Problem with partitioning - disk permanently falls back to old p-table

mober · 2015-04-16 15:52:29

Hey Guys!

I'm quite desperate and can't find answers for the following problem - maybe some of you already had a similiar problem.

I want to reuse a SSD that I used on a different machine as primary system drive. It's partition-table:

# fdisk -l /dev/sda
Disk /dev/sda: 119.2 GiB, 128035676160 bytes, 250069680 sectors
Units: sectors of 1 * 512 = 512 bytes
Sector size (logical/physical): 512 bytes / 512 bytes
I/O size (minimum/optimal): 512 bytes / 512 bytes
Disklabel type: dos
Disk identifier: 0x0004f0e5

Device Boot Start End Sectors Size Id Type
/dev/sda1 * 2048 499711 497664 243M 83 Linux
/dev/sda2 501758 250068991 249567234 119G 5 Extended
/dev/sda5 501760 250068991 249567232 119G 8e Linux LVM

There is a LVM volume group with two volumes (root and swap) on sda5. No matter how I try to destroy the LVM setup and the partitioning, it is always "reseted" to this setup.

I tried: lvremove, vgremove, pvremove, fdisk, cfdisk, gdisk, cgdisk, dd from /dev/null, testdisk - with and without reboots, from arch-linux booted from usb and from an ubuntu-live-cd. No matter what, the partitioning does not change.

Why I want to reformat it? I want to use the drive as cache for zfs-on-linux.

It feels like the drive is somehow write-protected.

Has anyone suggestions what to try next?

Head_on_a_Stick · 2015-04-16 16:05:00

Blast the partition table off using:

# dd if=/dev/zero of=/dev/sda bs=512 count=1

I don't think using /dev/null would work.

The last time I saw a partition table that could not be altered in these forums, there was a cable/connector problem so check yours.

mober · 2015-04-16 16:56:05

Thanks for the fast reply.

/dev/zero is what I meant. To be safe I just tried again - no success.

The drive is installed in a nettop (Asus EB1501) - no cable, direct connector. But to be safe I will have a look at the contacts.

R00KIE · 2015-04-16 17:13:39

If this works then you will nuke all the data on the ssd, I haven't tried it myself (yet) but it should work. Make sure the ssd is sda, then as root do:

blkdiscard -v /dev/sda

This should trim the whole ssd and if your ssd returns zeros after trim then you should have a clean slate to start from.

mober · 2015-04-17 10:52:30

Thanks @ROOKIE

Sadly didn't work either - see below. Underneath I added results of smart-tests - maybe I miss something.

$ sudo lsblk
NAME MAJ:MIN RM SIZE RO TYPE MOUNTPOINT
sda 8:0 0 119.2G 0 disk
|-sda1 8:1 0 243M 0 part
|-sda2 8:2 0 1K 0 part
`-sda5 8:5 0 119G 0 part
sdc 8:32 1 7.4G 0 disk
|-sdc1 8:33 1 512M 0 part
`-sdc2 8:34 1 6.9G 0 part
sdd 8:48 1 7.4G 0 disk
|-sdd1 8:49 1 512M 0 part /boot
`-sdd2 8:50 1 6.9G 0 part
sr0 11:0 1 1024M 0 rom
zram0 254:0 0 75.1M 0 disk [SWAP]
zram1 254:1 0 75.1M 0 disk [SWAP]
zram2 254:2 0 75.1M 0 disk [SWAP]
zram3 254:3 0 75.1M 0 disk [SWAP]
$ sudo blkdiscard -v /dev/sda
/dev/sda: Discarded 128035676160 bytes from the offset 0
$ sudo blkdiscard -v /dev/sda
/dev/sda: Discarded 128035676160 bytes from the offset 0
$ sudo fdisk /dev/sda

Welcome to fdisk (util-linux 2.26.1).
Changes will remain in memory only, until you decide to write them.
Be careful before using the write command.

Command (m for help): o
Created a new DOS disklabel with disk identifier 0x591d429c.

Command (m for help): w
The partition table has been altered.
Calling ioctl() to re-read partition table.
Syncing disks.

