Check the SMART status of your hard drive to see if it may be a failing drive
http://www.computerhope.com/jargon/s/smart.htm
http://www.ariolic.com/activesmart/hard-disk-smart-status.html
From the Command Prompt (C:>) , you can run chkdsk
http://support.microsoft.com/kb/315265
List of diagnostic software
http://www.storagereview.com/guide2000/ref/hdd/perf/qual/issuesDiag.html
For serious repair and recovery
Gibson Labs SpinRite http://www.grc.com/spinrite.htm
Diskinternals Partition Recovery http://www.diskinternals.com/products.shtml
OnTrack software http://www.ontrackdatarecovery.com/file-recovery-software/
Pandora Recovery http://www.pandorarecovery.com/
DataRescue PC http://www.prosofteng.com/products/data_rescue_pc.php
Recovery Review - list of recovery software http://recovery-review.com/
disk management utility
After installing a new hard drive in Windows NT 4.0, you should use the "Disk Administrator" utility. This tool allows you to initialize the new hard drive, create partitions, and format them for use. Once configured, the new drive will be accessible for storing data.
zero-fill utility
utility
Yes.
You should defragment your drive at least once a month to keep it running smooth and clear out unneeded items.
Open Disk Utility in the Utilities folder within the Applications folder. Select the external disc in the left hand pane and the formatting options on the right. If the external drive is only for use with the Mac select the default Mac OS Extended (Journaled) format.
In the Applications folder is a folder called Utilities. In the Utilities folder is Disk Utility. Disk Utility will Erase / Partition / Format a hard drive.
Use Disk Utility to format or partition hard drives. You should back up the drive before formatting or partitioning.
Defragmentation :)
FIXED DISK ALSO CALLED FDISK IS THE UTILITY THAT PARTITIONS HARD DISK DRIVE
A brand new hard drive must be formatted for any operating system to recognize it. You should have some kind of utility program to format a new hard drive that came with your operating system.