Re: Used HDs

["Aaron B." <aaron%zadzmo.org@localhost>]

On Fri, 11 Nov 2022 19:58:04 +0000
Todd Gruhn <tgruhn2%gmail.com@localhost> wrote:

> Western Digital WD2500AAJS 250 GB Caviar Blue Hard Drive
> 
> It was used, and made in 2010. How long do these drives work?
> 
> SCSI drives only lasted for about 5yr to 7ys -- but that was 20yr ago...

I always thought of spinning-rust drives like cars: they don't last an
amount of time, they wear with use. Like cars lifespan has increased
over the years. Unlike cars leaving them parked (properly protected)
for years at a time isn't harmful. 

I'd say plug it in, and run a smart test on it. It's old, but new
enough it should give an absolute stop/start count as well as hours
powered on. Under 20,000 or so hours and/or only a couple hundred
stop/starts, it's barely broken in, go ahead and use it.

And also never forget to backup. Even if your drives are new.


In mid-2020 I finally retired my last IBM DCHS04Y, built in 1997. It
was heavily used when I first got the disk in 2004, and I ran it 24x7
from at least 2009 if not earlier. I believe it would still work if I
happened to turn that computer back on.

-- 
Aaron B. <aaron%zadzmo.org@localhost>