chkdsk stuck on stage 4!Pls help!

USerMan

I ran the chkdsk /f /r /x command on my external hard drive because it started slowing down. I saw it recommended online. Now it’s stuck on stage 4 out of 5 for hours, and nothing’s happening. The drive’s pretty big, around 2TB. Should I be worried, or is this normal for a drive this size? What can I do to fix it without losing data?

KindnessCatalyst

USerMan
If chkdsk takes too long to complete, it could indicate issues with the drive itself. I recommend using a diagnostic tool like CrystalDiskInfo to check the hard drive’s health through its S.M.A.R.T. data. If hardware issues appear, you may want to replace the drive after backing up all your data.

SocialImpactCoder

USerMan
Hey! Yeah, it can take forever, especially if the drive’s super fragmented or has tons of small files. I had the same thing happen, and I just waited it out. As long as the drive’s not physically damaged, chkdsk will finish up eventually.

MmkrkdlGelo

USerMan
When I ran chkdsk /f /r on my 2TB HDD, it took over five hours! Totally normal for a 2TB drive since it checks the whole thing and scans clusters for damage and fixes them. Kinda like a surface scan. I’d suggest running chkdsk /f WITHOUT the 'r' flag first… it’ll only take a few minutes if the disk surface is fine. Just reboot and run the shorter command again. Chkdsk /f alone is good for fixing internal or external HDDs by checking for filesystem errors and files.
Here’s a quick list of chkdsk commands from the web:
/F: Check for errors and auto-fix them!
/V: Show full paths and file names during the scan, also cleans up NTFS partitions.
/R: Find bad sectors and recover their contents. Needs /F flag!
/X: Dismounts the volume before checking, all handles become invalid. Also does /F!
/I: Skips strict checking of index entries, only for NTFS. Faster but less thorough.
/C: Skips checking cycles inside folder structures, only for NTFS. Faster but less thorough.
/L:size: Changes log file size during check (in KB), if no size is given, shows the current one, only for NTFS.
/B: NTFS only! Re-evaluates bad clusters on the disk (requires /R).

HopeInSleep

USerMan
Is the hard drive activity light on your case blinking? Usually, they flash red, but there are some exceptions. If it’s blinking, your scan and recovery aren’t finished yet! That little LED is your clue if the drive’s still doing its thing or if it’s stuck!

USerMan

KindnessCatalyst
Thanks for the advice! But what if I stop chkdsk? Is there a risk of losing data? I don't want to make the problem worse.

USerMan

MmkrkdlGelo
Thanks for such a detailed answer! Now I understand that the 'r' flag is for surface scanning. That definitely explains why it took so long.

KindnessCatalyst

USerMan
I doubt that stopping the scan at this stage would damage the disk. press CTRL+C and wait for the command prompt to reappear. Once it does, you can be sure that the scan has been caceled.

USerMan

HopeInSleep
During the scan, the light was either on or blinking. It's all finished now. I stopped the scan using ctrl+C and plan to start it again without the “r” flag.

DanyOrtega89

By the way, can anyone explain why chkdsk sometimes gets stuck for so long on stage 4? I always thought this was the easiest part of the process.

KindnessCatalyst

DanyOrtega89
Chkdsk in stage 4 checks data clusters and fixes any errors found during the process. If the drive contains many damaged sectors or corrupted data, this step may take a long time, especially if the disk has physical issues or is heavily fragmented. Additionally, stages 4 and 5 run only with the /r command!!

USerMan

Thanks for the replies! I’ll try to check the disk without the 'r' flag. If nothing changes, I’ll diagnose the disk with other utilities. Hopefully, the data will remain intact.

USerMan

I tried running it without the /r flag, and everything went through successfully, fixing some errors. I haven’t found any other issues so far, and everything seems to be working fine. I also checked the disk with CrystalDiskInfo, and its health status shows “Good.” Looks like everything’s in order. Thanks, everyone, for the help!

andrii-yasko

With your permission, I'll jump into the discussion about the chkdsk command that is stuck at stage 4.

First of all, it's worth noting that chkdsk can take a significant amount of time, especially on large and heavily fragmented disks. This is normal, particularly if the disk contains damaged sectors that need repair.

I've found pretty useful tips that came up in the discussion, such as executing chkdsk without the /r flag to speed up the process and checking the disk activity indicator to see if the process is still ongoing. These simple steps can help accelerate the resolution of the issue.

In addition to CrystalDiskInfo, which I assume you've already used for disk diagnostics, you can also check tools like HD Tune and GSmartControl. These programs can also help assess the condition of your disk and identify possible problems. If the problem isn't resolved with built-in tools, you can always use more advanced utilities like Victoria (a.k.a. Victoria SSD/HDD or Victoria 911) for a deeper surface analysis.

If you need more information about the chkdsk command and its options, I recommend you read our article on CHKDSK . It will help you better understand the capabilities of this command and prevent similar problems in the future...

Thank you all for your active participation and helpful advice!!