Momentus XT, Momentus, Momentus Thin, MobileMax, and other notebook drives

[Alex D]

Hello.

MacBook Pro (Unibody) clicking and freezing with this hard drive.

I know that Apple released an update for ST9500420ASG (with G-Force Protection Function) hard drive, but this fix not support hard drives without this function.

Please, release firmware update for NON-G-Force Protection hard drives.

Thanks. 

Message Edited by Alex D on 08-28-2009 07:37 PM

Message Edited by Alex D on 08-28-2009 07:38 PM

Message Edited by Alex D on 09-03-2009 08:42 AM

[isomer030]

I too am waiting for a update for this problem also occurs with my ST9500420AS. The Seagate Support means it is probably not important enough!

[Malte]

I have the same problem like you before and I am waiting also for an update for the NON-G-Force Protected hard drive, cause it is an annoying problem. I hope seagate will not only support mac book users, cause I bought the hdd for my lenovo laptop.

So please release a firmware update!

[Alex D]

Thousands people have this problem....

We need to know: what should we do? 

Change hard drives or wait firmware? 

Please just give answer...

[Eric Iain]

I encountered the same problem like above mentioned.

This is my first time bought Seagate hard disk. I'm very disappointed to such product.

Please somebody help to prvoide the solution something like firmware update.

Message Edited by Eric Iain on 09-03-2009 07:22 PM

[Merovinqian]

I have the same problem with original Macbook Pro, it seems the disk is parking and spinning down in ridiculous moments, it can park itself every two seconds for ten times when I browse the web with a loud "click" and a froze the mac for a second. It helps to use hdapm and set the disk apm to max, but this is not a solution.

I want to know...should I wait for firmware upgrade from Seagate or buy something else?

please, someone answer.

[Alex D]

Very interesting: I was wrote to Seagate support, but they didn't answer... What It Mean? I bought your HD and you not support...

HELLO SEAGATE!!! Why? Answer something...

Is it seagate forum? 

[sugarrage]

I have constant beaching/freezing with this hhd installed in my new 15' macbook pro. Its beyond annoying. I can't import any videos that are longer than 10minutes in  length, because  half way through the import process more often than not my mac  freezes and i get and error message with the video i'm trying to import.

Message Edited by sugarrage on 09-04-2009 10:24 AM

[isomer030]

The comment from Seagate-Support to me on this issue is: Wait and watch!

It looks and sounds like the ST9500420ASG!

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=rsg84yqzvhs

What sounds to be different from our hard drives (ST9500420AS) ? It is the same problem!

Message Edited by isomer030 on 09-04-2009 08:07 PM

[Tharaca]

Having the same issues with the drive in my Acer 8930G laptop, I wonder if I should replace the drive or wait for a [Seagate supplied] firmware update.

Also, if I decide to replace the drive I will probably have to take a same one back. Will it also have these issues? If I take another [brand] of drive, which are equally to this one?

[flinder]

I have the same problem with a Seagate ST9500420ASG in my Dell Precision M6300 notebook. There is a "clicking" noise and then (sometimes) a slow down. I really hope there will be a firmware update available soon. I am running Windows 7 RTM Ultimate Edition (64-bit).

[DIDADO]

Almost every Clevo M860tu gaming laptop will be sold with this Seagate product.. But pure performance cannot be maintained with a hiccup (-; ..

Another vote for a firmware update... 

Any reaction please to public..

[sitecr2]

Macbook Pro 2.53 unibody late 2008 early    2009. 4gb ram.

upgraded in june to ST9500420AS, at first no problems but since 10.5.8 it has been growing worse.

up graded to 10.6 and still beachballs (it drops off line. activity monitor shows huge spikes then nothing. loading software takes forever.

really need a fix or i'm back to swapping in my 320gb hard drive and use this one in a side case.

big issue w/all my picks and music. i need this size of a hard drive so i can do vista on the road for govt cac issues.

help? 

[Tharaca]

I had a chat with a Seagate representative today about this issue.

This is what he said to me:
1. This drive doesn't have a firmware,
2. A BIOS update (from your mainboard manufacturer)  is needed to fix the issue(s),
3. Go to shop and exchange for a new disk.

Option 1 seems weird to me and so does option 2...

[Edited in compliance of the community rules and regulations.]

