Formatting wd. The best program for low-level formatting of hard drives - review, features and reviews

All new hard drives are already low-level formatted by the manufacturer and do not require reinitialization. In practice, under normal circumstances, you are unlikely to need to perform low-level formatting on your hard drive, since technically only the manufacturer can perform this kind of real formatting.

What computers call low-level formatting is actually more of an initialization and testing of the disk surface, as the process writes and reads to all sectors of the disk. If there are no problems with the disk, there is no need for a full initialization or surface check.

What is low level formatting?

First, let's understand the concepts of low- and high-level formatting.

Low level format- an operation during which servo marks (information that is used to position the hard drive heads) are applied to the magnetic surface of the disk. It is performed during the manufacturing process of the hard drive, using special equipment.

When the process of low-level formatting a hard drive is started for the first time, the hard drive platters are empty, that is, they contain absolutely no information about sectors, tracks, and so on. This is the last moment when the hard drive has completely empty platters. Information recorded during this process will never be overwritten again.

Old hard drives had the same number of sectors per track and did not have built-in controllers, so the low-level formatting was handled by the external hard drive controller, and the only information it needed was the number of tracks and the number of sectors per track. Using this information, the external controller could format the hard drive. Modern hard drives have a complex internal structure, including changing the number of sectors per track when moving from external to internal tracks, as well as built-in servo information to control the head drive.

Due to this complex data structure, all modern hard drives are low-level formatted only once - at the factory.

There are two types of high-level formatting:

Formatting in normal mode – a process that consists of creating a master boot record with a table of partitions and (or) empty file system structures, setting the boot sector, and similar actions. The formatting process also checks the integrity of the media to block bad sectors.

Quick format - the same process as formatting in normal mode, only without checking the media for bad sectors.

The use of the term low-level formatting in relation to hard drives has given rise to many myths. For example, there is an opinion that it is impossible to perform low-level formatting of a hard drive and that attempting such an operation will lead to the destruction of the disk. In principle, there is some truth in this misconception. It consists in the fact that when low-level formatting old disks from the late 1980s, the optimal settings for the bevel of heads and cylinders established by the disk manufacturer, as well as the map of disk defects, were violated.

All this negatively affected the performance of the devices. The problem described has long been resolved, and all devices using zone recording (with a variable number of sectors per track) are immune to any problems that low-level formatting may cause, since real markers cannot be replaced by a sector.

So low-level formatting of discs made in the 1990s and later will prevent it from disturbing its settings.

At the same time, there is often a real need to perform low-level formatting of ATA and SCSI drives. Now we will talk about programs that will help you do this.

Programs for low-level formatting of ATA disks (SATA, PATA, etc.)

ATA drive manufacturers defined and standardized extensions to the original WD1002/1003 hard drive controller, creating the AT bus interface (known as the ATA interface). The ATA specification is implemented for unique vendor-specific commands that are an extension of the standard. To avoid performing incorrect low-level formatting, many ATA devices have special commands that must be sent to the device to enable formatting procedures. These commands vary by device manufacturer, so you'll need to look for low-level formatting and defect management programs created by the drive manufacturer.

These programs are most often intended not only for devices from a specific manufacturer, but also for their individual models. So before performing a search, make a note of the manufacturer name and model number of your hard drive.

Modern hard drives are protected from the possibility of changes in the skew factor or defect map, since they are always in conversion mode. Devices with zone recording are always in this mode and are thus fully protected.

Most hard drives have an additional set of commands that are used during the formatting process, and the standard ATA specification commands do not work (especially for ATA devices with zone recording).

Spare sectors can also be allocated automatically using programs provided by the device manufacturer. Without knowing the correct manufacturer-specific commands, it is impossible to replace defective sectors with spare ones, specially allocated in modern devices for these purposes. A detected defective sector is replaced in the distribution structure by the closest spare sector.

Some hard drive manufacturers offer low-level formatting programs. They can be found at the following addresses.

