How to Recover Data From an Old Hard Disk Drive

It can be so exciting to get a computer upgrade that all things aren't considered. After an upgrade, one can come to realize that data or files are missing. These will, of course, need to be recovered. It is possible to recover data, even if the computer has been upgraded or drives reformatted. Everybody knows what a hassle it is to lose important data. All the energy one puts in to do the work, not to mention valuable time and even money. This is especially true if you use your computer to conduct your business. If high availability of your data is a must to run your day to day business successfully, you'll want to read these steps right away to recover the data from an old hard disk drive.

Step 1

Recover from back up. The very first thing you would want to check is that if you had performed a back up of your old system prior to the upgrade of you computer. Then find out if you can recover from the back ups performed. You can do a restore and recover of the files of your choice using the back up recover steps on the back software. The software you probably used is one of the three most popular ones: Symantec, Netbackup Exec or Norton.
Step 2

Use a Ghost CD. If you have saved your Ghost CD and you have followed instructions to use it when you first set up your computer, you will be able to recover data from your newly partitioned hard drive. Ghost stands for "General Hardware-Oriented System Transfer", and it utilizes a disk cloning program which can be later used for recovery. Although this program was not intended for use as a back up program, it can function as such when it is time to recover deleted files.
Step 3

Utilize data recovery software. If you can install software and follow basic steps, you can use data recovery software. A sample of software is Get My Files software available from GetData. You can download this online for a fee. See the link under the Resources section for a link to the official website.
Step 4

Utilize data recovery online services. If you are a very busy individual or not as tech savvy, you can contact a data recovery service provider or company to try to recover your deleted data for you. You can search online by typing the words "data recovery companies" and you will be amazed at the search results. Check the Better Business Bureau's website (listed under Resources) to ensure that you contact the companies that are trustworthy and dependable.
Step 5

Call technical support. Most computers purchased have technical support hot-lines. Call the toll free number provided for by the computer manufacturer and ask for help on how you can recover your deleted files. They will walk you through some steps to do it correctly. They may be able to send you a disk or recovery software for a fraction of the cost. Find out also if your warranty provides for data recover support. Some companies offer that at time of purchase which can be added as extended warranty for parts and PC troubleshooting