Posts Tagged ‘data recovery’

“Can’t I just have my IT friend try to recover my drive, what harm would that be?”

Friday, May 20th, 2011

A lot of times when someone has a computer hard drive that’s crashed, they’ll look at many options to get their data back. That’s good and bad, since a well-intentioned friend or family member can actually cause more harm in their attempt to help you recover deleted files or files from a crashed or broken hard drive. Here’s some simple guidelines to live by:

Deleted File Recovery: If you are trying to get computer files back, after they’ve been deleted or emptied through the trash, the one thing you DO NOT want to do is load software onto that same hard drive to try to recover the files.. Instead, follow these steps:

1) Stop using the computer as soon as you realize you need to recover some deleted files. When you delete a computer file, the Operating System marks that file as “ok to write over”. That is, the file is still there, but at anytime, it could now be written over…. Whenever you use your computer, the computer is saving and creating a bunch of temp files.. Those temp files could then write over the deleted file(s) you want to get back.. That’s why it’s so important to stop using the computer asap….

2) You need to get some recovery software, but you can’t load it onto that same computer (Since loading software onto the drive could also write over those deleted files). There are a few options, but the easiest is to use a product like Data Rescue 3 or Data Rescue PC 3 from Prosoft Engineering. They both come on bootable discs, so you don’t need to load them onto the computer to use them– This is crucial for deleted file recovery…

3) You will also need another hard drive to recover to, since computer recovery should NEVER involve saving the files to the same hard drive (that puts your data in harm’s way).

Crashed Hard Drive: If your hard drive is not making strange noises (or smoke!) or you can hear it spinning up, then it should be ok to try computer hard drive recovery software like Data Rescue from Prosoft Engineering. If your hard drive is physically ok, then Data Rescue should be able to scan the drive and copy and/all files over to another drive.. However, if the scan is taking too long, then it could be a sign of physical issues with the drive and we recommend stoping the scan, as that can put more strain on a failing drive.. Also, if Data Rescue cannot “see” the drive, then it is very likely that the drive has a physical failure of some sort and therefore physical drive recovery would be needed.. In this scenario, a helpful IT person may try “too many times” with scanning, and put your hard drive into a dangerous situation where the many failed attempts may have come at a price where not even a recovery service may be able to salvage data.

Physical Hard Drive Recovery: If you’ve tried software to no avail, or if your hard drive is making strange noises, then you will likely need physical hard drive recovery, like The Data Rescue Center offers… If your hard drive requires being opened up, then you will need to make sure that it’s done in a Class 100 cleanroom and not in the empty cubicle by the IT person’s desk! If your drive is opened in a non-Class 100 room, it will cause air particles to enter the delicate environment within your hard drive, ruining the data most cases. Demand that whomever works on your hard drive be a professional recovery engineer within a Class 100 cleanroom. Anything less than that is putting your computer files at risk-

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Doomsday? Day of Salvation? The Apocalypse? Judgement Day?

Thursday, May 19th, 2011

Well, this Saturday is supposed to be a major bummer if you listen to Harold…. But for those of us that don’t think it’s going to be the end of the word, it is at least a time for us to reflect.. Reflect on important things in our life and how we should cherish them more… Hug a family member, tell someone you love them and appreciate them in your life, and backup your computer..

That’s right, Backup The Computer!!! So many people lose computer files each and every day. Sure, you can pay us to recover your data for you but why not take a proactive approach and backup your computer today- Just one backup is better than none. However, to be really safe, you’ll want to start a backup “scheme” or backup schedule… Something that will backup your computer on a regular basis– Our sister company, Prosoft Engineering sells both Macintosh Backup Software as well as Windows Computer Backup Software. These backup programs automatically backup your important files once you’ve set the schedule. Important digital pictures and movies are priceless (you can’t redo a child’s first steps!). Take time out today to backup the important files on your computer.. If you don’t, and you end up needing hard drive recovery service, well, we’re here for you–

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Get a Free Estimate For Data Recovery Services

Friday, February 4th, 2011

No intelligent consumer will buy a product or contract a service without getting some idea of what the cost will be. It just does not make sense. When some sort of repair service is required, it is a good decision to get a preliminary quote before authorizing any work. After all, what is the benefit if the repair cost is greater than the cost of replacement?

