Will Ascenzo
Will is the lead blogger, copywriter, and copy editor for Gillware Data Recovery and Digital Forensics, and a staunch advocate against the abuse of innocent semicolons.
RAID-0 Data Recovery Case Study: “File is Empty” Error
In this RAID-0 data recovery scenario, the client woke up one morning to find that the RAID-0 array they used to store their WordPerfect files had failed overnight. Like most failed hard drives and RAID arrays, the device had been…
SD Card File Recovery Case Study: SanDisk SDHC Memory Card
If you crack open an SD card, you’ll likely be able to see the NAND flash memory chip. NAND flash has become the go-to for solid state data storage in this day and age. You can find it in not…
Dell Server Recovery: PowerEdge Foreign Configuration
In this Dell server recovery scenario, the client’s server fell victim to a power outage. When the power came back on, the Dell PERC 6/i RAID controller card reported two errors. One drive had failed. Another drive was reported as having a…
FileVault 2 Data Recovery Case Study: Macbook Pro
This client brought their hard drive to us after being met with the “Gray Screen of Death.” The failed Hitachi hard drive pulled from their Macbook Pro was fully encrypted. Encryption can greatly complicate the file recovery process. Our FileVault 2 data recovery efforts required lengthy procedures…
VMWare ESXi Data Recovery Case Study: 4-Drive RAID-5 Array
In this case, our client had four Western Digital WD6000BKHG-18A29V0 hard drives arranged in a RAID-5 array. On that array, they had stored several virtual machines. Data recovery from a virtual hard disk or virtual machine can be considered a…
Western Digital Raptor Hard Drive Repair
Before it even arrived we knew this Raptor hard drive repair case was going to be incredibly difficult. This was an unusual data recovery case for our cleanroom engineers. This Western Digital Raptor X hard drive had already been opened…
Dell Server Data Recovery: PowerEdge 2900 RAID 5 Data Loss
RAID 5: Overview A RAID array connects two or more hard drives together to make what is essentially a single giant hard drive. RAID arrays offer greater storage capacity, protection against data loss from individual drive failure, increased efficiency, or some combination…
Data Recovery Throwback: IBM DSOA-21080 and the Missing Screenplay
Drive Model: IBM DS0A-21080 Drive Capacity: 1080 MB Binary Read: 100% This client came to us with an ancient hard drive they’d had removed from an equally-archaic laptop and a story they needed to tell. Back in the 1990s, this…
Synology RAID-5 NAS Has Power Surge
This failed NAS device came to us from a nearby small business located in Fond du Lac. Their Synology DiskStation DS 1512+ NAS device had failed after a power surge. Inside their DiskStation was a 5-drive RAID-5 array. This NAS…