Free Data Recovery Comes at a Cost

Time is a precious resource and always tight. Often, business owners and operators, no matter the size of their companies, try to find both the most efficient and cost-effective solutions to problems. Everyone starts small and we completely understand that predicament, having had our own issues to resolve as a business when we first started out. That said, when it comes to data recovery, there is a good chance the cheapest or DIY option can quickly become more risk than it’s worth. If you’ve ever felt the sting of losing precious data and not being able to recover, you know what we’re talking about. Data backup and recovery are not optional – and here are some things to think about before trying your hand at restoring it on your own:

How much is it worth?

In cost value, if your data is worth more than $200 you should 100 per cent consider investing in professional recovery assistance. In the end, you’ll be losing more trying to save a few bucks and save your data on your own than if you had paid for the professionals to do quickly and reliably what they do best.

Why was your data deleted?

Did someone accidentally (or accidentally on purpose) empty their computer’s trash bin? Perhaps your server had a spasm. Or, against your desire to admit it, maybe you’ve dropped a hard drive or accidentally damaged your physical device. Not every problem has the same fix. For example, if you’ve somehow physically damaged a device there’s a good chance you will not be able to restore any data and tinkering with it will likely cause more damage and data deletion. If it is simply a case of an emptied recycle bin, chances are the data still exists in some capacity. However, it can be easily overwritten by downloading the free software you’re hoping to use to recover it in the first place. Dead set on downloading a freebie recovery software? Make sure you download it onto a computer that isn’t the one with data to be recovered.

There are major problems with free recovery software.

There isn’t a single problem with free data recovery. There are many! For example, the software will be sorting through sectors of files to determine which are recoverable. If it comes across a bad sector it will likely skip over that sector completely even though there might be recoverable data within that sector. Professional software is able to scan through these bad sectors and sift out data that can be recovered from within them. Also, free software may make several attempts to read bad sectors during which time your drive might become more and more damaged to a point beyond repair. Another problem with most free recovery software is that they won’t actually communicate what exactly is wrong with your drive, such as corrupt firmware and modules, service area issues, scratches on the platter, crashed heads or any physical complications with your drive. Therefore, you’re likely to continue encountering the same or similar data loss problems after recovering the meagre amount of data your software will help you find and restore.

Free software will likely kill your drive.

Proper professional recovery technology will create a clone of the drive in the form of a bit level image. Next, the recovery software will scan this clone to find the exact location for the data you want to restore. It will then go into the drive to pull out the data you’ve decided to save and restore. With a damaged drive, you’ll really only have one shot at this recovery since these scans reduce the life of a drive. If you are unable to first clone the drive, your free software will search through your drive, degrading its life and potentially leading to complete drive failure before you’ve recovered your data. Obviously, the best way to ensure your data is safe is to properly backup and allow professionals to handle recovery, especially if it’s on a large scale. As they say, the best defense is a good offense and StorageCraft® is happy to be your wide receiver in the world of data backup and restoration.  Learn more about the StorageCraft® Recovery Solution™ or contact us today to request a free demo by our engineers at your convenience.