It isn’t just heat and smoke that damages computer data: Companies need fireproof Plans

Companies, without disaster relief plans and remote off-site access to their most sensitive computer files, may be playing Russian roulette with danger. Fires may damage hard drive more first thought. Why is it sometimes tough to perform data recovery or hard drive recovery in Manchester without a trained professional? In many fires, heat damages computer hardware less than smoke. However, the damage from smoke ruins hard drives.                

A fire’s smoke contains a number of highly damaging chemicals, including metals, acetic acid, benzene, sulphur dioxide, nitrogen oxide, carbon monoxide, VOCs, and formic acid. There are several different types of fires; (low oxygen or a higher oxygen-driven fire) so this information may change how a recovery expert restores damaged computer files. However, one thing is clear, after a fire ask for expert help immediately. An art gallery in 1985 discovered it was harder to keep their collections from further soot damage by not cleaning the pieces immediately following a fire. Business owners should seek an expert’s help following a fire because computer hard drives may have damage not seen outwardly. 

How fire damages hard drives and makes data recovery in Manchester Tough

Soot from the fire produces an oily film that sticks to items it touches. Computers that have withstood a fire might not be damaged by heat. However, they may have soot damage from a fire’s smoke. The soot can get into a computer hard drive, leave a film, and reside on a computer platter. These particles cannot be seen and may cause platter scoring.

In addition, the heat from a fire may cause a hard drive to warp. How hot does a typical fire in a UK office get? It may depend on how involved the fire is, how long it has burned, if there are chemicals that could increase a fire’s temperature and the amount of oxygen readily available in the building. How hot is a fire? Temperatures may range between 800 to 1,500 degrees Fahrenheit. This heat is enough to warp a platter that normally spins at 7,500 rpm to spin at a speed of 1,000 rpm, due to warping.

Has your laptop or desktop computer been in a fire? Did you know your data might not be lost? A trained professional may be able to retrieve all the files off your hard drive and has the equipment to perform the hard drive recovery in Manchester or the data recovery.

Why companies using tape drives desperately need to consider Upgrading

Tape drives just cannot be trusted. Did you know that they fail 100% of the time? With a Raid array, a business’s IT department may have time to hot swap failing disk drives before entire Raid 4, 5, or 10 systems go down. Plus, your tape drive will only be AWOL when you need it most. Since you can only retrieve data from a compatible tape drive, there is a good chance that an older, aging tape drive is no longer made, cannot be upgraded, and you cannot even order another model. This means even if your tape drive does not completely fail misreading data, you still may not be able to access the data that is there.

Are you prepared to lose an entire day’s work? Unlike some backup programs, tape drives cannot open any files. They also cannot perform continual backups, as some Raid array systems can. This makes them more obsolete. At the end of the day, if the system crashes, you still can lose all your work and have to begin again. Newer systems designed for data recovery perform virtual backups. It may take a snapshot of your work every 15 minutes. This way if your system fails, you won’t lose all your work for the day. The other good news is that the system can also backup all the other files you have left open before you headed home.

Tape drives do not save everything!

If you aren’t careful, tape drives will make a liar out of you. This is because they do not always record what you think they are recording. While it is true that tape drives will record your files, this doesn’t mean that your computer settings, data that you have typed in, or printer or Internet settings are getting saved. If a fire occurs, you may simply have to rebuild your backup server and you still lose data. Unlike the newer Raid systems or Mac external hard disk drives, you may not even be able to pay a professional to recover your sensitive information. Many businesses have moved to newer technology in order to protect what is most valuable to them. There may not be many specialists who have experience retrieving data off tape drives and converting it into a more usable form.

Isn’t it nice to know that data recovery doesn’t have to take days to complete?  If you haven’t made the switch from tape drive to a Raid system or an external or internal hard drive, what is holding you back? We recover data from hard drives, Memory sticks, Raid systems and more. 

Why backing up data in a cloud is just not enough for Businesses

Sometimes, business owners see ways to protect sensitive data as “one-size” solutions. But, the real truth is that clouds may not be the best way to keep data safe and it won’t allow a professional to recover data from a hard drive if it is only saved in a cloud. What are the best data solution for your large or small business, even if you may need to recover data from an external hard drive or need data recovery services in the UK?  