$ lsblk
NAME MAJ:MIN RM SIZE RO TYPE MOUNTPOINT
sda 8:0 0 119.2G 0 disk
|-sda1 8:1 0 243M 0 part
|-sda2 8:2 0 1K 0 part
`-sda5 8:5 0 119G 0 part
sdc 8:32 1 7.4G 0 disk
|-sdc1 8:33 1 512M 0 part
`-sdc2 8:34 1 6.9G 0 part
sdd 8:48 1 7.4G 0 disk
|-sdd1 8:49 1 512M 0 part /boot
`-sdd2 8:50 1 6.9G 0 part
sr0 11:0 1 1024M 0 rom
zram0 254:0 0 75.1M 0 disk [SWAP]
zram1 254:1 0 75.1M 0 disk [SWAP]
zram2 254:2 0 75.1M 0 disk [SWAP]
zram3 254:3 0 75.1M 0 disk [SWAP]
$ sudo blkdiscard -v /dev/sda
/dev/sda: Discarded 128035676160 bytes from the offset 0
$ lsblk
NAME MAJ:MIN RM SIZE RO TYPE MOUNTPOINT
sda 8:0 0 119.2G 0 disk
|-sda1 8:1 0 243M 0 part
|-sda2 8:2 0 1K 0 part
`-sda5 8:5 0 119G 0 part
sdc 8:32 1 7.4G 0 disk
|-sdc1 8:33 1 512M 0 part
`-sdc2 8:34 1 6.9G 0 part
sdd 8:48 1 7.4G 0 disk
|-sdd1 8:49 1 512M 0 part /boot
`-sdd2 8:50 1 6.9G 0 part
sr0 11:0 1 1024M 0 rom
zram0 254:0 0 75.1M 0 disk [SWAP]
zram1 254:1 0 75.1M 0 disk [SWAP]
zram2 254:2 0 75.1M 0 disk [SWAP]
zram3 254:3 0 75.1M 0 disk [SWAP]

I checked smart too now:

$ sudo smartctl -t long /dev/sda
smartctl 6.3 2014-07-26 r3976 [x86_64-linux-3.19.3-3-ARCH] (local build)
Copyright (C) 2002-14, Bruce Allen, Christian Franke, www.smartmontools.org

=== START OF OFFLINE IMMEDIATE AND SELF-TEST SECTION ===
Sending command: "Execute SMART Extended self-test routine immediately in off-line mode".
Drive command "Execute SMART Extended self-test routine immediately in off-line mode" successful.
Testing has begun.
Please wait 1 minutes for test to complete.
Test will complete after Fri Apr 17 12:22:27 2015

Use smartctl -X to abort test.
$ sudo smartctl -H /dev/sda
smartctl 6.3 2014-07-26 r3976 [x86_64-linux-3.19.3-3-ARCH] (local build)
Copyright (C) 2002-14, Bruce Allen, Christian Franke, www.smartmontools.org

=== START OF READ SMART DATA SECTION ===
SMART overall-health self-assessment test result: PASSED

$ sudo smartctl -a /dev/sda
smartctl 6.3 2014-07-26 r3976 [x86_64-linux-3.19.3-3-ARCH] (local build)
Copyright (C) 2002-14, Bruce Allen, Christian Franke, www.smartmontools.org

=== START OF INFORMATION SECTION ===
Model Family: JMicron based SSDs
Device Model: KINGSTON SNV425S2128GB
Serial Number: 07WA50010371
Firmware Version: D100309a
User Capacity: 128,035,676,160 bytes [128 GB]
Sector Size: 512 bytes logical/physical
Rotation Rate: Solid State Device
Form Factor: 2.5 inches
Device is: In smartctl database [for details use: -P show]
ATA Version is: ATA8-ACS (minor revision not indicated)
SATA Version is: SATA 2.6, 3.0 Gb/s
Local Time is: Fri Apr 17 12:31:57 2015 CEST
SMART support is: Available - device has SMART capability.
SMART support is: Enabled

=== START OF READ SMART DATA SECTION ===
SMART overall-health self-assessment test result: PASSED

