Hard Disk Issue

Nando Frade

Member
Member
Messages
26
Hello,

I have a problem with my data hard drive (ST3000DM001-1CH166 ATA (3 TB)), which suddenly shrunk to 128GB.

I went to Disk Management and it shows one partition of 128 GB unallocated. I haven't formatted or anything as I wouldn't like to lose the data I have on it, which amounts to over 1TB. I went to BIOS and, to my surprise, it no longer reads the disk as a 3TB drive but as a 128GB one only!! I successfully updated the BIOS to its latest version and still... no luck...

Then I read somewhere SeaTools (DOS version) might do the trick so I downloaded and burnt it to a CD, then I ran the program and it said there was an error in the partition of the hard disk in question.

I truly don't know what to do... I'm thinking of taking the computer to the shop so a professional can look into it, but if anyone comes up with ideas, I would really appreciate it!
 

My Computer

System One

  • OS
    Windows 8.1 Update Pro (64-bits)
    Computer type
    PC/Desktop
    System Manufacturer/Model
    Custom Built
    CPU
    MC INTEL 1155 CORE i5 3470 3,2 GHZ
    Motherboard
    PB GIGABYTE 1155/GA-H61M-D2H-USB3
    Memory
    Kingston KVR13N9S8/4 1.5V DDRM3 - 4x4GB (Single-sided)
    Graphics Card(s)
    ATI Radeon HD 4600 Series
    Sound Card
    Realtek High Definition Audio
    Monitor(s) Displays
    HP w2216
    Screen Resolution
    1680 x 1050
    Hard Drives
    SanDisk SDSSDP128G ATA (128 GB) - Windows 8 OS installed
    ST3000DM001-1CH166 ATA (3 TB) - Data disk
    WDC WD10EACS-65D6B0 ATA (1 TB) - Back-up disk
    PSU
    800W
    Case
    HP Pavillion Elite m9554es
    Keyboard
    HP Wireless
    Mouse
    HP Wireless
    Internet Speed
    50 Mbps / 5 Mbps
    Browser
    Internet Explorer 11 / Mozilla Firefox / Google Chrome
    Antivirus
    Windows Defender
    Other Info
    Cisco EPC 3825 cable-router in bridged mode that works as a cable modem, which is connected to a TP Link TL-WDR4300 router that serves as a home Wi-Fi network.
Hello,

I have a problem with my data hard drive (ST3000DM001-1CH166 ATA (3 TB)), which suddenly shrunk to 128GB.

I went to Disk Management and it shows one partition of 128 GB unallocated. I haven't formatted or anything as I wouldn't like to lose the data I have on it, which amounts to over 1TB. I went to BIOS and, to my surprise, it no longer reads the disk as a 3TB drive but as a 128GB one only!! I successfully updated the BIOS to its latest version and still... no luck...

Then I read somewhere SeaTools (DOS version) might do the trick so I downloaded and burnt it to a CD, then I ran the program and it said there was an error in the partition of the hard disk in question.

I truly don't know what to do... I'm thinking of taking the computer to the shop so a professional can look into it, but if anyone comes up with ideas, I would really appreciate it!


System Restore:
1. Go here --C:\ProgramData\Microsoft\Windows\Start Menu\Programs\Accessories\System Tools\ and run the program cleanmgr.exe
2. Now click "Files from all users on this pc"
3. Click OK
4. When the windows opens up click the tab "more options"
5. Then click "System restore and shadow copies" tab "clean up" Click delete
6. Then OK
7. Then Delete
8. Check your hard drive space I you will have gained a lot of gigabytes back.
9. Done!

Warning!

1. Dont do this too often because if something goes wrong with the pc you wont have anything to fall back on
2. Don't disable system restore, its there to protect the system, can you imagine you if did a windows update and updated the graphics driver and it disable your display? You wont be able to roll back because there would be no restore point.
 

My Computer

System One

  • OS
    Windows 8.1 Pro x64
    Computer type
    Laptop
    Graphics Card(s)
    NVIDIA GeForce 720M
Thanks for your suggestion...

I did forget to mention that, even though my shrunk hard disk shows in Disk Management, it doesn't in "My PC" so when I run cleanmgr, it does not give me the option to click on the hard disk I'm having issues with. Besides, I don't think it's a Windows problem as BIOS only reads 128GB out of a 3TB capacity. The paradox is the disk had been working fine for over a year, and I haven't touched anything in the BIOS nor have I removed the hard drive or anything for that matter... It just suddenly shrunk, out of the blue...
 

