Around 44% of all data loss is caused by hardware failure. It’simportant to make sure that you immediately shut your systemdown if you suspect that hard drive has crashed. Don’t even tryto go through the shutdown procedure, just pull the plug fromthe wall. Do not try to run off the shelf softwareor drive utilities. Many times these applications will assumethe drive is functioning properly and will increase the risk ofpermanent data loss.

Types Of Hard Drive Failure When we discuss inthis report, we will primarily focus on issues surrounding harddrive failures; since these types of failures are most common.There are really two primary forms of failure in a hard drive,logical and physical. Logical failures are usually a result offile-system corruption. This can occur due to a virus,accidental deletion of key files or registry components, and insome cases even electro-static discharge. In most cases where alogical failure has occurred, the drive is still recognized bythe system BIOS, but it will not boot. In most cases, your datashould still be intact on the drive, even though it may appearto be inaccessible.

If the system BIOS does not detect the presence of the harddrive, then chances are a physical failure has occurred.Physical failures can result from a wide variety of causes.There are really two sub-categories for physical hard drivefailures; mechanical and electronic. Mechanical failures usuallyresult from a failure of the spindle motor. Spindle motorfailure can result from excessive heat due to a bearing failure.The increased heat resulting from the bearing failure willexpand the drive shaft and therefore seize the spindle motor.Suddenly, your drive will become inoperative. Occasionally, youwill get a warning that something bad is about to happen. Youmay hear a loud whining, a grinding noise, even high-pitchedscreeches. If anything like this starts to occur, BACK UP YOURDATA IMMEDIATELY.

Another physical issue that sometimes rears its ugly head is anelectronic failure. If you look at a hard drive you will noticea circuit board on the bottom. This board is basically thebrains of the drive, and it is where the computer interfaces tothe hard drive. An electrical failure can occur unexpectedly atany time. Even brand new hard drives are not totally immune tohaving electrical failures. Sometimes it’s just a faultycomponent, sometimes it’s improper installation (i.e.electro-static discharge, grounding out the board, damagingcircuitry during installation). It’s important to also keep yoursystem clean and well ventilated, since excessive heat candamage the electrical components on the drive. If you have asystem that is in a somewhat contained area, you may look atadding an additional 80mm fan to cool the internal components ofthe system, especially the hard drive. No other component of acomputer works as much as the hard drive, and therefore it isvitally important not to overlook it when cooling issues arise.

How Is My Data Recovered?

One of the most often asked questions that customers ask is,“how do you get my data back?” Well, it’s really not black magicor rocket science. It’s just a matter of having the right toolsand the knowledge necessary to know what to do, much like asurgeon performing heart by-pass surgery. Many prominent datarecovery facilities have a large array of hardware, software andtools for recovering data.

Generally speaking when a hard drive is received by a datarecovery firm, the first thing they do is evaluate it, anddetermine what recovery solution will be necessary. If the drivefailure is a logical issue as mentioned earlier, then a scan ofthe drive will be performed to try and repair the file systemcorruption. Sometimes a partition can be repaired and the driverestored to the status that it was before the failure. If thisis not possible, then a very low-level scan will be performedthat essentially searches every sector of the hard drive forfiles. Once the files are located, they can then be copied tothe media of choice, i.e. a CD-ROM, DVD-ROM or another harddrive. Logical recoveries can take up an enormous amount oftime, especially if the drive is on the verge of physicalfailure. It’s not uncommon to allow for one day of scanning anda day for recovering the found files.

If the drive has suffered a physical failure, then the recoveryprocedure is quite a bit more challenging. As mentioned above,there are really two sub-categories of physical failure;mechanical and electronic. An important element in recoveringdata from a physical failure is having the necessary parts toget the drive functioning again. Unfortunately with hard drivesif you have a 20GB Maxtor Hard Drive for example, then you willneed another identical 20GB Maxtor Hard Drive for salvagingparts. In cases where the electronic circuit board has failed onthe hard drive, then you have to have the exact same circuitboard on hand in order to retrieve the necessary circuitcomponents for replacement. Many times you cannot even exchangecircuit board for circuit board. These repairs generally requiresoldering skills and a thorough knowledge of electronics to besuccessfully completed. You will most likely hear “Class100Clean Room” thrown around a lot when talking to data recoveryprofessionals. Simply stated, a Class100 Clean Room maintainsexceptional air purity, and contains less than 100 airborneparticles larger than 0.5 microns in each cubic foot of air.This is vital in protecting sensitive internal components ofhard drives. Anytime a hard drive is having an invasiveprocedure performed on it, a Class100 clean room or better isneeded.