General SMART Values:
Offline data collection status: (0x00) Offline data collection activity
was never started.
Auto Offline Data Collection: Disabled.
Self-test execution status: ( 0) The previous self-test routine completed
without error or no self-test has ever
been run.
Total time to complete Offline
data collection: ( 30) seconds.
Offline data collection
capabilities: (0x1b) SMART execute Offline immediate.
Auto Offline data collection on/off support.
Suspend Offline collection upon new
command.
Offline surface scan supported.
Self-test supported.
No Conveyance Self-test supported.
No Selective Self-test supported.
SMART capabilities: (0x0003) Saves SMART data before entering
power-saving mode.
Supports SMART auto save timer.
Error logging capability: (0x01) Error logging supported.
General Purpose Logging supported.
Short self-test routine
recommended polling time: ( 1) minutes.
Extended self-test routine
recommended polling time: ( 1) minutes.

SMART Attributes Data Structure revision number: 16
Vendor Specific SMART Attributes with Thresholds:
ID# ATTRIBUTE_NAME FLAG VALUE WORST THRESH TYPE UPDATED WHEN_FAILED RAW_VALUE
1 Raw_Read_Error_Rate 0x000b 100 100 050 Pre-fail Always - 0
2 Throughput_Performance 0x0005 100 100 050 Pre-fail Offline - 0
3 Unknown_Attribute 0x0007 100 100 050 Pre-fail Always - 0
5 Reallocated_Sector_Ct 0x0013 100 100 050 Pre-fail Always - 0
7 Unknown_Attribute 0x000b 100 100 050 Pre-fail Always - 0
8 Unknown_Attribute 0x0005 100 100 050 Pre-fail Offline - 0
9 Power_On_Hours 0x0012 100 100 000 Old_age Always - 12054
10 Unknown_Attribute 0x0013 100 100 050 Pre-fail Always - 0
12 Power_Cycle_Count 0x0012 100 100 000 Old_age Always - 5448
168 SATA_Phy_Error_Count 0x0012 100 100 000 Old_age Always - 0
175 Bad_Cluster_Table_Count 0x0003 100 100 010 Pre-fail Always - 29
192 Unexpect_Power_Loss_Ct 0x0012 100 100 000 Old_age Always - 0
194 Temperature_Celsius 0x0022 052 100 020 Old_age Always - 52 (Min/Max 29/52)
197 Current_Pending_Sector 0x0012 100 100 000 Old_age Always - 0
240 Unknown_Attribute 0x0013 100 100 050 Pre-fail Always - 0
170 Bad_Block_Count 0x0003 100 100 010 Pre-fail Always - 144 329 118
173 Erase_Count 0x0012 100 100 000 Old_age Always - 6399 10521 7887

SMART Error Log Version: 1
ATA Error Count: 153 (device log contains only the most recent five errors)
CR = Command Register [HEX]
FR = Features Register [HEX]
SC = Sector Count Register [HEX]
SN = Sector Number Register [HEX]
CL = Cylinder Low Register [HEX]
CH = Cylinder High Register [HEX]
DH = Device/Head Register [HEX]
DC = Device Command Register [HEX]
ER = Error register [HEX]
ST = Status register [HEX]
Powered_Up_Time is measured from power on, and printed as
DDd+hh:mm:SS.sss where DD=days, hh=hours, mm=minutes,
SS=sec, and sss=millisec. It "wraps" after 49.710 days.

Error 153 occurred at disk power-on lifetime: 11818 hours (492 days + 10 hours)
When the command that caused the error occurred, the device was active or idle.

After command completion occurred, registers were:
ER ST SC SN CL CH DH
-- -- -- -- -- -- --
40 51 00 28 66 d3 eb Error: UNC at LBA = 0x0bd36628 = 198403624

Commands leading to the command that caused the error were:
CR FR SC SN CL CH DH DC Powered_Up_Time Command/Feature_Name
-- -- -- -- -- -- -- -- ---------------- --------------------
c8 00 08 28 66 d3 eb 08 36d+21:07:12.000 READ DMA
ec 00 00 00 00 00 a0 08 36d+21:07:12.000 IDENTIFY DEVICE
ef 03 45 00 00 00 a0 08 36d+21:07:12.000 SET FEATURES [Set transfer mode]
ec 00 00 00 00 00 a0 08 36d+21:07:12.000 IDENTIFY DEVICE
c8 00 08 28 66 d3 eb 08 36d+21:07:12.000 READ DMA

Error 152 occurred at disk power-on lifetime: 11818 hours (492 days + 10 hours)
When the command that caused the error occurred, the device was active or idle.

