|
|
|
A Fresh Start For Family Finances In 2005
While 40% to 50% of us make New Year’s resolutions on January 1—a ritual that has existed since ancient times—approximately 60% to 80% of us have already broken them by the end of February, according to researchers.
It’s still not too late,...
An Outsourcer’s Passage To India: How To Do It, Part I
Frankfurt airport departure lounge. Full of western tech executives, each with an open laptop. They're all from different companies, all travelling separately. But one particular subject is making them feel like they're old college buddies, and...
Are You Prepared For A Hard Drive Crash?
Its just a matter of time before you experience a hard drive problem. Are you prepared to loose your data? If your hard drive crashed right now do you have an action plan to follow? Most people only think of backing up their data after they...
Are You Prepared For A Hard Drive Crash?
Its just a matter of time before you experience a hard drive
problem. Are you prepared to loose your data? If your hard drive
crashed right now do you have an action plan to follow? Most
people only think of backing up their data after they...
Data backups are the biggest security threats! Surprised?
Gary, a network security consultant with Fortune 500 companies, and an editor of http://www.data-recovery-reviews.com argues that data backups actually hinder corporate IS security and makes a case for offsite data backups. Gary J, security...
Data Recovery
Data Recovery © By Barry Stein Every person who uses a personal computer will eventually face the challenge of data recovery. Computer hardware and software can be temperamental from time to time. Hard drives and other mechanical components...
Data Recovery Software Comparison
Software programmers recognize the importance of data files, and thankfully, they have been able to create products that demonstrate their understanding of how often people accidentally delete or lose important data. Thanks to software programmers...
Do I Really Need to Backup?
Do I Really Need To Backup?
by Keith Thompson
Okay, computers a machine, right? Okay, maybe not yours. You
have this special relationship, but that a subject for
another article. Machines break. Software gets fouled up.
People make...
Identity Theft and Credit Reports
To say that Identity Theft has reached epidemic proportions in the UK doesn't appear to be any exaggeration on the facts which are commonly bandied about... even by totally responsible organisations.
If, as I read, 80% of Councils have reported...
The devastation of data loss - and what you can do about it
Almost everyone who uses a PC stores valuable data on the hard drive or other data storage device. Whether you use your PC for keeping personal accounts, contact details or important information or whether you are a business user and keep vital...
|
|
| |
|
|
|
|
|
|
What is Data Recovery? - A brief Introduction
What is Data Recovery?
Data Recovery is the process of retrieval of inaccessible or corrupt data from digital media that has become damaged in some way. Data Recovery can be used to recover data from devices as varied as Hard Disk Drives, Memory Cards, Tapes, Mobile Phones, Personal Digital Assistants, Floppy Disk’s, CD’s, DVD’s, Data Cartridges, Xbox’s and many more items.
Data Recovery may be needed for reasons as diverse as hardware failure, (the tape has been ‘chewed’ up, the hard disk drive has failed, the user has maliciously damaged the computer or digital device, or it could have suffered fire or flood damage). All of these instances will require the services of a professional data recovery company if the data was of such value (be it sentimental or financial) that the cost of the services are less than the perceived value of the data which is no longer accessible.
It is not just businesses who are at risk from Data loss. Clients requiring data recovery come from all walks of life, including large corporates, smaller businesses, and the self employed to “joe public” who, with the introduction and subsequent boom in the use of digital cameras etc to record holidays and special occasions may have lost anything from sentimental data to critical e-mails, and personal account details. Students are often grouped under this heading too.
There are numerous ways that Data can be recovered from digital media which can vary greatly, the simplest method can often involve the running of basic software on the storage medium in question. This is always a dangerous idea, because the recovery data could overwrite the very data that is being recovered. More complex commercial software tools are available which will do this job more professionally. No software fix should be attempted prior to the original media being imaged, enabling the recovering company to work on a ‘back-up’ of the original software. The most professional companies will also take a second image should there be a problem with the first image that is being worked on for recovery.
The next problem is what happens when the hard disk or storage device doesn’t work. For the smaller ‘Data Recovery Companies’, this is
a problem, and it is when the more serious Data Recovery Companies get involved, (such as Disklabs, http://www.disklabs.com ), who specialise in higher end Data Retrievals. It is always recommended that the most critical work should be sent to a true data recovery specialist, (check out the accreditations - ensure the specialist has ISO9001-2000 Quality Assurance status, and is certified to ISO BE EN 14644 to ensure that their clean facility is at the correct level for intrusive data recovery work, find out how long that company has been trading, and check their testimonials). Once you have found the company that you are happy with, if the data storage device doesn’t work, there is a high likelihood that the digital media will require spare parts, this is where organisations such as 1st Computer Traders Ltd, ( http://www.1ct.com ) are of service. Organisations such as 1CT sell spare parts for hard disk drives to organisations such as Disklabs, ( http://www.disklabs.com ) enabling them to get the original data accessible for long enough to image the data onto a stable storage device, enabling that data to be duplicated again which in turn allows a safe recovery attempt to be achieved.
The data recovery job is generally finished when a list of all the recovered files is sent to the client. Once the client approves this file listing, they are then shipped the data of an appropriate media. This can be a hard disk drive, floppy disk, CD or DVD. Alternatively, if a file is considered critical, it can be encrypted and then emailed to the client.
It should be noted that in extreme cases it may be impossible to recover any data, however the bottom line is, as soon as you have lost data you should power off your device and send it to a professional Data Recovery Company to optimise your chances of a successful recovery.
Simon Steggles
Disklabs Data Recovery and Computer Forensics Services
www.disklabs.com
www.mobilephoneforensics.com
www.1ct.com
About the Author
Simon Steggles is a Director of Disklabs and also a director of 1st Computer Traders Ltd, (www.1ct.com). Disklabs are data recovery and computer forensics specialists, 1CT.com specialise in hard disk drive repair.
|
|
|
|
|
|