The recovery of lost data on a computer can be expensive, but the value of the files can outweigh the expense. When contracting a data recovery company there are several things to consider. Making sure that they will give a free estimate of the work needed is one of them. The customer should be able to describe the problem to a qualified technician who, in turn, will be able to make a preliminary estimate of the services required to recover the data. Each technician at The Data Rescue Center is a trained disk recovery expert and will be able to discuss the situation over the phone and give a free estimate before any service is contracted. If the customer can do their own recovery, the technician can give instructions on what they should do.

If the hard drive or computer must be sent to the disk recovery service, the assigned technician will analyze the drive and call the customer before any work is done. At this time, a more accurate quote is possible because the exact nature of the problem is known. Customer involvement is vital at The Data Rescue Center.

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Recovering Lost Data

Thursday, September 30th, 2010

All computer users should have access to data recovery information. Almost everyone uses some type of computer daily, whether it be a lap top, desk top of another kind of device, like a mobile phone, iPhone, iPad or MP3 player. We use computers to manipulate data, but computers are machines and machines break down. Computers sometimes lose data. Lost data can often be recovered from damaged, corrupted or failed storage media like hard drives (internal or external), CDs, DVDs, RAIDs (a set of hard disks that are used in a cluster or array to store and manage data) or memory sticks. Data is lost through one of two ways. A storage device may be physically damaged, making stored data inaccessible. Physical damage to a disk may result from one of many causes. For example, a CD-ROM may be scratched. A computer’s motors may fail. Storage tapes have been known to break without warning. Some data, at least, is lost when physical damage occurs. The file system as well usually suffers damage when there is physical damage, and in many cases the logical structures of the file system are corrupted as well. Logical damage must be repaired, usually by data recovery experts, before data files can be recovered salvaged from failed media.

The file system on the storage device may be damaged or somehow corrupted. Large companies may have data recovery experts in their employ, but home users and small business often need to hire a data recovery company to resolve their problem. Computer users of all kinds can avoid frustration by acquiring and using the data recovery information they need to keep their system up and running. If an operating system that resides on a hard disk fails, a common solution is to copy all the important files to another disk, perhaps one with an operating system written onto it. This live CD can be used to move data files from the original system disk to some kind of backup media. Disk level failure occurs when a file system, a partition on a disk or a hard disk itself becomes compromised or fails, rendering data difficult to read. A data recovery lab can retrieve data from such a failed disk using data recovery software, but the original disk is usually permanently damaged beyond repair and needs to be replaced. Sometimes data is erased unintentionally from a storage medium. In many cases these “lost” files can be recovered by a well equipped data recovery lab. A data recovery company may be able to recover data remotely, online. Such services are very convenient for home and small business computer users.

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Steps to preserve data after a hard drive crash

Thursday, September 23rd, 2010

Hard drive crashes can be scary events. When your hard drive crashes, you may worry about recovering your important files and data. Whether you have valuable business documents or cherished family photos on your hard drive, you want to get them back. Backing up your hard drive is very important and eliminates the risk of data loss in the event of a hard drive crash. Always make sure that you keep 2 copies of your data on different media and in different locations, so that you never have to risk losing your valuable data. However, if you have gone through a hard drive crash, there are ways to recover your data. Let’s take a look at some of them.

Your options for data retrieval depend on what caused your hard drive crash. There are essentially two different types of hard drive failures – software and hardware. Regardless of what it is, you may end up needing to see a data recovery company to have your hard drive looked at, fixed, and your data recovered. A software hard drive crash occurs when your computer simply can’t read the files off your hard drive. This may be caused by random software errors or corrupted files. However, the hard drive still functions normally and none of the hardware is broken, just the data can’t be read. With a hardware crash, some physical part of the hard drive breaks. A hard drive is made up of a spinning metal platter, on which all of the data is stored. When there is a hardware error, your data usually remains intact on the metal platter, but wither the spinning mechanism or the head that reads the data off the platter breaks.

Regardless of which error type you have, you will probably want to consider taking your computer to a data recovery specialist who can do emergency data recovery. How a data recovery lab fixes your hard drive depends on the type of crash. If it is a software error, then they have special software they can run on another computer to fix it. Usually the data recovery specialist will take the broken hard drive, and put it in a working computer. The computer then runs the recovery software, which thoroughly searches your hard drive, and makes repeated attempts to read each file. This can take a while, but it makes sure that it has carefully gotten off every piece of data that it is possible to recover.

If you have a hardware error, then the data recovery company will have to take the hard drive into a special data recovery lab, where they open the hard drive and fix the broken piece, so that it can spin again and the data can be read. This is a tedious and delicate process, and it can be quite expensive. However, if you need emergency data recovery so you don’t lose important data, then this may be your only option.