After command completion occurred, registers were:
ER ST SC SN CL CH DH
-- -- -- -- -- -- --
40 51 00 28 66 d3 eb Error: UNC at LBA = 0x0bd36628 = 198403624

Commands leading to the command that caused the error were:
CR FR SC SN CL CH DH DC Powered_Up_Time Command/Feature_Name
-- -- -- -- -- -- -- -- ---------------- --------------------
c8 00 08 28 66 d3 eb 08 36d+21:07:12.000 READ DMA
c8 00 08 20 66 d3 eb 08 36d+21:07:12.000 READ DMA
c8 00 08 18 66 d3 eb 08 36d+21:07:12.000 READ DMA
c8 00 08 10 66 d3 eb 08 36d+21:07:12.000 READ DMA
c8 00 08 08 66 d3 eb 08 36d+21:07:12.000 READ DMA

Error 151 occurred at disk power-on lifetime: 11818 hours (492 days + 10 hours)
When the command that caused the error occurred, the device was active or idle.

After command completion occurred, registers were:
ER ST SC SN CL CH DH
-- -- -- -- -- -- --
40 51 00 00 66 d3 eb Error: UNC at LBA = 0x0bd36600 = 198403584

Commands leading to the command that caused the error were:
CR FR SC SN CL CH DH DC Powered_Up_Time Command/Feature_Name
-- -- -- -- -- -- -- -- ---------------- --------------------
c8 00 00 00 66 d3 eb 08 36d+21:07:12.000 READ DMA
c8 00 00 00 65 d3 eb 08 36d+21:07:12.000 READ DMA
c8 00 00 00 64 d3 eb 08 36d+21:07:12.000 READ DMA
c8 00 00 00 63 d3 eb 08 36d+21:07:12.000 READ DMA
c8 00 00 00 62 d3 eb 08 36d+21:07:12.000 READ DMA

Error 150 occurred at disk power-on lifetime: 6211 hours (258 days + 19 hours)
When the command that caused the error occurred, the device was active or idle.

After command completion occurred, registers were:
ER ST SC SN CL CH DH
-- -- -- -- -- -- --
40 51 00 a8 f6 75 eb Error: UNC at LBA = 0x0b75f6a8 = 192280232

Commands leading to the command that caused the error were:
CR FR SC SN CL CH DH DC Powered_Up_Time Command/Feature_Name
-- -- -- -- -- -- -- -- ---------------- --------------------
c8 00 08 a8 f6 75 eb 08 04:55:01.600 READ DMA
ec 00 00 00 00 00 a0 08 04:55:01.600 IDENTIFY DEVICE
ef 03 45 00 00 00 a0 08 04:55:01.600 SET FEATURES [Set transfer mode]
ec 00 00 00 00 00 a0 08 04:55:01.600 IDENTIFY DEVICE
c8 00 08 a8 f6 75 eb 08 04:55:01.500 READ DMA

Error 149 occurred at disk power-on lifetime: 6211 hours (258 days + 19 hours)
When the command that caused the error occurred, the device was active or idle.

