Most computer experts rely on removable hard drives for memory backups. The most popular of these drives are Zip drive from Iomega and ORB drive from Castlewood. They’re relatively inexpensive and hold up to two gigs of data. Basically, you’ll save your data on a Zip disk, then transfer it from disk to portable drive. The catch is that removable drives fail about as often as regular hard drives. They may even be more susceptible to damage from dust and rough handling. A sub-option here is to use a permanent hard drive as a removable drive. At up to two hundred gigs, conventional hard drives are bigger than removable drives, and prices have dropped enough in recent years to make this idea practical. Whatever kind of hard drive you decide to use, make sure to keep it isolated from dust, magnetic charges, and static electricity.

Optical drives use a laser to store information, rather than a magnet. Even if you’re not a tech junkie, that’s probably enough information to give you a clearer idea what we’re talking about: namely, CDs and DVDs. Less common are EO (erasable optical) and WORM (write once, read many) media; they’re less common because they cost over $1000 per drive. CDs, on other hand, cost less than a buck and can hold up to 650 megabytes. DVDs hold up to five gigs and cost about fifteen dollars apiece. Most computers nowadays have either a CD or DVD writer (or both), but write times can be slow. My CD writer, for example, works best on 300 kilobyte per second setting—if then. I’ll be using remote server option. At $250 and up, tape drives are more expensive and slower than hard drives or optical media, hence less common, but also extremely reliable.

Remote servers are third party companies that store data online for a fee. This is a great option for broadband Internet users, especially people like me who don’t own a reliable data writer. SkyDesk runs Backup.com, Back-Up Solutions maintains BackUpHelp.com, and Iomega hosts iServer (Iomega.com/iStorage). XDrive.com, once a free service, now charges ten bucks a month for up to five gigs of storage. Promotions and other rates change, so it’s a good idea to shop around before selecting a remote storage service.

STEP THREE: Git ’er Done

Now it’s time to put files you want to save on storage medium you’ve chosen. There are several ways to do this. Your CD writer, for example, may come with proprietary disk writing software. That application may even include a backup option. If it does, and you’re more familiar with that software than Windows features, then that’s way to go. Otherwise, backup is still relatively easy on all MS operating systems since Windows 98. Windows 98, Windows ME, and Windows XP Professional include a built-in Backup utility. To run it, just click on Start, then Programs, then Accessories, then System Tools, then Backup. How easy was that? If you’re using XP Home edition, you may need to add utility manually. If so, insert Windows XP CD into your disk drive and wait for “Welcome to Microsoft Windows XP” screen. (You may need to double-click CD icon in My Computer.) Then click on Perform Additional Tasks and Browse This CD. In Windows Explorer, double-click ValueAdd folder, then Msft, then Ntbackup. Double-clicking on Ntbackup.msi will install utility. Once it’s installed, you can also run program by clicking Start and Run, then typing msbackup.exe (Windows 98 and Windows ME) or ntbackup.exe (Windows XP) in Open field. Click OK, and you’ll be off to races.

Incidentally, Windows XP Backup utility also includes a bonus application called Automated Recovery Wizard. This creates a bootable floppy that initiates backup if hard drive must be replaced. Other options for “disaster recovery” include BackUp MyPC from Stomp (StompInc.com, $79) and Norton Ghost 9.0 from Symantec (Norton.com, $69.95). Ghost actually allows users to duplicate contents of their computer over Internet. Both have earned stellar reviews from top PC magazines.

Don’t let another month go by without protecting files you value most. My girlfriend justifies her messy car by saying she “lives out of it.” Well, I live out of my computer. It’s not just my office; it’s home of cherished memories in form of pictures, MP3, and other data files. I’m resolved to keep it safe.

The time frame for recovery is generally 5-10 business days for physical issues and 2-4 days for logical issues. Sometimes if components are not readily available, then it may take weeks to complete recovery. Some firms offer expedite service and you definitely pay for this added attention.

What About Data Recovery Software

This is one area where you really do get what you pay for. Try to stay away from software in $20-$60 range, since these utilities are generally very limited in what they can do. Also make sure that you NEVER and just to emphasize, NEVER EVER get data recovery software that writes anything at all to damaged disk. You run risk of overwriting data that may otherwise have been recoverable, but will be lost forever. If you are fairly computer savvy, then there are a few good data recovery software solutions available.

What To Look For When Shopping For Data Recovery

There’s an old saying, “you get what you pay for.” In most cases this is true. However, just because a company with a fancy website quotes you $3,500 for data recovery, does not mean that they are any better than a company that quotes you $1,500. Also, try to stay away from companies that want to charge $50-$300 for evaluating your drive. There has been a movement in data recovery industry over last couple of years to offer a number of free services. Most reputable data recovery companies will evaluate standard IDE drives free of charge; so don’t let word “free” this or “free” that stop you. The data recovery market is quickly becoming saturated, and a company does not necessarily cheapen itself or lack expertise by offering free evaluations.

You will find as you shop around for data recovery that prices vary greatly. You will get quotes that range from $300 to $5,000 for standard hard drive recoveries. It’s not uncommon to literally get quotes that have at least a $1,500 high/low spread. We shopped one prominent data recovery company where we gave them specific indicators of a physical hard drive failure. We were eventually quoted a price range of $600 to $2,900 for recovery. Many times this is a bait and switch type tactic. They get you to send in drive with low-end $600 price, then they let you know it’s going to cost $2,100 for recovery. You end up being well under $2,900 high-end price, but well over what other reputable companies would charge. Since most customers won’t go through pain of having drive sent back, only to have to send it out to another company, these bait and switch companies end up making huge profits off of unsuspecting customers.

Try to find a company that will give you an up front cost for either a logical or physical recovery. Most companies will be able to tell you within a couple hundred dollars cost of a recovery. However, don’t misunderstand a company that gives you a price for two different procedures. For example, some companies will give you a price if failure is logical and a price if problem ends up being physical. We called one firm and were told that if drive had a logical failure price would be $400 and if it ended up being a physical issue price would be $1,600. This is not a high/low spread as mentioned in earlier example, this is simply quoting a price for two different types of recoveries.

On average you can expect to pay anywhere from $400 to $600 for logical recoveries, and $1,200 to $2,000 for physical recoveries on standard IDE hard drives. If you have RAID drives, SCSI, etc. depending on configuration prices can be as high as $15,000. Remember, backup backup backup backup backup!!

Can My Data Be Recovered?

In most cases answer to this question is yes. On average, success rate for data recovery professionals is about 75-85%. However, there are times when data is just lost, either due to extensive damage to platter or unavailability of replacement parts.

How Do I Get Started?

If you have a hard drive that has crashed, most important thing you can do is contact a data recovery professional immediately. Make sure you aren’t being charged an evaluation fee if you have a standard IDE hard drive. Most companies only charge evaluation fees for complex RAID and network server drives.

You will find links to various data recovery firms on this page. We do not support or endorse any of them, but they are listed for your convenience. It is important to do your homework, call and talk with companies. When you find one that you feel comfortable with, give them a chance. Your hardest job, may be finding data recovery firms that actually have someone available to answer phones. Ask questions and be sure to have following information available:

Size of drive Operating system (i.e. Windows 98, Windows XP, etc.) Situation of failure (what happened just before drive stopped working) Is drive recognized by computer's BIOS or not Good luck in getting your data recovered, and make sure you always backup your important information on a daily basis. For more information visit: http://www.acsdata.com