be a RAM problem possible? and i dont have alot of money to spend if i buy the wrong part.

ill try a virus scan though, i have not done that yet.

 

[Ric]

RAM is used by applications and wouldn't (a/e)ffect your hard drive telling you about the disk read errors. This is solely a hard drive issue. You say that the program sometimes doesn't launch at all, this is leaning more on the hard drive than the RAM. A RAM issue would be where the program launches, but it's incredibly slow.

Unless you can get the error code from the BSOD, they are hard to track what went wrong to cause a BSOD.

If anything needs to be replaced, I'll be more than happy to guide you to exactly what you need.

 

[shake_n_bake]

thank you for you help, im convinced now that it's probobly the HD, i have a spare drive ill format and try out, thanks for the help ! ill let you know if i need any more help.

 

[shake_n_bake]

also i don't know if this changes anything, but all my games are installed on a separate drive from the one windows is installed on.

 

[Angeal]

Perhaps the one the games are on is going out?, I don't know what else to say there.

 

[shake_n_bake]

is there a way i can test to see which drive is failing?

 

[Ric]

Yes.
I personally use a tool called SeaTools, by Seagate.
http://www.seagate.com/www/en-us/support/downloads/seatools

Unfortunately, not all hard drive's support its method of checking, so hopefully yours in question do. Once you download, install, and run the program, you'll see various methods. Choose the one that interests you the most. Do not go into "Advanced" mode unless specifically instructed to, as this can lead to hard drive corruption.

If that application does not work, I will find you one that does.