After command completion occurred, registers were:
ER ST SC SN CL CH DH
-- -- -- -- -- -- --
40 51 00 a8 f6 75 eb Error: UNC at LBA = 0x0b75f6a8 = 192280232

Commands leading to the command that caused the error were:
CR FR SC SN CL CH DH DC Powered_Up_Time Command/Feature_Name
-- -- -- -- -- -- -- -- ---------------- --------------------
c8 00 08 a8 f6 75 eb 08 04:55:01.500 READ DMA
c8 00 08 a0 f6 75 eb 08 04:55:01.500 READ DMA
c8 00 08 98 f6 75 eb 08 04:55:01.500 READ DMA
c8 00 08 90 f6 75 eb 08 04:55:01.500 READ DMA
c8 00 08 88 f6 75 eb 08 04:55:01.500 READ DMA

SMART Self-test log structure revision number 1
Num Test_Description Status Remaining LifeTime(hours) LBA_of_first_error
# 1 Extended offline Completed without error 00% 12054 -
# 2 Extended offline Completed without error 00% 11117 -
# 3 Short offline Completed without error 00% 11116 -
# 4 Extended offline Completed without error 00% 11100 -
# 5 Short offline Completed without error 00% 6804 -
# 6 Short offline Completed without error 00% 2818 -
# 7 Short offline Completed without error 00% 2750 -
# 8 Short offline Completed without error 00% 2744 -
# 9 Short offline Aborted by host 00% 2521 -
#10 Short offline Completed without error 00% 2448 -
#11 Short offline Completed without error 00% 2290 -
#12 Short offline Completed without error 00% 2120 -
#13 Short offline Completed without error 00% 2021 -
#14 Short offline Completed without error 00% 1936 -
#15 Short offline Completed without error 00% 1859 -
#16 Short offline Completed without error 00% 1823 -
#17 Short offline Completed without error 00% 1727 -
#18 Short offline Completed without error 00% 1687 -
#19 Short offline Completed without error 00% 1580 -
#20 Short offline Completed without error 00% 1292 -
#21 Short offline Completed without error 00% 1245 -

Selective Self-tests/Logging not supported

Soukyuu · 2015-04-17 12:53:09

Please put long logs in code tags ['code]['/code] (without the '). It preserves the formatting and is easier to read.
I'm seeing two potential problems in the smartctl output:

175 Bad_Cluster_Table_Count 0x0003   100   100   010    Pre-fail  Always       -       29
...
170 Bad_Block_Count         0x0003   100   100   010    Pre-fail  Always       -       144 329 118

Your SSD has some dead blocks it seems. Usually the SSD reallocates such sectors, but yours says that it has not done this so far:

 5 Reallocated_Sector_Ct   0x0013   100   100   050    Pre-fail  Always       -       0

You might want to try and wipe the whole disk with something like DBAN (first thing that came to mind, other suggestions welcome).

One more thing, are you doing this from a live CD system or by booting off sda? Because I don't think it's possible to format the device you're currently "on"

R00KIE · 2015-04-17 14:55:07

Like Soukyuu says you should be doing this from a live cd. Trim should have nuked all the data on the SSD, but if that didn't work you could always try as root: 'cp /dev/zero /dev/sda'. If this still doesn't clean the whole ssd there is something weird going on.

Regarding the smart attributes Soukyuu mentions, I'm not sure you should worry too much, they are still quite far from the threshold, however I don't have much experience with ssds so take this opinion with a grain of salt.

Soukyuu · 2015-04-17 18:03:41

Slightly OT here, but how do you read that, R00KIE?
Threshold for Bad_Block_Count is 10 while the value and worst are both 100, raw value being 144 329 118... I never understood which number system those values used.

R00KIE · 2015-04-17 18:22:51

Soukyuu wrote:

Slightly OT here, but how do you read that, R00KIE?

The smart values go down as they get worse and there is a problem when they get below the threshold, 100 is still way above 10 and according to wikipedia[1] 100 is probably the nominal value for that attribute. As for the raw values, only the manufacturer can tell what they mean, if not documented anywhere at best we can do an educated guess at what they represent.

[1] http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/S.M.A.R.T. … attributes

Buddlespit · 2015-04-17 22:16:51

I know this might be a silly question, but did you unmount and remount the drive after running fdisk? I ask because I just finished playing slap-ass with an external drive I was trying to re-partition (in gdisk, but the results should be the same).

EscapedNull · 2015-04-18 01:51:33

I've never seen anything quite like this. Are you able to mount any of the partitions and read/write files?