Message Edited by BradC on 09-09-2009 12:25 PM

[Malte]

I read the post for the same drive with the G-Force sensor and there they say that after an exchange of the harddrive they haven't anymore this issue. So the problems can rely on the drive you get. May be someone of you can exchange the drive and tell us if there is the problem again.

[flinder]

IMO, it's not only the drive he received.  We have several Momentus ST9500420AS, different manufacturing dates (non-OEM), all with the very same problem in our Dell and HP machines.

Friedrich

[DevJan]

I have a Dell 1501.. I have just bought ST9500420AS model hdd and I have the same problem... Constantly, It is clicking and freezing for 1 or 2 seconds.. Please update the firmware as soon as possible.. It is very anoying problem.. =(

if you want I can write my serial number.. but I dont check this forum everyday so you should ask me by e-mail..

[Malte]

Ok exchange is no solution, cause all harddrives have the same problem.

 The answer a harddrive has no firmware is nonsense. I think you talked to a person who has no anticipation in hardware. There you need a little bit luck to get the right person.

BIOS update is no solution too, cause we have all different systems with a different BIOS and I had no problems with several other harddrives.

 May be someone from seagate can tell us something about this issue? I thought this is a support forum...

Message Edited by Malte on 09-11-2009 03:34 PM

[Malte L.]

So I posted this issue to the seagate support. I hope to get a answer if they are working on a firmware update or if we have simply send in the drive and get a new back.

[Flavio]

I have been researching the purchase of 500 Gb hard drive to upgrade my MacBook Pro and I came across some technical info which may relate to this problem. It seems that starting a few years back computer manufacturers implemented a G protection in the notebooks (to protect the hard drive in the event of a sudden drop); this particular vendor advises that if one purchases an ST500420ASG - note the "G" at the end of the model number - this particular drive has a built in impact/drop protection system which might clash with the computer G protection. His recommendation is to disable the computer G protection and gives a link to the Apple on how to disable. The link is "http://support.apple.com/kb/HT1934?viewlocale=en_US".

The ........AS drives do not have this G protection built in.

Hope that this might help.

Flavio 

[flinder]

Malte,

I am sure Seagate will send you a test program (to do a short and long test). During this test, your Momentus will not produce this "clicking noise" a single time.

While I write this post, it had this "clicking noise" five or six times in a row (on Windows 7 RTM Ultimate), my super fast Dell Precision notebook stopped always for a 1/4 or a 1/2 second.  We have several different ST9500420ASG drives, different manufactoring dates, all with the same problem (feature).

Friedrich

[DevJan]

I contact with Seagate support and they said me my serial number shows that it is not model which is affected with this problem.. They said it has another problem and they suggest to sent it to the technical service.. And so I did...

Now I am waiting for the answer from the technical service. I think they are gonna replace the hdd..

But my drive was an oem drive.. If you also have an oem drive with the same problem I suggest you to contact the Seagate support..

[flinder]

Hello,

We do not have OEM drives. We have five ST9500420ASG drives (manufactoring date May - July 2009) all with the same problem (feature).

BTW, for test purposes, we are using quietHDD on one Win7 64-bit machine now.  Not a single  "clicking noise" during the last 10 hours.

I really think Seagate should provide a firmware update to fix this problem.

Friedrich

[flinder]

Running quietHDD (default configuration) for nearly 20 hours on a Dell Precision M6300 Workstation, powered by Win7 Ultimate 64-bit. Not a single  "clicking noise" nor any momentary system lag!  It's the first time that we can enjoy the power of the ST9500420ASG drive since we built it in. It's a shame that we have to use an external tool to make it work.

We have (at least) 30 Seagate drives here in our company and I must say that I am not impressed at how this serious issue is handled by Seagate.

Friedrich Linder
Lindersoft, Inc.
www.lindersoft.com

[Malte L.]

My Message from the seagate support:

Thank you for sending your Seagate E-mail inquiry.

I have reviewed the content of your email and taken note of the noise and occasional
freeze up issues.

Generally, depending on the level and frequency, noise is
an indication that the drive has failed or may be failing due to a mechanical
issue. Please backup all your data if the drive is still accessible and use the
link below to request for a replacement under the warranty terms and
conditions...

But when I read your response I don't thing that will make anything better...

