Keeping It Real With Corrupt Data

For the millions of Americans who use their PCs each and everyday, dealing with corrupt data is inevitable. It's going to happen at some point. Though annoying and potentially destructive to your hard drive, corrupt data is not necessarily a major cause for alarm. Understanding how to spot and fix corrupt data can save you many frustrating hours attempting to recover the affected data.

The collection of files located on your hard drive, including those for the operating system and software are referred to collectively as data. There are several things that can cause full file corruption. Power supply malfunction is one important example. Corruption can also occur when the computer is shut down incorrectly or if it is turned off before all external devices have been unplugged. This stored information can also get mixed up if there is a system problem, a programming glitch or files are not saved properly. Operating system files face serious data corruption potential whenever a software update goes uncompleted or if the download is aborted.

The aforementioned actions or problems can cause corrupt data, which will cause a corrupted hard drive directory. When this occurs, files may look gone when they in fact are still present; causing a discrepancy in the free available disk space measurements vs. the actual contents of the existing data.

If corrupt data has hit your system hard in the past, there are several ways you can apply to avoid data corruption from harming your computer from now on.

Backup the Hard Drive Regularly

First, back up all files frequently using a portable hard disk drive. Robust portable hard drives with up to 2.5 terabytes of storage can be acquired for very low cost at major electronics retailers. Create a solid backup schedule - many experts suggest weekly plan - and follow it. Ensure that all external hard disks and external storage devices are ejected properly before turning them off. Failure to do so may cause corrupt data.

Be Prepared for Recovery

Users are urged to prepare recovery disks so as to be ready in cases of full file system crash. Check under "System and Security" and "Backup and Restore" on a Windows based computer for details about creating your own recovery disk. You will need a few writable DVDs or CDs to complete the task. These recovery disks will come in handy if the operating system appears to go south and needs to be re-installed because of a file system crash.

Anti-Virus Can Be Your Best Friend

A superior anti-virus application will automatically scan the hard drive for file and directory problems. In most cases it will catch and fix those problems before they can strike at the heart of your system. A "full scan" or "deep scan" should be executed at least monthly to ensure the system is free of any viruses and malware that have been picked up along the way.

Protect your computer against corrupt data caused by environmental issues, such as power surges. This can be prevented byplugging your computer into a surge-protected power strip, rather than a regular wall outlet. Even high-end power bars are cost-effective, with most priced under $25, and are for sale at almost every retailing chain.

Following these guidelines will help defend your PC against any corrupt data that may look to deep six it.

By: Maureen Davies

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Maureen Davies is an experienced hard drive data recovery expert and editor of www.harddriverecovery.org. Find out more about her company's data recovery service here.