Advisable to warm up HDD before formatting?

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J. Clarke said:
Manny wrote:
Click to expand...
At one time there was a separate platter with the servo
tracks, so it was possible for temperature changes to
alter the head positions slightly relative to the data
tracks. That is no longer the case, each platter has
its own servo information stored.

Since there is a large hole in the top of the drive until
such time as the factory decides to put the lid on that is
not an issue. Regardless, there is really no separate
"servo-writer" that is inserted into the drive--the heads
that are shipped with it are used for servo writing, but
positioned by an external device at the factory.
Click to expand...

I have to confess ignorance abou HDs and didn't know that
this was now the practice for servo writing, but I read that
newer Hitachi-IBM HDs could write their own servos, even
without external electronics, but I thought the usual practice
was to insert a servo writer through a hole. I've seen drives
with a fairly large taped-over hole on the bottom for this,
but it's usually a small hole on the side. If this hole isn't
for servo writing, then what is it for?
You don't "calibrate against that one servo". You calibrate
against the data tracks and then use the calculated offset.
Click to expand...

Is there an offset because separate heads are used for reads
and writes?
 
Manny said:
I have to confess ignorance abou HDs and didn't know that
this was now the practice for servo writing, but I read that
newer Hitachi-IBM HDs could write their own servos, even
without external electronics, but I thought the usual practice
was to insert a servo writer through a hole. I've seen drives
with a fairly large taped-over hole on the bottom for this,
but it's usually a small hole on the side. If this hole isn't
for servo writing, then what is it for?
Click to expand...
The servos are written using the drive heads. The servo writer inserts one
extra head, which reads a dedicated timing track on the outer track (IBM
eliminated it). That is so the servo tracks are bit aligned. The servo writer
also uses a laser to measure the position of the head assembly.
 
Manny said:
I have to confess ignorance abou HDs and didn't know that
this was now the practice for servo writing, but I read that
newer Hitachi-IBM HDs could write their own servos, even
without external electronics, but I thought the usual practice
was to insert a servo writer through a hole. I've seen drives
with a fairly large taped-over hole on the bottom for this,
but it's usually a small hole on the side. If this hole isn't
for servo writing, then what is it for?
Click to expand...

Probably some inspection or other.
Is there an offset because separate heads are used for reads
and writes?
Click to expand...

No, there's an offset because when the temperature changes there are slight
distortions in the mechanism which in a drive with a single set of servo
tracks on a different surface from the data can cause the heads to be
off-center on the data tracks. This is a problem when there is only one
servo track serving several platters, but it is not a problem when the
servo track and the data are interleaved on the same platter as is the
practice on all contemporary drives.
 
If this was necessary, the drive might not work when you
turned the computer on every morning. You'd have to let it spin for
15 minutes and then try to boot up.
 
Only if you stored it in a freezer at 30 below zero. Think about it, if
it made a real difference you wouldn't be able to boot from the drive
until it warmed UP!
 
Bob I said:
Only if you stored it in a freezer at 30 below zero. Think about it, if
it made a real difference you wouldn't be able to boot from the drive
until it warmed UP!
Click to expand...

Nope, you are confusing daily and usual behavior with margins and an
original format. The question was NOT whether drives were prone to
immediate failure due to temperature change. The question was "If I get a
new hard drive then is it good practise to boot the PC and let the drive
spin for 30 minutes or so in order that it warms up before I format it?"

The answer to that question "It's certainly not a bad idea."
 
If this was necessary, the drive might not work when you
turned the computer on every morning. You'd have to let it
spin for 15 minutes and then try to boot up.
Click to expand...

There are difference between not working and working near the limit.
 
No its a stupid idea, following your logic you would need
to power up your harddrive for 30 minutes everytime you
booted up.

That idea is insane
 
No its a stupid idea, following your logic you would need to
power up your harddrive for 30 minutes everytime you booted up.

That idea is insane
Click to expand...

I always warm the hard drive to body temperature before using it.
 
Roger Hunt said:
Dear Doctor

I seem to have data retention problems with my arse ...
Click to expand...

I was thinking the same thing. LOL. Pretty sad that so many people
think like this, eh? 8)
 
No it doesnt matter if you heat up the hard drive before you format it. I
have installed lots of hard drives and never heated them up before
formating.
 
Norm De Plume said:
I always warm the hard drive to body temperature before using it.
Click to expand...

The *only* time I notice that *some* hard drives are prone to errors is if
they are very cold. Like been shut off for a day in a 50F room. They need
to be warmed up before you can use them, but this isn't with all drives, and
it doesn't take 30 minutes. Maybe 4 reboots (as they most likely will give
one of those clicks that are bad, and you reboot just out of fear :) and it
gets to working normally. Then you have to find a way to keep the case or
room warm. This is how my 60GB Maxtor used to behave, well, it still does
but it is in an older PC now so I don't deal wit it much. It has been
replaced by dual 120GB Seagate 7200RPM 8MB cache in RAID0 :)
 
Anonymous said:
The *only* time I notice that *some* hard drives are prone to errors is if
they are very cold. Like been shut off for a day in a 50F room. They need
to be warmed up before you can use them, but this isn't with all drives, and
it doesn't take 30 minutes. Maybe 4 reboots (as they most likely will give
one of those clicks that are bad, and you reboot just out of fear :) and it
gets to working normally. Then you have to find a way to keep the case or
room warm. This is how my 60GB Maxtor used to behave, well, it still does
but it is in an older PC now so I don't deal wit it much. It has been
replaced by dual 120GB Seagate 7200RPM 8MB cache in RAID0 :)
Click to expand...
Just an aside here, but, a well known disc array manufacturer, IBM,
allows for a 30 minute HD warmup when replacing HD's concurrently. I'm
sure you're aware that heat causes expansion and as the bit density
increases and the track width decreases(more tracks/platter) on the disc
platter thermal stability becomes an issue.
 
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