Seagate F3 utility: translator recovery method

[ACE_Admin]

Hello everybody

Here I'm going to describe manual procedure of translator recovery on F3 drives, hope it would be useful.
Sometimes after translator regeneration you can read only first part of surface and then need to run translator recovery.
But this procedure may end with the following error.
"Translation "fork" direction detection ambiguity ! Correct it manually !".
It occurs because utility can not detect bad sectors properly.
Bad sectors might be located before the place where it stopped (left "fork") and after this place (right "fork").



First of all you must find the first unreadable place.
Procedure terminates on some certain sector (you can see number of this sector in the log of the procedure). Open sector editor and try to read some sector which situated before that sector from the log.
So last readable sector is found.
Then you should try to read first unreadable sector using utility. Open HDD read/write options, select "Use utility", then click on "NO" when utility will ask you "Transmit data in spite of read error" and take a look inside sector(if sector is unreadable again, you should click on YES).
Then you can see two situations:
Right "fork" and left "fork".

Right "fork" - first unreadable sector contains bytes almost all zeros or sevens. After first unreadable sector could be similar sectors. Before first unreadable sector there are sectors with data.

Left "fork" - first unreadable sector contains data, but before it there is sector (or several sectors with almost all zeros)

You should add in translator sectors with zeros. In case of right "fork" - first unreadable sector (and probably several sectors afterwards), in case of left "fork" - sector (or several sectors) before first unreadable.

So you have detected sectors which needs to be added into translator. Next stage is adding.

You need to open Defects List from Tools->Defect List edit.
Create a new defect list by clicking first icon on top panel.
Add that region. Enter the first bad sector number and the number of bad sectors ahead.
When defect is added into Defect list, right click defect record and select "Hide to slip list" command.
Then proceed with "translator recovery" from the sector you have added. Repeat that for each bad sector, Seagate utility will
not understand. In the end you will have the access to user data.

[houman_2h]

Thanks Roustam but Forgive me I feel that procedure is very confusing
Has any one this problem ? Any advice ?

[ray1006]

Hi
I think it is better to do it visually.

[datasolution]

ACTUALLY SOMETIMES IT WORK NICE N SOMETIME ITS TOO BORONG.RECENTLY I HAD RECIVED SEAGTE 1TB WITH NO ID BUT READY.I TRIED ONLY clear glist n clear smart.than it shows everything execpt data area.first i have backup system resources.than clear nrg list and than translator regeneration than drive becomes partial.when i do translator regeneration it gives me strange line.
it took time even than normally.than translator recovery
TRANSLATOR RECOVERY
F3 T>m0,6,2,,,,,22
Max Wr Retries = 00, Max Rd Retries = 00, Max ECC T-Level = 16, Max Certify Rewrite Retries = not supported

User Partition Format 0% complete, Zone 00, Pass 00, LBA 000000009A64, ErrCode 00000080, Elapsed Time 0 mins 30 secs
User Partition Format Successful - Elapsed Time 0 mins 30 secs
Zone re-format was skipped.
RECOVER TRANSLATOR
HDD ID reading...
Detecting defects hiding cmd type...
G-List erase...

Start scanning...
"Fork" searching: 1364498541 - 1953525167
Verify sectors ext error Device error detected "UNC"
"Right fork", LBA = 01364498541, pattern 0x00 (TNE!)
Defects hiding (P23)...
Moving defects to Slip-List...
Translator regeneration...
"Fork" searching: 1364498541 - 1953525167
Verify sectors ext error Device error detected "UNC"
"Right fork", LBA = 01364498541, pattern 0x00 (TNE!)
Defects hiding (P23)...
Moving defects to Slip-List...
Translator regeneration...
"Fork" searching: 1364498541 - 1953525167
Verify sectors ext error Device error detected "UNC"
"Left fork", LBA = 01364498540, pattern 0x00 (TNE!)
Defects hiding (P23)...
Moving defects to Slip-List...
Translator regeneration...


after that it gives lots of defects and ask to do manually.
still i m doing this since last two days.but nothing happen still trying .if somebody can help me in this kind of partial problem.

in head test all heads are ok.

[AJ2008]

You should have read NRG off first then you can manually import them.

You should always check if NRG has entries in. Because you did not you have this issue now.

If you have time, easiest thing is to select 'work from active utility' and select 'no' on prompt to transmit data despite error.

If you have no time, then you must manually add each entry that cannot be resolved automatically.

[mojimorady]

hello
what is NRG ??
how can we chek it ?
regards

[AJ2008]

NRG is a secondary defect list created after secondary tests at manufacturing plant before shipping. Entries in NRG have direct influence on translation system. Regen translator does not take into account entries in NRG and if translator is rebuilt without NRG then full access to surface is not possible.

[AJ2008]

check for entries in NRG with "F3 T>V40" command

[Athena]

I have a fundamental question.
There are so many translator commands and options , if someone could simplify that will be very useful and will help is saving customer data .
1) Symptoms of Translator related issues -
2) Should smart clear / Non Resident G-list erased before translator related work
3) What is difference between translator recovery and Translator regeneration
4) m0,6,3,,,,,22 - when to use this command

Thanks

[AJ2008]

I have a fundamental question.
There are so many translator commands and options , if someone could simplify that will be very useful and will help is saving customer data .
1) Symptoms of Translator related issues -
2) Should smart clear / Non Resident G-list erased before translator related work
3) What is difference between translator recovery and Translator regeneration
4) m0,6,3,,,,,22 - when to use this command

Thanks

1) Symptoms of translator are where ID is correct but capacity is 0 and module 002B is damaged. sometimes is no obvious damage to 002B but in such situation some level of experience and initiative is needed.

