Vantage Data Recovery

In Anatomy of a Hard Drive, we looked at how a hard drive works, and the mechanics of writing bits of data by magnetically encoding it onto rapidly spinning disks.  Consider this: Eight bits make a byte.  One million bytes makes a megabyte.  One thousand megabytes, or one billion bits, makes a gigabyte.  That 300 GB drive in your system?  Three hundred billion bytes, or 2.4 billion bits!  So how does the drive keep track of them all?  Through a system which provides for an operating system format, layered over a low-level or physical format. Continue reading ‘Cylinders, Heads and Sectors, Oh My!’ »

People are always asking us for advice regarding data storage and security issues, usually in an attempt to avoid future problems after a major data loss catastrophe that has required our data recovery services.  Questions about anti-virus software, spyware detection, and backup methods are fairly common, and we do our best to provide answers (or at least, to point people in the right direction).  But, by far, one of the most common questions we get is “who makes the best hard drive?” Continue reading ‘What Hard Drive Would You Recommend?’ »

Hard drive: noun – a mechanical device used in computers for storing and retrieving data, generally consisting of a spindle, motor, one or more disks, a corresponding number of read-write heads attached to an actuator, inside a case, with a circuit board attached.

Hard drive technology has evolved rapidly since the introduction of the Winchester drive in the 1960’s.  With ever-increasing size and speed has come new interfaces, magnetic coatings, data recording methods, etc., but the general mechanics have remained the same. Continue reading ‘Anatomy of a Hard Drive’ »

DIY or “do it yourself” projects are as popular as ever.  The satisfaction and sense of accomplishment, not to mention financial savings are great motivators for those of us who would rather take on projects ourselves than hire someone to do them.  But we must know our limits.  I might, for example, change a faucet on the bathroom sink.  If I want to move the sink to another location I know that I need to find a good plumber.  I just don’t have the tools, knowledge or experience to do that kind of job and be sure it will be done right.

The internet abounds with information on how to do almost anything, and data recovery is no exception.  Your drive doesn’t work?  Hit it.  Drop it.  Tap it.  Slap it.  Kick it.  Freeze it. Continue reading ‘DIY Data Recovery’ »