We’re not talking about RAID in the sense of the fantastic bug-killer. So if you’re looking for an article on that, you’d best keep looking.
This article is going to focus on that intricate, sometimes ridiculous server set up known as RAID. RAID employs, in most cases, using more than one hard drive to store your information. The RAID 1 and 10 set ups employ a mirroring system so that the exact same data is stored on more than one hard drive. This may sound redundant, but it’s actually not. By having your duplicated data in several spots like this you can actually cut your retrieval speeds which makes it easier to load your data especially if you have several people trying to access the same data on the same server at the same time.
More often than not you will see RAID systems set up in businesses. This isn’t really something that you would see a lot of people employing in their private homes, but we’re not about to judge if you do.
Since RAID uses hard drives, of course, this means they are susceptible to hard drive failures. And failures mean a loss of time, effectiveness and even business if the issue lasts long enough. Not only are there the standard physical and logistical failures that all hard drives are prone to, there are other issues.
These issues can include single to duplicate hard drive failures, RAID controller cards with physical issues, controller software issues among other things. These are not to be taken lightly and unless you are a professional, they really shouldn’t be attempted on your own. Most times, even professionals will call in other professionals to help out. That may sound ridiculous, but it’s something you really don’t want to mess around with.
So if you have a RAID server and find yourself facing a problem, do yourself a favour and turn to professionals. Be careful when you are looking for a service that you ensure they are prepared for and experienced with RAID server issues. Since they are fairly specific and involve different parameters than a regular hard drive recovery you want to make sure your data doesn’t suffer any additional damage.
The companies that specialise with RAID servers will make it clear that they do so. With so much competition around there are a lot of companies who claim they can assist with any kind of hard drive recovery but get completely overwhelmed with a RAID recovery system. There are basics that all companies should have like a clean room, trained technicians and a variety of security measures. Encryption is key to ensure that your data won’t go off on a field trip without your knowledge.
A proper RAID recovery company will also tell you if you don’t need their services. But just in case you run into one that is slightly dishonest, here’s a heads up: if you are using a RAID 1 or RAID 10 server set up you probably won’t need to use a specialized RAID recovery company. The reason for this is pretty simple. As previously mentioned these two use a mirroring system which means your data and information is duplicated across all the hard drives. If one goes down, you can still access your data with the other hard drives in the system. Not to say that it still isn’t important for you to get it repaired and it will slow down your productivity while the one hard drive is down, but you can still get into your data. The only major issue with these two is if the controller software goes belly-up. Then you’ll definitely want a specialist.