Weird malfunction with new Seagate 8TB harddrive.

[HodgePodge]

Originally Posted by TurcoLoco

Based on all the info you shared, to me, it definitely sounded like something was interfering with the read/write process.

3 likely suspects are:
- Corruption in Windows (could be anything from a problematic update to a device driver or malware)
- A 3rd party or Windows process interfering (discussed already)
- Files being copied/moved corrupt or the "source" drive has issues

Now, for the last possibility, I'd recommend you use a 3rd party app to see if copying goes better or not.

One of my favorite file copying apps is a freeware called UnstoppableCopier.

On the surface it seems like a standalone file/folder copying app but it is actually so powerful that it can be used for data extraction from corrupt drives or when copying corrupt files. It really is quite powerful. Also, hardly anything gets in its way! It can copy OneDrive, DropBox directories as well which most other apps either skip or fail to do. It can copy hidden and system files too.

It is quite straightforward; select source directory/drive in the top field, then the target below.

Focus on the "Settings" tab. Take a look at the attached screenshot I placed which shows how I run it (remember the settings from previous session!) when I am typically "copying" files in more traditional way or more like an "incremental" backup mode. Feel free to try the default or change the options based on a brief explanation of some of the key options I covered in the screenshot.

Let me know if you have any more questions.

Definitely an interesting tool, thanks!

[mattja]

The first thing I would do is open Task Manager, restart the copy, and look at the drive utilization of the source and target drives. The drive that's at or near 100% is the drive that has the problem.

[TurcoLoco]

Originally Posted by mattja

The first thing I would do is open Task Manager, restart the copy, and look at the drive utilization of the source and target drives. The drive that's at or near 100% is the drive that has the problem.

He briefly answered that in post #3.
If the copying process is getting blocked or having issues due to something with software, naturally there wouldn't be any drive utilization which is why I had OP focus on software related possibilities.

I would have also tried connecting the new drive externally using a dock or an adapter just to see if it worked better because it would be using a different Bus/Channel/drivers.
If it worked (or much better) then it'd have pointed to the possibility of an unusual hardware-software combo issue which, for me, might have signaled the need for a fresh Windows install.