My Computer

System One

  • OS
    Windows 8.1 Update Pro (64-bits)
    Computer type
    PC/Desktop
    System Manufacturer/Model
    Custom Built
    CPU
    MC INTEL 1155 CORE i5 3470 3,2 GHZ
    Motherboard
    PB GIGABYTE 1155/GA-H61M-D2H-USB3
    Memory
    Kingston KVR13N9S8/4 1.5V DDRM3 - 4x4GB (Single-sided)
    Graphics Card(s)
    ATI Radeon HD 4600 Series
    Sound Card
    Realtek High Definition Audio
    Monitor(s) Displays
    HP w2216
    Screen Resolution
    1680 x 1050
    Hard Drives
    SanDisk SDSSDP128G ATA (128 GB) - Windows 8 OS installed
    ST3000DM001-1CH166 ATA (3 TB) - Data disk
    WDC WD10EACS-65D6B0 ATA (1 TB) - Back-up disk
    PSU
    800W
    Case
    HP Pavillion Elite m9554es
    Keyboard
    HP Wireless
    Mouse
    HP Wireless
    Internet Speed
    50 Mbps / 5 Mbps
    Browser
    Internet Explorer 11 / Mozilla Firefox / Google Chrome
    Antivirus
    Windows Defender
    Other Info
    Cisco EPC 3825 cable-router in bridged mode that works as a cable modem, which is connected to a TP Link TL-WDR4300 router that serves as a home Wi-Fi network.
Thanks for your suggestion...

I did forget to mention that, even though my shrunk hard disk shows in Disk Management, it doesn't in "My PC" so when I run cleanmgr, it does not give me the option to click on the hard disk I'm having issues with. Besides, I don't think it's a Windows problem as BIOS only reads 128GB out of a 3TB capacity. The paradox is the disk had been working fine for over a year, and I haven't touched anything in the BIOS nor have I removed the hard drive or anything for that matter... It just suddenly shrunk, out of the blue...

There IS some slack when you format NTFS - a 320 GB hard drive will have about 298gb of usable space.

a 1TB Drive? You get 930 gb of space - On NTFS.

a 2T drive, you get 1.81 T.

So - A LITTLE slack is totally normal, but if you are missing half of the drive, well... Then check for previous installs of Linux, which when deleted leaves a partition unreadable and undetectable by the Windows 7-8-8.1 Disk Manager.


-Source-
http://www.eightforums.com/general-support/38198-hard-drive-seemed-shrink-1tb-99gb-how-fix.html
 

My Computer

System One

  • OS
    Windows 8.1 Pro x64
    Computer type
    Laptop
    Graphics Card(s)
    NVIDIA GeForce 720M
Still nothing... Please, help!!
 

My Computer

System One

  • OS
    Windows 8.1 Update Pro (64-bits)
    Computer type
    PC/Desktop
    System Manufacturer/Model
    Custom Built
    CPU
    MC INTEL 1155 CORE i5 3470 3,2 GHZ
    Motherboard
    PB GIGABYTE 1155/GA-H61M-D2H-USB3
    Memory
    Kingston KVR13N9S8/4 1.5V DDRM3 - 4x4GB (Single-sided)
    Graphics Card(s)
    ATI Radeon HD 4600 Series
    Sound Card
    Realtek High Definition Audio
    Monitor(s) Displays
    HP w2216
    Screen Resolution
    1680 x 1050
    Hard Drives
    SanDisk SDSSDP128G ATA (128 GB) - Windows 8 OS installed
    ST3000DM001-1CH166 ATA (3 TB) - Data disk
    WDC WD10EACS-65D6B0 ATA (1 TB) - Back-up disk
    PSU
    800W
    Case
    HP Pavillion Elite m9554es
    Keyboard
    HP Wireless
    Mouse
    HP Wireless
    Internet Speed
    50 Mbps / 5 Mbps
    Browser
    Internet Explorer 11 / Mozilla Firefox / Google Chrome
    Antivirus
    Windows Defender
    Other Info
    Cisco EPC 3825 cable-router in bridged mode that works as a cable modem, which is connected to a TP Link TL-WDR4300 router that serves as a home Wi-Fi network.
If there's a problem in the BIOS nothing in windows can fix it, check MB manual to see if there's a setting for disks over 2.2 GB.
 

