Disk Recovery

Palmer Data Recovery charges different fixed fees depending upon the severity of the data loss cause, and the speed at which it is asked to solve the problem.

The most common forms of data loss are as a result of either a hard drive malfunction, or a ‘logical’ corruption. Very often the data remains intact in the hard disk but the computer is unable to access it.

Logical corruption

– where the computer is unable to make sense of the data that is randomly stored across the disk. This is usually caused by the computer’s index system being damaged or corrupted. The data is still there, but the computer is unable to recognise it for what it is, and thereby unable to reconstitute it into a readable document or file. Where structural corruption is the cause of the data loss, your chances of getting all the data back are extremely good. With the use of software tools and some manual, structural work, the data can be returned to a state that is understood by the computer. The files are most often undamaged and available for recovery.

Physical malfunction of the storage hardware is much more serious. At Palmer Data Recovery, we group hardware failures into three broad categories.

Electronics failure

– where the external electrical circuits have failed. Recovery from a hard disk in these cases is the easiest to provide, as long as a replacement circuit board can be located. This is not as simple as it sounds, as each hard disk may go through many revisions during its life-cycle, and a revision specific printed circuit board must be held in our parts inventory, or available from our suppliers.

Mechanical failure

– where the internal mechanics of the hard disk drive have failed through internal factors such as age, or minor manufacturing defects, or as a result of external factors such as shock, heat or water. This is more serious than an electronics failure as the internal mechanics within a modern hard disk are very delicate, and have extremely small tolerances. Again specific revision parts are required, and the internal mechanics will need to be mended or replaced in order for the hard drive to be able to read the data again. The hard disk needs to be disassembled in a class 100 clean environment to prevent damage to the disk platters upon which the magnetic media stores the data.

Media damage

– where the magnetic media on the surface of the hard disk platters has become damaged or corrupted. This is most often caused by what is known as a ‘head-crash’, where the electronic heads that read the data, from the disk surface, actually crash into the spinning platter surface and begin to scrape the media away. Once magnetic media that contains your data is scrapped away, and turned into dust, not even our technicians can put it back together again. Because a computer stores data randomly across a set of platters in a hard disk drive, a relatively minor head crash can damage many files. Whole files and sometimes parts of files can be recovered but it is likely that the quality of the recovery is going to be lower than another type of hardware failure. On many occasions, the media damage is so severe that little valuable data can be retrieved.