Charting Disaster: Top Five Causes of Data Loss
by: jameswalsh
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Lost and inaccessible data can be extracted professionally at a great expense. It usually takes days of hard work as the entire workforce of the company sits idle, waiting for the process to be over. Data loss is a fairly common occurrence. Some of its most common causes are given below.
Hard Disk Crash
A hard disk crash is the stuff nightmares are made of in the cyber-world. The disk is the primary storage device inside computers and laptops and holds all the user data and software programmes. It is obviously a very critical device that is guarded very zealously because if anything happens to it, all data becomes lost and inaccessible. Despite a user’s best efforts, a hard disk may still develop a variety of hardware errors. This is because it has many delicate and moving parts inside which undergo normal wear and tear with time.
The most dreaded hardware error ever to hit a hard disk is its crash. To understand what happens during such an occurrence, it is essential to know how a hard disk functions. The disk stores data on a series of vertically arranged platters that are spun rapidly by a spindle motor situated at their base. When the disk is switched on, the read / write head moves over the platters from is parking space alongside. The spinning of platters creates an air current over their surface which makes the head float over them at a sub-micron height. The head moves all over the data recording surface of the platters, processing data on the directions of the operating system.
A hard disk crash occurs when the head and the platters make contact. When this happens, the head scratches the platter surface and damages data. An extreme case of hard disk crash is when the head becomes unhinged and gets stuck on the data-recording surface. This can result in permanent destruction of a large chunk of data residing on the disk.
Hard disk crash is a very serious situation. There is nothing that can be done by the users to salvage the data. The only option is to unscrew the disk and immediately take it to a data-recovery company which will then try to extract data files by disassembling the device in a clean room.
Physical Trauma and Hardware Damage
Physical trauma – the damage caused to storage device hardware due to mishandling – is another prominent cause of data loss. A hard disk may suffer terminal damage if it is accidentally dropped to the ground. Sometimes, it may get burnt to a cinder in a fire or get soaked in water. An optical disk on the other hand may develop scratches on its data-recording surface or some thick viscous liquid may spill over it, smudging the pattern of pits that represents data. It may also get exposed to intense heat and melt or get twisted out of shape. A USB drive may get crushed under a heavy object and get destroyed. A tape drive may get burnt or break after getting entangled in the drive mechanism.
User Errors
Software errors inflicted by the user are quite a common cause of data loss. The most prevalent of these is accidental deletion of a file. In such a case, the file is easily recovered from the Recycle Bin. However, when the Bin is also purged of all data, then the file becomes inaccessible to the operating system and data loss occurs. Another user error is reformatting of the storage media such as a hard disk, optical disk or USB drive.
In this, what actually happens is that the file directory and file allocation tables are deleted and the operating system marks the entire recording surface as available for overwriting. However, the files are still very much there on the media. Because of this, files that have been accidentally deleted or lost due to reformatting of the device can easily be recovered by any run-of-the-mill Do-It-Yourself software that can be purchased online and downloaded to one’s computer.
Virus Attack
Computer viruses are malicious software programmes that cause damage worth billions of dollars every year. These enter computer systems usually through the Internet as email attachments. Once they get themselves copied onto your hard disk, they become active. Some of them can cause horrible damage such as reformatting the entire hard disk without your permission. They may destroy the software code of data files and make them corrupt and inaccessible to the user.
Disasters
Disasters can be either natural or manmade. These do not strike frequently but when they do, they cause massive damage to the premises and the digital equipment located in it. The most common such disaster is fire, followed by water damage (floods). Then there are cyclones, earthquakes, volcano eruption and terrorist strikes which keep hitting one part of the world or other with great regularity.
About the Author
James Walsh is a freelance writer and copy editor. If you are concerned about data loss and would like more information on Data Recovery see http://www.fields-data-recovery.co.uk
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