Just for fun I ran HD Tune. Under Health it shows a fail, (B3) Unknown
Attribute. I ran Benchmark and Full Error Scan; both ok.
That SSD passes SFC/ Scannow ok, and I've seen no problems with it.
I ran CrystalDiskinfo 8.4.2. and it reports all ok, saying that B3 is
"Used Reserve Block Count (Total)".

I think I can carry merrily onward, but I thought I'd let you experts
know in case you know better.

Ed

On 8/31/2023 7:55 AM, Ed Cryer wrote:
> Just for fun I ran HD Tune. Under Health it shows a fail, (B3) Unknown Attribute. I ran Benchmark and Full Error Scan; both ok.
> That SSD passes SFC/ Scannow ok, and I've seen no problems with it.
> I ran CrystalDiskinfo 8.4.2. and it reports all ok, saying that B3 is "Used Reserve Block Count (Total)".
>
> I think I can carry merrily onward, but I thought I'd let you experts know in case you know better.
>
> Ed

HDTune 2.55 was written over ten years ago, and at the
time, the new SMART values for SSD, hadn't been defined yet.

You mostly use HDTune 2.55 for hard drives. It's OK to
use it with an SSD, but you may have to use your imagination
once in a while.

HDTune 2.55 has "issues". That's the 25 words or less.

*******

The HDTune Pro or Crystal, those have "less issues" :-)

That's because both of those programs, are maintained.

A bug report against HDTune 2.55 Free Version, would be useless
for any purpose. No new releases of 2.55, like 2.55a or 2.55b
are ever going to happen.

As an example, HDTUne 2.55 reports my SSD is running in the
mid 400's on speed. The speed is actually 530 or so, and I've located
the odd thing to verify against. It's not the program we should blame,
as this seems to be something new with W10/W11. There's actually
a lot to know, concerning time keeping on computers. I keep reading
new and disturbing stuff in that regard. As near as I can remember,
HDTune 2.55 was reporting correct values, early in the history of W10.
But one day after some update, something seems to have changed.
And I don't know what the root cause of that was.

The HDTUne 2.55 bad block scan works OK :-)

Paul

Paul wrote:
> On 8/31/2023 7:55 AM, Ed Cryer wrote:
>> Just for fun I ran HD Tune. Under Health it shows a fail, (B3) Unknown Attribute. I ran Benchmark and Full Error Scan; both ok.
>> That SSD passes SFC/ Scannow ok, and I've seen no problems with it.
>> I ran CrystalDiskinfo 8.4.2. and it reports all ok, saying that B3 is "Used Reserve Block Count (Total)".
>>
>> I think I can carry merrily onward, but I thought I'd let you experts know in case you know better.
>>
>> Ed
>
> HDTune 2.55 was written over ten years ago, and at the
> time, the new SMART values for SSD, hadn't been defined yet.
>
> You mostly use HDTune 2.55 for hard drives. It's OK to
> use it with an SSD, but you may have to use your imagination
> once in a while.
>
> HDTune 2.55 has "issues". That's the 25 words or less.
>
> *******
>
> The HDTune Pro or Crystal, those have "less issues" :-)
>
> That's because both of those programs, are maintained.
>
> A bug report against HDTune 2.55 Free Version, would be useless
> for any purpose. No new releases of 2.55, like 2.55a or 2.55b
> are ever going to happen.
>
> As an example, HDTUne 2.55 reports my SSD is running in the
> mid 400's on speed. The speed is actually 530 or so, and I've located
> the odd thing to verify against. It's not the program we should blame,
> as this seems to be something new with W10/W11. There's actually
> a lot to know, concerning time keeping on computers. I keep reading
> new and disturbing stuff in that regard. As near as I can remember,
> HDTune 2.55 was reporting correct values, early in the history of W10.
> But one day after some update, something seems to have changed.
> And I don't know what the root cause of that was.
>
> The HDTUne 2.55 bad block scan works OK :-)
>
> Paul

Thanks, Paul.

Ed

On 8/31/2023 7:55 AM, Ed Cryer wrote:
> Just for fun I ran HD Tune. Under Health it shows a fail, (B3) Unknown
> Attribute. I ran Benchmark and Full Error Scan; both ok.
> That SSD passes SFC/ Scannow ok, and I've seen no problems with it.
> I ran CrystalDiskinfo 8.4.2. and it reports all ok, saying that B3 is
> "Used Reserve Block Count (Total)".
>
> I think I can carry merrily onward, but I thought I'd let you experts
> know in case you know better.
>
> Ed

Another method is using File Explorer. Right click on the disk itself,
select Properties > Tools > Check.

