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How do Hard Drives work

What is it?

  • Hard disk drives are an efficient computer memory device that uses simple magnetism to store vast amounts of information.

  •  It can reads and writes data on a hard disk.

A magnetic disk on which you can store computer data.

Structure of Hard Drive

Basic parts of a Hard Drive.

Spindle

Magnetic Platter stores information in binary form.

Tiny Magnet

R/W Head

Connector

How does it work?

  • A single hard disk usually consists of several platters is to be spin.

4 heads For 4 platters

  • Platter divided into billions of tiny areas. 

Microscopic magnetized metal grains.

  • Magnetize to store 1.

  • Leave demagnetized to store 0.

Magnetic patterns store bits.

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  • Each platter requires two read/write heads, one for each side.

​​Read head

Electromagnetic write head

S N N S N S N S

1 0 0 1  0 1  0 1

DATA

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​​A hard drive is a magnetic media and works by using the write head to polarize sections of the hard drive to face North (up) or (down) to represent either 1 or 0 (binary).

  • Once the information has been written to the hard drive, it is read by the read head that detects the polarization of each section of the drive to understand the data.

  • ​Each platter has the same number of tracks, and a track location that cuts across all platters is called a cylinder. 

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