• Seagate
  ftp://ftp.seagate.com/techsuppt/seagate_utils/sgatfmt4.zip
  http://www.seagate.com/support/seatools
• Hitachi/IBM
  www.hgst.com/hdd/support/download.htm
• Maxtor/Quantum
  http://www.maxtor.com/softwaredownload/default.htm
• Samsung
  www.samsung.com/Products/HardDiskDrive/utilities/hutil.htm
  www.samsung.com/Products/HardDiskDrive/utilities/sutil.htm
  www.samsung.com/Products/HardDiskDrive/utilities/shdiag.htm
• Western Digital
  http://support.wdc.com/download/

First of all, you should try the programs provided by the device manufacturer. All of them are free and often allow you to work at a low level in a way that large-scale programs do not allow.

If the drive manufacturer does not offer an initialization/verification/formatting program, you can use the Drive Fitness Test program from Hitachi (formerly IBM). This program works great with drives from other manufacturers and performs detailed, full testing of the entire hard drive. This is one of the best general purpose programs because it allows you to perform a non-destructive test. Although it can test any device, there is one limitation: destructive read/write tests can only be performed on Hitachi and IBM drives.

Advice!

All of the listed programs for initializing, testing and formatting a hard drive, as well as many others, can be found in the Ultimate Boot CD (UBCD) collection of utilities. This is a fantastic collection of diagnostic tools contained in one downloadable CD! A copy of this CD can be downloaded from www.ultimatebootcd.com.

Non-destructive formatting tools

I strongly advise against using BIOS-level non-destructive formatting tools such as Calibrate (formerly included with Symantec Norton Utilities) when low-level formatting is truly needed. Such funds are characterized by a number of limitations and problems that reduce their effectiveness. They perform low-level formatting on individual tracks using BIOS functions; This backs up and restores individual tracks.

These programs also do not create a defect map, as low-level formatting programs typically do. Moreover, they can remove defect map markers added by standard low-level formatting programs. As a result, it becomes possible for data to be stored in bad sectors, which in some cases may void the warranty.

Another limitation is that these programs can only be used with hard drives that have been previously formatted using BIOS functions.

A low-level format program created by drive manufacturers bypasses the system BIOS and passes commands directly to the controller. Therefore, many such programs are designed to work with specific controllers. Having one such program that could be used when working with different controllers is almost impossible to imagine. Many hard drives may be incorrectly identified as defective simply because the wrong program was used.

Low-level formatting of Western Digital HDD and SSDs

Let me make a reservation right away that in this case, low-level formatting means testing the disk surface for bad sectors through reading and writing. As mentioned above, factory low-level formatting of a modern hard drive can only be done by the manufacturer.

Hard and solid state drives can be formatted at a low level using several methods. Let's consider one of them, applicable to PC. Mac computers are not suitable for this example.

To low-level format a hard drive we need:

1. The hard drive, in this case, is from Western Digital (in this example, the Maxtor drive was tested, and the procedure was successful)
2. Data Lifeguard Diagnostics Software for Windows

Before the formatting process, connect the device to the computer. This can be done either through the IDE, SATA, USB or Firefire interface. In this case, low-level formatting will be carried out in the Windows system, without first loading using special boot disks. This is the easiest method for the average PC user.

Once the device is connected:

1. Download Windows Data Lifeguard Diagnostics from http://support.wdc.com/product/download.asp?groupid=113&sid=3&lang=en

2. After downloading the application, launch it and follow the installation wizard.

If after installation a dialog box appears with a message stating that the program cannot be started, close it and click the OK button. The program must be launched in a different way.

3. A program shortcut will appear on the desktop, double-click on it.

4. Check the box next to I accept this... and click the Next button.

The program will display all connected drives. Despite the fact that in my example, the Maxtor test hard drive was formatted, and it was successful, I recommend that you use this program only for Western Digital drives, to avoid possible problems with the media. If you have a Seagate hard drive, use a similar program from Seagate.

