[kwlug-disc] Media errors on a USB disk

[Khalid Baheyeldin]

For the weekly backup, I am now getting this error:

[2388063.441067] sd 13:0:0:0: [sdb] Result: hostbyte=DID_OK
driverbyte=DRIVER_SENSE,SUGGEST_OK
[2388063.441073] sd 13:0:0:0: [sdb] Sense Key : Medium Error [current]
[2388063.441077] sd 13:0:0:0: [sdb] Add. Sense: Unrecovered read error
[2388063.441080] end_request: I/O error, dev sdb, sector 177045897
[2388064.495756] sd 13:0:0:0: [sdb] Result: hostbyte=DID_OK
driverbyte=DRIVER_SENSE,SUGGEST_OK
[2388064.495762] sd 13:0:0:0: [sdb] Sense Key : Medium Error [current]
[2388064.495765] sd 13:0:0:0: [sdb] Add. Sense: Unrecovered read error
[2388064.495768] end_request: I/O error, dev sdb, sector 177045897

If I replace the disk with an identical brand (but has a different make
of disk inside), I get other errors.

These two disks have been stable and trouble free for about 2 years,
with no issues.

My questions are:

1. Short of dd if=/dev/sdb, is there a way to detect blocks?

2. Do we have a way to add the bad blocks to a list that the operating
system
should ignore, like we had in the old days?

3. Could this be a quirk of some sort? How do I know for sure if it is
really a media problem or some bug/quirk?

Thanks in advance.
-- 
Khalid M. Baheyeldin
2bits.com, Inc.
http://2bits.com
Drupal optimization, development, customization and consulting.
Simplicity is prerequisite for reliability. --  Edsger W.Dijkstra
Simplicity is the ultimate sophistication. --   Leonardo da Vinci
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