Data Recovery, Backup, Restoration, and Disaster Recovery - Definitions Merge

Over the past several years there has been a confluence of the definitions of Data Recovery, Data Backup and Restoration, and Disaster Recovery. The merging of these definitions does not serve the industry. It only serves to confuse the consumer, the very people these various industry segments want to reach.

Data Recovery
Defined as the process of extracting data from inaccessible storage media or storage system such as hard drives, tapes, optical media and RAID's. The process involves repairing physical damage, repairing electrical damage, correcting media maintenance information, correcting data corruption, undeleting files or some combination thereof.

Data Backup and Restoration
This process begins with an intentional effort to store data on alternate media such as tape, optical media, hard drives, other storage systems or an online service. That's the Backup portion. In the event of a failure of the primary storage media, the alternate media is used to restore data from the alternate source to a new primary source. That's the Restoration segment.

Disaster Recovery
The process of returning an entity, such as a business or home office, to a functional and optimal state after a natural disaster or man-made event that either completely or partially impairs the function of that entity. Disaster recovery may include data recovery and/or data backup and restoration.

There are key differences that make these definitions and industries unique. Data Recovery is usually considered after data restoration has been eliminated as an option. Data backup and restoration is considered a primary function of computing to ensure data is safe from media failures. Disaster Recovery takes into consideration the complete infrastructure including facility restoration, data restoration and data recovery as a last resort.

In a literal sense there is an intentional effort to ?recover? data from some sort of catastrophic event in all three environments. That may be the source for the merging of these terms.

Confusing the consumer is not the only effect of this merging or confluence. Do a search in Google News for ?Data Recovery?. You'll find results appear for all three definitions on the first page. In the future, this confluence may make it difficult for the search engines to discern between the three. Will this effect snowball? Only time will tell.

While some businesses offer services and products that address all three categories, the definitions need to be clearly defined. As there is no unifying body or advocacy group for any of these industry segments it's likely the definitions will continue to be fuzzy at the very least. Until these definitions are more clearly defined, it will be up to the consumer to determine what Data Recovery really means.

Understanding Data Loss and Data Recovery

Losing data is the worst thing that can happen to someone who is too attached to computers. It is not a question on "how attached" a person is, it is a question on how much a person earns out of his data. In other words, for beginner computer users, losing files is like losing common documents, but for developers, it means losing source files. Source files are projects developed with the use of certain complex application. Losing them is close to losing a career!

Data recovery is the solution to lost files. Data do not just disappear in one click but some of them are stored and could be recovered. The means of data recovery depends on the diagnostic and troubleshooting on how the functioning of the computer started.

It is not easy to determine problems in the computer for a novice, but for experts, events with PC sounds, speed change, temperature and booting problems are just some signs and symptoms of a lingering problems which could lead to data loss. Corrupt files occur when there is direct disturbance changing the data properties. When a project file can't be opened, it is possibly corrupt. Latest softwares have the capability to recover files in one execution.

Simple documents have high potential possibility of destruction. Complex applications involving vectors with larger project files, when corrupted, have the least chance of recovery. Examples of which are computer aided design applications, graphic arts editor, video editors and programming applications.

What are the kinds of flaws that trigger data loss?

Physical Defect Of Peripherals - hard disk damages show signs of file corruption before affecting the raw data. Upon knowing the sign of hard disk failure, it is important to make back-ups to avoid losing current and past data. Accidents and unavoidable circumstances can also cause peripheral damages in a PC, which can lead to data loss.

Overheating of the CPU can lead to chain reaction and shut of the computer. Constant crashing without proper shutting down procedure is one of the harshest of data destroyer. Usually the current file being worked on before the big crash happened is the one rendered useless afterwards.

Virus Attack - computer intruders will not give computers any benefit. Virus is always created to destroy data. By installing an effective anti-virus, this problem can be avoided or can be resolved easier than not having one. Careless downloading of any freebies in the Internet is harmful. It is important to understand how adwares can harm your local file in just one click. Virus propagators in the net are using advertising tools to gain access remotely to any private data.

On the onset of viral attack, do not do anything in the computer or leave it on any further. The more it is left functioning, the more the virus will spread and destroy the system. If you suspect your PC has been attacked, give it an instant cold boot. Do not use it unless the purpose is data recovery and diagnostics.

Accidental Format - A person could be too drunk booting the PC and accidentally executing the format command! Formatting is the greatest mortal sin one can execute to a disk rich with important data. It is the last resort when a disk has too many garbage needing a good overhaul. Formatting a disk is erasing the entire disk for good. Some good utilities have means to UNFORMAT and regain back the lost data in a formatted hard disk.

