Methods and apparatus for correcting errors in data read from a disk drive

Apparatus for recording information to a memory medium and reproducing the information from the memory medium for access by a host, the memory medium having the information stored on at least one track having a plurality of sectors comprising:

• means for recording the information on the memory medium;
• means for reading the information from the memory medium;
• a buffer memory that temporarily stores information read from the selected sectors, and
• an error correction unit that sequentially checks each sector for errors and releases sectors having no errors for host access,
• if errors are detected, the error correction unit attempting correction using a selected correction facility in an error correction engine,
• if the errors are corrected, the error correction engine correcting the data in the memory buffer and releasing the sector for host access, and
• if the errors in the bad sector are not corrected, the correction engine holding the bad sector in the buffer memory and attempting error correction using a different selected correction facility when the error correction engine is idle.