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Question

strange grinding noise when my computer shuts down

Aug 31, 2015 8:35AM PDT

Hello when I shut down my computer there is a odd noise that I would describe as grinding, I was concerned that it could be my hard drive (WD 500gb blue) but this is concerning as I have had the computer (zoostorm ,4gb,celeron 1037u) for less than a week ,it could be the power units of cooling fan or a natural function of the computer but I would like to know now , I have ran the hard drive with some test the I downloaded for the WD downloads and the passed ,the problem has only occurred when it shuts down and not in use or start up.All the computer diagnostics that I know says the hard drive is fine and it is brand new.

Discussion is locked

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Answer
While there is a test for the HDD we can do
Aug 31, 2015 9:18AM PDT

I worry they will void your warranty. It's pretty simple.

Power up the PC with the case off but get to the BIOS page. We are not changing anything there but need a quiet PC without accessing the HDD for the test. It's simple.

1. Boot to the BIOS screen.
2. Unplug the SATA cable to the HDD, then unplug the SATA power cable. The drive will spin down and if it's that, you'll hear the noise. If not, it's something else.
3. Power down the PC, replace the SATA cables and try it again so we know we got the cables on right.

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Dont want to open the case due to warranty.
Aug 31, 2015 12:08PM PDT

I dont want to void the warranty as if there is something wrong then i am still able to get it repared at the shop.could you suggest something else that wont envolve opeining the case .

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Less than a week old.
Aug 31, 2015 12:17PM PDT

That would have me getting a new one under warranty.
Dafydd.

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You can download disk diagnostics from WD and Seagate.
Aug 31, 2015 12:27PM PDT

If you do, be sure to look at the SMART data which measures things in hard drives that are subject to failure. My guess is that what you're hearing is more likely to be from a cooling fan, but since you say this is less than a week old, I like Dafydd's suggestion to take advantage of warranty support. The sooner you do that, the more likely they'll be not to question your handling of it.