"Short DST Failed! How to Resolve Hard Disk DST Short Test Failure"

When a hard disk fails a Short DST check, it typically indicates that one of the tested components on your hard drive has encountered an issue. If your BIOS displays an error message stating "Short DST failed," this is an indication that your hard drive is not functioning correctly.

3 Best Ways to Fix DST Short Test Failed (Quick Navigation)

You can resolve the DST short test failed error with the following three solutions:

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"What is Hard Disk DST Short Test Failure?" 翻译为英文是： "What is a Hard Disk DST Short Test Failure?"

What is a short DST failure? A Drive Self-Test (DST) is an assessment of the physical integrity of a hard disk drive. Many laptop manufacturers, such as HP and Dell, ship their laptops with hard drives that have built-in support for a Short DST, which runs whenever the computer attempts to boot up Windows. Typically, you won't be aware of the test running unless there's an issue with the hard drive, resulting in an error message indicating a Short DST failure, accompanied by a specific error code, such as the common ones: 0141, 0142, 0146, and so on.

Seeing a "DST Short Test Failed" error on your laptop or notebook, particularly an HP model, is not a positive indication. Let's delve into the symptoms and potential consequences that come with this failure.

Symptoms of Hard Drive Short DST Check Failed Error

Let's start by understanding what a DST short test failure appears like:

"I performed a diagnostic on my hard drive that has been having trouble booting lately, and the result showed that the DST short test failed. The suggested solution was accompanied by an error code: 0142, error code 2000-0142, indicating that hard drive 0 - self-test was unsuccessful. The status displayed is 79. I have a screenshot of the precise error details."

When the DST short test failure message appears, your computer may exhibit the following issues:

• The computer becomes unresponsive, and everything runs unusually slow.
• The computer continually restarts, and the hard drive light flickers periodically.
• The computer's hard drive fails to boot, resulting in a blank screen.

The Result of Short DST Failed Error Translation: The outcome of a failed Short Daylight Saving Time (DST) operation.

When the DST short test fails, it typically indicates impending failure or a severe issue with the hard drive. As it didn't manage to assess the drive's health, it suggests that your hard disk might be reaching the end of its lifespan. Now is the time to diagnose and address any hardware issues or, unfortunately, replace the failing or failed hard drive.

Let's attempt some conservative remedies before discarding this troublesome hard drive. Try the troubleshooting measures outlined below.

Solution 1: Update the HDD Driver to Resolve Short DST Failure

Applies to: You can boot into the computer

When encountering a hard drive DST short test failure, you can attempt to fix the issue by updating your device driver if you're able to boot into your computer. A helpful tool for this purpose is DriverHandy. This utility automatically scans for outdated drivers and updates them to the latest versions. Download it now to update your drivers.

Step 1. Click to open the tool DriverHandy and begin scanning your drivers.

Step 2. Locate the drivers and click the "Update" option.

Solution 2: Replace the Old Hard Drive with a New One

Applies to: You can start up the computer

If the initial solution does not address the issue, an alternative solution is to replace the faulty HDD with a functioning one. To accomplish this, you will require a tool to clone the hard drive and substitute it with a healthy one. For this purpose, you can use tools Partition Master. It offers the "Clone" function to facilitate upgrading your hard disk to a larger one. Additionally, this software boasts numerous notable features:

• Migrate OS to SSD
• Resize, create, extend, or format a partition
• Combine partitions without data loss
• Convert MBR to GPT or GPT to MBR...

Steps to upgrade a hard drive using the cloning feature: 1. Backup important data: Before starting any process, ensure that you have backed up all your essential files and documents to an external storage device or cloud service. 2. Choose a cloning software: Select a reliable disk cloning software such as Clonezilla, Acronis True Image, or Mac's built-in Disk Utility for macOS users. Download and install it on your computer. 3. Connect the new hard drive: Attach the new hard drive to your computer using an appropriate interface (SATA, USB, etc.). Make sure it is recognized by your system. 4. Boot into cloning software: Restart your computer and enter the boot menu (usually by pressing F12, F2, or Del during startup) to select the cloned software as the boot source. 5. Select source and target drives: In the cloning software, choose the current hard drive as the source and the new hard drive as the target. Be careful not to mix them up. 6. Start the cloning process: Initiate the cloning operation. The software will copy all the data, including the operating system, applications, and settings, from the old drive to the new one. 7. Monitor progress: Keep an eye on the progress bar and wait patiently for the cloning process to complete. This may take several hours depending on the size of your data. 8. Verify cloned data: Once the cloning is finished, check the new hard drive for any errors or inconsistencies by running a disk check utility provided by the cloning software. 9. Swap hard drives: Turn off your computer, disconnect the old hard drive, and make the new hard drive the primary drive in your system. 10. Boot from the new hard drive: Restart your computer. It should boot from the new hard drive automatically. If not, enter the boot menu again and set the new drive as the first boot option. 11. Update system settings: After successfully booting, you might need to update system settings, like disk partition sizes or drive letters, to reflect the new hard drive. 12. Dispose of the old hard drive: Don't forget to securely erase the old hard drive before discarding it to protect your personal data. Now, you've successfully upgraded your hard drive using the cloning feature. Enjoy the improved performance and additional storage space!

