Running the Hard Disk Validator in a PE System is a professional hard disk bad sector detection tool designed for use in PE (Preinstallation Environment) systems. Recently, there was a need to scan and repair an 8TB hard drive, but the Hard Disk Validator couldn't run directly under PE. Fortunately, I discovered on the author's GitHub page that it can be launched using mono. In terms of system streamlining, a WinPE system is sufficient for basic tasks such as web browsing, watching videos, and listening to music, and it's also convenient for customizing and personal use. Installed on a USB drive, it's plug-and-play. Installing a full operating system onto a USB drive is simply impractical and inefficient to run.
Software Description
A highly effective tool for hard disk diagnostics. It needs to be run within a system, or within a PE environment.
Usage Instructions
After installation, package all files together; it can run under Win10 PE, though full functionality has not been completely tested.
Place the files under Win10 PE and use the CMD command: path\to\mono.exe path\to\software_name.exe
Direct execution results in error code 0x0000135.
Function Description
This tool provides detailed information about bad sectors, allowing you to attempt repairs. Your hard disk writes data in blocks (sectors). Each time a sector is updated, the hard drive also stores a checksum immediately after the sector data. When reading a sector from the hard drive, the sector's checksum should match the data within the sector. If the checksum does not match, the hard drive identifies an issue during the write operation—this event is known as a bad sector. Bad sectors can occur for various reasons during write operations or due to drive failure, such as power outages.
Hard Disk Validator gives you a way to check for the presence of bad sectors, so you can clear these so-called bad sectors by overwriting them.
If bad sectors are caused by a power failure, the "Read + Erase Damaged + Read" test will be the fastest method to clear bad sectors.
If bad sectors are caused by drive issues, you should back up your data first, then select the "Write + Verify" test. Note: This test will erase all data on the disk—use with caution.
All tests generate logs, which you can copy for future reference.
Hard Disk Validator offers the following four test options:
– Read: Scans the entire surface of the hard drive to locate bad sectors.
– Read + Erase Damaged + Read: Scans the entire surface to locate bad sectors. If bad sectors are found, they will be overwritten, and then re-read to ensure successful writing.
– Read + Write + Verify + Restore: The program writes test patterns to the disk, verifies that the patterns were written successfully, and then restores the original data.
– Write + Verify: The program writes test patterns to the disk and verifies that they were successfully written (use with caution—original data will be lost).