Server Knowledge Base

There are virtually no limitations to Ontrack’s server data recovery capabilities as we continually develop proprietary software to recover data from popular and specialized file systems such as NetApp® WAFL, Microsoft® ReFS, VMware VMFS5, Btrfs, and many others.

If we don’t currently support a particular file, our development team stands ready to create just-in-time solutions for enterprise customers worldwide.

Since 2008, Ontrack has performed thousands of successful data recoveries from virtual machines. Our proprietary software tools allow us to complete successful data recoveries from nearly any virtual machine, server or system; including VMware®, Microsoft® Hyper-V®, Citrix®, Linux® XEN®, and Oracle® VM.

Ontrack’s investment in the development of specialized software allows us to recover data from ransomware-encrypted systems, virtual machines, backup files, tapes, and other storage media.

Ransomware incidents vary on the type of payload, and data recovery can be complex. Ontrack provides the best possible solutions for data recovery success.

Every server data recovery situation is unique, and whether the drives need to be shipped will depend on the particular data loss. We offer several options for server data recovery, including In-Lab, On-Site, and Remote Data Recovery.

Please contact one of our expert advisors to learn about all the options available: https://www.ontrack.com/contact-us/.

Emergency Service is available for all types of data loss, including from enterprise systems such as NAS, SAN, VMware, and ransomware attacks.

Yes, if the NAS is based on RAID 0, 5, or 6, then the software can recover your data. You just need to specify the parameters, and if you don’t know them, then you can use the ‘Don’t Know start sector of drives’ feature.

It is possible to recover deleted data from a RAID server with Ontrack EasyRecovery Toolkit. Run the software and recover all your important data. In addition, the software provides the option to recover data from virtual RAID construction as well.

Ontrack has performed thousands of successful data recoveries from servers hosting virtual machines. Our proprietary software tools allow us to complete successful data recoveries from nearly any virtual machine, server or system; including VMware®, Microsoft® Hyper-V®, Citrix®, Linux® XEN®, and Oracle® VM.

The short answer is yes.  Depending on the RAID configuration, data redundancy can prevent server systems from failing but this is not a replacement for a backup system and a proper data storage and preservation strategy. Data redundancy allows RAID servers to keep working during drive failure events but it will not protect against catastrophic failures such as power failure, multiple failing drives, natural disasters or user error. Unlike backups, data redundancy does not provide a thorough enough solution to handle issues such as virus infections, and it cannot help if there are mechanical failures or other hardware issues that require a data recovery company.

Yes, Network Attached Storage (NAS) devices (also known as appliances, network drives, or personal cloud drives) are comprised of one or more drives and have the same limitations that servers do. NASs offer multiple functions including redundancy to protect data as well as data sharing capability. A built-in CPU inside the NAS devices make it appear as standalone server ready to use by individuals or groups.

As a standalone server, NAS devices can be used to implement network backups for multiple devices connected over a network. The only limitation is storage capacity, which can be remedied by upgrading to larger capacity drives as needed. While this is convenient, a NAS device should also have its own independent backup to easily restore critical data due to hardware failure, virus infection, or physical damage. NAS drives are more prone to catastrophic failures because they are being used in non-IT typical environments, and by non-IT experienced staff.

Server data recovery can be very challenging and the difficulty level changes dramatically depending on the configuration.

Here are the key factors that affect the difficulty of the recovery effort:

1. Number and size of drives
2. RAID Configuration
3. Logical volume management
4. Operating System and File System
5. Virtualization
6. Encryption
7. De-Duplication and Compression
   

Most servers contain multiple drives that use some form of a RAID configuration where data is fragmented across multiple drives to allow for redundancy and/or increased performance. Depending on the manufacturer and the server’s purpose, the system may include Solid State drives or Helium drives in their server RAID configurations, which can further increase complexity especially in cases with multiple drives failures.

Another data recovery challenge is that server manufacturers can use proprietary operating systems and file systems to enhance server for specific tasks. Proprietary files systems may require development of custom software tools to assemble and extract the data, which will increase time and difficulty.  It is also common for servers to host virtualized environments such as VMware and Hyper-V, and these add yet another level of complexity to the data recovery process.