Hard drive sudenly speeding up

[vhawk]

why would my hard drive suddenly start whizzing round really fast? I am assuming it is the hard drive, nothing in the other drives, it sounds like the noise a cd makes when it is first inserted.
it makes a loud whizzing noise for about 20 minutes and then settles down, the pc seems to work ok while this is going on
I'm bracing my self for being told i need a new hard drive

 

[SNGX1275]

I doubt its the hard drive. Most drives run at 1 speed the entire time. The exception is the new Western Digital Green drives.

It is more likely it is your processor fan increasing as your processor temp increases.

If you are convinced it is your hard drive it may be worth going to the manufacturer's website and downloading their diagnostic tool software to see if your drive is healthy.

 

[vhawk]

thank you very much, that's a relief maybe it calms down because it's cooled down, the computer was built for me by a local young chap so I'm not sure what make of hard drive it has. could maybe ger anew hard drive bt I'm not sure I can read the magic xp number on the card that contained the disk

or I could always try Linux I suppose, I'd be glad to escape from the clutches of m$

 

[SNGX1275]

You can use Magic Jelly Bean Keyfinder to get your XP CD Key. I also think the Western Digital diagnostic tool works for all hard drives. But I'm pretty certain what you are hearing isn't the drive. Perhaps you could take the side of the case off and try and isolate the sound...

 

[vhawk]

wow that is really useful information thank you VERY much indeed