Bob is the owner of http://datarecovery.knowsmart.com/ which is an up-to-date, informative data recovery website.

The Lost Art of CD Data Recovery

Between losing data on our computer's hard drive, on tapes, and on diskettes we would think that there would be no other way to misplace or lose our important data, but we'd be wrong. CD data recovery has become another method of finding and recovering lost computer data; that's right you guessed it, CD data recovery is the art of recovering data that has been lost on, a CD. Now, if you lose important information, pictures, music files, or any other information that is important its no longer " the end of the world". In most cases with CD data recovery, allows all of the lost information to be completely recovered.

Sleep Easy

It doesn't matter if you've lost data on a CD-R, CD-RW, or DVD, CD data recovery can help you! Data loss on your CD's can occur for a variety of different reasons. Some reasons, include virus attacks, lost drive letters, lost partitions, configuration errors, and drive limitations that improperly read the files of the CD. This can make data recovery of CD complicated, but there is always hope, when it comes to recovering your lost data.

There are a number of programs that are designed to aid you when it comes to recovering your lost data. Some of the highly recommended programs are one's like "Bad Copy Pro" this program fully automatic and simple to use, it simply copies the lost data and then rewrites it back to your hard drive. When it comes to recovering missing or lost data from documents, images, and even applications. "Bad Copy Pro" is the way to go, its inexpensive and it has a high success rate. It won't overwrite the files that are on the CD, because that can cause problems.

"Multi Data Rescue" is another really good program to use. This software is the tool the experts use to recover lost data from CDs. This program can be used in the Windows interface, and it is very user friendly. It is used to recover files from CDs and DVDs, it supports digital media recovery, and it can even recover lost data from memory cards and USB related disk issues. There is a program that is a spin-off of the "Multi Data Rescue" software, that is specifically designed to recover lost DVD data.

With these two programs and the others that are out there on the market, CD data recovery is no longer an impossible feat. It doesn't matters how the files were lost or what happened to the CD, because recovery is possible. Sometime technology can hinder us, but there will always be something available to right the wrong. What will they come up with of next?

If you would like to learn more tips on how to recover lost data from DVDs and from your cd's and other damaged media then visit: http://www.MyDataRecoveryTips.com

Data & Tape Storage & Disaster Recovery - What you need to consider (SME organisations)

Data & Tape Storage & Disaster Recovery ? What you need to consider (SME organisations)

You may be in a situation where you know your data is not being backed up correctly ? or at all. You know it needs to be looked into????.but you just can?t ?find the time? to speak to the other team members about it.

Data is the second most irreplaceable and valuable asset after ?people?. In the event of a disaster, insurance money can only pay compensation and replace tangible assets; it cannot replace people or your unique data.

So where do you start? Well every business has their own requirements and generally will look to their IT support company for advice on their specific needs. In my experience, IT companies (particularly for SMEs) just rather organise blue cable, servers, peripheries and maintenance plans ? than ensure a decent Disaster Recover (DR) plan is in place. And if they recommend a DR plan, it will be based on their biases on the subject.

Here is what to consider and investigate when developing a data backup plan.

First ? How much data are you generating each day? That is how many Gigabytes? Second. How many days/hours of data can you afford to lose? Third. If there is a major systems failure ? how much downtime can you afford?

How much daily needs to be backed up daily? You should only need to do an incremental backup of the NEW data for the day. When to do a FULL backup? ?????. Usually weekly. Also you may require Archive backups?????often monthly.

Once you know the quantity of data to backup daily & weekly, you can then decide on the method.

You need to consider how much data needs to be stored on Disc (eg NAS) for rapid access in case of a systems failure; and how much data can be stored on Tape (LTO, DLT). Tape is cheaper to run but takes longer to backup and access. The simplest method is to buy a Tape drive unit that can backup about 200 ? 400 GB of data. The costs vary ($1000 - $2000) for the unit and the individual tapes cost about $50 - $60 each (you often need about 20 tapes). If your data is close to a Terabyte (TB), you are now looking into more money to set up ($5000 - $10000). On the other hand, you can store a lot of your daily data on Disc Storage (NAS etc..) however the hardware can be very expensive to purchase and very expensive to operate. You need to keep the units running constantly - even if you just want to have access to a simple word file ? the whole unit needs to keep running. A lot of electricity for disc, whereas tape just sits on the shelf.

Some experts will say tape is vulnerable to damage and corruption. The solution is the make multiple tape backups and then store in a cool, safe place. Tape actually can last years without damage.

