Disk error question

[carroll at m.cs.uiuc.edu]

/* Written 11:34 pm  Aug 19, 1990 by marc at dumbcat.sf.ca.us in m.cs.uiuc.edu:comp.unix.i386 */
/* ---------- "Disk error question" ---------- */
Since adding a second SCSI disk to my ISA box, a second Seagate ST-296N,
I've been getting occasional error message like:

*** DEVICE ERROR: Uncorrectable data error in sector ***
*** Controller 0 (Adaptec AHA-1540 SCSI Host Adapter), DISK Drive 1, Absolute Sector # 40205 ***

*** DEVICE ERROR: Uncorrectable data error in sector ***
*** Controller 0 (Adaptec AHA-1540 SCSI Host Adapter), DISK Drive 0, Absolute Sector # 15201 ***

/* End of text from m.cs.uiuc.edu:comp.unix.i386 */
I've had something very similar to this happen to me. ISC 2.0.2, Adaptec 1542
SCSI, Maxtor drive. I would get the error in different sectors as time went
on (i.e., sector X for a while, then sector Y for a while, etc.). Sometimes
the sector would not be any sector on the disk, e.g. a sector number in the
millions (for a 330 meg disk)! I eventually tracked the original sector number
down a particular file. I deleted the file, rebooted, and it's been fine
every since. As with you, surface scans/etc. indicated no problems.