The time frame for recovery is generally 5-10 business days forphysical issues and 2-4 days for logical issues. Sometimes ifcomponents are not readily available, then it may take weeks tocomplete the recovery. Some firms offer expedite service and youdefinitely pay for this added attention.

What About Software

This is one area where you really do get what you pay for. Tryto stay away from software in the $20-$60 range, since theseutilities are generally very limited in what they can do. Alsomake sure that you NEVER and just to emphasize, NEVER EVER getdata recovery software that writes anything at all to thedamaged disk. You run the risk of overwriting data that mayotherwise have been recoverable, but will be lost forever. Ifyou are fairly computer savvy, then there are a few good datarecovery software solutions available.

What To Look For When Shopping For Data Recovery

There’s an old saying, “you get what you pay for.” In most casesthis is true. However, just because a company with a fancywebsite quotes you $3,500 for data recovery, does not mean thatthey are any better than a company that quotes you $1,500. Also,try to stay away from companies that want to charge $50-$300 forevaluating your drive. There has been a movement in the datarecovery industry over the last couple of years to offer anumber of free services. Most reputable companieswill evaluate standard IDE drives free of charge; so don’t letthe word “free” this or “free” that stop you. The data recoverymarket is quickly becoming saturated, and a company does notnecessarily cheapen itself or lack expertise by offering freeevaluations.

You will find as you shop around for that pricesvary greatly. You will get quotes that range from $300 to $5,000for standard hard drive recoveries. It’s not uncommon toliterally get quotes that have at least a $1,500 high/lowspread. We shopped one prominent company where wegave them specific indicators of a physical hard drive failure.We were eventually quoted a price range of $600 to $2,900 forthe recovery. Many times this is a bait and switch type tactic.They get you to send in the drive with the low-end $600 price,then they let you know it’s going to cost $2,100 for therecovery. You end up being well under the $2,900 high-end price,but well over what other reputable companies would charge. Sincemost customers won’t go through the pain of having the drivesent back, only to have to send it out to another company, thesebait and switch companies end up making huge profits off ofunsuspecting customers.

Try to find a company that will give you an up front cost foreither a logical or physical recovery. Most companies will beable to tell you within a couple hundred dollars the cost of arecovery. However, don’t misunderstand a company that gives youa price for two different procedures. For example, somecompanies will give you a price if the failure is logical and aprice if the problem ends up being physical. We called one firmand were told that if the drive had a logical failure the pricewould be $400 and if it ended up being a physical issue theprice would be $1,600. This is not a high/low spread asmentioned in the earlier example, this is simply quoting a pricefor two different types of recoveries.

On average you can expect to pay anywhere from $400 to $600 forlogical recoveries, and $1,200 to $2,000 for physical recoverieson standard IDE hard drives. If you have RAID drives, SCSI, etc.depending on the configuration prices can be as high as $15,000.Remember, backup backup backup backup backup!!

Can My Data Be Recovered?

In most cases the answer to this question is yes. On average,the success rate for professionals is about75-85%. However, there are times when the data is just lost,either due to extensive damage to the platter or unavailabilityof replacement parts.

How Do I Get Started?

If you have a hard drive that has crashed, the most importantthing you can do is contact a professionalimmediately. Make sure you aren’t being charged an evaluationfee if you have a standard IDE hard drive. Most companies onlycharge evaluation fees for complex RAID and network serverdrives.

You will find links to various firms on this page.We do not support or endorse any of them, but they are listedfor your convenience. It is important to do your homework, calland talk with the companies. When you find one that you feelcomfortable with, give them a chance. Your hardest job, may befinding firms that actually have someone availableto answer the phones. Ask questions and be sure to have thefollowing information available:

Size of the drive Operating system (i.e. Windows 98, Windows XP,etc.) Situation of failure (what happened just before the drivestopped working) Is the drive recognized by the computer's BIOSor not Good luck in getting your data recovered, and make sureyou always backup your important information on a daily basis.For more information visit: http://www.acsdata.com

About the author:Greg Duffield is the founder of ACS Data Recovery. ACSspecializes in providing hard drive services forclients around the world.

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