What Is Data Recovery?

Data recovery is the process of recovering damaged or lost partitions, data files, and folders from a variety of storage media, including hard drives, SSDs (solid state drives) as well as thumb/flash/SD/optical discs and network storage. The loss of data can occur due to hardware or software corruption accidental formatting or deletion of drives, malware like viruses/rootkits etc. Physical damage to USB sticks/disks or SD cards or natural disasters such as fire/flood storms, outbreaks etc.

Timely recovery and reliable backups are the best defense against data loss. Knowing when to utilize more advanced techniques and choosing the appropriate methods will help increase ROI, decrease downtime, and speed recovery.

The amount of data companies create, capture and store has grown exponentially over the past decade and continues to grow at a rate of 50% compounded annually. These new applications, along with the increasing reliance on cloud-based solutions, pose significant challenges for RTOs and RPOs. Data recovery is now easier see page and affordable due to advancements in hardware-based and software-based tools.

One of the most important steps in any process of data recovery is to discontinue using the device immediately you realize you’ve lost data. This will prevent any additional overwriting, and increase the probability of recovering deleted files or damaged ones. If possible, you should also create a clone or image of the original drive prior to beginning the recovery process. By creating a duplicate of the source, you can perform any operations on the copy and limit the risk of additional damage to the original drive.