Here is a look at some of the reasons why business owners need to consider carefully their data storage options before spending thousands on a Raid system or opting to use Raid software instead of Raid hardware. If a business is considering a cloud, there are a few things to keep in mind when it comes to data storage, before you need to recover data from a hard drive and have trouble retrieving information from a cloud.

• Know your data - Is it best to back up your data on a USB drive and also have a Raid system to protect sensitive data? How important is the data to business operations. This may help determine how much security your company needs, and if they need a data recovery solution where they can recover data quickly from an external hard drive. 
• Don’t store redundant data - Many companies will store redundant data and this will eats up space on a hard drive. It may cause problems if a professional must recover data from a hard drive because much of the data are redundant. Thanks to disks being cheaper, many companies store much more information than they need to. Companies need to be selective in what they store. The same can also be said in what data are retrieved using data recovery services in the UK.  
• Make sure you can find data - Once data is saved, have a plan for finding your data. If you cannot find your data, you may have to pay unnecessary fees for data recovery services in the UK. Clouds don’t necessarily let you know where your company data is. This also makes it hard to plan how safe your data is.  
• Use companies that use reduplication, snapshot, and cloning - These technologies may it easier to restore data if you ever need to recover data from a hard drive or recover data from an external hard drive.  
• Make sure data are secure - Some business heads think clouds are nontaxable, but this isn’t true. One way to make sure your company data are safe is to have it backed up on multiple sources and also have off-site backups. This prevents the possibility that a Raid system may completely fail and all data are lost. However, in the event data is lost, professionals may be able to use data recovery services in the UK to retrieve the most sensitive of information more than 80 percent of the time.  

Have you ever been forced to consider how to recover data from an external hard drive? Isn’t it nice to know data recovery specialists can recommend the best ways to retrieve data? We recover data from hard drives, Memory sticks, Raid systems and more.

What UK businesses can take away from Target’s Breach?

Many people may be asking what UK companies can learn from a U.S. company’s security beach. They may be surprised at what Target’s error is teaching UK companies. Though Target isn’t being forthcoming with how all the details of how the data breach came to be, the pieced together facts underline the fact that big box retailer failed to have adequate security in place to protect their network from tampering.

By allowing a third-party vendor access to the retailer’s internal networks, the retailer gave up some of their own security controls and entrusted them to a third party. However, how does this put UK companies at risk?

No one is above being a Target

Despite the new data privacy laws, UK companies have seen the devastation that occurs from information falling into the wrong hands. How can company’s best protect their data, even when they do need Mac hard drive recovery or they must hire a contracted employee to undo the effects from corrupted hard drive recovery?

Do UK companies need strict procedural policies to follow when hiring third-party vendors? Target’s breach has already shown businesses large and small can be at risk from lax security measures.

Fines aren’t adequate enough to deter Hackers

According to one retailer of cell phones, UK businesses are lagging behind U.S. businesses. There are fewer EU compliant businesses that are compliant with data security standards. Even if hackers do breach a company’s security wall, fines are little deterrent to hackers. If hackers are not afraid of being to jail, there is reason for them to stop breaching a company’s security measures.

Without having security at the level of process card payments, hackers do not have much to keep them from accessing card data. Companies need to not just look at their initial defenses, but how hackers could have access at every juncture in the data collection process. By looking at if there are any weak spots in which hackers can access company data, a company can better comply with the new EU privacy laws and prevent a breach from costing more than £104,000.

Better data security solutions are needed to prevent future Hacking

Did you know 11.1 UK businesses admitted that they are fully compliant with data privacy laws? However, there are still 88 percent of businesses who have admitted their security measures could be improved upon. If UK businesses want to protect themselves from hacking, they must take all more steps to strengthen all points of access to data and data privacy. It may cause a company to headaches from any corrupted hard drive data recovery UK and raise overhead costs by needing corrupted hard drive recovery.

Is technology making it harder for UK employees to Focus?