Many companies offer off-site tape storage. This allows you to store tapes in a library/cataloguing system that can be viewed online. They are kept in a secure vault with idea climate conditions for tape longevity. You are also able to instruct the storage company how often they visit your office to exchange your backup tapes on an agreed tape rotation plan.

You just have to know what data you need to store for rapid access (Disc storage) or archive or not so urgent (Tape) and balance your expenditure and operating costs accordingly. Also remember to factor in the amount of data increase you are experiencing in your organisation (thanks to emails and larger file sizes ? there is at least a 50% increase in all extant data per annum!!!)

What about the Internet?

Yes some people have backup software that allows their data to be de-duplicated and compressed so as to fit in the available bandwidth. Some IT people actually backup onto the available space in the their Website Database. Web hosters often offer a certain amount of data to be stored in the back end of the web site itself - for a monthly fee. Just check to see the extra costs associated with data transfer. Also in the event of a systems failure (where communication lines can go down ? thus internet and WAN) how are you going to retrieve the data?

IT people are also known for taking home older servers ? placing them in their garage and backing up data over the internet to their second hand PCs. Is this a reliable solution considering sick days, holidays, burglary and internet integrity?

Some companies will host your data in a similar way to Web hosters? Just ensure that they are in fact a suitable option when you factor in costs, reliability, bandwidth, data restoration time and DR.

Other simple solutions

There is more software being developed that will compress and simplify your data so that you are only backing up a smaller parcel of data.

This is definitely worth investigating, however I would recommend that you start changing policy internally with regard to backup solutions. Remember that a large source of your problem is that company employees often make several copies of the one file, do not delete there ?Sent files? and do not archive or manage their emails. This is where you can save a lot of memory ? and thus know for sure the REAL amount of data that needs to be stored.

How To Recover Lost or Deleted Data Files: Data Recovery Software Information

Have you heard of data/file recovery? The definition of the term Data Recovery is "..Making previously lost or damaged data available again.." A data recovery software or method can help us recover destroyed data e.g. an accidentally deleted file. It happens all the time. You delete an important file on your PC and send it to your recycle bin by mistake. You realize what you've done only after you've cleaned the contents of the recycle bin.

What do you do now?
That file you deleted was so important. Fortunately there are lots of methods (Data Recovery Methods) and software (Data Recovery Software) available to help you get your lost files back.

Let's start by mentioning some possible reasons for the loss of data:

* You accidentally delete an important file. Then you immediately shred the contents of your recycle bin
* During today's system crash some files just disappeared and cannot be located or accessed
* You format your hard drive but then you remember those important .zip files previously stored in the newly formatted empty medium.
* A power outage prevented some files from being written to the hard disk.
* Data loss can also occur due to physical damage of the storage media. For example the surface of your CD-ROM may be scratched off or your hard disk may suffer from all kinds of possible mechanical failures.

..and the list goes on.

Is Data Recovery Important?
Data recovery is a very misunderstood concept. A lot of people may not even be aware of the existence and the importance of data recovery. Maybe they think of it on a personal level. The truth is, lost data causes financial disasters to companies all over the world. The cost associated with computer downtime and lost data is enormous (several million dollars) for businesses.

How to deal with data loss?
Losing files is easy but recovering them can be difficult. If the loss was due to physical damage then you need someone with experience, a hardware technician or something. It wouldn't be wise to try to overcome hardware failures alone unless you are a professional.

Now, if the loss of data was due to logical failure or human error then the solution is data recovery software. The data recovery software should be able to:

- Undelete files even after you've shred the contents of your recycle bin
- Recover files after you've been infected from a malicious threat (trojan, worm or other virus)
- Recover files from reformatted hard disks or after your system crashes or your hard disk fails
- Recover all types of files (all kinds of documents, images, music, videos, email messages, zipped files etc)
- Recover data from all types of storage mediums (hard disks, external drives, CD-ROM, usb drives, floppy disks etc)
- Recover files easily and successfully. Should be user-friendly allowing someone with no data recovery skills to use it
- Take/create backups of critical system files or files you choose

The best way to avoid data loss is to start taking backups of your important storage mediums. Either create backups of data on CD-ROMS or use an external drive or zip drive to back up your critical files. If you want to go further look for software that automates the process of backing up and storing your data. These programs are kind of "set and forget". You set it up to take backups every hour or every day or month etc. and let the software do the rest.

Now you know it's possible to restore almost every type of lost or deleted file, it's time to learn how to do it. How about this highly recommended Data Recovery Software that will restore all your lost data quickly and easily? There's a free trial version waiting for you to download. Give it a try. Mary Markell is a webmaster of Digital Star Products Directory of Products.