What are SMART errors and what causes them?

SMART errors are error messages generated by the Self-Monitoring, Analysis, and Reporting Technology (SMART) of a hard disk drive. They indicate that the hard disk drive has detected a potential problem and is warning the user of an imminent failure. Common causes of SMART errors include bad sectors, misaligned read/write heads, and failing electronic components.

How do SMART errors impact the health of a hard drive?

SMART errors can indicate a wide range of potential hard drive problems, from minor issues that can be easily resolved to more serious problems that may require professional repair or replacement. SMART errors can be caused by physical damage to the hard drive, such as a head crash or a motor failure, or by logical errors, such as corrupted data or a virus. In either case, the health of the hard drive is impacted because it can no longer reliably store and retrieve data.

How can you check for SMART errors on your hard drive?

You can check for SMART errors on your hard drive by using a diagnostic tool such as CrystalDiskInfo or HD Tune. These tools will scan the drive and report any errors or potential problems. You can also use the built-in SMART monitoring tools that come with many operating systems, such as Windows and Mac OS X.

Can SMART errors be fixed or resolved, and if so, how?

Yes, SMART errors can be fixed or resolved. The most common way to fix a SMART error is to use a disk utility program to scan the hard drive for errors and repair any issues that it finds. If the disk utility cannot repair the issue, then you may need to replace the hard drive. Additionally, you can try to update your computer's BIOS or run a diagnostic test on the hard drive to identify any issues.

How often should you check your hard drive for SMART errors?

It is recommended to check your hard drive for SMART errors on a regular basis, preferably once a month. This can be done by using a third-party utility such as CrystalDiskInfo or HDDScan.

S.M.A.R.T. Errors for HDD and SSD: Comprehensive List

Author: Vladimir Artiukh
Editor: Oleg Afonin
Updated: 16.12.2024 16:10

Explore a comprehensive list of S.M.A.R.T. errors for both hard disk drives (HDD) and solid-state drives (SSD) with this guide. Whether you’re encountering issues with disk health, performance degradation, or impending drive failure, understanding common S.M.A.R.T. errors is crucial for proactive maintenance. Dive deep into step-by-step instructions and essential tips for diagnosing and resolving S.M.A.R.T. errors effectively. Learn about disk monitoring tools, firmware updates, and backup strategies to mitigate the risk of data loss.

S.M.A.R.T. Errors for HDD and SSD: Comprehensive List

Contents

S.M.A.R.T. Error Codes and Names

Every hard disk manufacturer sets its own threshold value for a certain attribute. Under normal circumstances, this threshold is never exceeded, but otherwise we encounter an error.

Code	Name
0x1	Raw Read Error Rate
0x2	Throughput Performance
0x3	Spin Up Time
0x4	Start/Stop Count
0x5	Reallocated Sector Count
0x6	Read Channel Margin
0x7	Seek Error Rate
0x8	Seek Time Performance
0x9	Power-On Time Count
0xA	Spin Retry Count
0xB	Recalibration Retries
0xC	Device Power Cycle Count
0xD	Soft Read Error Rate
0x16	Current Helium Level
0x64	Erase or Program Cycles
0x67	Translation Table Rebuild
0xAA	Available Reserved Space
0xAB	SSD Program Fail Count
0xAC	SSD Erase Fail Count
0xAD	SSD Wear Leveling Count
0xAE	Unexpected power loss count
0xAF	Power Loss Protection Failure
0xB0	Erase Fail Count (chip)
0xB1	Wear Range Delta
0xB2	Used Reserved Block Count
0xB3	Used Reserved Block Count Total
0xB4	Unused Reserved Block Count Total
0xB5	Program Fail Count Total or Non-4K Aligned Access Count
0xB6	Erase Fail Count
0xB7	SATA Downshift Error Count or Runtime Bad Block
0xB8	End-to-End error
0xB9	Head Stability
0xBA	Induced Op-Vibration Detection
0xBB	Reported Uncorrectable Errors
0xBC	Command Timeout
0xBD	High Fly Writes
0xBE	Airflow Temperature
0xBF	Mechanical Shock
0xC0	Power off Retract Cycle
0xC1	Load/Unload Cycle Count
0xC2	HDD Temperature
0xC3	Hardware ECC Recovered
0xC4	Reallocation Event Count
0xC5	Current Pending Sector Count
0xC6	Off-Line Uncorrectable Sector Count
0xC7	Ultra ATA CRC Error Count
0xC8	Write Error Rate
0xC9	Soft Read Error Rate
0xCA	Data Address Mark Errors
0xCB	Run Out Cancel
0xCC	Soft ECC Correction
0xCD	Thermal Asperity Rate
0xCE	Flying Height
0xCF	Spin High Current
0xD0	Spin Buzz
0xD1	Offline Seek Performance
0xD2	Vibration During Write
0xD3	Vibration During Write
0xD4	Shock During Write
0xDC	Disk Shift
0xDD	G-Sense Error Rate
0xDE	Loaded Hours
0xDF	Load/Unload Retry Count
0xE0	Load Friction
0xE1	Load Cycle Count
0xE2	Load-in Time
0xE3	Torque Amplification Count
0xE4	Power-off Retract Count
0xE6	GMR Head Amplitude
0xE7	Hard Disk Temperature
0xE8	Endurance Remaining
0xE8	Available Reserved Space
0xE9	Power-On Hours
0xE9	Media Wearout Indicator
0xEA	Average erase count AND Maximum Erase Count
0xEB	Good Block Count AND System(Free) Block Count
0xF0	Head Flying Hours
0xF1	Total LBAs Written
0xF2	Total LBAs Read
0xF3	Total LBAs Written Expanded
0xF4	Total LBAs Read Expanded
0xF9	NAND_Writes_1GiB
0xFA	Read Error Retry Rate
0xFB	Minimum Spares Remaining
0xFC	Newly Added Bad Flash Block
0xFE	Free Fall Protection

S.M.A.R.T. Technology

Self-Monitoring Analysis and Reporting Technology or S.M.A.R.T is a diagnostic method initially developed by IBM and used to determine or prevent failures in hard disks (Predictive Failure Analysis). The technology was designed in order to predict or determine the cause of breakdown for IBM disks, but in the end it became widespread and popularly known as S.M.A.R.T.

Large manufacturers include this technology into their hard disks. S.M.A.R.T. analyzes a number of mechanical attributes. Such analysis allows determining incorrect disk operation before its complete failure as well as the cause of such failure.

How To Correct a S.M.A.R.T. Error

In spite of S.M.A.R.T. allowing predicting future problems, most of them are impossible to prevent. Therefore, S.M.A.R.T.is a technology which is often there to warn the user of the hard disk soon to break down. S.M.A.R.T. values cannot be corrected and there is no need to spend time on that.

If you don’t replace the hard disk, the error window will appear again and again. In this case, the only justified action would be saving data from the disk sectors which are still available. After complete breakdown, data on such disk cannot be read by any software. That is why your first step should be taking your data elsewhere.

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