smartctl

Smartctl is a command-line utility that forms part of the smartmontools package. It provides access to the SMART data stored on storage devices and facilitates both monitoring and testing. By querying SMART attributes, health status, and error logs, smartctl helps evaluate drive reliability and detect impending failures across hard drives, SSDs, and other supported devices.

Smartctl supports various device types, including ATA/SATA, SCSI, SAS, NVMe, and USB bridges, though support may vary by hardware. It can enable or disable SMART, display overall health, show attribute values, power-on hours, temperature, and error counts, and interpret attribute thresholds. It can initiate self-tests such as short or long tests and retrieve their results. For some devices, vendor-specific commands can be issued to gather additional data.

Common commands include: smartctl -H /dev/sda to check health, smartctl -A /dev/sda to list attributes, smartctl -t short /dev/sda and smartctl -t long /dev/sda to start tests, smartctl -a /dev/sda for detailed information including SMART data and error logs. On NVMe devices use smartctl -a /dev/nvme0n1. Run with elevated privileges when required, e.g., sudo smartctl -a /dev/sda.

Smartmontools is free software distributed under the GNU General Public License and is available for multiple platforms including Linux, Windows, and macOS. Results should be interpreted with caution, as SMART data may not always predict failure, and some devices may report unreliable values. Regular monitoring and redundancy are recommended.