Data Recovery Software Tips
Have you managed to delete important data from your hard drive? There should be no reason to worry as there are many data recovery solutions on the market capable of recovering your lost data for you, the key, when using software to recover your files is to follow a process that prevents any further harm coming to your data.
There are some important rules to adhere to when using data recovery software for recovering lost files:
When using data recovery software it is important that the software is installed on a different computer to the one that you are trying to recover. Installing further data to the same storage device that you have lost your files on may cause the lost data to be overwritten, making it irretrievable.
Secondly, has your drive been making any strange sounds recently, if the answer is yes your hard drive may be failing so a recovery company would be better suited to recover your data to be on the safe side.
Next, try to use trial software, all good data recovery applications offer a free trial version that allows you to determine if your files are recoverable before you make a purchase. You may not be able to see the content of the files but the presence of the file name should indicate whether it is recoverable or not.
Assuming your drive is exhibiting no signs of failure and having used the software you have managed to find the file (intact) and it is recoverable you’ll now need to save the data somewhere. Under no circumstances save it back to the same drive as you may end up saving the data on back to the same area that the data is being recovered from resulting in a corrupted file.
Often data recovery software will allocate the space on the hard drive before recovering the file, once the space has been allocated the data may already be partially over-written.
Of course before embarking on a DIY data recovery project ascertain the value of your data because if the data loss would be job threatening, costly to your business or simply un-replaceable then don’t take the risk.
The cost for the recovery of files from a hard disk by a professional data recovery organisation is now in most cases comparable to the cost of the full version of the software that you have tried, plus you are normally backed up by a no recovery – no fee guarantee.
And lastly, if you choose to use a data recovery company, it is always worth ascertaining what will happen if the drive fails during a recovery process, will they be able to fix it themselves in a proper clean room environment or will they need to send it away to another data recovery company?
If they do not have the facilities for hard drive repair and there is any sign of mechanical failure then a main data recovery company will be your best option.