Step 1. Select the source disk.

Click "Clone" from the left menu. Select "Clone OS Disk" or "Clone Data Disk" and click "Next". Choose the source disk and click "Next".

Step 2. Select the target disk.

Translate into English:
• Select the desired HDD/SSD as your destination and click "Next" to proceed.
• Read the warning message and confirm by clicking the "Yes" button.

Step 3. View the disk layout and edit the target disk partition size.

Then click “Continue” when the program warns that it will erase all data on the target disk. (If you have valuable data on the target drive, back it up first.)

You can choose "Autofit the disk," "Clone as the source," or "Edit disk layout" to customize your disk arrangement. (Select the last option if you wish to allocate more space to the C drive.)

Step 4. Click "Start" to initiate the disk cloning process.

Solution 3: Remove the Hard Drive and Check It

Applies to: The computer cannot start

If you can't boot into Windows 10, 8.1, 8, or 7, you can follow this solution.

Step 1. Remove the disk and connect it to another computer.

Step 2. If the hard drive is recognized, immediately copy the disk data to another location.

Step 3. If the hard drive is not being recognized, contact the hard disk manufacturer for hard drive repair.

Bonus Tip - Backup Hard Drive Data to Prevent DST Failure

Backup data timely or clone the system drive to another disk in case the disk becomes corrupted suddenly. The best approach to prevent further data loss is to back up files regularly. For this purpose, you can utilize tools like Todo Backup. This professional backup and recovery software simplifies the process of data backup, making it quick and efficient. Additionally, you can set up a backup schedule to automate the data backup. Here are the steps to automatically back up files: 1. Download and install Todo Backup on your computer. 2. Launch the software and select "File Backup" from the main interface. 3. Click "Add File" or "Add Folder" to choose the specific files or folders you wish to back up. 4. Choose a destination for the backup. You can opt for an external hard drive, network location, or cloud storage. 5. Under the "Schedule" tab, select "Scheduled" to set up automatic backups. You can choose different frequencies, such as daily, weekly, or monthly. 6. In the "Options" tab, customize settings like compression level, encryption, and notifications according to your preferences. 7. Review your settings and click "Start Backup" to initiate the first backup. Future backups will occur according to the schedule you've set. By following these steps, you can ensure that your important files are backed up automatically, providing peace of mind in case of unexpected data loss.

Step 1. Click "Select backup contents" to start a backup.

Step 2. There are four data backup categories: File, Disk, OS, and Mail. Click File.

Step 3. Local and network files will be displayed on the left side. You can expand the directory to choose which files to back up.

Step 4. Follow the on-screen instructions to choose the location where you want to save the backup.

Click "Options" to encrypt the backup with a password under "Backup Options," and to set up a backup schedule and choose to initiate a backup at a specific event under "Backup Scheme." Numerous other customization options are available for the backup process.

Step 5. You can save the backup to a local disk, the tool's online service, or a NAS.

Step 6. Todo Backup allows users to back up data to a third-party cloud drive or its own cloud drive.

If you want to back up data to a third-party cloud drive, select Local Drive, scroll down to add Cloud Device, add your account, and then log in.

You can also save backups to the tool's cloud storage service. Click on "tools Cloud," sign up for a tools Account, and log in.

Step 7. To initiate the backup, click "Backup Now." Once the backup process is complete, it will be displayed as a card on the panel's left side. To manage the backup job further, right-click on it.

Conclusion

We address failed and failing hard drives with three efficient approaches. If you can boot into Windows, refer to Solution 1 and Solution 2. If you're unable to boot into Windows, remove the hard drive and connect it to another computer. Don't forget to create a backup to prevent data loss.