RAID server failure is one of the dreaded work hazards you may have to face sometimes at your workplace. You tend to become incapable and powerless when you are unable to access data with a click.
Data on a RAID array or volume can becomes inaccessible due to any of the following reasons:
• A faulty RAID controller
• Multiple hard drive crash
• Malfunctioning upgrade or faulty striping
• Defects with the MFT mount points.
• RAID controller failure or configuration changed
• Adding incompatible hard drives
• Hardware conflicts
• Software corruption
• Virus infection, software and operating system upgrades
In these above conditions, the following steps should be taken immediately to increase chances of getting critical files back:
• Shutdown the server and turn off the system. Do not try to reboot again. This may cause serious damage to your hard drive.
• Do not attempt to recover data by yourself, friends or PC repair shops. This may result in permanent loss.
• Do not continue to attempt a forced rebuild if you have already replaced a failed drive and tried to rebuild the array, but still can't access your data. This may wipe out your data. RAID data recovery utilities and software are not designed to restore data or rebuild RAID arrays from failing hard drives. This requires specialized equipment and professional training.
• Swapping hard drives or re-ordering drives in a multiple drive RAID array may cause overwriting the striping and parity. This makes it nearly difficult to reconstruct your RAID array and salvage your company's vital data.
• Seeking professional help from professionally trained data recovery engineers is the sanest solution. Most data can be recovered from crashed hard drives and malfunctioning RAID servers by these experts only.
What do Professional data recovery engineers do?
Professional data recovery engineers have specialized equipment, a thorough knowledge of hex, drive structures, MFT mount points and offsets.
The Professional engineers’ initial diagnosis determines whether each media device is accessible to their lab equipment. From all the data accessible to them from each media, they make a raw image onto a new media to help them analyse and assess the data loss. If some of the media is difficult to get hold of, they will test the components and closely check its internal condition to assess the level of physical damage sustained. The damaged components include electronics, read/write heads, magnets, drive motors and head assemblies.
The raw images of the entire server’s media are used for logical recovery by examining the low-level data sectors. Determination of both the exact layout of volumes, which span or are striped across multiple drives, is a must. Necessary fixes to the file system structures are to be decided upon to get access to important data.
Servers that work on multiple drives are usually “destriped” onto a different media so that file system repairs can be done and the data files retrieved. It may be necessary to extract data directly from one or more fragments of the destriped image.
Professional programmers in this field have created a full set of software tools used by data recovery engineers to analyse, destripe, fix & recover data from raw images drives to virtually all operating systems. The Validity of information is checked once a recovery has been successfully performed, and file lists created.
A file recovery list is produced when your data is recovered. You can verify that your critical files are recoverable. The process usually takes 3-5 days though emergency data recovery services are also available.
Showing posts with label computer data recovery. Show all posts
Showing posts with label computer data recovery. Show all posts
Saturday, January 3, 2009
Thursday, January 1, 2009
Data Recovery Services: What To Do When Your Hard Drive Fails
According to most people, there are two types of hard drives: those that have failed and those that will fail. But for folks who use Data Recovery Services, there is a third type of hard drive: one that does not fail.
A hard drive is the most vulnerable part of a computer; it has moving gears and is hence prone to wear and tear. So when you need hard disk data recovery, you must deeply consider the service and practice of the various repair companies in your area. A company that has been around the block more than a few times is ideal.
But more importantly, experts that ask questions and appreciate your situation are a necessity; companies that approach your needs in an impersonal way simply cannot diagnose your computer problems properly. For example, an expert who is on hand to ask specific questions about your hard disk will know whether or not to go about repair with mere software or through more professional means.
There are a variety of problems that lead to hard drive failure. If the hard drive is part of a mirror set, mirrored stripe set, or stripe set with uniformity, then all you will need to do is replace the drive – any lost data will mechanically regenerate.
A local service company can handle all your concerns though. Fixing a hard drive yourself is a tedious process, requiring lots of time and even research. Your next-door neighbor might be a computer geek, but that doesn’t mean his or her advice is remotely accurate. After all, a computer can fail for many different reasons and they are not always easy to pinpoint.
The ideal solution is usually to replace a failed drive and re-establish your backup. This does not always work though, as many people find the necessary backup is outdated or sometimes, non-existent.
If a hard drive is beyond repair, data recovery is obviously not an option. So prepare for unexpected charges; you might have to buy a whole new drive. In this case, just be careful when replacing it, as you don’t want to lose your data.
A hard drive is the most vulnerable part of a computer; it has moving gears and is hence prone to wear and tear. So when you need hard disk data recovery, you must deeply consider the service and practice of the various repair companies in your area. A company that has been around the block more than a few times is ideal.
