Can I RMA a Drive for SMART Error 187 [Reported uncorrect]

[Koshy]

This is a black label replacement drive for a Seagate IronWolf 4TB Hard Drive I RMA a month ago. I did a preclear cycle and an extended SMART Test when I got the drive and it did not show any errors back then but yesterday I got this error

 

187	Reported uncorrect	0x0032	099	099	000	Old age	Always	Never	1

After I saw this I did a extended SMART Test with this message

 

Last SMART test result: Completed without error

I have attached the full SMART Report with the post

 

I also got a Error from the File Integrity Plugin for Disk 3[Currently This Drive], this is the first time the File Integrity Plugin ran after my original Segate IronWold 4TB drive showed errors. This is the log.

 

BLAKE2 hash key mismatch, (720p_30fps_H264-192kbit_AAC).mp4 is corrupted

How do I find out where this file is so that I can replace it from a back up.

 

Can I RMA this drive?

tower-smart-20190904-1051.zip

[Frank1940]

While I have never had a problem RMA'ing a drive, it has been quite some time since I last did it.  To be honest, I don't think they really check the drive when you send one back until well after you have the replacement in hand.  When I did it the replacement drive was shipped the day as the RMA'ed drive arrived.  

 

Now, let's look at it from the Manufacturer's point of view.  Ripping an in-service hard drive out of a computer (or server) and RMA it is not something that the consumer does without cause and he is probably P.O'ed about it.  Plus, you have a corrupted file to go with your SMART error.  If they should deny your claim, you could really raise a stink about the situation on social media and seller's websites reviews.  It would not surprise me to find out that they expect that a certain of RMA drives will pass their testing protocol!  If it were my company, I would not make a fuss about it and chalk it up to good public relations. 

Edited September 4, 2019 by Frank1940

[testdasi]

Quoting google re SMART error 187 (underline added by me)

Quote

Reported Uncorrectable Errors S.M.A.R.T. parameter indicates a number of errors that could not be recovered using hardware ECC (error-correcting code).

Quote

Although this parameter is not considered critical by the most hardware vendors, degradation of this parameter may indicate electromechanical problems of the disk. Regular backup is recommended. If no other (critical) parameters report a problem, hardware replacement is recommended on mission critical systems only.

 

So that error + you have a corrupted file on the same drive suggest a reasonable cause to ask for an RMA.

If I were you, I would ask for an RMA and driving on the point that a corrupted file was found on the drive and no other drives in your server have any issue. Manufacturers typically don't like to argue with customers complaining about lost data so it shouldn't be too much of a fuss.