My Computer

System One

  • OS
    Windows 8.1 Pro
    Computer type
    PC/Desktop
    System Manufacturer/Model
    Home made
    CPU
    AMD Ryzen7 2700x
    Motherboard
    Asus Prime x470 Pro
    Memory
    16GB Kingston 3600
    Graphics Card(s)
    Asus strix 570 OC 4gb
    Hard Drives
    Samsung 960 evo 250GB
    Silicon Power V70 240GB SSD
    WD 1 TB Blue
    WD 2 TB Blue
    Bunch of backup HDDs.
    PSU
    Sharkoon, Silent Storm 660W
    Case
    Raidmax
    Cooling
    CCM Nepton 140xl
    Internet Speed
    40/2 Mbps
    Browser
    Firefox
    Antivirus
    WD
But it had been working fine for over a year.:. And I didn't modify the BIOS or anything... Can it be a BIOS problem? Should I try my hard drive on another computer? If I were to configure the BIOS again, is there any parameters I should check to restore the full 3TB?
 

My Computer

System One

  • OS
    Windows 8.1 Update Pro (64-bits)
    Computer type
    PC/Desktop
    System Manufacturer/Model
    Custom Built
    CPU
    MC INTEL 1155 CORE i5 3470 3,2 GHZ
    Motherboard
    PB GIGABYTE 1155/GA-H61M-D2H-USB3
    Memory
    Kingston KVR13N9S8/4 1.5V DDRM3 - 4x4GB (Single-sided)
    Graphics Card(s)
    ATI Radeon HD 4600 Series
    Sound Card
    Realtek High Definition Audio
    Monitor(s) Displays
    HP w2216
    Screen Resolution
    1680 x 1050
    Hard Drives
    SanDisk SDSSDP128G ATA (128 GB) - Windows 8 OS installed
    ST3000DM001-1CH166 ATA (3 TB) - Data disk
    WDC WD10EACS-65D6B0 ATA (1 TB) - Back-up disk
    PSU
    800W
    Case
    HP Pavillion Elite m9554es
    Keyboard
    HP Wireless
    Mouse
    HP Wireless
    Internet Speed
    50 Mbps / 5 Mbps
    Browser
    Internet Explorer 11 / Mozilla Firefox / Google Chrome
    Antivirus
    Windows Defender
    Other Info
    Cisco EPC 3825 cable-router in bridged mode that works as a cable modem, which is connected to a TP Link TL-WDR4300 router that serves as a home Wi-Fi network.
It's good idea to try on another computer but keep in mind that not all of them support disks larger than 2.2 TB. You have UEFI and Legacy BIOS there, try booting in Legacy mode.
 

My Computer

System One

  • OS
    Windows 8.1 Pro
    Computer type
    PC/Desktop
    System Manufacturer/Model
    Home made
    CPU
    AMD Ryzen7 2700x
    Motherboard
    Asus Prime x470 Pro
    Memory
    16GB Kingston 3600
    Graphics Card(s)
    Asus strix 570 OC 4gb
    Hard Drives
    Samsung 960 evo 250GB
    Silicon Power V70 240GB SSD
    WD 1 TB Blue
    WD 2 TB Blue
    Bunch of backup HDDs.
    PSU
    Sharkoon, Silent Storm 660W
    Case
    Raidmax
    Cooling
    CCM Nepton 140xl
    Internet Speed
    40/2 Mbps
    Browser
    Firefox
    Antivirus
    WD

My Computer

System One

  • OS
    Windows 8.1 Update Pro (64-bits)
    Computer type
    PC/Desktop
    System Manufacturer/Model
    Custom Built
    CPU
    MC INTEL 1155 CORE i5 3470 3,2 GHZ
    Motherboard
    PB GIGABYTE 1155/GA-H61M-D2H-USB3
    Memory
    Kingston KVR13N9S8/4 1.5V DDRM3 - 4x4GB (Single-sided)
    Graphics Card(s)
    ATI Radeon HD 4600 Series
    Sound Card
    Realtek High Definition Audio
    Monitor(s) Displays
    HP w2216
    Screen Resolution
    1680 x 1050
    Hard Drives
    SanDisk SDSSDP128G ATA (128 GB) - Windows 8 OS installed
    ST3000DM001-1CH166 ATA (3 TB) - Data disk
    WDC WD10EACS-65D6B0 ATA (1 TB) - Back-up disk
    PSU
    800W
    Case
    HP Pavillion Elite m9554es
    Keyboard
    HP Wireless
    Mouse
    HP Wireless
    Internet Speed
    50 Mbps / 5 Mbps
    Browser
    Internet Explorer 11 / Mozilla Firefox / Google Chrome
    Antivirus
    Windows Defender
    Other Info
    Cisco EPC 3825 cable-router in bridged mode that works as a cable modem, which is connected to a TP Link TL-WDR4300 router that serves as a home Wi-Fi network.