2) On 7200.11 there is no NRG, and SMART can be cleared as can Glist. After 7200.11 NRG should not be cleared, but SMART can be cleared. In every situation where NRG is present it should be at least copied or defects recorded somewhere for manual / automatic restoration of it. As long as NRG defects are backed up, they can be restored after translator is reconstructed. (Reconstructing translator will ignore NRG defects and also clear all entries within it).

3) Translator Regeneration generates new translation system based on slip lists, but does not consider NRG and as a result many defects are ignored during regen and this results in partial access only. Translator Recovery is process of searching for such defects and appending them to the translation system to allow full surface access.

4)This command with the '6,3' prefix is supposed to regenerate translator while taking into account additional defect lists, but there is no guarantees it will preserve entries in NRG so again always make a copy before executing translator regeneration.

[datasolution]

hi aj2008,
This time i have first backup nrglist by read it.than clear it and m0,6,2,,,,,22.than again going to defectlist menu open saved nrglist and saved to nrg list.power off and on.again restart utility by pressing V40 it shows entries in nrglist but data area is not open.After than i have cleared it again and trying recover translation automatically but it stuck on particular 787757104 .it ask to do it manually.I tried to add this defect in edit defect list add lba no and than add to slip list.than again i satrt utility from 787757104 sec it shows again err for same sec no.add manually.and process goes on repeatadly .So finally i stuck on this sec.Even after saved original nrglist before ,i dont have benifit.So pls tell me how do i overcome this problem.Still i have original nglist.drive comes with entries in nrglist and 0 lba.
drive detail is likethis
model : ST9500325AS-D003-6VE6xxxx i have read nglist at this time before translation.
with lots of hope .
thanks

[Nick_TS]

Tell me please next details:

1. Have you backuped the modules before regenerating translator?
2. Have you turned off flags of offline scan and reassign(from edit hdd section)?
3. Please check if they remain turned off

Try to clean NRGL and regenerate translator by m0,6,3,,,,,22 command. Then send us result of V40 command.

[datasolution]

hi dima,
thanks for your reply.I have already tick off all only first one is ticked.I have backuped all mod and sys files.now i4,1,22,N1 and than V40.than clear nrg list.than m0,6,3,,,,,22 and than V40 again.here is after this V40.
F3 T>V40
Nonresident GList 0 entries returned
Total entries available: 0
PBA Len Flags Phy Cyl Hd PhySctr SFI

F3 T>m0,6,3,,,,,22
Max Wr Retries = 00, Max Rd Retries = 00, Max ECC T-Level = 14, Max Certify Rewrite Retries = 0A74

User Partition Format Successful - Elapsed Time 0 mins 00 secs

F3 T>V40
Nonresident GList 0 entries returned
Total entries available: 0
PBA Len Flags Phy Cyl Hd PhySctr SFI

[AJ2008]

You write ambiguous entries to slip list? the actual NRG entry can start before or after this sector, this is the right or left fork detailed in roustams message at the start of this thread. Also, as entries are added direct to slip list it complicates it. Do you have list of all entries you added to slip list manually?

If you opt to use option 'Work with Active Utility' in DE you should be able to read data, but speed will be very very slow.

[Hary]

Hi everyone,

I will shed some light on topic after succesfull manual translator recovery

First of all:

CORRECT TRANSLATOR REGENERATION using Seagate utility !!! should be performed in such order:
1.Save Non Resident G-list (NRG-list) before any try of translator regeneration;
2.Regenerate Translator;
3.Open saved before NRG-list, right click on it and press once: Hide to slip list;
4. All user area should be now accessible

The problem with translator fork starts when we run TRANSLATOR REGENERATION before we saved NRG-list, because this operation also clears NRG-list, so if we did not save NRG defects before runing regeneration we will face devil fork ---E problem in F3 series (except F3 black series, where NRG-list is not implemented)

So many of us has faced this problem somehow and I will try to explain, as easy, as only possible, how to get rid of this problem and BUILD NRG-list MANUALLY just from the beginning. Building and saving correct complete NRG-list will give us possibility to access all LBA sectors, because we can proceed with CORRECT TRANSLATOR REGENERATION described above.

So we start process of building NRG-list manually (step by step):
===================================================================================================================================================
1.Regenerate translator;
2.Find first bad sector that ends access to the rest of LBA sectors (use normal ata command to check). Around or inside this sector should be sectors with only bytes 00h or 77h,as on the picture in Roustam post(use utility command to inspect).Put their numbers down;
3. ADD theese 00h patern sectors number in created defect list in normal order, but what is very important ,not straight but with shift correction, algorithm of adding sectors in defect list looks like that:
if You adding LBAx sector to list it should be added as LBAx+n ( n is numer of sectors added to list before LBAx);
4.Regenerate translator;
5.Right click on building list and press once: Hide to slip list;
6.Check access to more sectors (You can use logical scan). It should be gained if correct sectors was put in the list. If not delete last added sectors from list and go to step 3 and try again (for example in case of ambiguity )
7.If further access is gained, do not delete sectors from list and go to step 2.
===================================================================================================================================================

This way You can step by step build NRG-list and for verification You can compare what You did with list build automatically by Translator recovery option in utility.

The original NRG-list is sometimes not big, in my Seagate 320GB experimental drive it had 11 entries
Working through this algorithm will probably teach smart persons what to do in case of ambiguity.