5. Select the disk that needs to be diagnosed and click on the to run tests button. BE SURE to double-check that you have selected exactly the right disk, otherwise you will lose all data on this media, without the possibility of recovering it, since this process is destructive and irreversible.

7. In the next window, select the EXTENDED TEST option and click the Start button.

8. Close all files that are open on the selected hard drive and click the OK button.

9. The testing procedure on a 20 GB hard drive took approximately 10 minutes. At the end of testing, click on the Close button.

10. But that's not all. Now again click on the to run tests button and in the dialog box select the WRITE ZEROS option and click on the Start button. This procedure will overwrite all sectors with zeros.

10. Depending on the condition of the drive, you will receive one or two prompts reminding you that this action will destroy all data currently on the drive. Click the Yes button.

10. Then choose which method you would like to use to write the zeros. The QUICK ERASE option is much faster, but does not completely erase the disk. This is suitable for users who plan to rewrite the disc multiple times. A FULL ERASE erases the disk completely. This takes longer, but ensures that no data on the drive can later be recovered using data recovery methods. This method is designed for people who need to permanently delete data from their drive, such as hackers ;).

Once you have determined which method you would like to use, select the OK button to begin the formatting process. I recommend choosing FULL ERASE.

11. Start of the rewriting process. For example, it took me about 10 minutes to overwrite a 20 GB hard drive.

12. After the process is completed, click again on the to run tests button and in the dialog box, select the VIEW TEST RESULT option and click on the Start button.

13. The window will display information about the hard drive and the tests that have passed. To be honest, the information in this report is very sparse.

14. If the process was successful, the low-level formatted hard drive will not be available in the system. Now it needs to be initialized, partitioned, and formatted at a high level.

14. Open Start -> All Programs -> Accessories -> Run and enter the command in the window diskmgmt.msc .

15. The Disk Management program will launch and the Initialize Disks window will automatically appear, where the required disk will be selected. Specify the Master Boot Record parameter and click the OK button.

This completes the low-level formatting process.

A similar process can be used for media on hard drives from other manufacturers. For example, Seagate offers a very convenient diagnostic tool for its media.

In conclusion, I will give an example of how the Data Lifeguard Diagnostics program displays a failed drive. As an example, a Fujitsu hard drive was taken. The program has determined that the media is faulty, as indicated by SMART STATUS.

Using EXTENDED TEST, the program showed that bad sectors were found on the disk.

The program tried to fix them, but nothing worked.

There may be two reasons for this: firstly, the hard drive and the diagnostic program are from different manufacturers, so some commands may not be processed correctly, and secondly, this disk cannot be restored, since it has begun to “crumble,” i.e. physical damage appeared on the surface of his discs; it was already on my inspection table before.

I'm sure not all of you know about the fragility and vulnerability of a hard drive. Despite the heavy weight and dimensions of some models, it is very easy to damage a hard drive. It is enough to shake it a little, overheat it or take a sideways glance - the hard drive is already covered with “bad blocks”, which, believe me, will soon completely disable it and the information stored on the hard drive can no longer be saved.

The most important point when your hard drive fails is to try to save all the information on it. But, there are opinions that after such a failure, the hard drive can still be suitable for life. After performing a low-level formatting procedure, the hard drive can be used again. Today we will find out whether such a “healer” will help the hard drive and whether it is worth carrying out this procedure at all procedure.

Low-level formatting, what is it?

Low-level formatting or low level format, today is called something completely different from the operation that it actually is. Such formatting in the original is only possible at the hard drive factory. This is one of the stages in their assembly.

All information that is on the hard drive is stored in a certain order. Each unit of data has a unique address, in fact, where it can be found. Creating areas for recording data on a clean magnetic surface and assigning addresses to them is low-level formatting.