My Computer

System One

  • OS
    Windows 8.1 Pro
    Computer type
    PC/Desktop
    System Manufacturer/Model
    Home made
    CPU
    AMD Ryzen7 2700x
    Motherboard
    Asus Prime x470 Pro
    Memory
    16GB Kingston 3600
    Graphics Card(s)
    Asus strix 570 OC 4gb
    Hard Drives
    Samsung 960 evo 250GB
    Silicon Power V70 240GB SSD
    WD 1 TB Blue
    WD 2 TB Blue
    Bunch of backup HDDs.
    PSU
    Sharkoon, Silent Storm 660W
    Case
    Raidmax
    Cooling
    CCM Nepton 140xl
    Internet Speed
    40/2 Mbps
    Browser
    Firefox
    Antivirus
    WD
When you're already on the BIOS you'll see 5 tabs on top

1. Go to the "Boot" Menu
2. Hit the Down Arrow once to go to the "Boot Mode"
3. Press Enter
4. Then a small window will open, there will be two choices: "UEFI" and "Legacy BIOS"
5. Choose Legacy BIOS
6. Hit F10 to save and exit
7. Then that's it!
 

My Computer

System One

  • OS
    Windows 8.1 Pro x64
    Computer type
    Laptop
    Graphics Card(s)
    NVIDIA GeForce 720M
Thank you!! Any more suggestions will likewise be much appreciated!
 

My Computer

System One

  • OS
    Windows 8.1 Update Pro (64-bits)
    Computer type
    PC/Desktop
    System Manufacturer/Model
    Custom Built
    CPU
    MC INTEL 1155 CORE i5 3470 3,2 GHZ
    Motherboard
    PB GIGABYTE 1155/GA-H61M-D2H-USB3
    Memory
    Kingston KVR13N9S8/4 1.5V DDRM3 - 4x4GB (Single-sided)
    Graphics Card(s)
    ATI Radeon HD 4600 Series
    Sound Card
    Realtek High Definition Audio
    Monitor(s) Displays
    HP w2216
    Screen Resolution
    1680 x 1050
    Hard Drives
    SanDisk SDSSDP128G ATA (128 GB) - Windows 8 OS installed
    ST3000DM001-1CH166 ATA (3 TB) - Data disk
    WDC WD10EACS-65D6B0 ATA (1 TB) - Back-up disk
    PSU
    800W
    Case
    HP Pavillion Elite m9554es
    Keyboard
    HP Wireless
    Mouse
    HP Wireless
    Internet Speed
    50 Mbps / 5 Mbps
    Browser
    Internet Explorer 11 / Mozilla Firefox / Google Chrome
    Antivirus
    Windows Defender
    Other Info
    Cisco EPC 3825 cable-router in bridged mode that works as a cable modem, which is connected to a TP Link TL-WDR4300 router that serves as a home Wi-Fi network.
I don't think that is something to do with the PC's BIOS or in Windows OS. It's probably with the hard drive and it could be a possible firmware corruption on the hard drive itself. You can try to connect the drive to another PC to find out if it shows the correct capacity on another machine.
 

My Computer

System One

  • OS
    Windows 8
    Computer type
    Laptop
The BIOS should show the correct size regardless of how the drive is partitioned. It reads it from the firmware. You can install a completely blank un partitioned drive and the BIOS will still tell you the capacity of the drive. If the drive isn't being shown correctly in the BIOS its not a Windows issue. Windows showing the reduced size is a side effect of the real issue. I would try a new SATA cable and try a different SAT port on the motherboard. And as mentioned, if possible try that drive in another PC.
 

