Low level format or scandisk?

[dwayne001]

OK, so chkdsk or scandisk will check for and repair any bad sectors it can--but if you low level format a drive, do you still have to perform those steps? Like...does a low level format make the disk/sector checking/fixing process moot? Or are they mutually exclusiive?

 

[dandragonrage]

Nothing "repairs" bad sectors. It marks them unusable. If you have bad sectors, I recommend just throwing the drive out. However, to answer your question, I have heard people recommending low level formats if you have bad sectors before, but I can't verify if it'll be a temporary fix or not. I will say that and regular format will find them, though.

 

[phaelinx]

If im not mistaken, if you have bad sectors that are marked unusable, a low level format erases those marks and lets you attempt to write data to the marked sectors. I wouldnt do a low level format on a drive with marked bad sectors unless you are attempting to repair the sectors which is close to impossible if they are physically damaged.