I learnt the hard way that an overheated hard drive is something to avoid: once the drive overheats it becomes permanently damaged, and loses data. Spinrite refuses to run when the drive gets too hot, because it's the quickest way of destroying data. So I use HDTune to monitor the temperature of my drive while I'm working.
This has already saved my drive a few times, because I can't always work in an airconditioned office. The other day I hit on a brainwave: instead of buying a USB-powered fan or notebook cooler, why not use a device found in most kitchens: a "Cake Cooling Tray"? I paid R39.00 (less than $4) from "@home, the homeware store" in our local shopping mall.
It measures 349mm x 235mm x 19mm and it fits easily into my laptop bag. It's silent, unobtrusive, and works like a charm. It costs a fraction of the price of a specialised fan (see photo above).
There is also hdTempLogger but I haven't tested it.
Yup, have been doing this for 5yrs on 4 laptops & never had a HD quit.
ReplyDeleteAnd yet, when you tell others,they look at you like you're nuts.
cheers