More precisely, this is the process of physically dividing the disk surface into tracks (circles or tracks along which the read/write heads move), their sectors (track sections are the smallest areas of information storage on a disk drive with its own address) and inter-sector intervals. And also - applying servo marks - service records between sectors and within them, according to which the head control system (HDD servo system) can position the latter.

After the disk marking has been completed, its surface is carefully scanned to identify defects in the magnetic layer; perhaps, after the partitioning procedure, physically “broken” sectors have formed. They must be excluded from addressing. After testing, a list of defects and a translator will be generated. The latter are tables for correlating good physical logical sectors. This procedure is also carried out under factory formatting conditions.

A similar procedure could have been performed a long time ago on your home computer through the BIOS. But today there are practically no computers of this kind, as well as hard drives. Modern hard drives are designed in such a way that it is impossible to carry out physical partitioning without special equipment and software. Therefore, the concept of low-level formatting consists of the operation of “filling” the logical space with zeros (without access to the service areas in which the translator is stored).

After this type of formatting, the following will happen:

• The hard drive will be cleared of all information except service information.
• A custom defect sheet will be created with the addresses of “sick” sectors that will be included in exceptions for reading and writing.
• Defective sectors are replaced with “healthy” ones from the reserve area (remap).

“Home” low-level formatting - the solution to all problems?

This formatting method must be used if:

• You are about to transfer the use of your computer into the wrong hands. This is done so that the new owner of the PC cannot restore old files.
• To correct software (logical) and emerging bad problems that cannot be removed using non-destructive methods.
• To solve problems that arose due to a boot virus.

This formatting is effective in the following cases:

• If the bad sectors did not appear due to a malfunction of the mechanical and electrical components of the hard drive. For example, problem areas appeared after a short-term overheating of the screw or a sudden power outage of the computer.
• A small number of defects.

To identify unstable sectors, you can use the HD Tune utility. After scanning the hard drive, you will see problem areas:

Step-by-step instructions for formatting at home.

In order to fill the surface of the hard drive with zeros and replace bad sectors, you need to use a special utility. Even one made by the manufacturer of a different hard drive model will do.

Rewriting and remapping operations are launched by a standard algorithm that is understood by all disk controllers (the final decision on reassigning bad sectors is made by the controller).

All these utilities are configured for only one thing, so they cannot do more harm to your hard drive. Even if you get confused when performing this procedure, you can always start over without fear for the integrity of the disk.

The question is different, which utility is best to use. There is a high probability that the native utility may not be as useful as the standard one. In any case, if you were unable to do anything with one utility, you need to try again with another. You definitely won’t make your hard drive worse, and repeated attempts can lead to success and cure your hard drive. Everything will depend on the damage to the disk block. Sometimes it takes several attempts to fix it.

Using the universal HDD Low Level Format Tool (HDDLLFT) for Windows.

• The first step is to connect the problematic hard drive to the computer on which Windows is installed.

• Find, download and install the HDDLLFT application. As the installation progresses, you will see a pop-up window in which you must select “Continue for free”.

• You can download this application.

• After installation, run the program and select the hard drive we need in the menu and click “Continue>>>”.

• Now you need to go to the “Low level Format” section and click on “Format this device”.

• We reconfirm our actions and wait for the program to finish.

SeaTools for DOS for HDD Seagate

SeaTools for DOS can most often be found in iso format for burning a disk, flash drive or floppy disk. After you record the image of this program and run it on your computer, you will see the main window of the utility. Before starting use, we recommend that you translate the program into Russian. This can be done in the top left menu “Language”. After that, mark our problematic hard drive in the list in the main window and go to the “Advanced Features” menu, then click on “Erase all”.

Windows Data Lifeguard Diagnostics for WD hard drives

Windows Data Lifeguard Diagnostics is a proprietary application from Western Digital that allows you to perform low-level disk formatting. Also, the formatting procedure can be carried out using the Data Lifeguard Diagnostics for DOS (bootable image for DVD and flash drives) and Acronis True Image WD Edition utilities.

