hard disk issue with laptop

Fujitsu people,

I'm not sure if this is the best place to ask, but here it goes. I've got an S7010D. In windows "power options properties" I have the hard disk set to turn off after 3 minutes of inactivity (AC and DC). But the disk never turns off. Every so often the HD indicator blinks on in the little LCD display and I hear a gentle click.

I have no applications running, and I know that there is no spyware lurking on my machine. I switch off all virus software, zonealarm, etc. to do the test.

Any ideas? Could there be some obscure windows service that keeps accessing the drive?

I'd like the HD to spin down, since I often do work that doesn't need the HD, and it should save battery power, HD life, and enable me to move the laptop while it's on.

Actually, what would be really cool is some utility that'd let me switch off the HD on demand...

Thanks!

 

I don't know what work you are doing on your laptop but usually if you're using it for whatever application you are doing the HD probably will stay on while you are working.

Even just typing in word for example you will notice the HD light will flicker or blink the odd time it's just background programs running that will need HD access.

You may have all programs turned off but windows or other related programs are running and that's the reason why the HD usually doesn't actually spin down totally.

Tony

 

It's windows, I have never managed to get a disk to spin down on XP. NTFS keeps on doing those weird things of backing up TOC, time stamping files, indexing ... Plus windows' page file (virtual mem) is on the drive so it will keep being accessed.

If you have a hitachi drive you can get a utillity that improves power consumption (with a bit of loss in performance), but that is permenant.

Anyway, laptop drives have power states. So when there is no heavy usage they, by defualt, revert to a lower power state to save battery and decrease heat production.

 

I also cannot achieve that. But in NHC the disk spindown works. Only problem is that it stops and then goes on after some time.

Cheers,

 

It's as qwester says, windows will never power down the hdd. I have turned off indexing, and set my paging file to zero and it still will never power down the hdd. Ever. Windows is the suxxor.