Hard disks were originally meant to be installed in computers. However, with the passage of time they have become more versatile in their usage and find applications in digital cameras, mobile phones, digital audio players, digital video recorders and many other electronic gadgets.
Life Span of a Hard Disk
Almost all the hard disk manufacturers provide a Mean Time Between Failure (MTBF) figure on the product packaging and their promotional literature. It is calculated by running a hard disk under laboratory conditions over a period of time, so as to assess the wear and tear to the disk components, which is then used to extrapolate the average life span of a disk. However, under practical circumstances, the life span of a hard disk is influenced by a variety of internal and external factors and these figures are not always accurate. Realistically speaking, a good quality hard disk lasts for three to six years.
The Wonder that is a Hard disk
In order to appreciate the working of a hard disk, it is important to have an insight into its basic structure. A hard disk consists of several hard, round platters coated on both the sides with a magnetic material. These platters store data in a binary format, consisting of patterns of 0s and 1s. All the platters in a hard disk are aligned on a spindle attached to a motor. This spindle rotates at a high speed of 5400 to 7200 RPM. Electromagnetic read/write devices known as ?heads? hover over these platters, at a microscopic distance from them. There exists a coating of a non-electrostatic material over these platters. The heads are connected to an actuator arm and are controlled by a logic board, which synchronizes their various functions such as reading and writing the data and interacting with the rest of the computer. Every hard disk is fitted with an air tight filter that equalizes the air pressure and humidity within and outside the hard disk. Besides these, a hard disk consists of several other electronic and mechanical components. Truly speaking, a hard disk is a marvel of high tech engineering.
Capacity of a Hard Disk
The capacity of a hard disk is indicative of the space available inside a computer to store data. In the market, today, there are available a variety of hard disks with a wide range of storage capacity, to meet the requirements of all types of users. A 5.25??HH hard disk consists of four platters and has a capacity of 19.3GB. A 5.25??FH hard disk has fourteen platters and a capacity of 47GB. A 1.8??PCMCIA hard disk has a capacity of 100GB. A three platter 2.5?? hard disk can accommodate 250GB of data. A 3.5?? hard disk has five platters and can store 1.2TB of data.
How to Take Care of a Hard Disk
Hard disks have a very delicate configuration and are extremely sensitive to various internal and external factors. A hard disk should be protected against virus attacks by installing a genuine antivirus program, which is updated on a regular basis. Hard disks should not be subjected to shocks and mishandling and no attempt should ever be made to dissemble or repair a hard disk on your own. Care should be taken that the cooling system of the computer functions at an optimum level. The computers should always be installed at a dust free, properly ventilated and moisture free place. Hard disks should never be exposed to static electricity and computers should always be fitted with UPS systems and surge protectors to guard against power surges and power spikes.
Why Does a Hard Disk Goes Bad?
Broadly speaking, all the ailments of a hard disk can be classified under two headings i.e. physical failure or logical failure. Physical failure occurs due to damage to the internal components of a hard disk and is often caused by vibrations or mishandling. Logical failure occurs owing to a corruption of the file system due to a virus attack, electrostatic discharge or any other such factor.
What to do in Case of a Hard Disk Crash?
If a hard disk fails because of a logical error, the data can often be recovered, using DIY software. However, in case of a novice, it may not always be feasible. Physical failures that are of mechanical nature are often serious and inevitably necessitate the services of a genuine data recovery company to retrieve the compromised data.
External Hard Disk Drives
Backup to external hard disk drives easily, securely and efficiently.
As a hard disk is the fastest and largest backup medium you can get, you may want to backup all your important files to an external hard drive. You can backup literally everything: your Outlook and Outlook Express files, your bookmarks, your favourite save games, and of course, your important work documents, photos, images and maybe even videos.
As an external HDD is detatched from your system and, combined with a strong encryption algorithm, like blowfish or 3DES, you can get maximum security. Just make sure you actually remember the encryption password. You can also store your external hard disk offsite (at a friend's house, a paid locker or specialized fire-proof storage place) in case your information is very important (well, generally, anyone can do that and it can't hurt for sure).
As external hard disk drives have the cheapest storage volume (about 200Gb for $150?) and you can reuse them for several years, you may as well get the cheapest backup medium at your disposal. When using a backup schedule, you can simply backup the backup program run when you are absent (or maybe even at night) to backup everything without supervision. If you need two or more backup disks, you may as well get another external HDD.
Also, now there are quite large mobile hard drives, which can admit all the necessary data: work documents, e-mail files, etc. You can also carry your data anywhere you want and feel safe, because some external hard disks are now hard to break by dropping.
So, go with external HDD and backup as fast as you want, as much as you want, secure your important data, get the cheapest backups and even be able to carry your backups anywhere you want.
Both James Walsh & Anonymous Coward are contributors for EditorialToday. The above articles have been edited for relevancy and timeliness. All write-ups, reviews, tips and guides published by EditorialToday.com and its partners or affiliates are for informational purposes only. They should not be used for any legal or any other type of advice. We do not endorse any author, contributor, writer or article posted by our team.
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