How important is UltraDMA CRC Error Count?

Every block on every drive is recorded is a semi-redundant fashion. Extra check bits are added (CRC bits) so that when read back, the drive can detect and often correct small errors in the data.

A drive that is doing its job will occasionally make a data correction when reading data, and this is perfectly normal. If the data cannot be corrected, they will be re-read, in hopes of getting correctable data on the next read. This is still considered routine.

It is not considered a failure of any sort until after thousands of re-reads, you still cannot get correctible data from that block, and your Mac will issue an I/O Error.

This is still not considered a drive failure. It may be that the data were marginal recoding that one pattern, and a re-write of new data may proceed normally and not need to be corrected the next time.

Drive Controllers also keep a number of spare blocks in a private stash to substitute for blocks that actually "go bad" and cannot read back a newly-written pattern. When new data are supplied, the drive can substitute a spare block for one that is found to be Bad immediately after writing. This is STILL a routine operation, and is not considered a drive failure.

It is only a failure when you write new data to the entire drive, and after reading it all back, more than 10 blocks need to have spares substituted, or the drive runs out of spare blocks.

There are two ways to proceed.

1) don't worry, be happy. Your new drive appears to be doing its job just fine.

2) if you can't sit still, you can Zero all data on the drive, and it will substitute spares for any blocks found to be bad immediately after the write. You use Security Erase, and choose one click off the default to write Zeroes into every block. This process will take all afternoon to all night. DO NOT use the 3x setting or the 35x setting -- these just take much, much longer and provide NO additional benefit. You cannot safely cancel this process, so be sure you do not want to be doing something else once you start this.

After completing this process without error, your drive has 100 percent good blocks going forward.

NB> You may find, however, that the same SMART status as before shows up, because error correction is a perfectly normal operation that drives do on every Read.

How big is the partition into which you installed Mac OS X 10.7.4?

Where did you get 10.7.4 from to Install?

what does Disk Utility (Repair Disk) say about the partition now that it has over 350,000 files in it instead of none? (you should be able to use Recovery or Safe mode to run that).

My concern about the source was whether it might have become corrupted over time. There should be no problem about where it was starting from.

From your description, it sounds like the image you are trying to run has become damaged at some point along the way.

If you can open the Mac App store, i suggest you download a new copy of 10.7 Lion and install it right over the existing one. It is intended to simply replace the items that are not correct, and leave all else alone.

It is extremely unlikely that the drive is encountering errors and failing to correct them or report them.

If you are concerned that the disk might be making errors and not reporting them, you could run a TechTool Pro data scan again and see. The downside (in addition to it taking hours) is that it may be relying on the drive auto-reporting its errors, and if that is the part that is not working, it could say all is well anyway.