
It's not something you can run accidentally - choose the Advanced Tests option and you get a big warning message, and have to press to continue - but just bear this in mind, you need to read all SeaTools messages carefully so you know exactly what the program is going to do. The program also provides an Advanced Test option, though, which may overwrite data, and so needs to be treated with much more care.

These basic tests are (apart from the repair option) entirely non-destructive, so you can run them without worrying about data loss. Simple read tests allow you to confirm that a drive is still working correctly, and a Long Drive Self Test may also be able to repair damaged sectors.

You're able to run a quick drive self-test, allowing it to report problems. status, for instance, if it supports that technology. The program can check a drive's S.M.A.R.T. My desktop or laptop hard drive may be defective, how can I test it Seagate Instant Secure Erase (ISE) with SeaTools Instructions. Using SeaTools Set Capacity feature to overcome BIOS capacity limitation.

Seagate SeaTools for Linux is a collection of tools that will check your hard drives for hardware problems (Seagate are the authors, but it works at some level with most drives, regardless of the manufacturer). SMART errors reported by the BIOS and third-party utilities after Seatools passes all tests.
