ASUS G74Sx - SSD Failure

Hello,

I have purchased my G74Sx about three months ago, everything was working perfectly fine.
I enjoyed this machine very much, however today I encountered the fact that my 160GB SSD suddenly stopped working.

I've tried running a windows setup disk, but it shows that my SSD drive is simply not there.
Then I have tried re-plugging it, tried plugging it into the other drive's SATA port, and unfortunately it still does not work, while my 750GB WD HDD works fine in both ports..

Have anyone encountered that problem with this model, or know why or what this problem is?

Any help would be greatly appreciated!

Thanks Ahead,
Signing off,
cyph0rg.

 

Does the drive work on an another computer?

 

What brand SSD did it come with? Your SSD could have died on you or gone corrupted. I had a G.skill 128gb falcon SSD in my G73JH a while ago and one day it became corrupted and wouldn't even boot into Windows. Luckily, unlike mechanical failures on normal hard drives I was able to retrieve the data on the SSD by running Ubuntu(Linux) through a bootable USB and backed everything up into my secondary HDD. I suggest you download Ubuntu, run it through a USB stick and check your SSD by running "Disk Utility".

Download link:
http://www.ubuntu.com/download/desktop

 

cyph0rg,

While I would definitely recommend trying piso79's suggestion of checking to see if the drive works in another computer at all, it does sound like you suffered a component failure on your SSD.

So if the drive does not work on any other computers you are able to test it with, I would suggest that you call and set up an RMA for your drive. In the US you can call: 1-888-678-3688

Hopefully the RMA process will go smoothly for you, but if you are running into long delays, feel free to PM or email me with the RMA#, and I'll look into it and see what I can do for you. My name is Scott, and I'm with the Asus Customer Loyalty team. [email protected]

 

Hi cyph0rg,

I would also check to see if the drive is detected by the
bios (setup menus). As recently as fall 2011, there were
several outstanding bugs, with SSD drive controllers. Some would
make the drive appear as though it only had a few MB of space
available. Others (Intel for instance), would simply reset their
entire state table, resulting in complete loss of data, and the drive
appearing as thought it's dead, except that it was detectable by the
bios. Several vendors issued firmware updates to help deal with
the problems, but rumors still persist that the updates did not fix the
problems, for some models/manufacturers/drives. In most cases, the
drive can be restored to full functionality, but usually with complete
data loss. How you restore the drive, if possible, depends on the
manufacturer. Do you know the model number of your drive? Did the
drive come with the G74SX? If the drive is not detected by the bios,
then it is likely that it has suffered a component failure, or there is
something wrong with the SATA ports on your laptop.

Good luck,

Sir Robin

 

Hello Robin,

The SSD drive is in fact detectable by the BIOS and also is detected when I check the 'Disk Drives' in the Device Manager..

However when I go to 'Disk Management' it does not appear there.

Respectfully,
cyph0rg.


PS- The disk is: INTEL SSDSA2CW160G3
And it did arrive with my G74Sx.

-----------------------------------------------------

I've tried updating the firmware of my SSD however the updater says my drive already has latest firmware version.

 

It sounds like at least part of the SSD is alive. The next step, if you'd
like to try recovering it, would be to run the Intel SSD Toolbox:

http://downloadcenter.intel.com/Detail_Desc.aspx?agr=Y&DwnldID=18455

If I remember correctly, there is an initialize command, that will
bring the drive back to a "recognizable" state. It wouldn't hurt to
try updating the firmware again, just in case. After initializing,
you may have to partition and format, under Computer Management.

If the drive comes back to life, you are good, until the next time it
decides to "go-zombie". There is usually no warning, when it is about
to happen. If you choose to stick with your current drive, I recommend
using it as a cache drive, and not as a primary. Be sure to backup regularly.
Even if it comes back to life, you might consider asking for a replacement,
from Asus. You might have better luck with a different unit, or brand.

Good luck,

Sir Robin

 

Thanks everyone, today I had my machine picked up, I will receive it back in about a week.

Decided not to temper with it while I've got my warranty..

Thanks,
Signing off,
cyph0rg.