My Computer

System One

  • OS
    Windows 10 Education 64 Bit
    Computer type
    PC/Desktop
    System Manufacturer/Model
    Asus
    CPU
    AMD Phenom II X4 980 Black Edition Deneb 3.7GHz
    Motherboard
    ASUS M4N68T-M V2 µATX Motherboard
    Memory
    8GB 4GBx2 Kingston PC10600 DDR3 1333 Memory
    Graphics Card(s)
    NVIDIA Geforce GT640 2 Gig DDR3 PCIe
    Sound Card
    VIA VT1708s High Definition Audio 8-channel Onboard
    Monitor(s) Displays
    22" LG E2242 1080p and 2 19" I-INC AG191D
    Screen Resolution
    1280x1024 - 1920x1080 - 1280x1024
    Hard Drives
    Crucial MX100 256 GB SSD and 500 GB WD Blue SATA
    PSU
    Thermaltake TR 620
    Case
    Power Up Black ATX Mid-Tower Case
    Cooling
    Stock heatsink fan
    Keyboard
    Logitech Wireless K350 Wave
    Mouse
    Logitech M570 Trackball and T650 TouchPad
    Internet Speed
    80 Mbps Down 30 Mbps Up
    Browser
    Internet Explorer 11
    Antivirus
    Windows Defender
    Other Info
    HP DVD1040e Lightscribe - External USB2
I ran SeaTools on the drive and all the tests failed... I will try the drive on another PC and post on it...
 

My Computer

System One

  • OS
    Windows 8.1 Update Pro (64-bits)
    Computer type
    PC/Desktop
    System Manufacturer/Model
    Custom Built
    CPU
    MC INTEL 1155 CORE i5 3470 3,2 GHZ
    Motherboard
    PB GIGABYTE 1155/GA-H61M-D2H-USB3
    Memory
    Kingston KVR13N9S8/4 1.5V DDRM3 - 4x4GB (Single-sided)
    Graphics Card(s)
    ATI Radeon HD 4600 Series
    Sound Card
    Realtek High Definition Audio
    Monitor(s) Displays
    HP w2216
    Screen Resolution
    1680 x 1050
    Hard Drives
    SanDisk SDSSDP128G ATA (128 GB) - Windows 8 OS installed
    ST3000DM001-1CH166 ATA (3 TB) - Data disk
    WDC WD10EACS-65D6B0 ATA (1 TB) - Back-up disk
    PSU
    800W
    Case
    HP Pavillion Elite m9554es
    Keyboard
    HP Wireless
    Mouse
    HP Wireless
    Internet Speed
    50 Mbps / 5 Mbps
    Browser
    Internet Explorer 11 / Mozilla Firefox / Google Chrome
    Antivirus
    Windows Defender
    Other Info
    Cisco EPC 3825 cable-router in bridged mode that works as a cable modem, which is connected to a TP Link TL-WDR4300 router that serves as a home Wi-Fi network.
I forgot to add that the disk I'm having issues with does NOT have an operating system installed, it is only just for data purposes, so I NEVER boot from it.
 

My Computer

System One

  • OS
    Windows 8.1 Update Pro (64-bits)
    Computer type
    PC/Desktop
    System Manufacturer/Model
    Custom Built
    CPU
    MC INTEL 1155 CORE i5 3470 3,2 GHZ
    Motherboard
    PB GIGABYTE 1155/GA-H61M-D2H-USB3
    Memory
    Kingston KVR13N9S8/4 1.5V DDRM3 - 4x4GB (Single-sided)
    Graphics Card(s)
    ATI Radeon HD 4600 Series
    Sound Card
    Realtek High Definition Audio
    Monitor(s) Displays
    HP w2216
    Screen Resolution
    1680 x 1050
    Hard Drives
    SanDisk SDSSDP128G ATA (128 GB) - Windows 8 OS installed
    ST3000DM001-1CH166 ATA (3 TB) - Data disk
    WDC WD10EACS-65D6B0 ATA (1 TB) - Back-up disk
    PSU
    800W
    Case
    HP Pavillion Elite m9554es
    Keyboard
    HP Wireless
    Mouse
    HP Wireless
    Internet Speed
    50 Mbps / 5 Mbps
    Browser
    Internet Explorer 11 / Mozilla Firefox / Google Chrome
    Antivirus
    Windows Defender
    Other Info
    Cisco EPC 3825 cable-router in bridged mode that works as a cable modem, which is connected to a TP Link TL-WDR4300 router that serves as a home Wi-Fi network.
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