Predictive failure analysis

Predictive Failure Analysis (PFA) refers to methods intended to predict imminent failure of systems or components (software or hardware), and potentially enable mechanisms to avoid or counteract failure issues, or recommend maintenance of systems prior to failure. Predictive Failure Analysis (PFA) refers to methods intended to predict imminent failure of systems or components (software or hardware), and potentially enable mechanisms to avoid or counteract failure issues, or recommend maintenance of systems prior to failure. For example, computer mechanisms that analyze trends in corrected errors to predict future failures of hardware/memory components and proactively enabling mechanisms to avoid them. Predictive Failure Analysis was originally used as term for a proprietary IBM technology for monitoring the likelihood of hard disk drives to fail, although the term is now used generically for a variety of technologies for judging the imminent failure of CPU's, memory and I/O devices. See also first failure data capture. IBM introduced the term PFA and its technology in 1992 with reference to its 0662-S1x drive (1052 MB Fast-Wide SCSI-2 disk which operated at 5400 rpm). The technology relies on measuring several key (mainly mechanical) parameters of the drive unit, for example the flying height of heads. The drive firmware compares the measured parameters against predefined thresholds and evaluates the health status of the drive. If the drive appears likely to fail soon, the system sends notification to the disk controller.