You can do this using the defrag tool built into Windows. If you feel like your non-SSD hard drive is slowing down, then you should check to see how fragmented it is. SSDs work a little differently, and while they never need defragmentation (because fragmentation relates to where the data is physically stored on the drive, which isn’t a factor on SSD), they do sometimes need optimizing. Traditional SATA hard drives may have largely made way for much faster solid-state drives, but they’re still very popular and remain an affordable way to store things like pictures, videos and other non-strenuous file types. On Dell and HP laptops, you should be able to check hard drive health by going to the BIOS and looking for “Diagnostics.” 2. If the report status is “OK,” you have a healthy hard drive.The BIOS is also a good place to see whether the hard drive you want to check is actually being detected by your PC/motherboard.Type “ diskdrive get status,” then press “Enter.”.Type “ wmic” in the command prompt window, then press “Enter.”.Right-click the command prompt display, then choose “Run as administrator.”.Press the “Windows” + “R” buttons together to open a run command window.How to check your hard disk status using WMIC: You’ll need to install a third-party app for additional information. Use a Self-Monitoring, Analysis and Reporting Technology (S.M.A.R.T.) feature that enables the hard drive to automatically monitor and provide basic conclusions for your hard drive’s status alone. Windows Management Instrumentation Command (WMIC) is a command-line interface for performing admin tasks such as checking the health of your hard disk. Click here for a complete list of Microsoft commands using the CHKDSK tool.To dismount your drive, first enter “ chkdsk /f /r /x.”.You can also use “ chkdsk /f /r” to fix bad sectors and recover any readable data if possible.Type “ chkdsk” at the prompt line to run a basic scan, then press “Enter.”.Beneath “Command Prompt,” select “Run as administrator.”.As well as scan for problems, if possible, it will fix them and let you know if there is a problem it can’t handle. It checks for the health of your hard drive by highlighting any errors. Windows CHKDSK, one of the built-in tools, will scan your hard drive for system errors and bad sectors.

Hard drive health checker