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Ways To Decrease The Cost of Laptop Data Recovery

Tuesday, September 14th, 2010

The laptop hard drive data recovery process is very difficult, and unfortunately it can also be very expensive for both private computer users and companies. The companies that are able to offer notebook data recovery regularly charge over $1,000 per case. This is because a number of special tools are needed for notebook hard drive recovery, including a class 100 clean room, firmware repair equipment, and hundreds of other tools.

While there’s not much that a person can do to completely eliminate the cost of laptop hard drive data recovery without creating backups, it’s very possible to cut down the cost of the notebook data recovery process significantly. There are several ways to accomplish this.

Notebook hard drive recovery is a very competitive field, and many computer owners find it easy to cut down on costs simply by comparing prices between companies. However, it’s important to realize that data recovery companies differ in ability; a good notebook hard drive recover company should at the very least have the aforementioned class 100 clean room. This is a special room with advanced filtration systems designed to eliminate the risk of platter contamination, which is a serious problem that can affect notebook hard drives when physical data recovery work is being performed. It’s also a good idea to do some general research on a data recovery company before selecting them, taking time to look at the company’s customer testimonials and client list.

Another way to decrease the cost of laptop hard drive recovery is to avoid any actions that could cause additional damage to the drive. Don’t keep a damaged hard drive running for any reason, as this can cause damage to the data-storing platters of the drive. At the first sign of serious data loss, immediately shut the device down and resist the urge to power it on again. Package it very carefully before shipping it to a notebook data recovery facility. Use at least three inches of non-static bubble wrap, and try to locate an anti static bag for shipping. This will prevent damage to the electronics board of the hard drive.

Hard drive data recovery companies often offer discounts to some of their customers, and identifying these discounts can make a huge difference. Ask if the data recovery company offers educational, military, public service, or non-profit discounts if you work in any of these fields. You should ask about discounts regardless of whether or not the data on the hard drive is related to your occupation. As mentioned earlier, data recovery companies are extremely competitive, and there’s a good chance that a customer service representative will jump at the chance to offer you a low-cost policy.

Finally, negotiate with data recovery providers. Point out competitor quotes, and have all of the relevant information about the laptop drive ready, including failure scenario and a list of the important files on the disk. Negotiating will be easier if you’re prepared for the process, and you’ll greatly cut the cost of data recovery.

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What is data loss?

Friday, September 3rd, 2010

Your data is important. Losing it, whether it is a million row database or just your music collection, sucks. Fortunately there are companies that specialize in getting data from corrupted and broken hard drives, thumb drives and other file storage techniques.

There are many different reasons for a storage device failure. On a hard drive, the reading heads(small arms that stick out over the magnetic platter and reads the data stored on it) could contact the platter, shattering the heads and damaging the platter. If you have damaged the circuit board on the inside of your thumb drive, it is still possible the data remains as long as the chips that store the data are still intact. If you are lucky, then the damage may not be physical at all. You may have just lost your partition on the hard drive, or accidentally deleted files. The good news with cases where the damage is not physical is that it is easier to recover the data.

Data recovery experts know how to get the data off of corrupted or damaged devices. While there is no guarantee that the data on your storage device is recoverable, a data recovery expert generally is able to extract some information. For a hard drive, this generally means transplanting the magnetic disk to a specialized device capable of reading the platter just like the heads could. For the thumb drive, the chips that store the data are desoldered from the broken circuit board and attached to a specialized reader. If the problem is purely software, then data recovery experts can use specialized software to check the integrity of the data.

To find a data recovery specialist who can handle your case, you need to know what type of device your data was stored on. There are specialized experts that focus on hard drives, CD and DVDs, tape drives, RAID arrays and more. Of course there are general purpose shops that have a data recovery expert who can handle many different types. Keep in mind that you will probably want to find a data recovery specialist that is nearby. Your hardware is already damaged, it is probably a bad idea to send it through the trauma of the mail. Usually a simple Google search is sufficient to find a nearby shop capable of handling your problem.

Data loss sucks, but it is easier to recover it now than ever before. Data recovery experts know how to recover information off of pretty much any storage medium. All you need to do to find one capable of solving your problem is to perform a search. Fairly large cities usually have a local shop capable of handling your needs. Ask around; see if anyone you know can recommend a good specialist. Who knows, you may get that database back yet.

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