best chkdsk alternative

[MadJuggla9]

I can't count how many times a chkdsk will say a drive is good, yet the drive is too unstable to run an operating system for long periods. Before selling/using/buying a drive, what do you guys recommend that could almost guarantee 100% goodness without having to sit and use it everyday for a month.

I hate selling used machines because I'm always afraid a chkdsk won't do justice and the drive may fail at some sooner-than-later point.

Sorry if this is redundant, I wanted a [H] opinion over a google search for this occurrence.

 

[MadJuggla9]

TTT?!?

I don't trust chkdsk enough to guarantee a sell. Downloading a decent sized torrent would put more wear on a drive than chkdsk.

 

[Vertigo Acid]

Manufacturer's diagnostic software
Download the UBCD and you'll have all of them in one place

 

[bbz_Ghost]

Manufacturer's diagnostic software
Download the UBCD and you'll have all of them in one place

QFT, in spades.

Run the Advanced test from any of those diagnostic utilities and that's about as thorough a test of the entire hard drive, from the electronics to the physical media aka the platters, as you're going to ever find.

I'll throw a nod in for SpinRite 6 also since I've been using SpinRite for a really really long time now, from v1 to the current v6. It has never failed to save a drive for me and return it to a usable state as long as the drive has no electrical/electronic problems or physical damage to the media, aka a head crash or possible bearing or motor failure.

And that's several thousand drives over the past 3 decades, just for the record. Every single one was restored to working condition. Can't recommend that tiny piece of assembly/machine code enough.