SMART Status Bad Error: How to Repair HDD Smart Error with Free Software

How to fix S.M.A.R.T. error on hard disk? The first thing you need to do is back up your failing hard drive. Next, use the three useful methods to resolve Smart error.

Workable Solutions	Step-by-step Troubleshooting
Fix 1. Use Windows disk repair utility	Hard drive errors can cause Smart error. So you can use the Windows Disk Check utility to scan & fix hard drive errors, bad sectors, file system errors...Full steps
Fix 2. Use a free disk manager	When your computer shows Smart status bad issue, you can use Qiling free partition management software to check and repair bad sectors on the hard drive...Full steps
Fix 3. Disable SMART error in BIOS	Facing Smart bad error, it is fine to continue using the hard drive. You can disable the Smart error in BIOS. But it is not recommended for data security...Full steps

What Is a Smart Status Bad Error

According to the term explanation on Wikipedia, S.M.A.R.T. (Self-Monitoring, Analysis, and Reporting Technology; often written as SMART) is a monitoring system included in computer hard disk drives (HDDs) and solid-state drives (SSDs) that detects and reports on various indicators of drive reliability, with the intent of enabling the anticipation of hardware failures.

When S.M.A.R.T. data indicates a possible imminent drive failure, software running on the host system may notify the user so stored data can be copied to another storage device, preventing data loss, and the failing drive can be replaced.

If the S.M.A.R.T. Status Bad error message "Pri Master Hard Disk: S.M.A.R.T. Status BAD, Backup and Replace Press F1 to Resume" appears during the startup of the system, it usually shows as failure predicted on the hard disk, and the complementary message is a warning an immediate backup of this failing hard drive.

s.m.a.r.t status bad

Rescue and Recover Data from Your Hard Drive When Smart Bad Error Occurs

When S.M.A.R.T Status BAD error appears, your hard disk may crash at any time. If your computer can boot properly, immediately back up and store your important files on an external hard drive. If your system fails to boot for the Smart error and the hard drive might have corrupted, how to recover data from a corrupted hard drive?

Deep Data Recovery WinPE Edition enables you to recover and back up files from a failed hard drive in WinPE mode. You can create a bootable USB first, then boot from Data Recovery Wizard WinPE bootable disk to recover data from a corrupted or dead.

Using this powerful data recovery software, you can recover lost data from emptied recycle bin, memory card, flash drive, and hard drive because of accidental deletion, OS crash, storage device damage, virus attack, and so on.

Download the Qiling data recovery tool to recover files from the failed hard drive in the WinPE recovery environment.

Step 1. Create a bootable disk

Prepare an empty USB. If you have important data on it, copy the data to another device. When you create a bootable disk, the data on the USB will be erased. Deep Data Recovery WinPE Edition will help you create a bootable disk.

Connect the USB drive to PC, launch Deep Data Recovery WinPE Edition. Select the USB drive and click "Create" to create a bootable disk.

Step 2. Boot from the bootable USB

Connect the bootable disk to PC that won't boot and change your computer boot sequence in BIOS. For most users, it works well when they restart their computer and press F2 at the same time to enter BIOS.

Set to boot the PC from "Removable Devices" (bootable USB disk) or "CD-ROM Drive" (bootable CD/DVD) beyond Hard Drive. Press "F10" to save and exit.

Step 3. Recover data from a hard drive that won't boot

When you boot from the USB, you can run Deep Data Recovery from the WinPE bootable disk. Select the drive you want to scan to find all your lost files.

Select file types that you want to recover

Click "Scan" to start the scanning process.

Recover data from the computer or laptop. After the scan completed, you can preview all recoverable files, select the targeted files, and click the "Recover" button to restore your files. You'd better save all of the recovered data to another place to avoid data overwriting.

How to Repair HDD S.M.A.R.T. Status BAD Error with Free Software

How to fix S.M.A.R.T. error on hard disk? After backing up all the data, you can follow the methods below to repair S.M.A.R.T Status BAD, Backup and Replace error.

Method 1: Windows hard drive repair utility

As long as you're running Windows operating system, this free hard drive repair utility is available to use. Set it as a prior choice when the smart error occurs.

Step 1: In Windows 7, click "Start" -> "Computer", in Windows 10, click "File Explore".

Step 2: Right-click on any one partition on the hard disk with SMART failure error.

Step 3: Select "Properties" -> "Tools" and hit "Check now" under the "Error-checking".

Step 4: Enable the "Automatically fix file system errors" and "Scan for and attempt recovery or bad sectors" options.

Step 5: Click on "Start" to begin the process.

use windows free utility to fix smart error automatically

Method 2: Use Qiling free partition management Software to fix Smart error

When you start your computer and get the Smart status bad error, you can use Qiling free partition manager to check and repair bad sectors on the hard drive that cause the problem. Qiling Partition Master helps you fix the corrupted file system and repair bad sectors with a few clicks.

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

Download this powerful free disk management tool and learn how to how to repair HDD smart bad error.

Step 1. Right-click the target partition that has a problem.

Step 2. Choose "Advanced" > "Check File System".

Step 3. In the Check File System window, check the "Fix the error on the disk" option.

Step 4. Click "Proceed" to check errors on your partition.

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

Method 3: Disable SMART error in BIOS

You can disable S.M.A.R.T. in BIOS and continue using your hard drive if you are sure that no data will be lost. Thus, you won't be bothered by the S.M.A.R.T. status bad problem.

Step 1: Reboot your computer, and then press the F2 or Del key.

Step 2:Then go to "Advanced > SMART settings > SMART self-test". This setting is enabled by default. Set it to Disabled.

Conclusion

When encounter the "SMART status bad, backup and replace press F1 to resume" issue, take an instant action to restore and back up your files at first. Then, try to troubleshoot with the solutions on this page.

If you have any questions during the process, contact our technical support team for help. Email to support@idiskhome.com.

S.M.A.R.T. Status Bad Error FAQs

If you also have any of the following frequently asked Smart error fix questions, find solutions here.

How do I fix Smart status bad issue?

Reboot your computer and recover data
Disable S.M.A.R.T error from the BIOS
Check bad sectors on the hard drive
Back up and replace the hard drive

What causes smart hard disk error?

The SMART status bad error may be caused by bad sectors on the hard drive. In this case, you can try to run chkdsk to fix the corrupted file system and bad sectors to fix the SMART hard disk error.

How do I fix smart hard drive detects imminent failure?

Error message: "Hard disk failure is imminent. Please back up your hard disk and have it replaced. Press F18 for Setup. F2 to Continue."

Hard disk failure is imminent error is a common issue reported by SMART in different computers, such as HP, ASUS, Lenovo, etc. When your computer displays hard disk failure imminent, it means your hard drive right now is not yet dead but will be sooner or later. So, back up your crucial files instantly and fix the error using the disk check utility.