But more importantly, experts that ask questions and appreciate your situation are a necessity; companies that approach your needs in an impersonal way simply cannot diagnose your computer problems properly. For example, an expert who is on hand to ask specific questions about your hard disk will know whether or not to go about repair with mere software or through more professional means.
There are a variety of problems that lead to hard drive failure. If the hard drive is part of a mirror set, mirrored stripe set, or stripe set with uniformity, then all you will need to do is replace the drive – any lost data will mechanically regenerate.
A local service company can handle all your concerns though. Fixing a hard drive yourself is a tedious process, requiring lots of time and even research. Your next-door neighbor might be a computer geek, but that doesn’t mean his or her advice is remotely accurate. After all, a computer can fail for many different reasons and they are not always easy to pinpoint.
The ideal solution is usually to replace a failed drive and re-establish your backup. This does not always work though, as many people find the necessary backup is outdated or sometimes, non-existent.
If a hard drive is beyond repair, data recovery is obviously not an option. So prepare for unexpected charges; you might have to buy a whole new drive. In this case, just be careful when replacing it, as you don’t want to lose your data.
Data Recovery and Your Computer
Have you ever wondered if what you know about data recovery is accurate? Consider the following paragraphs and compare what you know to the latest info on data recovery.
Sooner or later your company could become the victim of a natural disaster, or something much more common like a lightning storm or downed power lines.
Just because your company may be a small business doesn't mean it's immune to data disasters. If a small business does not have a good and tested disaster recovery plan in place when disaster hits they may never fully recuperate and it may even cause them to go out of business. Sometimes even a data recovery service is unable to be of any help.
Following are some questions that should be answered in order to give you some idea of what you need to do to that will help you if you do have a data disaster situation.
Do you know where your company's most important data files are located?
Are these files being backed up and by what means?
How often do you run these data backups and are they verified and tested?
Do you have automated controls that correctly and on a consistent basis do the backups?
Do your data backup tapes go off-site and how often?
Do you have some kind of security against tampering or theft of your data backups?
Do you keep your servers, routers, hubs, and phone system controllers in locked areas to keep them more secure?
Does just anyone have access to your servers and your other technology assets or do you limit access to at least two, but no more than four people?
Do you run a locally securable operating system, such as Microsoft Windows 2000 Professional, Microsoft Windows XP, or Microsoft Windows NT Workstation 4,on the company's desktop PCs and notebooks?
Do you have any confidential data stored locally on any desktop PCs or notebooks? Are any of these systems running an inherently in-secure operating system, such as Microsoft Windows 9x or Microsoft Windows Me?
Do you prevent unauthorized boot-ups or tampering with BIOS configuration settings by using power-on passwords?
On your desktop PCs and notebooks, how are main updates, service packs and releases kept current?
The bottom line is that you can't plan when a data disaster may strike but taking a few steps beforehand may help with your company's survival in the days and weeks following a disaster.
Sooner or later your company could become the victim of a natural disaster, or something much more common like a lightning storm or downed power lines.
Just because your company may be a small business doesn't mean it's immune to data disasters. If a small business does not have a good and tested disaster recovery plan in place when disaster hits they may never fully recuperate and it may even cause them to go out of business. Sometimes even a data recovery service is unable to be of any help.
Following are some questions that should be answered in order to give you some idea of what you need to do to that will help you if you do have a data disaster situation.
Do you know where your company's most important data files are located?
Are these files being backed up and by what means?
How often do you run these data backups and are they verified and tested?
Do you have automated controls that correctly and on a consistent basis do the backups?
Do your data backup tapes go off-site and how often?
Do you have some kind of security against tampering or theft of your data backups?
Do you keep your servers, routers, hubs, and phone system controllers in locked areas to keep them more secure?
Does just anyone have access to your servers and your other technology assets or do you limit access to at least two, but no more than four people?
Do you run a locally securable operating system, such as Microsoft Windows 2000 Professional, Microsoft Windows XP, or Microsoft Windows NT Workstation 4,on the company's desktop PCs and notebooks?
Do you have any confidential data stored locally on any desktop PCs or notebooks? Are any of these systems running an inherently in-secure operating system, such as Microsoft Windows 9x or Microsoft Windows Me?
Do you prevent unauthorized boot-ups or tampering with BIOS configuration settings by using power-on passwords?
On your desktop PCs and notebooks, how are main updates, service packs and releases kept current?
The bottom line is that you can't plan when a data disaster may strike but taking a few steps beforehand may help with your company's survival in the days and weeks following a disaster.
Subscribe to:
Posts (Atom)
