Year old comp Hard drive runs non stop
By
Ironblade,
Posted on: 2010-10-01 20:16 in ALL ACCESS Gameplay Technical Issues Bugs
I'll make a guess at windows 7. For some reason on some systems it will access the hard drive almost constantly.
Either that or you have a low amount of ram so CoH is constantly having to swap information to the drive.
Don't count your weasels before they pop dink!
Quote:
General computer lesson: firewalls only block information traveling on closed ports. They don't do anything to stop traffic on open ports, so if some malicious software is using Port 80 or Port 25, a firewall that allows you HTTP and SMTP access isn't going to do anything to stop the malicious software.|
Originally Posted by PowerStream
I notice this mostly in game but it seems like my hard drive is constantly reading. I don't remember my old comps doing this but I'm thinking it could just be that the new hard drive is louder so I notice it more. Is this common? Should I be concerned at all? I would ask if I have a virus or something but I run Malwarebytes, Avast and Spy Bot about once a month 2 at the most. Plus I have this on a firewalled gateway. Though I set it up so who knows how reliable that is.
 Anyway if you need COH Helper or HiJack This let me know I have them saved. |
Anyways, my guess is the same as Mandu's, probably an NT6 OS coupled with a low memory count.
Should you be worried about it?
Depends.
I'd run a checkdsk /f /r and make sure the disk is okay. If you don't know how to run this, the instructions really haven't changed since the first release of NT5: http://www.mepisguides.com/Windows/c...heck-disk.html
RAM shouldn't be a problem but it's a possibility. Also I mainly only use this comp for COH and recently PhotoShop but other than that it's just basic internet surfing (here usually).
Here's my machines stats for the heck of it.
I7 860
Win 7 64bit
8GB RAM
1 TB Hitachi HDS721010CLA332
Ironically when you look at the Windows score the Hard drive is what brings this machine down. Everything else is at 7+. The hard drive is at 5.9. I know that doesn't really mean a lot but maybe I just need a better hard drive. Unfortunately I didn't build this comp this time. I found a great deal on a closeout and couldn't pass it up. Otherwise I'd have put an WD and/or an SSD. Stupid recession...
Oh and I'll give the checkdisk a try when I can walk away form the comp for a while.
Yeah, you have plenty of ram so I'm going back to the Win 7. If you just do a google search on constant hard drive access you will see that there are plenty of message board threads all over the place wondering why Win 7 constantly uses the drive. I've got the same issue and have learned to ignore it. Some days it will access the drive constantly and others it's just not happening. Every once in a while I surf around to see if anybody has come up with a reason but so far most the threads end with "That didn't fix it."
Don't count your weasels before they pop dink!
Quote:
actually it's not really a mystery why Windows 7 keeps accessing the drive.|
Originally Posted by Mandu
Yeah, you have plenty of ram so I'm going back to the Win 7. If you just do a google search on constant hard drive access you will see that there are plenty of message board threads all over the place wondering why Win 7 constantly uses the drive. I've got the same issue and have learned to ignore it. Some days it will access the drive constantly and others it's just not happening. Every once in a while I surf around to see if anybody has come up with a reason but so far most the threads end with "That didn't fix it."
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Since basically DOS Microsoft has used the same hard-drive partition for user data that it uses for Virtual Memory: http://www.computing.net/answers/dos...dos/14987.html
Since the introduction of the NT kernel Microsoft has been on a quest to optimize the performance of the NT system in anyway possible in order to keep up with the Unix and Linux rivals. The NT6 kernel used in Vista / Win7 implements some aggressive memory technologies to boost perceived performance. Some examples of these changes can be found in knowledge base articles like this one: http://support.microsoft.com/kb/940105
Back in 2006 Jeff Atwood looked at the changes the NT6 kernel was bringing to memory management: http://www.codinghorror.com/blog/200...my-memory.html Microsoft touted the memory changes as a feature under the name of SuperFetch: http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Windows...O_technologies :: http://blogs.techrepublic.com.com/wi...windows/?p=735
In most cases simply disabling what Microsoft calls the page file will help with NT6's continuous hard-drive access. However, doing so could lead to system instability, as indicated by this thread on Overclock.net : http://www.overclock.net/windows/448...-you-even.html
And yet I've disabled the page file and superfetch and watched the hard drive continue it's constant access routine. So I turned them on again since it didn't make a perceptible performance difference. Like I said, most the threads end with "That didn't fix it." Sometimes Occam's razor just can't slice away all the layers of crud to get to the core.
Don't count your weasels before they pop dink!
Well then it sounds like it's not going to burn my HD to the ground so I'll try to ignore it. That just isn't as easy anymore. Myold comp was on the floor but because of ventilation I put the new on on top and it's right next to me and I think the manufacturer found the brightest HD light possible. LOL I taped a pc of paper over it and it's still plenty bright!
Thanks guys!
Quote:
You can disconnect the leads from the motherboard to the LED. Just don't disconnect the power switch. |
Originally Posted by PowerStream
That just isn't as easy anymore. Myold comp was on the floor but because of ventilation I put the new on on top and it's right next to me and I think the manufacturer found the brightest HD light possible. LOL I taped a pc of paper over it and it's still plenty bright!
|
Paragon City Search And Rescue
The Mentor Project
I notice this mostly in game but it seems like my hard drive is constantly reading. I don't remember my old comps doing this but I'm thinking it could just be that the new hard drive is louder so I notice it more. Is this common? Should I be concerned at all? I would ask if I have a virus or something but I run Malwarebytes, Avast and Spy Bot about once a month 2 at the most. Plus I have this on a firewalled gateway. Though I set it up so who knows how reliable that is.
Anyway if you need COH Helper or HiJack This let me know I have them saved.