Tag Archive for: Data Recovery

Tips for Backing Up Data and Preventing Data Loss

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Data loss can affect anyone…

It is especially problematic for those who have valuable information stored on their computers, such as business documents, financial records, or personal photos and videos.

Every hard drive will mechanically fail at some point and need replaced. Sometimes there are warning signs, and sometimes there aren’t. Also, malware and viruses can damage or delete critical system files. Oftentimes the only solution is to reformat the drive and reinstall the operating system. In these cases, everything on the drive will be lost.

We often perform data recovery for our customers in Lexington, KY due to hard drive failure or virus infection, and they usually regret not having a backup system in place when their valuable data is no longer accessible.  A little bit of planning now can prevent serious frustration and stress down the road in the event of hard drive failure or operating system corruption.

Here’s what we recommend to prevent data loss:

1. Back up your data

An excellent preventative measure is to buy an external hard drive. An external drive can be attached to any computer at any time simply by plugging it into a USB or firewire port. 

Many external drives also have the added benefit of one-touch and/or scheduled back ups – you simply specify the folders and the software will take care of the rest. Macrium Reflect software is a good free backup software if your external hard drive doesn’t come with it’s own software, or if it’s not user friendly. A 250GB hard drive will provide ample room for the average user, and Newegg.com is a good website to shop and compare drive prices, sizes, and ratings.

If it’s a desktop computer, an alternative is installing a second internal hard-drive in your computer (which we can do). Read more

Hard Drive Failure & Data Recovery – Lexington, KY

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We perform data recovery in Lexington KY on a regular basis for customers who have encountered hard drive failure or have been unable to access their files due to malware, viruses or data corruption. If your computer is having problems, the article below may help you determine when a hard drive is failing or when it is virus-infected. In any case, if you’re having computer problems, feel free to come by our store or contact us with any questions.

Signs of Hard Drive Failure

Catastrophic hard drive failure is usually indicated when the computer doesn’t recognize the hard drive and Windows doesn’t even begin to boot. More technically, the drive can no longer be detected by CMOS setup, or if it fails to pass BIOS POST and the operating system never sees it. A hard drive also includes controller electronics, which occasionally fail. Hard drive failure is sad

Gradual hard drive failure is somewhat more difficult to diagnose. Its symptoms include corrupted data and slowing down of the PC caused by gradually failing areas of the hard drive, requiring repeated read attempts before successful access. These can also be symptoms of other computer issues, such as malware. A rising number of bad sectors (as indicated by S.M.A.R.T. data) can be a sign of a failing hard drive. Also, a cyclical repetitive pattern of seek activity, such as rapid or slow clicking noises (click of death), can be indicative of hard drive problems. During hard drive failure, each particle from the damaged platter and head media can cause a bad sector. Bad sectors, in addition to platter damage, may quickly render a hard drive useless if you continue to use it. Read more