Hurricane Harvey is expected to wreak havoc on Houston and other Texas cities on Aug. 25th. Widespread flooding is possible, and indeed, probable at this point.

When any natural disaster hits, Datarecovery.com receives numerous cases from business owners, government administrative offices, and personal computer users who have lost data. Flooding is an especially serious issue, since water-damaged hard drives, solid-state drives, and servers pose unique challenges for data recovery engineers.

Flood water isn’t clean, of course, and it can introduce contaminants that cause corrosion and other serious problems. Electronic damage is common after flooding, and time is a major factor—the longer a computer user waits to seek help, the lower the chances of recovery.

There is good news, however: The vast majority of flood-damaged hard drives are completely recoverable with the right tools and knowledge. Datarecovery.com has handled thousands of data recovery cases involving floods, fires, and other hurricane-related damage, and we’re one of the only companies operating real, full-service laboratories at every location.

We’re hoping to help Hurricane Harvey victims by providing a 35 percent discount on all of our data recovery services. If you’ve been affected by the flood and you need to recover data from a hard drive, server, or any other device, take these steps immediately:

• Make sure that your computer is powered off and unplugged before handling any media. Ground yourself to avoid static shocks; remember, water and electricity aren’t a great combination.

• Don’t attempt to dry, clean, or repair damaged media. This includes (but is not limited to) hard drives; to clean the drive without damaging it, you’d need special equipment including a controlled clean room environment, so the safest course of action is to contact an expert data recovery laboratory.

• Contact our engineers to discuss the situation. Every case is different, and we can provide advice to help you preserve and ship your media safely.

Of course, the best course of action is to avoid data loss in the first place. If you’re reading this before Hurricane Harvey hits, backup any important data off site. Make multiple backups of mission-critical data, and take appropriate steps to protect your media before the hurricane hits.

We’re wishing for the safety for everyone in the path of Hurricane Harvey. To discuss data recovery options for your case, call us today at 1-800-237-4200.

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All hard drives can fail, however, and we have received thousands of Fujitsu drives since our inception. Our engineers can typically perform Fujitsu laptop data recovery within a few days (expedited options are also available). Call 1.800.237.4200 for a free evaluation or read on for more details.

Some common sources of failure for Fujitsu drives include:

• Head Crashes – All laptop hard drives are somewhat susceptible to read/write head failures (commonly referred to as “crashes”) since laptop computers are more likely to be dropped or mishandled. This increases the chances of a mechanical malfunction. Fujitsu drives are in older laptops (2009 and earlier), and many of these computers don’t have safeguards to protect against sudden drops and falls.The symptoms of a head crash include clicking sounds, whirring sounds, and other noises. A failed Fujitsu drive may fail to load, but the extent of the damage will certainly affect the failure symptoms. This type of failure requires treatment in a Class 5 clean room.

• Microcode Issues – A hard drive’s microcode includes hardware specifics such as the spindle speed, temperature calibration, head amplification compensation, optimal voice coil current, and other drive-specific information that cannot be recreated without specialized tools.When a Fujitsu drive encounters a firmware issue, it will often become completely inaccessible. It might also show incorrect drive info in the computer’s BIOS or equivalent start-up interface. Datarecovery.com can access track-1 of the hard drive to work directly with microcode, often resulting in a full recovery.

• Electronic Damage – Electronic issues can occur due to a damaged or faulty laptop power supply, a power surge, or for dozens of other reasons. Many laptops will not power on at all after an electronic failure, although some may present hard drive read/write issues. The symptoms of an electronic failure can mimic the symptoms of a head failure — and in many cases, the a Fujitsu laptop hard drive will sustain both types of damage following a major electronic event.

These aren’t the only sources of failure, and we have also treated hundreds of drives that have lost data due to application errors and accidental formats. In any case, we can typically recover the data quickly; Datarecovery.com successfully recovers over 97 percent of legacy hard drives.

On October 1st of 2009, Fujitsu completely transferred its hard drive business to Toshiba, and subsequent models created with Fujitsu technology have carried the Toshiba brand name. However, Fujitsu still provides HDD-based devices, including laptops in the Lifebook series. Datarecovery.com provides options for every Fujitsu hard drive, including non-branded models in newer computers.

If you need data from a failed Fujitsu drive, it’s extremely important to choose an experienced data recovery company. Inexperienced providers will not have the technology or resources necessary to treat advanced microcode issues, head failures, and other sources of damage, especially on older Fujitsu models. Datarecovery.com offers free evaluations and a no data, no charge guarantee with every case. Call us today at 1.800.237.4200 to get started.
*Fujitsu is a registered trademark of Fujitsu America, Inc.

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A common misconception is that hard drives, flash cards, and other devices can be easily repaired by re-soldering or replacing electronic components. While simple electronic repairs certainly play a role in our process, data recovery requires an extremely specialized set of electronic repair tools. It’s usually impossible to simply replace a component or even an entire printed circuit board (PCB) without affecting a storage device’s functionality.

This article gives an overview of the basic electronic repair methods we use when providing data recovery services. If you have a device with damaged electronics, call us at 1.800.237.4200 to get a quote.