P.S. I am now running quietHDD for 20 minutes and no clicking at all. Maybe that is the simples solution

Message Edited by Malte L. on 09-16-2009 03:23 PM

[flinder]

Malte,

We are using quietHDD on all machines with ST9500420ASG drives now (Dell and HP notebooks).  All running a 64-bit version of Windows 7 Ultimate (RTM).  Not a single "clicking noise" and no momentary system lag for two days

By the way, some of our customers had the same noise and occasional freeze up issues.  I suggested quietHDD and that "fixed" it.

Of course, I would prefer an "official" fix from Seagate.  It happens on both Dell and HP machines, so it does not seem to be a specific computer manufacturer problem.

Friedrich Linder
Lindersoft, Inc.
www.lindersoft.com

[Merovinqian]

The quietHdd or hdapm on Mac is harldy a solution, it just overrides the APM settings to no-parking at all, this will increase temperature, and the disk will never stop spinning.

It can be worst that clicking sound and rapid increase of Loadcycles.

[flinder]

Merovinqian,

We are monitoring the temperature and there is no difference between a machine with or without quietHDD (on our machines).

The problem is that quietHDD the one and only solution at the moment to make use of the drives.  But it should only be a temporary solution and we really need a firmware update here.  There is absolutely no issue with the 320 MB (or less) Seagate drives (after applying the Dell firmware update), but there is definitely an issue with the 500 MB one and still no firmware update available.

The noise and occasional freeze up issues make the drive completely unusable.

Friedrich

[Merovinqian]

I thought somethin else. The problem is, the heads are parking in ridiculous times (parking produces the sound and lag) and that will increase amount of Load Cycles. Seagate guarantees the drive will survive 600,000 Load Cycle Counts. If I count how the count is raising, before one year of usage my hdd is supposed to be dead.

But I dont know what is te worst, Load cycle count or APM settings to the max.

You sad you applied Dell firmware update to you hdd?

I think there is a problem too. I bought the hdd only and upgraded my macbook pro. I have a seagate firmware.

If someone buy a new macbook pro with this hdd, it will be with Apple firmware.

I think its the same case with Dell's laptops, they are overriding the firmware, so blame Dell.

I will be rather waiting for Apple firmware update than be stuck here with Seagate support.

What is you firmware number?

[flinder]

Yes, I think the problem is a result of the APM setting on the hard drive, causing an excessive number of spin downs, and therefore an excessive load cycle count.

My firmware is 0002SDM1

Manufactoring date of the drive is July 11, 2009.

We also bought the drives (from Amazon.com) to update our notebooks.  All drives are non-OEM products.

Dell has released firmware updates for the following Seagate models:

ST9120411ASG
ST9160411ASG
ST9200423ASG
ST9250421ASG
ST9320421ASG
ST980411ASG  

IMO, Windows users will not get any firmware update to solve this problem

Friedrich

[Merovinqian]

Firmware 0002SDM1 is a seagate firmware. It means Dell has nothing to do with it.

Or maybe you will be able to overwrite the seagate firmware with Dell's I do not know.

I thought about returning the drive and buy a hitachi or something, but the specs and speed of the momentus is keepeng me from doing this. I think I will wait

My data is safe with time capsule, so if the hdd will be dead soon it will be no big deal.

[flinder]

Yes, it's the Seagate firmware (because it's not an OEM drive).  I think if Dell provides a firmware fix, it can be used to "replace" the original firmware when using it on a Dell machine (but I am not sure).  Of course, this would not solve the problem for the Seagate drives in our HP notebooks.

We'll also "wait" and I really hope Seagate will do something

Friedrich

[Malte L.]

First quiethdd works great. Thanks for this tool

I think seagate will wait until the costs for exchanging drives is higher than developing a firmware update, cause hardware is cheap but software development is very expensive...

[Tharaca]

Sadly QuietHDD doesn't work for me, seems it only works for the 1st drive and my Seagate is the 2nd. Downloaded HDDScan 3.2 (http://hddscan.com/) which does the trick by disabling APM. But this is just a 'hack' and I dont know how it affects the livetime of my harddisk...

[blairwillis]

Just installed the 2.5" 500GB 7200rpm Seagate Momentus in a 15" MacBook Pro (pre-unibody) and have noticeable clicks, often accompanied by brief freezes / lag / hiccups.

I was very hesitant to purchase a Seagate drive, because the only hard drive failure I ever had was a Seagate, but it was many years ago and I felt that they're still around so they must be doing something right.  Plus, there isn't much choice in the 2.5" 500GB 7200rpm specs, so Seagate it was.

