How to find the hard drive type and specifications

If you want to view detailed information about your solid-state drives, hard disk drive, or external storage devices connected to your computer, you can follow the instructions given below on this page.

System Information in Windows

Using Windows' System Information utility, you can view details about your hardware, as well as disks.

System Information utility in Windows 10 and Windows 11

1. First of all, you need to press the Windows key on the keyboard, or you can click on the Windows icon the on the system, then type System Information and hit the enter button.

Also, there is an alternative option to open the System Information utility; you can access this utility by using the Run box.

To open the Run box, use the keyboard shortcut Windows key+R.
After opening the Run box, type msinfo32 in the search bar.
Next, click OK or hit the Enter button.
When you press the Enter button or click Ok, you will see the System Information window. A list of hardware categories will appear in the left window pane of the System Information window. After that, you need to expand components and then store them. Then select any category you want to view, such as Drives or Disks.

Earlier versions of Windows System Information

The steps listed below can be used to launch the System Information utility in earlier versions of Microsoft Windows.

In earlier versions of Microsoft Windows, you are first required to click Start and select the Programs folder.
Then, select the System Tools folder or the System Information after clicking the Accessories.
Now, access the System Information file.
Click the Plus sign (+) next to Components in the System Information window.
Drives can be accessed by clicking the + next to Storage. You can view details about the hard disk, such as its capacity and serial number, on the right side of the window.

IBM-compatible users

Users of IBM-compatible computers have the potential to typically access the BIOS settings in order to examine more details about their hard disk. The CMOS often includes a list of the hard drive's serial number, cylinders, heads, sectors, model number, and size.

Note: It is significant to note that the hard drive values may not be accurate if the CMOS is not set up to automatically detect the hard drive.

Determining the speed or RPM of a hard drive

You need to find the hard drive's model and manufacturer in a place like System Information in Windows to find out its RPM.

For instance, we may find out the hard drive's model in Windows System Information is Toshiba MQ04ABF100.

Once you have checked this information, you can use a Google search or the hard disk manufacturer's website to look up the drive and find out its RPM.

When we look for the drive in our example, we find that it is a Toshiba MQ04ABF100, a 5400 rpm SATA 7mm 2.5" disk.

On the physical drive, some manufacturers also describe RPM of the hard drive. Find out the top sticker to check whether the RPM is stated if you open the computer and remove the hard disk.

Third-party utilities

To identify the hardware in your computer system, there are numerous free software utilities available. These tools have the potential to show your hard drive's model and other details.

Viewing S.M.A.R.T. hard drive information

In modern times, S.M.A.R.T. is a standard feature that is included on all modern hard drives, which helps to identify and locate issues with hard drives before they happen. S.M.A.R.T. not only identifies issues but also provides information about the hard drive, such information as the life of the hard drive.

Other disk utilities

There are also other utilities available to get the details of a hard disk. By using these utilities, the hard drive will be correctly detected and configured as these programs are designed for setting it up. Furthermore, these tools can give the user some fundamental extra details regarding the hard drive.

Other methods of determining the hard drive

Getting information directly from the hard drive is one of the greatest methods to obtain more details about a hard disk. Most hard drives provide a sticker on the top of the drive that contains all of the disk's details. We advise you to the case and remove the hard disk to obtain the information you require if you are unable to find it by using the software.

Product listing or specifications

Specifying the maker, model, type, and size of the hard drive is sufficient if you are aiming to list every specific detail about your computer. Here is an illustration of how this may seem.

Maxtor 54098H8 IDE 40Gig hard drive

Replacement or repair

We advise replacing the drive with a different hard drive if you are trying to identify the hard disk because it needs to be replaced or repaired. The brand or maker of the previous drive should be irrelevant as long as you are using the same hard drive interface (IDE/SATA).

How to export hard drive information to text file using Command Prompt

Use these procedures to obtain the hard disk information to a text file you can share easily:

First of all, you need to click on Start.
To launch the app, enter "Command Prompt" and select the top result.
Enter the following command to get the name, brand, model, and serial number details: diskdrive wmic get
Write command: wmic diskdrive get model,serialNumber,size,mediaType

The above command shows the information on the command prompt window when you.
And, when you will use the complete command: wmic diskdrive get model,serialNumber,size,mediaType >TEXT.TXT in C: Path to Text. With this example, the hard disk information is exported to the current user's folder.
The data you specified will export to a text file once you have finished the procedures, which you can then submit to technical support or save for your records.