Hard Drive Firmware and Microcode Repair Technology

Printed circuit boards allow hard drives and other devices to interact with your computer, and before your drive can read or write data, it consults firmware on its printed circuit board and on service tracks on the platters. Electronic issues such as power surges can affect the circuit board and damage the firmware; the firmware can also encounter issues during normal operation.

Hard drive firmware contains specific operational programming that allows the drive to function. This includes drive-specific information such as:

• Voice Coil Voltage
• Head-to-Head Relation (HHR)
• Spindle Speed
• Lists of Bad Sectors

Most of this information is on the service areas of the platter, but a small amount is contained on the electronics board. If the firmware is damaged, the hard drive will fail, since it doesn’t have all of the operating instructions it needs to function.

Unfortunately, firmware can be difficult to work with, since it’s different from drive to drive; while modern hard drives are similar within a “family” of model numbers, they’re by no means identical. This is why it’s not possible to simply switch out a damaged electronics board.

Datarecovery.com introduced a major innovation in the mid-2000s by establishing one of the industry’s first firmware repair laboratories. We can repair damage to both the electronics board and the service tracks of a hard drive, restoring temporary function and allowing for successful data recovery procedures. Our engineers can also repair or replace failed read/write heads and other mechanical components when necessary, and we recover over 95 percent of hard drives with electronic issues.

Electronics Repair Options for Flash Drives and Solid-State Drives

Flash devices such as USB thumb drives and solid-state drives also have precise electronics. As flash has become less expensive and more popular, we’ve developed tools to treat various types of NAND effectively. We outfit all of our laboratories with these tools in order to provide our clients with efficient service and high success rates.

Just as important is the expertise of our engineers – as with hard drives, no two flash devices are identical, and our flash data recovery engineers can create unique utilities when necessary to recover information in a usable state. This requires a complete knowledge of the algorithms that flash devices use to write and erase data.

Datarecovery.com’s success rates are extremely high for most flash devices. We offer free evaluations and price quotes, and if your device isn’t functional, we recommend an in-lab evaluation to limit the chances of accidental damage.

Call us at 1.800.237.4200 to speak with a data recovery electronics repair expert.

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The deadly storms have killed more than a dozen people and destroyed homes and businesses throughout the region.

“Many businesses are struggling to get their computer systems back up and running, and these first few days are crucial. Lost computer files can make an enormous difference for some companies,” said Ben Carmitchel, President of DataRecovery.com.

Hard drives and computer devices can take additional damage in the weeks following a major natural disaster, as storm water can cause corrosion and other issues. DataRecovery.com urges computer users to take immediate action to protect their files.

“In addition to physical damage, we often see damage from electrical shocks, flooding, and fires following major natural disasters,” said Carmitchel. “Because the damage can get worse over time, we recommend getting assistance right away.”

DataRecovery.com’s engineers carefully clean damaged media in a certified Class 5 clean room, removing water, dirt, and other sources of contamination. They can then provide a detailed data recovery report, and if the computer’s owner chooses to proceed with the recovery, the process is completed within several days.

Even if computer users do not want to pay for the services, they can receive free hard drive evaluation services to limit damage. DataRecovery.com also provides free shipping for tornado victims and a sizable data recovery discount.

“We’re trying to help in any way we can,” said Carmitchel. “We can recover data from most hard drives, even when they’ve sustained serious damage. However, it’s very important to get the damaged hard disk to a reputable data recovery provider as quickly as possible.”

DataRecovery.com’s engineers carefully clean damaged media in a certified Class 5 clean room, removing water, dirt, and other sources of contamination. They can then provide a detailed data recovery report, and if the computer’s owner chooses to proceed with the recovery, the process is completed within several days.

Datarecovery.com is a worldwide leader in data recovery services. With four locations in California, Illinois, Arizona, and Toronto, the company provides a variety of services to thousands of clients each year. Visit www.datarecovery.com for more information.

Contact Information

Datarecovery.com, Inc.
Ben Carmitchel
1-602-635-2020
www.datarecovery.com

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“We’ve already received a number of hard drives from businesses and personal computer users through our St. Louis laboratory,” said Ben Carmitchel, President of DataRecovery.com. “Over the next month or so, we expect to receive several hundred more. Major storms usually cause data loss, unfortunately, and this storm was particularly rough for our customers.”

Sensitive electronics also need protection from extreme weather. If a laptop or desktop computer sits in a cold environment with temperatures of under 60 degrees, the computer should sit in a room temperature environment for at least four hours before operation. This allows the computer’s hard drive to adjust to the new temperature, preventing hard drive read/write head issues. Computer owners should also ground themselves before handling their hard drives. Static electricity can build up during dry winters, and static discharge can instantly damage electronics.

Most importantly, computer users should regularly back up important files. A regular backup plan can prevent permanent data loss on any system, regardless of its size, and Carmitchel notes that data recovery should be a last resort.

“We offer data recovery for all types of hard drives, servers, and other storage devices,” said Carmitchel. “Of course, we’d rather help our clients avoid data loss in the first place, particularly during harsh winter weather.”

Datarecovery.com is a world leader in data recovery and computer forensics. With four locations in California, Illinois, Arizona, and Toronto, the company provides a variety of services to thousands of clients each year. Visit www.datarecovery.com for more information.

Contact Information

Datarecovery.com, Inc.
Ben Carmitchel
1-618-635-2020
www.datarecovery.com
Ph. 800.237.4200 ext. 269

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