Data is around us and like it or not, many UK companies are learning to adjust to new data strategies and new storage solutions, thanks to new EU data privacy regulations. For some employees, the new laws may create an extra workload. However, is this hurting a company’s overall production and increasing the amount of data losses suffered because of tired employees, etc.?

A 2005 study from the Institute of Psychiatry from the University of London found IQ drops 10 points when employees are constantly fielding emails, text messages, and telephone calls. Did you know men fared worse than women, on average? Women are better able to multi-task and so they may not suffer an IQ loss as deeply. Is sleep deprivation to blame for data losses and why some UK businesses may need to call a data recovery specialist to recover accidentally deleted data?

UK company heads may not understand privacy Laws

Many UK companies have admitted to not understanding UK privacy laws, as 26 % said they didn’t know if they were in compliance or not. Only 10% of UK businesses said they were in full compliance with UK data privacy rules and could reproduce encrypted data, if requested. Is the struggle with data because many business IT professionals and business heads do not understand data or it is changing too rapidly?

It may be a combination of the two. Researchers have also identified that changes in data retrieval, loss, and use may be tied to megatrends. Economic growth, globalisation, political and also individual change has had an effect on the rapid expansion of data and subsequent loss of data. However, population and climate change must also be factored in for many of the third-world companies that are currently offering services in the UK. This may impact why UK businesses have suffered data losses or struggled to find companies offering data technology that may keep pace with their changing needs.

Why should UK companies consider all these factors before determining which data storage equipment to buy? Have you had a good experience in purchasing encryption data storage which will meet your company’s future needs? We recover data from hard drives, Memory sticks, Raid systems and more.

Best ways employees can protect their iPhones from Hackers

How can employees protect their sensitive phone data from hackers who may use that data to run up thousands of pounds worth of charges on a credit card? With the recent changes to data privacy, residents may have more protection than people in other countries. But, they still may not be safe from identity theft. What should phone owners know so that they can protect their sensitive data on their mobile devices? Knowing your model of phone, the serial or IMEI number, and a description of your iPhone may help retrieve this technology that you depend upon.

Contact your network provider as soon as your device is stolen. By making the theft known as soon as possible, no one may be able to access and copy your most sensitive data. Is there a way to lock the phone when not in use, such as Pin or security lock code? Some of the newer phones, such as the iPhones, have a feature where a phone may be remotely locked. An owner can render their phone and sim card unlockable by using the phone’s features. Newer features such as fingerprint scanners or readers are also becoming more widely available on recent smartphones.

Don’t make the amateur mistake of storing passwords

You may save a few seconds of extra time, but it isn’t worth the hassle. It may not take a hacker long to find your password and once they have it; they may have access to your financial accounts and credit card information. If you cannot remember a password, store it on a piece of paper where you won’t forget it, away from the card. You may spend a few extra minutes looking for your passwords, but your banking information will be safe.

Clear your texted messages, addresses and important information as soon as possible. If you do not have it on your computer, a hacker cannot steal any information. What if you accidentally lock your sim card password and do not remember the password to unlock the phone and transfer data to a different storage means? A data recovery pro may be able to help UK and even North Ireland’s residents recover their lost passwords and data from iPhones.

Don’t forget to delete what you don’t regularly use

Delete your browser information as soon as possible. The history of websites visited may be an open book to a hacker and ammunition that may be used against a phone user. Doing all these things can better protect an iPhone that uses state-of-the-art technology. However, do not forget a data recovery specialist is also a call away if something goes awry and you need sensitive information off your phone’s SIM card.

How changes with data centres are changing how data is recovered

How are changes in data centres, changing organisations’ opinions about data centre efficiency? Are data centres the best way to keep your data safe, without having to worry about data loss? Though the idea data centres may not be new, UK IT organizations may face new challenges when it comes to securing data. With UK users increasing their use of laptops, tablets, Smartphones, and iPads, IT organisations have having to broaden their support of devices. However, instead of concentrating on the devices and instead are focused on users

Data centres are looking at efficiency as well as looking for ways to save money. One way centres are saving money is how they are virtualizing as many applications as possible. However, this is not all. They are using storage efficiency technologies, such as data duplication. Buying servers that allow centres to maximise space and power and also consolidate applications.

