My HDDs from Seagate IronWolf Pro Nas failing one after the other...help!

Normally it should not be a problem, very few Sata devices use 3.3v but it seems the ironwolf pro actually might use it

Actually, this can be quite hard on HDD’s and I think this is a pretty common cause of failing drives.
You might want to put something there like a UPS to catch it when the grid fails.

You could be right, but I’ve lost count of how many times I’ve used the main psu power switch to turn of my normal windows pc’s over many years and those disks are still going strong after apx 8 years.

I had to do it as my TV often doesn’t detect the output and needs a few cycles sometimes before it gives a signal.

Hi! Is there a way to check if they use or not? does this come on the specifications. I could, at least temporarily switch the few adapters to WD drives while I wait for the propoer adaptors.

Is switching from the pc diferent from a power failure from the point of view of damage? perhaps when you press the button on the pc there is something going on before the actuall system shusts down…just speculating but situations are different in nature.

I dont think so, its the main power switch and instantly kills the pc without allowing a gracefull shutdown .

And I pull hdd without shutting them down as they’ve been hot swappable for a while now.

Hi, I have changed the cables to 5 wires. but I’m still quite puzzled why the 4 will make the device fail, can you elaborate a bit about why this occurs. I also read the Ironwolf Seagate manual and just look at their diagram


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can anyone help interpret this table from their manual, why does the connector needs two “grounds”?

The number of ground connections doesn’t really matter. My guess is that they had nothing else to use that pin for and they didn’t want to leave it as a floating connection so they tied it to ground.

Btw, after reading through this thread a thought came to mind. Did you buy these drives through a reputable dealer? And when they arrived were the drives well packaged?

I remember an article a few years back about one of the main causes of HDD failure was because of crappy packaging when shipping. I prefer buying external HDDs because they can take more abuse during shipping. Better than an OEM HDDs floating around in a box with a few bits of foam, especially from places like Amazon.

If you buy from a reputable computer store they’re more likely to package it really well.

Hi thanks for your comments! If fact the way I have received the HDDs was far from ideal…they were not properly fixed and it is likely that they moved around during transport. It is likely an issue for sure. My question is, ok assuming they were incorrectly shipped, would they not fail right at the beginning. Do you think it is possible they work ok and then after 3 months they just fail? Shall I just return all those disks altogether?

I mean if disk don’t last 3-4 years this all investment makes little sense since all the replotting and the short lifetime will basically ruin all the numbers in terms of return on Investment!

Regarding the reputation of the store, I bought most of the failing drives in PC Componentes (a Spanish provider of all kind of hardware), and one in xstra digital storage. In fact the ones I bought ins Scenetic (a more specialized store and that sent the disks properly stored) did not fail but I only bought 4 via this store. So really I don’t have enough statistics to draw firm conclusions.

Here is a bit more info >

Interesting! Cheers. So the 3.3V is missing for those connectors I used. I mean can this explain malfunction and ultimately failure of the disks? I have changed already the connectors to 5 wires, but it is important to actually understand what was the reason behind such huge failure rate. It will benefit the entire community since I guess I’m not the only one using these 4 wires connectors!

The mention of the UPS is important in my mind. I always have a UPS on PCs and their external parts. Power can be ok voltage-wise but “dirty” with spikes and noise on the line. That can cause mysterious problems. A (good) UPS will filter and equalize power/voltage, basically, giving pure clean power with little chance to damage sensitive electronics.

Well worth the cost, as it is typically a one time cost for the UPS itself, as batteries are easily replaceable. And any momentary dips or outages are smoothed over.

I bought two of my 16tb internal Seagate EXOS drives from XSTRA digital storage as well. Both died within the first week. :sweat_smile:

They came in “not so ideal” packaging for me as well.

Hi Fuseguy can you please share what UPS you are using. I may actually buy if it is not very expensive. I can not afford to destroy my HDDs so I will do everything within my reach to protect them!

I use this UPS: UPS Battery Backup with Surge Protection, 1500VA Line Interactive, Rackmount, 2U, 8 Outlets | Tripp Lite

Cost about $270 retail. Think of it this way: you have thousands of $$$ worth of equipment on that rig. Is it worth extra few hundred to protect it from blackout/brownout?

I have Cyberpower CP1285 AVR (auto voltage Regulation). It’s old, but as I mentioned I replace batteries, not UPSs. It’s about like this > https://www.amazon.com/CyberPower-CP1200AVR-System-Outlets-Mini-Tower/dp/B000ARCEFM/ref=sr_1_16?dchild=1&keywords=cyberpower+ups&qid=1629642444&sr=8-16

But there are many, depending on features and how much you are backing up load-wise. Not all are the same quality of power output. The best I think are the ‘sine-wave’ output devices, as they produce a pure sine wave output not a square wave, but you pay for it > https://www.amazon.com/s?k=cyberpower+ups&ref=nb_sb_noss_2

sure, you are right! does you UPS shut down the system automaticaly. APC UPS has this powershute software that claims to swithch off the PC safelly…I wonder if I can coonect this UPS to two of my chia farming PCs and the software will safely turn of both in case of a power failure? Anyone has tested this?

A badly packaged hard drive can work fine for a while. But if shipping cause damage to random places on the hard drive platter you could use it for weeks and not realise anything is wrong, not until the hard drive tries to read/write to the damaged sectors.

Ideally when you receive a drive that is poorly packaged you would run it through a burn in period like unraid’s preclear. Which writes zeros to the drive and checks for errors. This usually detects any defects on the drive before you entrust it with your important data.

As for what to do with your drives I would try and return it if your warranty covers it.

Are all the drives that failed from the same place/same package? If so, then its fairly likely that the problem is shipping damage. If you have any other drives from the same shipment they might fail soon too.


Reference:

Hi, regarding the failing drives, it is difficult to reach firm conclusions. There is, unfortunatelly, not a clear pattern. I received a series of 14Tb badly conditioned but I also had a failure of a 10Tb that came well conditioned. I did notice that the last failing ones were indeed connect to the 4 wire adapters…but that may be coincidence. I’m eliminating factors. I will get a UPS to make sure the power outages don’t damage. I have installed the 5 wires proper connectors.
I use Crystal disk to monitor T and I wonder Is there any way to check the HDDs health? I suspect it is hard to return drives that have not yet failed, despite poorly conditioning. The dealer did however replaced all the failing ones so far…

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Actually to find out if your farm has voltage problems, just go Windows 10 search Event viewer then search on disk… If power issue it will get this msg