IDE drives have dedicated cylinder(s) on which sectors are mapped to the bad sectors. When these cylinders are full, bad sectors can't be mapped anyore and just get flagged.
In theory, S.M.A.R.T. should issue warnings, if well implemented by both you and the manufacturer.
What I would do is to run the manufacturer's utility disk. A warranty test or RMA test would compare manufacturr's specs to the real status of the drive, eventually generate a report (or just a code number) of found defects.
Sometimes, "zeroing" the drive (long process, writes patterns on the whole surface) can help revive the drive.
For a while. As long as new bad sectors aren't found.
You could still use the drive for testing purposes or non-critical backups, but not anymore for intensive read-writes.
In any case, bad sectors means the drive isn't fit for production anylonger.
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