Early warning for your SD card. Sentinel checks your card before it fails: quick checks and full sweeps, with no permanent footprint. For handhelds, cameras, and anyone who trusts a card with what matters.
- Go to Releases and download Sentinel_Setup.exe for the latest version.
- Run the installer and follow the steps.
- Launch Sentinel from the Start Menu or desktop.
No Python or extra runtimes required. You will be asked to accept the End-User License Agreement (EULA) and Terms of Use each time you start Sentinel.
- Quick check — Writes test data to part of the drive, verifies it by reading and hashing, then deletes it. Fast; leaves no lasting use of space. Good for a regular "is this card still okay?" check.
- Full sweep — Verifies every existing file (against a stored manifest) and tests free space. Higher confidence; takes longer. Run when you have time (e.g. card plugged in for an hour).
- Schedule — Recommends how often to run a full sweep (e.g. every 7–30 days) based on drive size and type.
- Honest limits — Shows approximate confidence (e.g. ~40% for quick check, ~85% for full sweep) and always reminds you: keep backups. Sentinel warns; it does not repair or recover data.
Important — stress test and failing drives:
Sentinel is a hardware stress test. It writes and reads data on your card, which involves physical wear. If your card is already failing or degraded, running a scan may accelerate its failure or cause it to fail immediately ("last straw" risk). Sentinel does not repair or heal bad cards. Always back up your data before running any scan.
How much can we trust the result?
- Quick check — We only test part of the card. Confidence is ~40%: a "Pass" means the area we tested looked good, not that the whole card is guaranteed healthy. Use it for regular spot-checks; run a full sweep when you want higher certainty.
- Full sweep — We verify every file and test free space. Confidence is ~85%: much better, but no software can promise 100% prediction of future failure. A "Pass" is a strong sign; keep backups either way.
How much wear does Sentinel put on the card?
Sentinel writes and reads data during scans, which uses some of the card’s finite write life. Approximate impact over one year if you run a quick check about once per week and a full sweep at your chosen interval (e.g. every 7–14 days):
- Low-end / unknown cards: about 0.6–1.9% of typical lifespan.
- High-end cards: about 0.06–0.2% of typical lifespan.
The trade-off is intentional: a small amount of wear for early warning. You can run checks less often to reduce wear; the app’s schedule suggestion is a starting point, not a requirement.
- Windows (64-bit). Built and tested on Windows 10/11.
- An SD card or other drive you want to test (internal drives work too; use with care).
If you want to hack on Sentinel or run it without the installer:
- Requirements: Python 3.x with tkinter (usually included on Windows).
- Run: From the project folder:
python sentinel_ui.py
- Install dependencies (if needed):
pip install -r requirements.txt
To produce Sentinel_Setup.exe for distribution:
- Install Inno Setup (default options).
- From the project folder, in PowerShell:
powershell -ExecutionPolicy Bypass -File ".\build_installer.ps1"
- If
isccis not on your PATH, build the installer manually: open installer.iss in Inno Setup Compiler and use Build → Compile.
The script creates dist\Sentinel.exe; Inno Setup creates Output\Sentinel_Setup.exe. That's the file to give to users.
See HOW_TO_MAKE_THE_INSTALLER.md for a step-by-step guide.
Sentinel is offered under the terms in the in-app EULA and Terms of Use. By using the software you agree to those terms (including hardware stress-test risks, limitation of liability, and jurisdiction). See the EULA text in the application or in sentinel/eula.py in the source.
0.5.0 (beta) — Phase 5 packaging; in-app EULA.