After several installations of different versions of Linux, I decided to format the hard drive using the standard FDISK utility. But I was disappointed: after installing a distribution based on Linux, I was unable to format the hard drive because the master boot record (MBR) was lost. Having rummaged through the depths of the Internet, I found a pretty good program that does low-level formatting of a hard drive (Low Level Format).

According to the program developers, using the HDD LLF Low Level Format Tool utility, you can format hard drives with S-ATA (SATA), IDE (E-IDE), SCSI, SAS, USB, FIREWIRE interfaces. The program runs on the following operating systems: MS Windows XP, Vista x32/x64, 7 x32/x62, Server 2003, 2008, 2008R2. The program is paid, but there is also a free version with a speed limit of 50 MB/s. You can download the program from the official website of the developer at http://hddguru.com/software/HDD-LLF-Low-Level-Format-Tool/ on the page you need to find the version for installation on your computer. See screenshot below.

Or you can download the program via a direct link by clicking here. After installing the program on your computer, let’s run it and see what we get. The main program window should open with a selection of drives as in the picture below.

Here we need to select the drive for which we will do low-level formatting. I have this top Western Digital with a capacity of 120 gigabytes. Click on it with the mouse and click on Continue>>>. Now we need to go to the middle tabs in the top tabs with the inscription LOW-LEVEL FORMAT.

Remember that low-level formatting permanently erases all data on the disk and it will be impossible to recover it.

Then click on the big button FORMAT THIS DEVICE. We are once again given a warning that after the formatting operation all data will be lost.

We agree by clicking on Yes and the formatting process has begun.

After the formatting process is completed, we will be given a warning that it is necessary to partition the disk and format it into partitions. Read about it.

Thus, after we have completed all these steps, we will get a hard drive almost like it came from the factory and we can continue to use it by installing any operating system.

I would also like to note that the program can also format memory cards and flash drives.

They can perform regular or low-level formatting of a hard drive, as well as other external media. To do this, you just need to right-click on the desired object and select the “Format” menu item in the contextual branch.

But what exactly this utility does and what it is capable of in general remains a mystery to many. After checking, if a bad sector was detected on the media, the program will not give you any notification, and it is quite possible that this problematic cluster will continue to be used by the system.

In order to solve this problem, you have to resort to third-party programs for low-level formatting of hard drives and USB devices. Well, with the help of basic applications of the Windows operating system, it is unfortunately impossible to unravel the secret of sectors.

So, we present to your attention the best programs for low-level hard drive formatting that can be found on the Internet. All of them have basically a free or shareware license and are freely distributed through official or specialized resources.

It’s worth noting right away: before performing low-level formatting of your hard drive, be sure to copy all important information to third-party media. Otherwise, you risk losing this data.

JetFlash Recovery Tool

This program for low-level formatting of hard drives will be an excellent help not only for working with a hard drive, but also with branded flash drives of this company, as well as ADATA brand devices.

The utility allows you to format media efficiently or recover data from it. The application will be especially useful if you have unreadable sectors, recording is completely disabled, or the disk is not recognized by the system.

Separately, it is worth mentioning the most simplified interface. Here you won’t see confusing menu branches or unclear icons, everything is very simple. There are two buttons: one to start the data recovery procedure, and the other to “Exit”.

The fly in the ointment here is the fastidiousness of the software. That is, on the one hand, this is an excellent program for low-level formatting of hard drives, but on the other hand, we see only a narrow list of supported equipment. The lack of localization is difficult to write down as a minus, because even without the Russian language everything is extremely clear.

HP Drive Key Boot Utility

Another smart program for low-level formatting hard drives and working with damaged sectors. In addition, the utility perfectly “digests” the brands of flash drives “Kingston”, “SanDisk” and “Transcend”.

