How to Check Disk Health in Windows 10/11 (2026 Guide)

Your hard drive or SSD stores all your important data—documents, photos, videos, and your Windows installation. But storage drives don't last forever. HDDs have mechanical parts that wear out, and SSDs have flash memory cells that degrade with each write cycle. When a drive starts failing, it can corrupt your files or make Windows unbootable.

The good news is that you can check disk health before failure occurs. This guide shows you 5 methods to test the health of your HDD or SSD in Windows 10/11, so you can replace a failing drive before you lose data.

PAGE CONTENT

• Why You Should Check Disk Health
• Method 1: Use CrystalDiskInfo (Recommended)
• Method 2: Use WMIC in Command Prompt
• Method 3: Run CHKDSK
• Method 4: Use Manufacturer Tools
• Method 5: Use Windows Defender and Storage Sense
• How to Understand SMART Status
• What to Do If Your Disk Is Failing
• FAQs About Checking Disk Health

Why You Should Check Disk Health

Checking disk health regularly helps you:

• Detect failing drives early before they cause data loss
• Monitor SSD wear (TBW—Total Bytes Written) to estimate remaining lifespan
• Identify bad sectors on HDDs that can corrupt files
• Plan replacements before a drive fails completely
• Troubleshoot performance issues like slow boot times and freezes

Method 1: Use CrystalDiskInfo (Recommended)

CrystalDiskInfo is a free, lightweight tool that reads SMART (Self-Monitoring, Analysis, and Reporting Technology) data from your drives. It's the easiest way to check disk health in Windows.

Step 1. Download CrystalDiskInfo from the official website (crystalmark.info). Choose the Standard Edition zip version (no installation needed).

Step 2. Extract the zip file and run DiskInfo64.exe (for 64-bit Windows) or DiskInfo32.exe (for 32-bit).

Step 3. The main window shows your drive(s) with a health status:

• Good (blue): The drive is healthy.
• Caution (yellow): The drive has bad sectors or other issues. Back up your data and plan to replace the drive.
• Bad (red): The drive is failing. Back up immediately and replace the drive.

Step 4. Click on the drive to see detailed SMART attributes, including temperature, power-on hours, error rates, and for SSDs, total bytes written (TBW).

Method 2: Use WMIC in Command Prompt

If you don't want to install third-party software, use the built-in WMIC (Windows Management Instrumentation Command-line) to check basic disk status.

Step 1. Press Win + R, type cmd, and press Enter.

Step 2. Type the following command and press Enter:

wmic diskdrive get status

Step 3. The output shows the status of each drive. "OK" means the drive is healthy. "Pred Fail" means the drive is likely failing—back up immediately.

Step 4. For more details, run:

wmic diskdrive get model,serialnumber,status

Method 3: Run CHKDSK

CHKDSK (Check Disk) is a built-in Windows tool that scans for file system errors and bad sectors. While it doesn't provide SMART data, it can detect physical disk problems.

Step 1. Press Win + X and select "Windows Terminal (Admin)".

Step 2. Run the following command (replace C: with your drive letter):

chkdsk C: /f /r

Step 3. If the drive is in use, type Y to schedule the scan on the next restart.

Step 4. Restart your PC. CHKDSK will run before Windows starts. This can take from a few minutes to several hours depending on drive size and speed.

Step 5. After CHKDSK completes, Windows will boot normally. If CHKDSK reports bad sectors, the drive may be failing—back up your data and consider replacing the drive.

Method 4: Use Manufacturer Tools

Most drive manufacturers provide free diagnostic tools that can perform detailed health checks and firmware updates:

• Samsung: Samsung Magician (for Samsung SSDs)
• Western Digital: Western Digital Dashboard (for WD SSDs) / Data Lifeguard Diagnostic (for WD HDDs)
• Seagate: SeaTools for Windows
• Crucial: Crucial Storage Executive
• Kingston: Kingston SSD Manager
• Intel: Intel Memory and Storage Tool
• ADATA: ADATA SSD Toolbox

Step 1. Download the tool for your drive brand from the manufacturer's official website.

Step 2. Install and launch the tool.

Step 3. The tool will display your drive's health status, SMART attributes, firmware version, and estimated remaining lifespan (for SSDs).

Step 4. If available, run the full diagnostic scan to check for errors.

Method 5: Use Windows Defender and Storage Sense

Windows 11 has a built-in storage health monitoring feature that can alert you to drive issues.

Storage Health in Windows 11

Step 1. Go to Settings > System > Storage.

Step 2. Click "Advanced storage settings" > "Storage used on drives".

Step 3. If a drive has issues, Windows will show a warning under the drive.

Windows Security Device Performance & Health

Step 1. Open Windows Security (search in Start menu).

Step 2. Go to "Device performance & health".

Step 3. Check for any storage-related warnings.

