How does hard drive recovery work?

Hard drives, like all mechanical devices, eventually break down.

Common hard drive problems include:

• User errors
• Software errors
• Hard drive electronics failures
• Hard drive arm failures
• Hard drive platter failures

User Errors

User errors include accidentally deleting or overwriting files and accidentally formatting a or deleting a partition.

User errors can sometimes be resolved through the use of Data Recovery Wizard.

Software Errors

Software errors usually result from software writing data to the wrong part of the disk.

Errors cause by software are generally much more difficult for data recovery software to correct. This task may require the services of a data recovery specialist.

Hard Drive Electronics Failures

When a hard drive physically fails, sometimes the mechanical parts of the hard drive remain undamaged. This can happen, for example, if the hard drive is subject to a power surge or a discharge of static electricity.

In these cases, it is usually possible to take the mechanical parts out of the hard drive assembly and place them into another identical hard drive unit. This should be done in a clean-room environment, to prevent dust from damaging the hard drive.

Hard Drive Arm Failures

Hard drive arm failures are very common. When the hard drive arm fails, there is a very good chance that it will damage the hard drive platters.

When you hear the clicking noises from your hard drive which signal a hard drive arm failure, back up all necessary data immediately and power the system down as soon as possible.

If the hard drive platters have not been damaged, a data recovery specialist may still be able to recover data from a hard drive with a damaged hard drive arm.

Hard Drive Platter Failures

No drive platter is manufactured perfectly. There will always be some bad spots on the platter surface. Modern hard drives automatically mark those bad spots as unusable and do not store data there.

Sometimes bad spots will develop during the life of the hard drive. The hard drive will mark that spot bad and attempt to move the data to a good spot on the hard drive. This may, or may not, result in the loss of some data.

Serious hard drive platter failures can occur as a result of hard drive arm failures. In these cases, the hard drive platters are being scratched. Your data is being scratched right off the surface of the platters! You can often hear this damage occuring. These failures are very expensive or impossible to recover.

The Solution to Hard Drive Recovery: Backup

The best method of hard drive recovery is to throw away the failed hard drive and restore your data from backup to a brand new drive.

Backing up your data is a critically important preventative maintenance task. Don't put yourself at risk by not properly backing up your data.