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M8 not writing DNG files error persits


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thank you @pop !

 

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What is the file size and other properties of the corrupt dng file? If it is more than zero-bytes it would be helpful to see what is in the image header within the file. If there is an error in a value of the header, that would be a clue.

Thank you 

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Try reloading the firmware for the camera, in case something is corrupt.

 

I would also try DNG only to see if the DNG files still come in as 0-bytes. You might also want to try "RAW+JPEG" using M8RAW2DNG and the button dance.

 

It sounds like a file-write error is occurring, perhaps a file directory entry error. You might want to run a scan on the SD card to see if there are lost sectors. 

 

I've found Windows 7 can have problems formatting SD cards and USB memory sticks. Even the SD Format utility can have issues. But this sounds like something the camera is doing incorrectly. 

Edited by fiftyonepointsix
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Thank you 50/1.6 you are very helpful!

I talked to Arvid back in 12/2014 - 

I am on Mac -

Funny that you mention the SDformat utility issues ( I could tell you a few things about that ) - I am using again Lexar image rescue to check for defects and blocks.

Question: Do you really perform the initial format in Windows 7 OR in camera ?

This is a brand new card with 2 in camera format cycles only.

I will reload the firmware.

Jaap gave me all the rules on SD card etiquette - so no more hot swapping - although the original 2GB SD Lexar card I hot swapped for about 9 years - and never had a problem ... hmmm

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With all of my cards- I perform the initial format in the camera. I have had many problems formatting cards under Win7. I actually have an 8GByte Sandisk Thumb Drive that Win7 Format corrupted to the point that it was no longer recognized. I formatted it using... DOS 7.0 in an embedded system that boots off a USB card. Only after that could Win7 use it again. 

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  • 1 month later...

So far so good ... both cameras work as intended with 

Samsung 16 GB SDHC Flash Memory Card, Brushed Metal - MB-SSAGA/US

http://www.amazon.com/gp/product/B005TUQVQS?psc=1&redirect=true&ref_=od_aui_detailpages00

 

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This is not normal at all. The most likely cause is your copy of the SD card. I suggest formatting the card with the SDFormatter app, doing an overwrite of the card, i.e. the slower option.

 

That assertion is worth a gentleman's bar bet. My bet is that the slow 'erase' option does nothing to cure errors because the allocation tables, bad block/sector, pointers, etc are not available to formatting.

Edited by pico
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That assertion is worth a gentleman's bar bet. My bet is that the slow 'erase' option does nothing to cure errors because the allocation tables, bad block/sector, pointers, etc are not available to formatting.

It appears that the "fast" option merely writes the FAT (or its more recent equivalent) and the root directory to the device. The "slow" option reads each block; I'm not sure whether it writes them, too. There seems to be room for hope that the SD formatter performs at least some token error recovery for unreadable blocks. After all, it's published by the SD card associations.

 

Have you got any suggestions on how to proceed to find that out?

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It appears that the "fast" option merely writes the FAT (or its more recent equivalent) and the root directory to the device. The "slow" option reads each block; I'm not sure whether it writes them, too. There seems to be room for hope that the SD formatter performs at least some token error recovery for unreadable blocks. After all, it's published by the SD card associations.

 

Have you got any suggestions on how to proceed to find that out?

 

To answer your question: if someone wants to get deeper into some cards he needs a special and rather expensive reader that cooperates with the vendor's diagnostic software and pokes and peeks at a protected area.

 

About SD cards

 

The fast format option merely tells the card to reset. It is a very simple operation that does not require sequential writes to the card.  The full over-write (erase, FAPP), tells it to do the same, plus write nulls over all the available card.

 

'Available' is the keyword here. There is a section of SD cards which is not available to formatting. Most of an SD card is susceptible to bad media and bad blocks in order to make mass production feasible, however there is a part of the SD card that is warranted  to be free of defects and is much smaller than the storage section so it is feasible to manufacture at a reasonable cost (and warranted risk.) The unavailable section holds the critical information regarding bad blocks/sectors to avoid in writing. Other stuff is there but not important here.

 

One impression a user might not appreciate is that each card has, in effect, its own computer/controller that talks to the host (camera) so it is not up to the camera to muck with such details and therefore obviates opportunities to err in the cameras firmware and hardware.

Edited by pico
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Thank you for all the support in this matter !

it was my finding that the sd formatter's slow option did not restore any of the three corrupted 8GB Panasonic Gold or Sandisk cards to working condition;

nor did Panasonic's own or any other recovery software recover the missing images. So although images were visible on the camera LCD's at the time of shooting - my speculation is that they never cleared the cameras buffer and so were never written onto card itself. It seemed that data recovery by softote and Lexar's image rescue 5 still did the best job finding corrupted, long forgotten images and blocks on the card . IR5 still found images and image previews after treating the cards with SD formatter's slow option.

 
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  • 3 months later...

the old acquaintance is showing his ugly face again ... hmm

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