Amount of Unused HD Space Reported By Win XP Sp2 Is Incorrect

[Guest]

I have a 250GB Western Digital HD (wd2500b015-rnn) connected through a USB
2.0 port. Recently, I deleted a large (~60GB) Acronis Image Maker 8.0 file
from this drive. However, the amount of free space that is reported by
windows is now understated by the ~60GB – the size of the file that I
deleted. Emptying the recycle bin does not solve the problem. There are no
hidden or system files on the drive that are visible to windows. Moving my
data to another drive and then reformatting the drive works, but, for obvious
reasons, this is not the solution I am looking for. I have contacted Western
Digital and have been assured that this is a windows problem (I am not
convinced). Any advice on how to fix this issue? Thanks in advance.

 

[hal9000]

Update: I Booted into an Acronis Image Maker 8 CD boot disk to compare the
amount of free space reported by windows with the amount reported by the
boot disk. The same amount of free space is reported. Appears to be an issue
with the hard drive. But what to do?

 

[hal9000]

Update: I Booted into an Acronis Image Maker 8 CD boot disk to compare the
amount of free space reported by windows with the amount reported by the
boot disk. The same amount of free space is reported. Appears to be an issue
with the hard drive. But what to do?