Troubleshooting Common Disk Problems

Using Disk Management, you can determine the status of disks and the volumes they contain. Disk status is displayed in Graphical view below the physical disk number and in the Disk List view in the Status field. Volume status is displayed as part of the volume information in Graphical view and in the Status column in Volume List view.

Table 1 lists status message you might see for disks. You'll also find a diagnosis and suggested corrective action in the Resolution column.

Table 1: Understanding and Resolving Disk Status Issues

Status	Description	Resolution
Online	The normal disk status. It means the disk is accessible and doesn't have problems. Both dynamic disks and basic disks display this status.	The drive doesn't have any known problems. You don't need to take any corrective action.
Online (Errors)	I/O errors have been detected on a dynamic disk.	You can try to correct temporary errors by right-clicking the disk and choosing Reactivate Disk. If this doesn't work, the disk might have physical damage or you might need to run a thorough check of the disk.
Offline	The disk isn't accessible and might be corrupted or temporarily unavailable. If the disk name changes to Missing, the disk can no longer be located or identified on the system.	Check for problems with the drive, its controller, and cables. Make sure that the drive has power and is connected properly. Use the REACTIVATE DISK command to bring the disk back online (if possible).
Foreign	The disk has been moved to your computer but hasn't been imported for use. A failed drive brought back online might sometimes be listed as Foreign.	Right-click the disk and choose Import Foreign Disks to add the disk to the system.
Unreadable	The disk isn't accessible currently, which can occur when disks are being rescanned. Both dynamic and basic disks display this status.	With FireWire/USB card readers, you might see this status if the card is unformatted or improperly formatted. You might also see this status after the card is removed from the reader. Otherwise, if the drives aren't being scanned, the drive might be corrupted or have I/O errors. Rightclick the disk and choose Rescan Disk (on the Action menu) to try to correct the problem. You might also want to reboot the system.
Unrecognized	The disk is of an unknown type and can't be used on the system. A drive from a non-Windows system might display this status.	If the disk is from another operating system, don't do anything. You can't use the drive on the computer, so try a different drive.
Not Initialized	The disk doesn't have a valid signature. A drive from a non-Windows system might display this status.	If the disk is from another operating system, don't do anything. You can't use the drive on the computer, so try a different drive. To prepare the disk for use on Windows Vista, right-click the disk and choose Initialize Disk.
No Media	No media has been inserted into the CD-ROM or removable drive, or the media has been removed. Only CD-ROM and removable disk types display this status.	Insert a CD-ROM, a floppy disk, or a removable disk to bring the disk online. With FireWire/USB card readers, this status is usually but not always displayed when the card is removed.

Table 2 lists status messages you might see for volumes. You'll also find a diagnosis and suggested corrective action in the Resolution column.

Table 2: Understanding and Resolving Volume Status Issues

Status	Description	Resolution
Failed	An error disk status. The disk is inaccessible or damaged.	Ensure that the related dynamic disk is online, and, as necessary, rightclick the disk and choose Reactivate Disk. Right-click the volume and choose Reactivate Volume. For a basic disk, you might need to check the disk for a faulty connection.
Formatting	A temporary status that indicates the volume is being formatted.	The progress of the formatting is indicated as the percent complete, unless the Perform A Quick Format option was chosen.
Healthy	The normal volume status.	The volume doesn't have any known problems. You don't need to take any corrective action.
Healthy (At Risk)	Windows had problems reading from or writing to the physical disk on which the dynamic volume is located. This status appears when Windows encounters errors.	Right-click the disk and choose Reactivate Disk. If the disk continues to have this status or has this status periodically, the disk might be failing and you should back up all data on the disk.
Healthy (Unknown Partition)	Windows does not recognize the partition. This can occur because the partition is from a different operating system or is a manufacturer-created partition used to store system files.	No corrective action is necessary.
Initializing	A temporary status that indicates the disk is being initialized.	The drive status should change after a few seconds.
Unknown	The volume cannot be accessed. It might have a corrupted boot sector.	The volume might have a boot sector virus. Check it with an up-to-date antivirus program. If no virus is found, boot from the Windows Vista CD-ROM and use the Recovery Console FIXMBR command to fix the master boot record.