The facts about remote data recovery

Jim Reinert, Ontrack Data Recovery   Today’s Top Stories    or  Other Disaster Recovery Stories  

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April 26, 2005 (Computerworld) -- Losing data is an overwhelming situation. One minute, everything is working fine, and the next, everything is gone. Why did this happen? How did this happen? What are you going to do?
The good news is that lost data can be recovered. Once users understand that all is not lost, they want to know how fast they can get their data back and return to normal operations. There are several options for recovery, including restoring from backup, sending the media/hard drive to a lab for engineers to work on in a clean room, or do-it-yourself software. Another option that isn't used as often is remote recovery.
Remote data recovery is performed through a modem or Internet connection by engineers using technology to achieve the same results as if the hard drive had been sent to a lab, yet in a more convenient manner for the customer. Assuming the hard drive is still functioning, remote recovery can be achieved for a single file or for huge volumes of data.
However, many users don't consider remote recovery to be as reliable as sending damaged drives to a lab. They believe recovery can be achieved only by engineers with highly specialized tools in state-of-the-art clean rooms. Users also are concerned about the security of having their computer systems, and their valuable data, connected to a third-party system and any vulnerability that might create.
Depending on the scenario, remote recovery offers the same advantages as in-lab service, with the added benefit of faster recovery times -- often as short as one hour. The initial goal is to either make the original volume mountable -- meaning that the operating system can read and write data to that drive -- or restore the data to its previous location. If this isn't possible, the engineer copies the data to a different location on the customer's system. With no need to dismantle and ship the drive or hardware for service, many concerns about a traditional recovery are eliminated. Security isn't an issue, since each recovery is performed through a connection secured with proprietary communication protocols and encrypted packets.
Remote recovery can solve many data-loss problems because it works for all types of recoveries, including servers, desktops and laptops, across a wide variety of media, platforms and operating systems. In addition, the pricing structure is similar to traditional in-lab work. With remote recovery you're not paying more, but you're potentially getting your data back faster.
Requirements of remote recovery
The major requirement of remote service is that the hardware must be working for lost data to be recovered. In these cases where there is physical damage, the hard drive needs to go into a recovery lab so engineers can use special tools to get the drive running again for long enough to copy the data.
There are other hurdles with remote service for customers already shaken by their data-loss experience. Remote service requires some assistance by the customer so the engineer can connect with the system and produce a file listing.

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