How to Check and Monitor Hard Disk Health on Linux with Smartmontools

SMART (an acronym for the Self-Monitoring, Analysis and Reporting Technology) is found in modern hard drives, and it enables a drive to detect and report on various conditions that may indicate impending failure. Smartmontools is a free software package, available for multiple platforms, that can utilizes the S.M.A.R.T. attributes of a hard drive to enquire about its state. With smartmontools, a tech-savvy admin/user will be adequately warned and prepared for a hard drive failure and can make backups before the drive becomes critical.