This issue is affecting many systems, both PC and Mac, OEM and upgraded drives.  I found extensive discussion on the apple forums here:

http://discussions.apple.com/thread.jspa?threadID=2049659&start=0&tstart=0

At the time of this post, that topic is currently at 128 pages and nearly 2000 posts.  Let me sum it up for you:  No fix yet.  This drive is OEM in MacBook Pros.  There is an Apple hard drive firmware upgrade which minimized the clicks for some people, but seems to cause even further system hangs or freezes.  The Apple firmware upgrade can only be applied to Apple OEM drives (that already have Apple firmware on them) rather than an upgraded drive (like the one I just installed).  I'm hesitant to disable APM, and frankly, I shouldn't have to.  Seagate?

This really is up to Seagate at this point to fix this drive.  I'm going to tough it out for a few days, but based on what I'm seeing so far (and the fact that this discussion has been "officially" ignored by Seagate), they're about to loose a customer that they had previously lost for the past decade.  And I *won't* be back in another decade, either.  I'll also be returning this drive to the retailer (Best Buy) with an earful about why they need to send back all these drives and the fact that it's being ignored by Seagate despite a very large user pool experiencing this problem across all platforms. 

I was so looking forward to a hefty, speedy drive in my MacBook Pro, but random system pauses and hiccups are absolutely intolerable for someone using this drive professionally.  Let's hope Seagate starts acting professionally and publicly acknowledges the problem and issues a firmware fix.

[Flavio]

I was looking at this drive with the intention of upgrading my 15" MacBook Pro; after seeing that hundreds of users have problems with this drive (this forum and the Apple forum) and the deafening silence from Seagate, I gave up - what is the point in getting a "supposedly" faster drive when you are going to waste the speed gain in clicking, momentary stopping and freezing?

I bought a 5400 rpm 500GB Toshiba. 

[blairwillis]

You're right, Flavio... any speed "gain" is useless when the drive decides to deal you a hiccup in the middle of a critical performance.

I did however attempt the 'fix' of running hdapm to eliminate the clicking.  The clicks are gone... but I have no idea what real effect this may be having otherwise... temperature? drive longevity? battery life?(been running with AC plugged in all day) or risk of damage if moved?

I believe that the MacBook Pro has it's own anti-shock drive protection feature... I'm not sure if that is still in effect for me now or what.  Anyone with a better understanding of it care to explain?

At the very least, this thing is quiet as it should be now, with no clicks and therefore no pauses.

ATTENTION SEAGATE:  I don't consider this a "FIX" for this problem, just a temporary "hack" to stop the annoying symptom.  A true cure (effective firmware) is the only true cure in this case.  If it can't be fixed by firmware, then it's a hardware/design flaw and should be recalled/replaced.

I'd like to point out the following information copied directly from the product packaging.  (FYI, this ST9500420AS was purchased at Best Buy and is packaged with a title "SATA 2.5" Seagate Momentus 500GB 16MB Cache 7200rpm" and Apple System Profiler identifies it as the ST9500420AS model.)

• "5-Year Limited Warranty"
• "Internal Hard Drive for PC and Mac" and elsewhere "MacBook and MacBook Pro models using Intel-based processor with Mac OS X, Mac Mini (Intel processor)" ...so the person who claimed Seagate said this isn't approved for use in MacBooks... I'd really like to know more....

• "Get increased performance."  (Going from a system that performed without involuntary, random pauses and audible clicks to one that does, the only thing that has increased is my disdain for Seagate.)
• "...technology can dramatically increases performance." (sic)  --Nice proofreading, Seagate.  This should have been a clue. 
• "ENGINEERED FOR SILENCE" (all-caps theirs...how appropriate!) 
• "This notebook hard drive features a state-of-the-art ultra-quiet motor."  (yes, the motor is quiet, but you can't say the same about the rest of the parts!  And they didn't... doh!)
• "this is the perfect drive for your mobile lifestyle."  (not so much)

[Flavio]

Regarding the Apple sudden motion sensor, you can find out the status by opening the System Profiler and in Hardware overview, the last line is Sudden Motion Sensor state; Enabled.

If you want to turn it off, in my first posting on this subject I gave a link to the Apple KB which gives you the script to turn the sensor off.

Good luck 

[Merovinqian]

Seagate is acting like nothing is happening, so tomorrow I will put my old disk back, return the clicking Seagate and buy a Hitachi or something.

