What do you get when you combine ”easy to use” inexpensive recovery software and a downturn in the economy? In many cases, its a recipie for an amature to practice with your one-of-a-kind data which in many cases create recovery disasters.
Along with the development of off-the-shelf recovery software, we are seeing more and more new comers into the data recovery field. And, in an effort to boost sagging bottomlines, we see more computer service & repair shops that profess to offer data recovery services. Some are partnering with professional providers in an effort to provide a wider range of services to their clients. But how do you tell the professionals from the pretenders? There are a few requirements you’d be well advised to check upfront – before handing over your fragile and failing digital life.
- Facilities – A Class 100 Clean Room is essential for recovery from physical hard drive failures. While some recovery jobs are purely logical, requiring software tooling only, what does the provider do should your recovery require clean room work? Do they work with another provider? Does that provider meet the DR professional test?
- Experienced Staff - Software is only as good as its user and a clean room is only as good as the engineers that run it. The higher the level of education and experience, the higher likelihood of successful recovery of your data.
- Established Business – Just as you would check out any vendor, you need to know the reputation of the provider. How long has the provider been in business? What is their record with the Better Business Bureau? As in any business, problems can arise. You need to know the company will stand behind their service.
Often, you have only one shot to recover your most valued data. Don’t take chances with a novice provider. A little additinal research work can save you a lot of grief (and money) in the long run.