When the worst happens to your computer and all your files disappear, never worry! There are a number of quality data recovery companies that are able to restore your critical files quickly and easily.

Instead of tearing out your hair over a stubborn computer that is holding that essential file hostage, let the worries slide away and send off your hard drive to a data recovery company. These companies work their magic and recover files of all sizes in a remarkably quick turn around time. This service is essential for any individual or business that has fallen onto hard times with their computer.

Most data recovery companies operate over the internet and occupy cyberspace as they would a store front. If you find yourself in need of a quality company to find your files, look no further than the World Wide Web.

A simple search of search engines will produce hundreds of quality companies eager to solve your every problem. Before you send off your hard drive, carefully evaluate the chosen company to ensure it is legitimate and reputable. Using an incorrect company may result in further headaches and a loss of money for services not rendered.

Upon your search for a data recovery company, investigate their capabilities and services. Choosing a company that will best serve your needs will ensure the greater success in the end. You may need to compare services versus charges for these data recovery companies. If you have good Sql Backups then you should just recover from them and not worry.

The old adage, “you get what you pay for” could not be truer when it comes to regaining your lost files. If you are taking the trouble to send off your hard drive in an attempt to reclaim critical files for business or personal reasons, then you should be prepared to spend the appropriate amount of money to get the job done. However, just because one data recovery is more expensive than another one does not mean the pricier company is more successful.

When choosing a data recovery company to reclaim your files, consider contacting individuals who has used their services in the past. This recommendation to use or to avoid the company may be an excellent method to choosing a company.

Also, contact the company directly and explain your specific situation. A representative for the company will be able to discuss the possibility of the recovery of your files and the estimated cost of their services. You should be sure to inquire the expense if the company is unable to recover the lost files. Many companies offer to return your hard drive without charging for their services if they are unable to deliver your compromised files.

Whichever data recovery company you entrust to regain your lost files, be sure to keep the company’s contact information if you are pleased with the services rendered. Having this resource can be invaluable if a similar fate befalls your files in the future and you need a reputable source to recover these files as quickly as possible. If you are pleased with the data recovery company, be sure to tell other individuals in your predicament.

In our world where data is power, large companies put a high priority on their data back-up and data storage. Unfortunately, this kind of data storage is typically very expensive and impractical for the small home PC user. Luckily, with the introduction of two new formats of digital storage that are now available, there is a solution. With the DLT or Digital Linear Tape and the LTO or Linear Tape Open, the need for data storage has far exceeded past levels (as compared to previous had 8mm or DDS backups).

1. Recent Boost In Performance

The Digital Linear Tape or DLT systems have been available for use to everyone since 1985, and recent increases in both speed and capacity has given this technology a new lease on life. In fact, they have been the leading technology in the past several years for small to medium-sized systems. The only competitors for DLT were DDS or DAT tapes. The advantage of DLT tapes above these two leading competitors is that the tape heads had a tendency to drift that meant technicians had to constantly monitor them to ensure storage. Unlike DLT reliability that is based on a straight up and down recording mode.

2. Super DLT

A newer version with higher capacity and improved features is called Super DLT (SDLT). Super DLT uses a new recording format, but it also maintains a limited form of backwards compatibility with previous iterations of DLT. It incorporates the ability to read older tapes, although it cannot write to them. This means it would probably be quite useful in allowing organizations to maintain their present archives in a useable form. This would mean that there can be a very big saving both in time and money for companies because older tapes don’t have to be re-recorded onto newer ones.

4. Tremendous Boost In Speed And Capacity

With the introduction of Super DLT earlier this year, the capacity has soared as much as 110 gigabytes on one cartridge, at a speed of 10 megabytes per second. A tremendous boost in performance was seen with the speed of backup doubled, and capacity more than doubled, the technology is now capable to handle large systems and networks that DLT previously couldn’t handle. Competing technologies can offer very fast backups, but the tapes themselves contain very little data – hundreds of megabytes as opposed to the hundreds of gigabytes that DLT offers.

5. Linear Tape Open

Another technology that has recently emerged that is comparable, if not a bit more advanced than DLT is LTO or Linear Tape Open. A consortium product from Seagate, IBM and Hewlett-Packard. LTO can put 100 gigabytes on a cartridge and can store data at speeds up to 15 megabytes per second. But there are a lot who still prefer to use the more known and reliable Super DLT. There are very cautious system administrators who don’t wish to try LTO, one technician even said that DLT is a more than acceptable choice: Thirty million cartridges and a million tape drives can’t be wrong. Of course, LTO can’t be totally neglected. Of course, Super DLT uses a good deal of new technology as well, so even though LTO is a completely new technology, it has able to pave a nice pathway for it that may help establish itself for future preference.

6. Long Life

These kinds of storage media are guaranteed to last for 30 years of data retention under very specific environmental conditions; however, mishandling can easily damage these storage devices for example, dropping or improper packaging during shipment may easily damage or destroy the device’s capability to store data properly. With today’s ever increasing demands for storage capacity because of our need to protect and store our data, it is possible that there is going to be more pressure on hardware developers to produce a lot more faster and bigger storage and backup devices to back up, store, protect and retrieve important data be it business or personal. Now both medium and small size users are given a choice: Super DLT, based on generations of thorough development and refinement, or LTO, a new technology from a high-powered and stable group of advance technological companies.

Backup Tape Usage and Replacement ScheduleDuring the tape backup process, the tape backup media is moved across read/write heads, alignment rollers and drive rollers. Each pass through the tape drive wears away a small amount of the oxide coating used to store the data. A worn tape may backup and verify without error only to fail when a file needs to be restored. The trick is to maximize the use of the tape without allowing it to wear out.

Our recommended backup tape usage and replacement schedule is derived from input from hundreds of users, tape and drive manufacturers’ recommended replacement schedules, and years and years of monitoring tape life and backup integrity.

In short..It works.

The schedule includes, at any time, 12 tapes. The tapes are labeled as follows:

1) Monday 5) Friday 1 9) Quarter 1

2) Tuesday 6) Friday 2 10) Quarter 2

3) Wednesday 7) Friday 3 11) Quarter 3

4) Thursday 8) Friday 4 12) Quarter 4

The Monday through Thursday tapes are used as expected. On Fridays, one of 4 tapes is used. The Friday 1,2,3 and 4 tapes are used consecutively so that you always have a backup more than 1 week old. We have witnessed situations where a virus has infected a network, and corrupted files. Only going back to a pre-infection backup allows rebuilding of such files, and it often takes a few days to detect or identify such infections.

The quarter 1,2,3 and 4 tapes are used at the end of each of your fiscal quarters. These tapes are usually tapes close to the end of their service life. This will be the last use for this tape.

This rotation schedule requires purchasing four new tapes each year. At the time of purchase, the tapes are rotated into different roles. Each Friday tape is set aside awaiting a quarterly backup role. Monday to Thursday tapes are advanced to Friday 1, 2, 3, and 4 roles. 4 new tapes are introduced into the Monday – Thursday roles.

This schedule involves using each tape 66 times. We have found this to be a reasonable life expectancy for most backup tapes. The schedule gives you several levels of protection should a loss or corruption occur.

Keep in mind the tapes need to be kept warm and dry and at least the weekly and quarterly tapes off site.