S.M.A.R.T. Status: Failing -- Is my iMac HOSED?!

[3d]

For the past few days my iMac has been acting a tiny bit wonky. Once in a while iTunes would stutter. The music would pause for 10 secs or so then start playing again. The usually silent hard drive would start churning disk activity. This is with no applications running. Sometimes I'd be typing in a browser and the keyboard stops working, then after a few seconds the words i typed would all suddenly appear. Wierd.. So i run DiskWarrior. Nothing out of the ordinary. I back up all my data with SuperDuper. Then run Disk Utility...

I get this message:
This drive has a hardware problem that can't be repaired. Back up as much data as possible and replace the disk. See an authorized Apple dealer for information.

S.M.A.R.T. Status: Failing

Uhoh!!! Is my iMac hosed?!
Late 2009 iMac 21.5" 3.06GHz Intel Core 2 Duo 8GB RAM 1TB HD
5 months out of Apple's 1year warranty. But I bought it with an Amex card. So hopefully they extend the warranty. Fingers double crossed.

A trip to the Genius Bar tomorrow

[Seacrest]

You need a new hard drive, yes.
No need to trash the whole computer.

[jdc]

The iMac isnt hosed, but your drive probably is.

Id just replace it and skip the trip to the apple store.

A nice 2TB WD Blue or Black would be a good choice.

[3d]

The disk description says: ST13000528ASQ Media.
A quick Google search says this is a Seagate drive.

Do i just buy any SATA drive and pop it in there? I read that I should replace a Seagate iMac drive only with another Seagate.

I replaced the hard drive to my 17" G4 Powerbook a year ago, so I'm not terribly clueless. Is replacing an iMac drive better or worse? I need some kind of suction device to remove the glass.. this is gonna be a project

Any links to OWC drives I should look at?

[Black]

As said the iMac is fine but the drive is definitely dying.
Depending on how sensitive your data is (to you) I might also do the upgrade myself- but it's pretty clear they'll replace the drive so if you don't want to mess with it I think just letting them do it is fine.
I'd make at least some attempt to erase your data/reformat the drive before bringing it in.

(BTW where the heck do you get the suction cups to replace the drive on that thing?)

[RAMd®d]

Any *quality* 3.5" SATA HD will work.

You don't have to get a Seagate. My vote is for Hitachi, but a W-D as previously suggested could be a good choice.

The exact model of your iMac might be helpful, but jdc has done the lifting-the-glass thing and may be able to give you some insight.

[Buzz]

Time to double the drive size...

probably better off swapping in a 2TB drive yourself for $80, rather than farting around w/ Amex over a $350 Apple store 1TB replacement... unless Amex will just pay you whatever the Apple Store quote is, then you can do what you want, otherwise ditto others, not worth trip to store. As also noted, appears to be drive problem; not iMac problem. Salvage all data asap, then if you want to mess w/ the old drive, go for it... while there's a chance, of unspecified size, that a low level format may breathe apparent new life into a failing drive, it's probably not worth the risk, or paying the Genius to mess w/ it. The drive may get remapped and seem OK, but if the platters are blowing chunks (or has any other material defect), the drive is a goner; not something you want w/ your real data on it. Those "recovered" drives are for non-essential projects only. Salvage all data asap. Good luck.

[3d]

Here's what i found on OWC's blog regarding the Late 2009 iMac hard drive replacement:
http://blog.macsales.com/2751-proprietar...e-09-imacs

Proprietary cable can put the brakes on upgrading Late ’09 iMacs.
Apple has switched the iMac’s method of hard drive temperature sensing. They’ve gone from an external sensor that attached to the outside surface of the drive to a connector that seems to use the drive’s internal sensors.

Unfortunately, there are no industry standards regarding the ports/pins used to access this information, and each hard drive manufacturer seems to do it their own way. And more unfortunately, when the iMac gets no sensor information via that cable, the heat exhaust fans kick into permanent high gear, so that cable must be connected.

That means, in order to upgrade the internal drive, you need to have a connector cable that’s compatible with the brand of drive that you’re installing… and that’s an Apple service part not generally available to the end user.

----
This is sounding complicated.

[Black]

Wow, that proprietary connector thing is quite a bombshell.
What does it mean-- that the OP's only option is a working pull?
I imagine it applies to the 2010 and 2011 iMacs too?



(also-- I missed the Amex thing in the OP and assumed it was still under Apple Care-- I would like to upgrade my advice to "skip the Apple Store and DIY.")

[jdc]

I would call OWC tomorrow and confirm.

Any 99¢ suction cup will take the screen off -- in the grand scheme of the disassembly its the *easiest* part. Takes all of 5 seconds. Ive even removed the screen just by prying up the edge with the thin screw driver.