I have an HP notebook on my bench for the second time, and for the second time I am verifying that CHKDSK is running abnormally slow, especially at stage 4 of 5 'verifying file data'. As most of you know, the procedure is simple: right-click on your HDD choose CHKDSK, it prompts to tell you it will on the next reboot. It starts, IT GENERALLY TAKES a couple of minutes OR you get a laundry list of bad sectors which almost always means HDD failure. This one doesn't give me the 'laundry list' but it takes WELL OVER an hour or more. Any suggestions, or is it just as simple as Fast = Good HDD, Slow = Bad HDD?

Once my external has became too slow I've ran chkdsk /f. How to fix NTFS MFT if chkdsk hangs? CHKDSK is verifying file data (stage 4 of 5). How To Add Routes To Microsoft Train Simulator. CHKDSK taking forever on 60 GB HDD. I'm checking for errors on my secondary HDD and it's been stuck around the same. CHKDSK is verifying file data (stage 4 of 5). Feb 15, 2010 Windows XP C drive CHKDSK stuck on Stage 4 of 5. CHKDSK is verifying file data (stage 4 of 5). Major slow-down of the system?

Hey Bob, A little bit of both. This is a friend's son's notebook. It is a pretty new Pavilion model. The crazy thing about it is that it takes FOREVER but I'm not getting any bad clusters or anything abnormal, except that it is stuck in molasses. It's not locked up, it's just extremely slow. Every one that I've ever seen that takes more then a couple minutes in CHKDSK is HDD failure, but I'll usually see cluster and line error messages.

Thought there might be another explaination I wasn't privy to. Rather than the /R switch? Specifying the /R switch is usually not necessary because NTFS identifies and remaps bad sectors during the course of normal operations, but you can use the /R switch if you suspect the disk has bad sectors. During stage 4, Chkdsk verifies all clusters in use. Chkdsk performs stages 4 and 5 if you specify the /R switch when you run Chkdsk. The /R switch confirms that the sectors in each cluster are usable.

The percent complete that Chkdsk displays during stage 4 is based on the percent of used clusters that are checked. Used clusters typically take longer to check than unused clusters, so stage 4 lasts longer than stage 5 on a volume with equal amounts of used and unused clusters. If the volume has mostly used clusters stage 4 can last quite a while - ESPECIALLY on a large drive. You haven't mentioned the drive size nor spindle speed nor free space, but if it isn't listing a lot of errors do not just assume the drive is 'bad'. Make use of the drive manufacturer's drive analysis utility.

You might also see what happens if you also make use of the /C and/or /I switches with chkdsk.exe. I've moved past it, because this thing is just acting hinky all the way round. Incidentally, it's an AMD-based notebook, which in my opinion means it's fighting uphill to begin with. For the record - and for people coming across this thread in the future - I have only witnessed three scenarios using CHKDSK in Windows XP [meaning the OS is up and running, I've gone into 'My Computer' right-clicked on the drive Windsor Ef Elongated. ...