Min Requirements - Windows XP/Vista/Win 7/8+/10

File Size - 3.7Mb

If you suspect you might have problems with one or more of your drives, the powerful free Tool Hddscan can check and report back. As well as hard disk drives (HDD), the program can analyse and test solid-state drives (SSD) and flash drives

Run the software (no installation required) and it will provide access to all the drives installed in or connected to your PC. Choose a drive to test from the drop-down menu, then use the buttons below to view the drive's built-in SMART (Self Monitoring, Analysis and Reporting Technology) data and run variety of tests to see if the drive has any problems. HDDScan also offers a selection of tools to further investigate any issues and, hopefully, fix them.

On the downside, the program does require you have a degree of technical knowledge to fully understand its reports. The Features test, for example, lets you change some drive parameters, but it's best to only do this if you know exactly what you're changing.

But even with only a basic knowledge of how drives work, HDDScan can alert you to potential problems. so you can at least back up your data before things get worse.

The latest version of HDDscan has been given a new look, with support for Windows 8 and 10, and an auto-update feature, which you can access through the More button at the top of the interface. You can also change the size of the interface, which is handy if you use a high-resolution screen.