Hard Drive Data Recovery
Data recovery of standard IDE and SATA hard drives (the kind of hard drives that are in your standard store-bought computers) start at $900 (plus parts if needed).
The process of data recovery is comprised of three phases: Triage and Diagnostics, Repair, and Data Imaging
Drive Triage and Diagnostics
Triage and Diagnostics on hard drives can take several days. There is a $90 USD non-refundable diagnostic fee associated with this step. Once we determine the level and type of damage to your drive, we will contact you and give you our best estimate for time, materials and cost of the recovery. If you agree to proceed with the recovery, we will apply the $90 diagnostic fee towards the total sum of recovery.
Drive Repair
It is possible that your drive may have physical damage that would require repair before the data can be accessed.
Signs of Physical Damage:
- Burned smell
- Large black marks on the circuit board
- The infamous “click of death” sound when your drive powers up
- High pitched whine
- A sound like an alarm or “Star Trek phaser”
Data Imaging:
This is the actual transfer of data from your now-repaired drive onto a good hard drive. In other words, this is where you get your porn back!
Sourcing Parts for Your Drive
Unlike the automotive industry, where cars are designed to be serviced and parts are available at your nearest auto-parts store, hard drives and their manufacturers work by a different standard. Even a single hard drive model of a specific size can be manufactured in three different countries, with multiple different versions of software depending on what month it was made. On the underside of the hard drive can be four different kinds of circuit boards depending on where and when the manufacturer bought the components for the board. Needless to say, when trying to find a hard drive to use for “donor parts”, that it is more of a game of chance than an exact science.
“Why doesn’t the manufacturer just sell you these parts?”
Well, that’s a good question and there are many answers. The drive manufacturers never designed drives to be repaired, so they don’t keep part stock on hand. In the event they do keep parts on hand, they are only for internal company use. They are in the business of making hard drives. That is what they do. Not in the business of providing parts to data recovery companies. Thankfully, thanks to the basic economic principle of supply and demand, there are enterprising people and companies out there providing this service to the data recovery community. However, this service comes at a premium, and that is why it can cost twice to three times the price of a “regular” hard drive of the same size. Sourcing, inventory and storage of drives costs these company money, so a specific 500 gigabyte drive will cost more than “any” 500 gig drive. In an effort to make the cost of data recovery more affordable we don’t upcharge the cost of donor drives, we pass the cost on to you.