smartmontools (S.M.A.R.T. Monitoring Tools) is a set of utility programs (smartctl and smartd) to control and monitor computer storage systems using the Self-Monitoring, Analysis and Reporting Technology (S.M.A.R.T.) system built into most modern (P)ATA, Serial ATA, SCSI/SAS and NVMe hard drives.
smartmontools displays early warning signs of hard drive problems detected by S.M.A.R.T., often giving notice of impending failure while it is still possible to back data up.
From late 2010 ATA Error Recovery Control configuration has been supported by smartmontools, allowing it to configure many desktop- and laptop-class hard drives for use in a RAID array and vice versa.
Most Linux distributions provide the smartmontools package.
smartctl and smartd have a command-line interface. By default the output of smartctl is in human readable form; for programmatic use, JSON output is also available.
What is smartmontools?
smartmontools by smartmontools.org (developed by Bruce Allen) is open-source Windows software in the disk & usb tools category. It ranks 5th by popularity among disk & usb tools in this catalogue. It is written in C. Besides Windows, it is available for Unix-like operating system.
Installation and requirements
The publisher provides EXE (NSIS) installers for 32-bit Windows. Installation asks for administrator rights. A silent install is possible with the installer’s documented switches.
Updates and version history
The current version is 7.5, released on May 12, 2025. The version history goes back to August 10, 2021: 4 releases, all linked to the official files. That is about 1.1 releases a year. The last update is more than a year old.
Popularity and file types
The Chocolatey package has been downloaded 853,492 times. The source code on GitHub (smartmontools/smartmontools) has 1,428 stars. Wikipedia has an article about it in 3 of our languages. Similar programs include Rufus, Ventoy and gdu.
Project description on GitHub: “2025-06-01: This is now the official upstream repository of smartmontools”
Pros / Cons
Pros
- Open source: the code can be inspected and built by anyone
- Documented silent install
- Also runs on Unix-like operating system
Cons
- No native ARM64 build
- 32-bit only
- Installation needs administrator rights
- No update for more than a year
In short: smartmontools is an open-source disk & usb tool tool for 32-bit PCs. Updates have slowed down. Administrators can deploy it unattended.
Is smartmontools safe to download?
- The file is served by github.com, the publisher’s own domain
- The download link uses HTTPS
- A SHA256 hash is published, so you can verify the file:
896337FCC253220614CF8CDBD5CF2321C5AA326A37A04160A672A281E6104C70· Open the VirusTotal report for this hash - The link has not been checked yet
- The source code is public
- ExeAtlas does not host, wrap or modify installers
Related guide: How to check a file’s SHA256 hash on Windows
Security practices (OpenSSF Scorecard)
Automated checks of the smartmontools/smartmontools repository on GitHub by the Open Source Security Foundation, last run on October 19, 2026.
- Actively maintained10
- No binaries in the repository10
- No dangerous workflows10
- Licence declared10
- Static code analysis10
- Signed releases6
- Branch protection3
- Code review1
- Restricted token permissions0
- OpenSSF Best Practices badge0
- Pinned dependencies0
- Security policy0
- Fuzzing0
The score rates how the project is developed and released, not whether the program is safe to install. scorecard.dev
Recent versions
All 4 versions ›4 versions over 4 years · about 1.1 a year
| Version | Date | Size | Files |
|---|---|---|---|
| 7.5Latest | May 12, 2025 | — | 32-bit EXE (NSIS) |
| 7.4 2023-08-01 r5530 (sf-7.4-1) | February 28, 2022 | — | 32-bit EXE (NSIS) |
| 7.3 2022-02-28 r5338 (sf-7.3-1) | February 28, 2022 | 1.3 MB | 64-bit EXE (NSIS) |
| 7.2 2020-12-30 r5155 (sf-7.2-1) | August 10, 2021 | 1.3 MB | 64-bit EXE (NSIS) |
Install from the command line
Silent install ›winget install --id smartmontools.smartmontools -echoco install smartmontools -yscoop install main/smartmontoolssmartmontools-7.5.win32-setup.exe /SRelated guide: How to use winget: install and update apps
Also for other systems
brew install smartmontoolsInformation
- Publisher
- smartmontools.org
- Developer
- Bruce Allen
- Category
- Disk & USB tools
- Licence
- GPL-2.0
- Price
- Free
- Source code
- github.com/smartmontools/smartmontools
- Written in
- C
- Requires
- Windows 11 / 10
- Architecture
- 32-bit
- Installer
- EXE (NSIS)
- Other platforms
- Unix-like operating system
- Version
- 7.5
- Released
- May 12, 2025
- Added to the catalogue
- August 10, 2021
- Versions listed
- 4
- Updates / year
- 1.1
- Chocolatey downloads
- 853,492
- GitHub stars
- 1,428
- GitHub forks
- 296
- Website
- sourceforge.net
- winget ID
- smartmontools.smartmontools
- Chocolatey package
- smartmontools
- Scoop package
- main/smartmontools
Ratings and reviews
No reviews yet. Be the first to rate it.
Alternatives to smartmontools
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Frequently asked questions
Is smartmontools free?
Yes. smartmontools is open-source software under the GPL-2.0 licence.
Is smartmontools safe to download?
The download comes from github.com, which belongs to the publisher; ExeAtlas does not host or change the file. Compare its SHA256 hash with the one shown here, or open the VirusTotal report for that hash.
How do I install smartmontools with winget?
Open PowerShell or Windows Terminal and run the winget command shown on this page. winget downloads the official installer and checks its SHA256 hash before running it.
Can smartmontools be installed silently?
Yes. The silent install page lists the exact command for each installer.
Does smartmontools run on ARM (Windows on Arm)?
There is no ARM64 build; Windows 11 on Arm can run the 32-bit version through emulation.
Where can I download an older version of smartmontools?
The versions page lists all 4 versions with links to their official installer files, back to August 10, 2021.
What are alternatives to smartmontools?
Rufus, Ventoy, gdu, unetbootin and GSmartControl. The alternatives page compares them.