Maybe it's time for the big guns (aka. hdparm). hdparm can be used to issue an ATA internal erase command to the drive, but it can also brick the drive permanently if not used carefully. Make sure to read all of the external links and warnings in the hdparm section. Some of the other methods on this page might be useful to you as well.
https://wiki.archlinux.org/index.php/Securely_wipe_disk

Edit: does dd seem to be writing at a reasonable speed for the drive in question? Is there any dmesg output?

Last edited by EscapedNull (2015-04-18 01:54:28)

mober · 2015-04-22 11:08:30

Thanks for the suggestions!

Sorry for not answering - I have been away over the weekend. I will try your suggestions in the next days and will let you know if something worked.

mober · 2015-04-28 15:59:09

Update:

I was able to erase the disk with hdparm (see links below for guides)
https://tinyapps.org/docs/wipe_drives_hdparm.html
https://wiki.archlinux.org/index.php?ti … edirect=no

The old partitioning is now wiped, but the drive still denies new partitioning (fdisk closes without error, adding the drive as cache to zfs-pool results in an error)

$ sudo zpool add zpool cache /dev/sda -f
cannot label 'sda': failed to detect device partitions on '/dev/sda1': 2
$ sudo fdisk /dev/sda   

Welcome to fdisk (util-linux 2.26.1).
Changes will remain in memory only, until you decide to write them.
Be careful before using the write command.

Device does not contain a recognized partition table.
Created a new DOS disklabel with disk identifier 0x1a0c6a54.

Command (m for help): w
The partition table has been altered.
Calling ioctl() to re-read partition table.
Syncing disks.

$ sudo fdisk /dev/sda 

Welcome to fdisk (util-linux 2.26.1).
Changes will remain in memory only, until you decide to write them.
Be careful before using the write command.

Device does not contain a recognized partition table.
Created a new DOS disklabel with disk identifier 0x5366a1e7.

Command (m for help): w
The partition table has been altered.
Calling ioctl() to re-read partition table.
Syncing disks.

$

R00KIE · 2015-04-28 18:28:29

Check you don't have boot record protection (or something similar) enabled in the bios.

mober · 2015-04-29 14:58:39

I just removed the drive and tried to partition it on another machine with a sata-usb-adapter. Still the same problem. Looks like I have to give up the drive.

EscapedNull · 2015-04-30 16:08:32

hdparm has quite a lot of functions. See if it does anything else that might be relevant. If there are any vendor-specific tools, those might help also. If nothing else works, you might be able to send it to the manufacturer to have it refurbished.

Arch Linux

#1 2015-04-16 15:52:29

Problem with partitioning - disk permanently falls back to old p-table

#2 2015-04-16 16:05:00

Re: Problem with partitioning - disk permanently falls back to old p-table

#3 2015-04-16 16:56:05

Re: Problem with partitioning - disk permanently falls back to old p-table

#4 2015-04-16 17:13:39

Re: Problem with partitioning - disk permanently falls back to old p-table

#5 2015-04-17 10:52:30

Re: Problem with partitioning - disk permanently falls back to old p-table

#6 2015-04-17 12:53:09

Re: Problem with partitioning - disk permanently falls back to old p-table

#7 2015-04-17 14:55:07

Re: Problem with partitioning - disk permanently falls back to old p-table

#8 2015-04-17 18:03:41

Re: Problem with partitioning - disk permanently falls back to old p-table

#9 2015-04-17 18:22:51

Re: Problem with partitioning - disk permanently falls back to old p-table

#10 2015-04-17 22:16:51

Re: Problem with partitioning - disk permanently falls back to old p-table

#11 2015-04-18 01:51:33

Re: Problem with partitioning - disk permanently falls back to old p-table

#12 2015-04-22 11:08:30

Re: Problem with partitioning - disk permanently falls back to old p-table

#13 2015-04-28 15:59:09

Re: Problem with partitioning - disk permanently falls back to old p-table

#14 2015-04-28 18:28:29

Re: Problem with partitioning - disk permanently falls back to old p-table

#15 2015-04-29 14:58:39

Re: Problem with partitioning - disk permanently falls back to old p-table

#16 2015-04-30 16:08:32

Re: Problem with partitioning - disk permanently falls back to old p-table

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