Zaidy036 wrote:
> On 8/31/2023 7:55 AM, Ed Cryer wrote:
>> Just for fun I ran HD Tune. Under Health it shows a fail, (B3) Unknown
>> Attribute. I ran Benchmark and Full Error Scan; both ok.
>> That SSD passes SFC/ Scannow ok, and I've seen no problems with it.
>> I ran CrystalDiskinfo 8.4.2. and it reports all ok, saying that B3 is
>> "Used Reserve Block Count (Total)".
>>
>> I think I can carry merrily onward, but I thought I'd let you experts
>> know in case you know better.
>>
>> Ed
>
> Another method is using File Explorer. Right click on the disk itself,
> select Properties > Tools > Check.

I don't think that does as much as SFC/ Scannow.
Every now and again I like to run a full scan and repair on the drive,
which is C (system); it runs before startup.

Ed

On 9/1/2023 4:06 AM, Ed Cryer wrote:
> Zaidy036 wrote:
>> On 8/31/2023 7:55 AM, Ed Cryer wrote:
>>> Just for fun I ran HD Tune. Under Health it shows a fail, (B3) Unknown Attribute. I ran Benchmark and Full Error Scan; both ok.
>>> That SSD passes SFC/ Scannow ok, and I've seen no problems with it.
>>> I ran CrystalDiskinfo 8.4.2. and it reports all ok, saying that B3 is "Used Reserve Block Count (Total)".
>>>
>>> I think I can carry merrily onward, but I thought I'd let you experts know in case you know better.
>>>
>>> Ed
>>
>> Another method is using File Explorer. Right click on the disk itself, select Properties > Tools > Check.
>
> I don't think that does as much as SFC/ Scannow.
> Every now and again I like to run a full scan and repair on the drive, which is C (system); it runs before startup.
>
> Ed

The tools work at different levels, and for different purposes.

The HDTune badblock scan, does not change the "state" of anything.
If you don't want your goods disturbed, it is a good option
for surveying the number of CRC (uncorrectable) errors.

The File Explorer "check", is CHKDSK in disguise. And it does
the same thing as various invocations from a Terminal window.
Modern Windows no longer gets the same "boost" from CHKDSK, because
it has some background processes that are working on the integrity too.
Generally, the best "value" comes from CHKDSK, if you've been using
another OS, and need to "fix up" whatever that session did. (A foreign
OS can set the "dirty bit" on a partition, in an effort to get the
Windows OS to automatically clean up.)

If a device is in physical trouble ("sick"), then running CHKDSK
on defective hardware, just lays waste to the contents and makes
things worse. CHKDSK does not make a backup before it does repairs.
Using the correct invocation, you can do a pass without correcting,
to "survey" the claimed amount of damage. I certainly do not do tiered
CHKDSK runs, in a technically proper way, and I just "let'er rip", so
I'm guilty of sloppy work too.

*******

The DISM command, varies between OSes. DISM is not fully implemented on
Windows 7, and the automation isn't as good.

DISM can repair the contents of C:\Windows\WinSxS, the SideBySide maintenance
system. You need a "robust base", to build a structure on top of. A foundation
if you will. WinSXS uses some hardlinks, to map files from the structured
WinSxS representation, to the C:\Windows\System32 and C:\Windows\System32\drivers.
A hardlink, means two purported "files", are actually the same set of clusters.
Kinda like a two-headed human baby.

*******

You would typically run SFC (System File Checker), once your base is in
a known-good state. SFC can check the details of the System32 files,
and it can trigger corrections to them.

*******

HDTune - verify PHY is healthy
CHKDSK - check the file system is logically healthy (linkages good, metadata good)
DISM - check the "file cabinet" with copies of everything (WinSXS) is sound. Corrects as needed.
SFC - checks specific areas of the boot system, for manipulation. Replaces
drivers from the driver cache, if a driver is not correct. This might have
been called Windows File Protection, in a past life, this practice of
replacing drivers if they're damaged, from the cache.

There are lots more details than that, but that's a basic picture.

In 2023, DISM and SFC don't generally reveal egregious errors. A few years
back, DISM was finding junk like HTML files in some package structures,
and whining about the lack of inventory control. You don't generally find
that kind of incompetence now (suggests some package checking software must
inspect goods before release). SFC can find trouble, if malware is present.
If SFC actually leaves a log each time, of random items corrected, and
you've done the rest of your structured inspection and no flakiness is
found, then you would suspect malware or a rootkit. And while a few years
back, there were (hard to believe) claims that rootkits were no longer
a preferred technique, the evidence this year is they are alive and
healthy. So what value these "weather reports" have, who knows why
they bother telling us stuff like that. There are way more than
10,000,000 signatures for malware, so you know that business has not stopped.

