Arrrrgghh my notebook just gets worse

Hi guys

I'm having some problems with my notebook (Acer Aspire 9302) again...

I'm using a 120gb WD USB HDD and I'm getting the message "Windows - Delayed Write Failed Windows was unable to save all the data for the file \device\harddiskvolume4\$Mft. The data has been lost."

I've done a google search and couldn't find anything helpful apart from that it may mean my WD USB HDD is about to check out...

Please could someone advise me on what may be wrong and how I can go about solving the issues.

Thanks in advance for any help/advice

 

I usually got that message when I disconnected the hard drive without safely removing it via xp first. Make sure you click on the "safely remove hardware" icon on the taskbar and then eject the drive from there.

The message itself means there was a file on the hard drive that was open or being written to. It's generally not terrible, especially if the hard drive's activity light isn't blinking, but you could still end up with some corrupt files.

 

Hmm ok, I hope it's not terrible then, but I don't generally get general issues with my notebook and peripherals...

The issue first started when I pulled the HDD from a mates Compaq with Vista on it about 2 or 3 weeks ago - because we didn't have time to wait around all day for Vista to "let" us safely remove it (we kept getting the "the disk is in use" msg each time we tried), the Compaq then BSODd with a Kernel Inpage Data Error msg...

Anyway ever since I've had the issue come up every now and then when I'm using XP, I ran chkdsk the other night (took 3 hrs) and it fixed some bad sectors and other misc errors but I'm still getting the message.

And quite often I can't remove the HDD with the Safely Remove Hardware option because I keep getting the "disk is still in use" msg. I've sweeped the HDD and my entire system for malware/viruses/trojans/rootkits etc. but there don't appear to be any.

Anyone else got any ideas on how I can stop the Delayed Write errors?

 

Hmm... I'm no expert but have you tried reformatting the disk completely (not a quick format, a full format)? That would clean out whatever is being accessed if it's hidden. Or so I'd hope. Maybe someone else can give a better second opinion, but just thought I'd throw that out there... best of luck :/

 

You can try setting the drive policy for "Optimise for Quick Removal" under disk Management. However, this will probably hit the performance.

The other thing to check for is whether some background task such as disk indexing, virus scanning, defragmenter or whatever has decided to give the USB drive a thorough checkout.

I also find it annoying that the longer a USB HDD is connected then the greater the likelihood that you can't remove it without doing a complete system shutdown. I tend to just make sure that everything I am doing is finished and then pull the plug.

John

 

Yeah I've done all that. I'm actually more bothered about the Delayed Write error though. I can live with not being able to "pull" it until I turn the notebook off...

Thanks for the tips though

 

this happens to me too, tell me its in use even though i have no programs on. I just shutdown the computer instead of pulling it out unsafely

my external USB is always plugged in to my dock anyway.

 

shutdown your computer first before pulling the plug

 

Umm, really, surely not.

I'm more worried about the Warning - Delayed Write Failed message I keep getting when copying to the HDD...

Any advice on that guys? I'd really appreciate it.

 

Hi, are you plugging hd into a usb hub or directly to laptop?

 

Into a USB port on the laptop as below from first post...

 

I know it's USB, but the reason I asked if you were using a powered usb hub is because I have received same message before and it was due to the hub use instead of direct laptop USB port connection

 

Sorry, the USB port is on the laptop. Not on a hub. If I was using it on a hub I would have got rid of the hub in favor of a port on the laptop to make sure it's not the hub that's causing the fault.

 

I've had a similar problem like this, but it was also due to that fact that I was using a USB extension cable and nearing maxing the 5m upper limit. I only have problems when transferring large files, which makes sense due to the timing issues. I have definitely learned a lesson through this experience.

But with that said, how long is the USB connection between the HD and your notebook?

 

Try all the USB ports,maybe that one is picky.

 

Would this be a similar thing to the memory leak caused by Kaspersky Internet Security 7.0 in Vista when copying/moving large files or large amounts of files?

Now that you've mentioned large files I think it does only happen if I move/copy large amounts of files to the HDD...

Umm the length of the cable is only about 6 inches (15cm), if that.

I'm just hoping that it's not a sign the HDD is about to fail completely as I've started running out of space and that HDD is the only spare space I have really.

And no the USB port is not picky, the HDD does it on all of them...