Grinding hard drive...impending doom?

[Slugbait]

I noticed a few days ago a grinding sound (turned off the sound system for awhile...go figure). Kinda low-pitch, almost "humming" sound. Only happened once every minute or two.

Now I figured out where it's coming from: the wife's computer. It's an annoying sound that lasts about a half-second, and it does it every 5-15 seconds now. Hard drive light is constantly lit, while there is (almost) zero usage (RDS is running, as well as anti-virus and a few other background tasks).

Not sure how long this has been going on, and can't remember if the wife mentioned it (she's on a road trip right now). Is is a quirk, or is it about to melt down? Never had a hard drive fail before, so I'm not sure of all the warning signs. Thx.

[blackhawk]

Grinding noise never a good thing but if its an older drive may be normal. It can also be vibrations from fans etc in the case but check with the wife. Ensure the mount screws are in tight on it too.

[MK888]

If it is a regular sound, and lasts for about the same time each time you hear it...... If it sounds like a diesel truck idle, but at a higher pitch the bearings may be going. I would say, back it up as soon as you can just to be safe....

[DocSilly]

It won't hurt to backup the data .. just in case ... also check the HDD manufacturers webpage if they offer a diagnostic tool, most do. Download it and let it do a check on the HDD.

[blackhawk]

If any rma is available the mfg will require you to run their diagnostic so best to do it first, then if it doesn't pass you can hopefully get a new one and NOT lose your data. The ones I've used are run in dos and quite easy to do.

More often than not, hd's fail slowly and give some signs, like an unusual noise.

[FlyingPenguin]

Any grinding, loud clunk, or clicking noises that suddenly start happening are usually a sign of impending failure.