Paul

Paul wrote:
> On 9/1/2023 4:06 AM, Ed Cryer wrote:
>> Zaidy036 wrote:
>>> On 8/31/2023 7:55 AM, Ed Cryer wrote:
>>>> Just for fun I ran HD Tune. Under Health it shows a fail, (B3) Unknown Attribute. I ran Benchmark and Full Error Scan; both ok.
>>>> That SSD passes SFC/ Scannow ok, and I've seen no problems with it.
>>>> I ran CrystalDiskinfo 8.4.2. and it reports all ok, saying that B3 is "Used Reserve Block Count (Total)".
>>>>
>>>> I think I can carry merrily onward, but I thought I'd let you experts know in case you know better.
>>>>
>>>> Ed
>>>
>>> Another method is using File Explorer. Right click on the disk itself, select Properties > Tools > Check.
>>
>> I don't think that does as much as SFC/ Scannow.
>> Every now and again I like to run a full scan and repair on the drive, which is C (system); it runs before startup.
>>
>> Ed
>
> The tools work at different levels, and for different purposes.
>
> The HDTune badblock scan, does not change the "state" of anything.
> If you don't want your goods disturbed, it is a good option
> for surveying the number of CRC (uncorrectable) errors.
>
> The File Explorer "check", is CHKDSK in disguise. And it does
> the same thing as various invocations from a Terminal window.
> Modern Windows no longer gets the same "boost" from CHKDSK, because
> it has some background processes that are working on the integrity too.
> Generally, the best "value" comes from CHKDSK, if you've been using
> another OS, and need to "fix up" whatever that session did. (A foreign
> OS can set the "dirty bit" on a partition, in an effort to get the
> Windows OS to automatically clean up.)
>
> If a device is in physical trouble ("sick"), then running CHKDSK
> on defective hardware, just lays waste to the contents and makes
> things worse. CHKDSK does not make a backup before it does repairs.
> Using the correct invocation, you can do a pass without correcting,
> to "survey" the claimed amount of damage. I certainly do not do tiered
> CHKDSK runs, in a technically proper way, and I just "let'er rip", so
> I'm guilty of sloppy work too.
>
> *******
>
> The DISM command, varies between OSes. DISM is not fully implemented on
> Windows 7, and the automation isn't as good.
>
> DISM can repair the contents of C:\Windows\WinSxS, the SideBySide maintenance
> system. You need a "robust base", to build a structure on top of. A foundation
> if you will. WinSXS uses some hardlinks, to map files from the structured
> WinSxS representation, to the C:\Windows\System32 and C:\Windows\System32\drivers.
> A hardlink, means two purported "files", are actually the same set of clusters.
> Kinda like a two-headed human baby.
>
> *******
>
> You would typically run SFC (System File Checker), once your base is in
> a known-good state. SFC can check the details of the System32 files,
> and it can trigger corrections to them.
>
> *******
>
> HDTune - verify PHY is healthy
> CHKDSK - check the file system is logically healthy (linkages good, metadata good)
> DISM - check the "file cabinet" with copies of everything (WinSXS) is sound. Corrects as needed.
> SFC - checks specific areas of the boot system, for manipulation. Replaces
> drivers from the driver cache, if a driver is not correct. This might have
> been called Windows File Protection, in a past life, this practice of
> replacing drivers if they're damaged, from the cache.
>
> There are lots more details than that, but that's a basic picture.
>
> In 2023, DISM and SFC don't generally reveal egregious errors. A few years
> back, DISM was finding junk like HTML files in some package structures,
> and whining about the lack of inventory control. You don't generally find
> that kind of incompetence now (suggests some package checking software must
> inspect goods before release). SFC can find trouble, if malware is present.
> If SFC actually leaves a log each time, of random items corrected, and
> you've done the rest of your structured inspection and no flakiness is
> found, then you would suspect malware or a rootkit. And while a few years
> back, there were (hard to believe) claims that rootkits were no longer
> a preferred technique, the evidence this year is they are alive and
> healthy. So what value these "weather reports" have, who knows why
> they bother telling us stuff like that. There are way more than
> 10,000,000 signatures for malware, so you know that business has not stopped.
>
> Paul

I always run "DISM /Online /Cleanup-Image /RestoreHealth" before SFC.
Don't worry. I take regular full disc images, and can have a corrupt SSD
replaced and fully restored in just over an hour. It's been several
years since it happened last, but I'm super cautious.

As for a full CHKDSK I run it very infrequently, and it never hits
problems. Caution again.
I'm a worrier (:-

Ed