How to Understand SMART Status

SMART (Self-Monitoring, Analysis, and Reporting Technology) is a monitoring system built into most modern drives. Key SMART attributes to watch:

Attribute	What It Means	Concerning Values
Reallocated Sectors Count (05)	Number of bad sectors that have been remapped	Any non-zero value (indicates bad sectors)
Current Pending Sector Count (C5)	Sectors waiting to be remapped	Any non-zero value
Uncorrectable Sector Count (C6)	Sectors that cannot be read or repaired	Any non-zero value (drive is failing)
Power-On Hours (09)	Total hours the drive has been running	HDDs: 30,000+ hours (near end of life)
Total Bytes Written (for SSDs)	Total data written to the SSD	Compare to the SSD's TBW rating
Temperature (AA or E7)	Drive temperature	Above 60°C (140°F)

If any of the critical attributes (05, C5, C6) show non-zero values, back up your data immediately—the drive is likely failing.

What to Do If Your Disk Is Failing

If a SMART warning, surface test, or repeated read error indicates that a disk is failing, stop using it for normal work. Do not install software on it, defragment it, or repeatedly run repair tools before securing the data. The following workflow prioritizes data recovery and keeps the failing disk's read and write activity as low as possible.

Important: A failing disk can stop responding at any time. Prepare a healthy destination disk with enough capacity before starting. A full-disk clone may overwrite the destination disk, so copy any files you need from that disk first.

Back Up Critical Files First

Step 1. Connect a healthy external drive or access a reliable network location with enough free space. Copy the most important documents, photos, and project files from the failing disk first. If Windows repeatedly freezes while reading a file, skip that file and continue with the other files instead of repeatedly opening it.

Step 2. Open the copied files from the backup location to confirm that they can be read. Keep the failing disk connected only while copying or cloning, and do not save new files to it.

Clone the Failing Disk to a Healthy Disk

After securing the irreplaceable files, use Qiling Disk Copy to make a full clone. A sector-by-sector clone is useful when the source contains bad sectors, but it can take a long time and may not recover unreadable areas.

• Free Download
• Windows 11/10/8/7, 100% Secure

Step 1. Connect the failing source disk and the healthy destination HDD or SSD to a working Windows computer. Check the disk number, capacity, and partitions in Windows Disk Management so you can identify both disks correctly.

Step 2. Launch Qiling Disk Copy and choose "Disk/Partition clone".

Step 3. Select the failing disk as the source. If you need every sector copied, select "Sector by sector clone". Do not select the healthy destination disk as the source.

Step 4. Select the new HDD or SSD as the destination. Confirm the disk number and capacity one more time. The cloning process will overwrite the destination disk, so do not continue if it contains files that have not been backed up.

Step 5. Review the source and destination layout. If the destination is an SSD, select "Optimize for SSD". Adjust the partition layout only if necessary; for a system disk, keep the required boot and recovery partitions.

Step 6. Click "Proceed" to start the clone. Confirm the overwrite warning only after verifying the destination disk. Keep both disks connected, do not shut down the computer, and do not cancel the operation while data is being copied.

Step 7. When cloning finishes, click "Finish". Shut down the computer before replacing the failing disk. Start the computer from the new disk, or use the BIOS/UEFI boot menu to select it temporarily, then open several files and check that the partitions are present.

If Windows Cannot Read the Failing Disk

If Windows cannot start or the failing disk disconnects frequently, create Qiling Disk Copy bootable media on a healthy computer. Connect the bootable USB, failing disk, and destination disk to the affected computer, boot from the USB, and repeat the Disk/Partition clone steps in the WinPE environment. If the disk makes unusual noises or becomes very hot, stop using it and consider professional data recovery instead of continuing software operations.

Replace the Disk and Restore the Data

Replace the failing HDD or SSD with the new disk after verifying the clone. If you are upgrading, an NVMe M.2 SSD can provide faster performance. If the clone is not bootable, check that the new disk uses the same UEFI or Legacy boot mode as the original system, then restore personal files from the verified backup.

FAQs About Checking Disk Health

How do I check if my SSD is failing?

Use CrystalDiskInfo to read SMART data. If the status shows "Caution" or "Bad", the SSD is failing. Also check the Total Bytes Written (TBW) attribute—each SSD has a rated TBW, and approaching it means the SSD is near end of life.

What is SMART status?

SMART (Self-Monitoring, Analysis, and Reporting Technology) is a monitoring system built into modern drives. It tracks attributes like bad sectors, error rates, temperature, and power-on hours to predict drive failure.

Can CHKDSK fix a failing hard drive?

CHKDSK can detect and mark bad sectors, but it cannot repair physical drive damage. If CHKDSK finds bad sectors, the drive is likely failing—back up your data and replace the drive.

How long do SSDs last?

Most consumer SSDs last 5-10 years under normal use. SSD lifespan is measured in TBW (Total Bytes Written). A typical 1TB SSD has a TBW rating of 600TB, which equals about 300GB of writes per day for 5 years.

What temperature is too hot for an SSD?

SSDs should operate between 0°C and 70°C. If the temperature exceeds 60°C (140°F), the SSD may be overheating—improve airflow in your case or add a heatsink for M.2 SSDs.

Conclusion

Checking disk health is an essential maintenance task that can save you from unexpected data loss. Use CrystalDiskInfo for a quick SMART status check, or use the manufacturer's tool for detailed diagnostics. If your drive shows signs of failure, back up your data immediately and clone the drive to a new one using Qiling Disk Copy.

For ongoing data protection, create regular system backups with Qiling Backup so you can restore quickly if a drive ever fails.

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