What Can Be Saved Following a Computer Crash or Infection with a Virus?

by: jameswalsh
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On the other side we have those, who quietly resign to this catastrophe, like some twenty first century Buddha, yearning for some novel Cyber Nirvana. Some even try to cajole and coax their computers to vomit the requisite data. There are others who try to dissemble the hard drive themselves, as if the data is some dead rat lying somewhere in the CPU. The worst responses of all are those akin to acute physical violence, which may negate any chance of retrieving the data for ever, as if sucked by some techno black hole. I am sure a discussion regarding the steps to be taken after a computer crash will prove to be enlightening for many friends.

A computer may crash owing to varied reasons. One of them could be a virus attack. A virus may either affect your data or may temper with the applications. Sometimes you may experience a combination of both. In case of a computer crash owing to a virus attack, always remember that you are dealing with a crises situation. So get bamboozled for a second or two if you want to, but, recollect yourself as soon as possible, and start dealing with the problem. The first thing to be done is that you should immediately disconnect your computer. The virus may infect other computers plugged in the network or may proliferate into the computers of other people, with whom you interact via internet. Then try to remove the virus, using the removal software designed for that specific malware. Your antivirus software should be ready at hand with the appropriate updates and patches for that particular security threat. The next step involves the restoration of the computer to its previous prim pram state. The virus may have infected your files or tinkered with the software applications. If the damage has been to your operating system, try to reinstall it with the restore CD you received with your computer. However, care is to be taken that you are ready with all the necessary tools and information, while doing so. Once the operating system and your documents have been installed, you need to install some authentic antivirus software and then run a complete computer scan. The chances are that you will be able to restore your computer and save your valuable data. Yet, if the things don’t work, perhaps it is the time to seek some professional help.

Hard drives are basically mechanical devices and may crash due to reasons other than a virus attack. Your computer might have crashed due to a logical failure, where a failure occurs due to the corruption of the file system. The possible symptoms may be error messaging stating that the data is corrupted, system messages indicating memory errors and an inability to load the software applications. In case of a logical failure, most of the times, the data remains intact and ample data recovery is feasible. One may use the sophisticated software available in the market, to fix this problem. If the crash is due to some mechanical or electronic failure, then it is a serious problem. The tell tale signs are the clicking or ticking sound produced by the hard drive. Do not try to repair the drive on your own. The repairs in such a case need to be carried out in a Class 100 Clean Room. Just leave your computer alone and get away from the keyboard. Contact some quality data recovery service. The chances are that they will be able to recover a significant amount of data and save the day for you.

Remember what the old family doctor used to say. Prevention is often better than the cure. So if you want to save your precious data, do three things i.e. BACK UP, BACK UP AND BACK UP your data while it is still there.

About the Author

James Walsh is a freelance writer and copy editor. If you are concerned about data loss and would like more information on Data Recovery see http://www.fields-data-recovery.co.uk

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