RAID Data Recovery Requires an Expert Specialised Service

RAID is the term for a complex method of data storage, which relies on splitting and copying information across a number of hard disks. The method was originally designed to allow users to increase their storage capacity by using several cheap disk-drives - hence the acronym RAID: Redundant Array of Inexpensive Disks - but has developed to mean any multiple-drive storage system.

As such systems are designed to maximise the reliability of data storage and increase the capacity for input/output, a crash can be very serious due to the storage system's very complexity. A good RAID data recovery service treats problems with these types of systems as a top priority.

Some of the problems encountered during the operation of RAID systems include the failure of the array or the controller card, corruption during the card's set-up, a refusal to boot or multiple hard disk drive failure.

The initial professional diagnosis of a problem with a RAID system takes place in a laboratory environment. Here, the technician examines the disks to see if they are immediately accessible using specialised equipment. If the system is accessible, the technician copies all the data on to a new disk, leaving the original disks open to a full and safe analysis, and hopefully leading to full RAID data recovery.

However, it is often the case that the system is not accessible, which means that the technician will have to take the more drastic step of examining the RAID components themselves for damage.

Any damaged components - electric motors, magnetic read/write heads and the system's electronics - will be replaced in sterile lab conditions. Once the servers are accessible, technicians will assess how the data is stored across the multiple disks to enable them to compile a ‘raw' image of the information and determine exactly what repairs will be needed to the drives' file structures to extract the full data.

RAID data recovery technicians can draw on a large range of specialised software to diagnose, analyse and restore the information compiled as raw data. This information can then be restructured and checked using new file lists.

Since the RAID servers copy and split the data, data recovery technicians will often undertake to perform a ‘destriping' process, whereby the raw data is placed on fresh storage systems in the lab itself to make the repair and the RAID data recovery processes easier and more effective. This also makes the extraction of information from severely damaged parts of the server more effective.

Olivia has 2 years experience writing articles about RAID data recovery .She also enjoys writing articles on various other subjects.