RAID Recovery (Redundant Array of Independent Disks) consists of the software for recovering lost data from corrupted/failed RAID arrays. A wide range of RAID arrays are supported, like RAID 0, RAID 1, RAID 5, RAID 6, etc.

Contents

1 Free vs. Paid
2 Tips on RAID Recovery
3 Tips on RAID 5 Recovery
4 If software could not solve problems
5 Editor's remarks
6 Best Freeware
7 Top Shareware

Free vs. PaidThere is almost no free RAID recovery software, and the only Freeware (http://www.freeraidrecovery.com/) we've found requires the a compatible data recovery program, and in addition, this freeware is limited in functions. We recommend professional RAID Recovery Software or professional Raid Recovery Service, when coping with data loss caused by some complicated reasons.

Tips on RAID Recovery

Once data loss occurs, avoid any operation on disks, remove disks from RAID card in order (mark the disk order correctly), create a disk image file for each disk with Disk Imaging Software, and recover data from disk image files, rather than disks. This reduces the risk of further damage to the data.
Do not rebuild RAID card incautiously, for it may cause data loss and thus some files can’t be opened. This will increase difficulty of data recovery.
Do not initialize your RAID. Initialization is to reset disk array, which is the same as low-level formatting of hard disks.
Be cautious about reconfiguring disk arrays. Some servers will perform automatic initialization after reconfiguration, and this will lead to unrecoverable data loss.
There are many causes of RAID data loss, commonly divided into two broad categories: Software Failure and Hardware Failure:
Software Failure
1. A sudden power outage causes data loss on RAID card.
2. RAID reconfiguration causes data loss.
3. Wrong disk order causes system unable to recognize the data.
4. Accidental deletion/formatting/partition/clone, file decoding, virus attacks, etc. cause data loss.
Hardware Failure
1. RAID disks report errors with flashing red light, detection error on HDD.
2. RAID disks have bad sectors, and thus causes data loss. (High data recovery success rate in this case)
3. RAID usually consists of a few disks, and allows limited number of damaged disks (for example, RAID5 allows one damaged disk). If the number of damaged disks exceeds the limitation, RAID data cannot be read. (Complex data recovery with low success rate in this case)

Tips on RAID 5 Recovery1. If there is only one failed disk, try hot plugging*, i.e. unplug the failed disk and then plug it back again; if this method doesn't work, get into the RAID configuration utility, and force online the failed disk; if this method doesn't work either, try to plug the disks into other slots (DO NOT change disk order); if this method still doesn't work, try to format this disk first, then plug it back into RAID card, and then rebuild RAID (If the disk can't be formatted, it commonly means there are serious physical errors on the disk. In this case, you can replace it with a healthy disk and then rebuild data.).
*RAID 5 array allows hot plugging of disks. When replacing a damaged disk, first unplug the disk bracket (disks are fixed on bracket), unload the damaged disk from bracket, install a healthy disk on bracket, and then plug the bracket back again. If everything goes well, RAID 5 array will immediately start to rebuild RAID automatically. The rebuilding process will take several hours, even more than 20 hours.
Notes:
(1) Before replacing the damaged disk, check current status of RAID array, make sure all disks are online except the damaged one.
(2) Replace the damaged disk in time.
(3) The substitute disk should be healthy.
(4) Do not plug or unplug any disk before RAID rebuilding is done.
2. If there are more than one failed disk, force online part of the failed disks (do not force online all of them at one time), and then get into operation system to read data. If the data can be read successfully, force online other disks, and then rebuild RAID.
3. If the damaged SCSI card causes RAID configuration information loss, replace it with a new SCSI card, and then try to read RAID configuration information from disk (Need support from RAID array).
4. If operation system still can't access RAID array (no relevant drive letters in resource manager) after all the disks are back online, try to enter "Computer Management" --> "Disk Management" to check current status of RAID array; if it is "uninitialized", you can try RAID Recovery Software to scan disk tracks one by one to recover data. Do not perform RAID initialization at this moment.
5. Do not over-rely on RAID. If it's possible, burn your important data into discs or store them in a tape drive for backup.

If RAID recovery software could not solve your problemsRAID recovery software is limited in functions. If RAID recovery software could not solve your problems, we suggest you call a professional data recovery service company and consult a professional engineer. Do not try to repair RAID yourself, unless you are 100% sure you have enough technical skills and experience to handle the risk of data loss.

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