|
DO
|
DON'T
|
| Make
sure to properly protect your hard drive when packaging it for
shipment. Place the drive or tape in an anti-static bag, wrap
it in bubble wrap if possible, and surround the device in padding
within the container used for shipping. |
Continue
to execute commands in accessing your drive if you believe head-to-surface
contact has occurred. Heads can break and the storage properties
of the platter surface will be destroyed making it less likely
that a successful recovery can occur. |
|
|
| Make
sure that if your drive or tape has been exposed to a natural
or man-made disaster, you seal the media in an appropriate container
until it can be examined in a controlled environment. |
Run
utilities if you are not familiar with the programs! They can
overwrite existing data files. If you happen to run any utility,
make sure you can UNDO any alterations if they prove unsuccessful. |
|
|
| Remember
to disclose any pre-existing conditions that occurred prior to
data loss when submitting your device for data recovery service.
This information helps us expedite the service by taking additional
testing and guesswork out of the data recovery scenario. |
Open
the drive (crack the seal) if you are not familiar with hard drives
and are not in a controlled environment! This disturbs the hardware
settings and allows contaminants to settle internally on the media
surface -- including oils from finger tips! This can be fatal
if heads and/or additional contaminants are allowed to make contact
with the platter surface. |
|
|
| Enclose
details about the data files you are most concerned about when
shipping your hard drive, laptop, tape, SyQuest cartridge, Syjet,
Zip, Jaz, floppy or optical disk. |
Read
backup tapes without write protecting first. Many users overwrite
or format tapes when they accidentally type in the wrong command. |
|
|
| Enclose
a business card or company letterhead with your media. This, along
with the tracking number assigned to your order, helps us to quickly
identify the media and contact the appropriate personnel regarding
the status of your data recovery job. |
Expose
drives or media to magnetic fields that can erase data...simple
things like telephones and monitors can cause irreparable damage. |
| |
Forget
to verify a backup once the backup process is complete. |
| |
|
| |
Format
your drive! Even a low level format can cause problems if you
are not sure what is initially wrong with your device. |