I am already tired of this on way communication. 

[Alex D]

Yes! this is very bad from Seagate Support, no answers, no solution, long time.... lost respect... 

[Flavio]

Merovinqian,

After I made my mind that i do not want play russian roulette with the Seagate iffy performance, I checked Hitachi and was surprised to find some bad reviews related to HD failure after a few days or weeks of use (I believe it was on the NEWEGG site); I settled on a Toshiba and I am very happy with my choice.

[elliott]

i put the drive in a macbok pro - not the unibody and it gets horribly hot. I had no clicking and it works very well, except for the heat which is intolerable. My screen started to go bad, maybe from the heat. I don't know which verison of the firmware is in it because its at the shop being replaced. BUT it worked perfectly for me, no clicking no pauses.

[Merovinqian]

I took the seagate to the shop I bought it, they gave me my money back. (EU prices has some reasons)

So now  I think I will choose 5400rpm drive, because the vibrations are not worth the speed increase.

WD has nice 640GB or Toshiba, because I had this brand in my Macbook Pro when I bought it, and worked fine.

Any recommendations?

[smitty2]

I had this same problem, surfed around and found its effecting alot of other people as well. I ended up RMA'ing the laptop and they replaced the hard drive even though they said they couldn't find any problems with it... nor did they hear the beeping...and they said I was crazy!

I think it was heat related as my temps on my system have dropped and no more beeping.

Have your vendor replace the drive and you should be good to go.

[seagull2]

Dell's website that provide firmware updates for some recent Seagate drives with clicking.  Released 12/2/2009.

http://support.dell.com/support/downloads/download.aspx?c=us&cs=19&l=en&s=dhs&releaseid=R250679&Syst...

Firmware 4SDM1 or 5SDM1 fixes clicking noise on Seagate 2.5" 7200RPM HDD's Model #'s:

500G - ST9500420AS DP/N G629T

I tried the R250679.exe and it would not install on a oem ST9500420AS with firmware 2SDM1 which i bought for my MSI Notebook. 

The dell installer indicated that it found a good model number, but because of serial number i think it did not find a good firmware version. 

So i add the files to my bootable media and run the " FDLH -m HOLLIDAY -f 0005SDM1.LOD -i ST9500420AS -b -v " command in dos.

Then the utility autoscaned and updated the 5SDM1 firmware succesfully.

[shawnbd]

hi seagull2,after you upgrade to 5SDM1 ,would you use the software speedfan http://www.almico.com/sfdownload.php to check S.M.A.R.T information from DISK,Because of i found my is (Hardware ECC Recovered ) is huge

http://img30.imageshack.us/img30/2608/33790339.jpg

[seagull2]

hi shawnbd, Before i didnt watch out smart values with the firmware 2SDM1.I use everest ultimate edition to check SMART information. it seems ok for my drive i think

[Izz_SGNewUser]

Hi seagull2 ,

I tried to do the update with the dell released firmware R250679 (for my ST9500420AS)  , the result was that my serial number is not correct ( like your case )..

I looked inside the flash.bat file and see parts of the command u mentioned ."fdlh -m HOLLIDAY -h upgrade.cfs -b -v  text"

 I know it is a curious question but may u tell me pls how did u know that we should write " FDLH -m HOLLIDAY -f 0005SDM1.LOD -i ST9500420AS -b -v "  in the command

prompt instead of ."fdlh -m HOLLIDAY -h upgrade.cfs -b -v  text"

because I want to do like u in my precision M90 system...

thanks in advance

[boardingbum]

Hey all,

I had a general question as well.  I managed to use seagull's command line hack to get 005SDM1 running on my HD, however, I did not notice any change in noise eminating from the drive.  I was wondering though, if I even had the same problems as other people.  The noise is very quiet, I hear 1 or 2 faint clicks every 3 seconds or so, however, I have never suffered any system lag that other people have discussed.

Any thoughts on whether this sounds like the same problem that others have been having would be greatly appreciated.  The noise doesn't really bother me, as I can't even hear it over the sound of my typing, but I'm obviously concerned about potential data loss.

(Also, I did try quietHDD in an effort to manually adjust my APM, but it had no effect)

Message Edited by boardingbum on 12-10-2009 06:05 AM

[Izz_SGNewUser]

Did you check that the firmware version changed to 005SDM1 ?