The application works smoothly in file systems such as FAT32, NTFS and regular FAT. That is, any storage capacity will be within the capabilities of this program. One of the main advantages of the application is its intuitive interface. All the main functionality of the program is concentrated in one single window, and you can perform all operations without leaving it. By clicking just a couple of buttons, in a few minutes you will see the message: “Low-level disk formatting is complete.”

Distinctive features of the program

It would also be useful to note the fact that this software can create bootable disks using built-in tools based on a copy of your operating system. The application itself comes in a portable version, so there will be no problems with migration to other media and PCs.

The disadvantages of the utility include mediocre support for the currently popular SSD format, but in all other respects it is an excellent program for working with drives.

HDD Low Level Format Tool

This is a highly specialized utility, designed specifically for working with media in such a “deep” way. HDD Low Level Format Tool is an excellent program for low-level formatting Seagate, WD hard drives and almost any flash drive.

Before starting the procedure, you must select the desired media and then designate a work plan. That is, here you can perform a quick cleanup of the hard drive or complete low-level formatting of the hard drive.

One of the distinctive features of the program is its support for all types of hard drives, both regular HDDs and high-speed SSDs, and from any interface (IDE, SATA, SCSI, etc.). The software also copes well with small flash devices like mini- or micro-SD. Thanks to its universal code, the utility works on all known operating systems, including Windows.

The only fly in the ointment is the low data processing speed. That is, for example, this low-level formatting program for a WD hard drive will be able to process this brand of hard drive at a speed of no more than 50 Mbit/sec. The time it takes to complete the operation will be significant, but it is more than compensated for by competent processing of sectors and tracks.

MiniTool Partition Home Edition

This is for the most part a whole complex, distinguished by expanded functionality and appropriate usability. As for specific possibilities, here they are almost limitless for hard drives.

In addition to basic markup operations, error checking, partition conversion and other things, there is a unique functionality unique to this software. We are talking about transferring an operating system from one medium to another, selectively or completely copying information to another hard drive; in addition, judging by the reviews, this is a smart wizard for recovering lost data.

Also, the software can easily work not only with single hard drives, but also with large RAID arrays. Separately, it is worth mentioning the speed of the application, where MiniTool Partition Wizard Free compares favorably with its counterparts.

Software features

All operations can be performed using either the usual visual panel or the graphical menu. The developer, alas, did not provide official localization into Russian, but on the Internet you can find quite competent localizations that are in no way inferior in quality to stock ones.

As for compatibility and any updates, the developer carefully monitors his product, so the application can be called completely universal, and users did not notice any failures or glitches with it.

Overall, this is a worthy product that should be in the arsenal of any system administrator or advanced user. Some may be upset by the paid distribution license, but for isolated cases there is a conditional free period, where for a 30-day period you can use all the features of the program, which should be enough to troubleshoot problems with the drive.

Disk Storage Format Tool

This is a fairly powerful and full-featured utility for working with hard drives and flash drives of all brands and types. In addition, the program is distributed completely free of charge. There is also an advanced paid version, but it differs from the basic version more in its exterior than in any critical additions in functionality.

The software feels great on the Windows platform of all versions - from XP to ten, and no compatibility problems were noticed.

The utility is very easy to use, and the interface is intuitive even for a novice user. To get started, you need to specify the drive you want to work with, then go to the action menu, where you need to select what exactly you want to do for the drive, that is, format or fix errors.

Features of the utility

The program competently approaches the detection of bad or unreadable sectors and their subsequent correction. A separate button works with USB flash drives, where error correction or low-level formatting of the media is also available.

Another advantage for which advanced users love this utility is the maintenance of detailed logs. All operations with a hard drive or flash drive will be reflected in a well-written report, where every step taken by the program is visible.

It is also worth mentioning the trouble-free operation with other, more finicky media: mini- and micro-SD cards, SDXC and HC formats, as well as the rare Compact Flash. The disadvantages include the lack of functionality for creating bootable disks and clumsy localization. But taking into account the existing functionality of the software and the free license, all these shortcomings are practically leveled out.