Hard drives are the powerhouse in computer systems and facilitate the storage and retrieval of data. However, hard drives are susceptible to damage and file corruption, affecting their capacity to perform efficiently. Corruption also affects the ability to recover deleted files from a hard drive.

Therefore, corrupted hard drives do not function properly and may not help with storing and even retrieving stored data. Because many people store essential data on the computer, many people get worried about data. And that is why you must be asking if it is possible to fix a corrupted hard drive.

Fortunately, it is possible to fix a corrupted hard drive and even retrieve files and folders from it. This article lists and discusses a set of solutions to repair and fix corrupted hard drives. But first, how do you tell if a hard drive is corrupted?

Check If A Hard Drive Is Corrupted

Before you can conclusively conclude that your hard drive is corrupted, look out for the following symptoms.

  • If you constantly receive a warning to format the disk before using it
  • If you constantly receive a message of “H:/ is not accessible. The file or directory is corrupted and unreadable. “
  • You hear strange sounds as you use the hard drive
  • The external hard drive is unreadable
  • You constantly see prompts asking you to format your hard drive
  • The property of your hard drive displays 0 bytes
  • Look out for other symptoms

Can A Corrupted Hard Drive Be Fixed

If your drive experiences any of the symptoms above, it is a clear indication that your hard drive is corrupted. You can fix a corrupted hard drive like any other hard drive error. Therefore, you should not get worried but instead try any of the methods described below to fix the problem and restore your data.

Recover Data From A Corrupted Hard Drive

Before fixing a corrupted hard drive, we recommend recovering data from it first. You face higher risks of losing data permanently when you fix a corrupted hard drive with data in it.

One of the best ways to recover deleted files from a hard drive or a corrupted drive is the use of Disk Drill developed by CleverFiles. Follow the steps below to restore your files.

  1. Download and install Disk Drill.
  2. Launch the software on your PC
  3. Choose All-Round recovery mode to execute a thorough hard drive data recovery.
  4. Check the name of the corrupted hard drive and tap on the “Next” button to proceed.
  5. When asked to choose the file type to recover, select “All File Types.”
  6. When the scanning process ends, you will see a list of files and folders that have been scanned from the drive. Preview the files and select the ones to be recovered, then tap on the “Recover” button to complete the process.

How To Fix A Corrupted Hard Drive

There are many methods of fixing a corrupted hard drive on Mac and Windows PC. This section will discuss some of the most commonly used methods that also have the highest success rates.

Method 1: Check Drive For File System Errors 

Fortunately, Windows PC comes with a systematic channel for error checking, especially when trying to repair corrupted hard drives and other storage media.

Step 1: Navigate to My PC.

Step 2: Open My PC and right-click on the corrupted hard drive. Choose Properties.

Step 3: Go to the Tools section and tap on the “Check” button.

Since the Windows system does not have a hard drive monitor, you can try the CMD Line to check the hard drive’s condition. Follow the steps below.

Step 1: Tap “Win + R” followed by “cmd” into the order box to launch the CMD window.

Step 2: Type “wmic” and tap enter to proceed.

Step 3: Type “disk drive get status” and enter again.

Method 2: Check Hard Drive Connection

Step 1: Check whether the power supply is ok. An internal hard drive requires SATA power and data connections. Ensure the cables are connected properly or try other cables if necessary.

Step 2: Try connecting the hard drive to a different computer and see if you can access it.

Method 3: Scan For Viruses 

Step 1: Open “Settings” and locate “Update & Security,” followed by “Windows Security” and “Open Windows Security.”

Step 2: Click “Virus & threat protection” when Windows Security shows up.

Step 3: Click “Scan options” followed by “Full scan” and “Scan Now” to check all the files for viruses. Scanning and fixing may take longer for more extensive storage.

Method 4: Wipe The Corrupted Hard Drive

Disk wiping overwrites all data and fixes errors on the drive as well. Although you can still recover files from a formatted drive, wiping makes the data completely unrecoverable. Follow the steps below.

Step 1: Select the corrupted drive and click “Tools” followed by “Erase Sectors.”

Step 2: Select the characters you want to use to overwrite the disk and tap “Erase” to continue.