Need for growing mobile force is changing face of data centres

With more and more users buying Smartphones, the sector of Smartphone and other mobile phone users is growing and instead of looking at them as assets, many behind data centre operations are changing their perspectives. IT centres are moving from a command and control mind-set, to one that considers their customer’s needs. IT departments are working to welcome their best customers that are loyal to the company. They also are working to find out their customers’ needs and cater more towards offering service-minded solutions.

How can data centres keep their customers from switching to their competition and still offering what customers need? Many IT departments have mulled changes that could be made. With blaring errors found with many so-called safe cloud options, many customers have refused to consider a cloud for their business or home needs. What are IT departments doing in order to reassure customers that their data truly is safe and there is not any need to worry about data being stolen and data recovery services having to retrieve a customer’s file?

Keeping data safe for all customers

However, companies should not forget their remote location users. These users may depend on data centres to keep their most sensitive data secure.  Though even data centres are not fool-proof to the possibility of data loss and may need data recovery, there has to be a balance between customer needs and what customers want. If data centres do not have what customers want, they will look for data recovery centres that can provide what they need.

Recovering Data from an HP P4000 Series Server

Here at Belfast Data Recovery we know the importance of keeping your data safe and up to date and more so when it comes to servers that are used to help feed information to large numbers of staff on a permanent loop basis. When a server breaks down or suffers a hardware failure such as that of a hard drive (or in some rare instances a series of hard drives) then it can prove difficult if not impossible to recover said data and move forward.

A great deal of time and money can be lost if such data is lost (or considered lost) and it can be days if not longer before an organisation can return to full operational capacity in the aftermath of such a data loss.

Our Belfast Data Recovery engineers have developed a way in which it is possible to recover data from hard drives contained in failed Hewlett Packard Left-Hand Server ranges including the HP P4000 StoreVirtual range. As you will already be aware if you own or operate one of the P4000 series of Store Virtual storage solutions, they are expensive as well as highly complex pieces of equipment. And now that the line itself has been discontinued it has become harder to find replacement components etcetera if needed.

As indicated though, here at Belfast Data Recovery our engineers have developed a way of forensically reverse engineering the hard drives in order to recover data from them which Hewlett Packard themselves will tell you is not possible. Indeed we have helped a number of clients with such setups who have been told directly by Hewlett Packard that it is impossible to retrieve data from these setups at they are unrecoverable.

We have assisted clients who have encountered problems as the result of Node failures within their P4000 series array. These setups were designed to work using the lowest recorded speed of a Node within the array which can lead to problems if there have been additional Nodes added that are designed to work at higher speeds and cannot perform as such.

Another prominent issue presented to our Belfast Data Recovery engineers is that of Node storage.

For example when HP first released the P4000 series onto the market during 2008 the highest volume Node available was 300GB (running at a rate of 7200RPM). This was fine until 2012 when the 300GB minimum Node size was replaced by that of a 450GB drive (also running at 7200RPM). This meant that every 450GB drive that replaced a 300GB drive did so with the loss of 150GB of space because the array itself was designed to work on 300GB drives.

As well as meaning that there was a loss of volume space per drive it also meant that it was still not always a good idea to replace a faulty NODE with a new one because both data and space were being sacrificed in the process.

We however at Belfast Data Recovery have developed our own unique method of recovering data from faulty NODEs without them being rendered completely unrecoverable by Hewlett Packard. Our engineers are on hand to help with your queries and requests regarding the recovery of data from the HP P4000 series and can do with using the hard drives only (no need for the bulky casing and rack mountings etc.).

For more information on how we can help your business or organisation recover from a server crash involving the HP P4000 series contact us today at Belfast Data Recovery on 02890 961976 and a member of our engineering team will be happy to talk you through just how we can go about recovering the data from what has always been considered to be an unrecoverable system.

Our lines (and data recovery centre) are open Monday to Friday 9am to 6pm and our engineers can offer you a variety of recovery services dependent on your budget and your timescale for recovering data.

Don’t consider your HP P4000 series unrecoverable and beyond use, call us today and find out how we can recover your data and get you back to work.