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I just got a new server from a server provider and he placed in some old 1.5TB HDD. They do support smartctl.

Is there a way I can findout how old these drives are?

Chirag
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1 Answers1

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If you want to know the HDD's manufacture date (e.g. for warranty issues) the only universal way to get that is to open the case and have a look at the HDD label.

Another possible way is to use hdparm -i /dev/sdx or smartctl -a /dev/sdx to get the model and serial number and check with the manufacturer's warranty web page. Some manufacturers will provide a manufacture date for each serial number.

smartctl -a /dev/sdx will occasionally have a Power_On_Hours or other similar attribute which can be an indicator of how long a drive has been in use. Other attributes may also serve this way.

EDIT:

For example Seagate provides the warranty expiration date, which can be used to estimate the manufacture date if you know the length of the warranty period. The length of the warranty period usually depends on the model and you should be able to find it by searching the web.

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thkala
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  • Wow that was awesome. – Chirag Dec 07 '10 at 10:08
  • Does this mean 9 Power_On_Hours 0x0032 100 100 000 Old_age Always - 8 It has been on for only 8 hours? – Chirag Dec 07 '10 at 10:08
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    Yes... one of my disks which I have had for two years and has been on for most of that time is in the 17,000-hour range now. – thkala Dec 07 '10 at 10:16
  • Awesome. I was scared that they added in a really old drive but now that it has been used only for 8 hours. I feel much much better – Chirag Dec 07 '10 at 10:19
  • Well, you could always check the model and serial number with the manufacturer web site to make sure... – thkala Dec 07 '10 at 10:40
  • Note "hdparm was not designed to be used with SCSI or SATA drives" (https://hyperois.com/members/index.php/knowledgebase/30/-Drive-errors-in-the-system-log-files-ordevorsda-HDIOGETIDENTITY-failed-Invalid-argument.html) so you may get `HDIO_GET_IDENTITY failed: Invalid argument` – Sridhar Sarnobat Oct 14 '22 at 16:38