When data is lost on a hard drive, it can result in two scenarios: 1)
the operating system is fine, hard disk is still accessible, but files
are missing 2) the computer doesn’t boot up and weird noises are heard
from the hard disk. Now let us see step by step procedure to tackle both
the scenarios.
To tackle scenario 1:
a) Don’t write anything to the hard disk after the data loss. This is
because whenever you delete the files from the hard drive, the OS does
not delete the information permanently. It shows you that there are more
free spaces but they are still occupied by the deleted information. You
will not be able to see it, but data recovery software will.
b) If you have taken the backups of all the important information,
check the backups and restore them to retrieve the lost information. If
you have not taken the backup, follow the data recovery steps as
mentioned in the steps below. It is always good to take back-up of
important information on a regular basis.
c) Never install the data recovery software in the drive where the
data loss has occurred. The reason is that if you install on the same
drive, you might overwrite the lost data.
d) In order to be safe, always switch off the computer after the data
loss. All the operations of the OS depend on the reads and writes with
the hard drive and this may result in overwriting the lost data.
e) Remove the hard disk from the computer and connect a new hard
drive. After you have installed an OS in the new hard drive you can
connect the old hard disk to the computer as a secondary drive and
access it without writing anything to it. If you prefer not to install
an OS then you run a Linux live CD instead. You can also do this by
putting your hard disk into a USB hard drive enclosure. Then connect it
to the computer via USB to access the files.
f) If the data loss has happened due to a virus attack, make sure you
have installed an anti-virus software on the second computer where you
will be performing the data recovery.
g) There are several free data recovery softwares available on the internet, select the appropriate one and recover your data.
To tackle scenario 2:
Whenever there is hard disk failure, it is impossible to access the
hard drive. One of the most common reasons is head crashes. The head is
responsible for reading the disk’s magnetic surface. But a hardware
failure means it grinds against the metal surface and makes the reads
impossible. If you have a hard drive failure follow the steps below:
a) Switch off the computer and don’t try to start it again as this can result in further damage to the hard drive
b) Keep the hard disk secure, for instance if the hard drive failed
due to the external problem like flood, preserve it in water and don’t
try to dry it by your own.
c) Whenever the physical error occurs, we cannot fix it. So contact a
good data recovery company and identify which components need to be
replaced.
d) Most of the data recovery companies will not charge anything if
they are not able to recover the data. They may give and estimation time
for analyzing the hard drive. Use a wrapping material while handing
over the hard drive. Also use foam to prevent the sudden movements and
to secure the hard disk inside. Hopefully they will be able to fix the
physical errors and recover your data.
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