RAID Data Recovery
Has the RAID array failed in your Server / NAS / PC?
Then the first thing to do is stop trying to force it to do whatever it is struggling to do.
This point cannot be over-emphasized enough, as this is the part that can make a recovery either impossible or more expensive.
Professional RAID and server data recovery in our own UK lab — hardware and software arrays, any level, any controller. Prices from £350 including VAT on a no data, no fee basis, with complex multi-drive cases quoted individually after the free assessment and nothing payable upfront on any case. Different manufacturers of RAID cards, servers and NAS systems report errors in different ways — check the common symptoms below, and if yours isn’t listed, start your recovery assessment and describe it in your own words.
Server, PC, NAS or standalone RAID array issues:
- Unusual beeps or messages when booting up the RAID device?
- Is the RAID device completely dead? No life in it whatsoever?
- Has the RAID device become inaccessible?
- Is the RAID device showing errors of missing disks?
- Is the array showing as degraded, offline or failed?
- Has a rebuild started and stalled — or completed with your data missing?
- Is the RAID array noticeably slower in handling your files?
- Are your files disappearing?
- Has the RAID device been physically damaged?
- Has the RAID device been affected by a power surge or lightning strike?
- Can you hear any strange clicking sounds when powering up the RAID device?
If your RAID device is doing any of the above, power it down, leave it down, and begin your recovery assessment here — tell us the hardware, the RAID level and what happened, and we’ll reply with your likely pricing tier and clear next steps, with no obligation.
Typical Brands of RAID Related Recoveries
- 3ware
- Acer
- Apple
- Adaptec
- Buffalo
- Compaq
- Dell
- D-Link
- Drobo
- EMC
- Freecom
- G-RAID
- G-Technology
- Hewlett Packard
- Intel
- Iomega
- Lacie
- Lenovo
- Linksys
- LSI
- Netgear
- Qnap
- Samsung
- Seagate
- Synology
- Thecus
- Western Digital
Common RAID Arrays we recover from
- RAID 0
- RAID 01
- RAID 1
- RAID 10
- RAID 5
- RAID 5E
- RAID 50
- RAID 6
- RAID 60
- JBOD
- mdadm (Linux software RAID)
- Windows Storage Spaces
Drive Interface types we recover from
- SCSI
- IDE
- USB (external arrays)
- SAS
- SATA
- NVMe
Standard RAID Device Issues
Redundant Arrays of Independent Disks (RAID) can fail for several different reasons. The hard drives often fail due to overheating – from poor ventilation – consequently resulting in cooked hard drives (similar to NAS devices). The damage from overheating drives varies, from malfunctioning PCBs, damaged magnetic read/write heads, surface damage on the platters, and many other problems.
Also, the drives can suffer from head crashes, stiction (heads stuck to platters), motor seizure, and firmware corruption. It is, however, unusual for all the disks to fail within an array; nevertheless, it is common for more drives to fail when the array is being rebuilt, due to the extra load placed upon the disks.
Subsequently, the RAID controllers can become problematic on their own, or together with the failing drives, making the entire unit unstable and unusable. RAID systems can quickly become corrupted, as well as suffering physical malfunctions, often creating very challenging recovery cases. Excellent working knowledge of both RAID and file systems are essential for high chances of a successful recovery.
That’s why our approach never touches your originals: every member drive is imaged first on Ace Laboratory PC-3000 and DeepSpar hardware, the array’s structure and controller metadata are worked out from the images, and the volume is reconstructed virtually — including arrays that dropped a second disk mid-rebuild, controllers that scrambled their configuration, and systems other companies have declined or attempted.
If you want to avoid further data loss at this stage, we recommend:
- Power the array down and leave it down — every minute it runs against failing drives reduces what’s left to recover.
- Do not let it attempt a rebuild, do not force a degraded array back online, and never re-initialise or run repair tools against the volume.
- Do not reinsert or reorder drives — if you remove them, label each one with its bay or port number as you go.
- Please do not dismantle your device in any way, and never open the lid of any hard drive — they are sealed for a reason.
- Complete the recovery assessment form for a no-obligation reply with your likely pricing tier and clear next steps.
What does RAID data recovery cost, and how long does it take?
Logical recoveries start from £350 and mechanical recoveries from £450, both including VAT. Multi-drive arrays and servers are quoted individually after the free assessment — the honest answer depends on the drive count, RAID level and condition — but you’ll always receive one firm quote for approval before any chargeable work begins, and nothing is ever payable upfront. On our standard service, assessment typically happens within 3–7 business days of your drives arriving, with typical completion in 6–10 business days; faster priority levels are available for business-critical systems. Send your drives by Royal Mail Special Delivery, have us arrange UPS door-to-door collection for £14.95, or drop off at our Moreton lab on the Wirral by appointment. And if we can’t recover meaningful data, there’s no recovery fee — on every case, not just the easy ones.
About Our Data Recovery Laboratory
We only use the best hardware available for Data Recovery.
Utilising industry-standard tools such as Ace Laboratories PC-3000 and DeepSpar Disk Imagers, in conjunction with a class 100 cleanroom facility – alongside cutting-edge tooling – we can offer our customers an affordable, Professional Data Recovery service.
If your RAID device is malfunctioning, and you need the data from it, then you have come to the right place — start your recovery assessment and your case will be reviewed by the engineers who’ll actually do the work.