Failed array, several dead disks, a rebuild that went wrong, or a controller that’s lost its configuration? We recover every RAID level — 0, 1, 5, 6, 10 and beyond — from NAS, servers and DAS. Every disk is imaged first and the array rebuilt from those copies, never your originals.
$ bdr diagnose /dev/raid → Array: RAID 5 · 6 × 4 TB · 20 TB volume → Status: OFFLINE — 2 disks failed, rebuild failed → Client: confidential · Wallsend NE1 3DY $ bdr engineer-working → Member disks: all 6 imaged read-only → Parameters: order + stripe + parity solved → Array: rebuilt virtually from images $ bdr verify → ✓ databases — 412 GB → ✓ shares + VMs — 17.8 TB → ✓ array recovered — data back
If your RAID has dropped offline, lost a second disk or a rebuild has stalled, stop — don’t let it rebuild, re-initialise or re-sync. A rebuild writes to the array and can overwrite the very data we need, and forcing disks back online in the wrong order only makes things worse. Power the unit down, label the disk order if you can, and call us. The first attempt at recovery is always the safest.
From several dead disks to a rebuild that went wrong, these are the RAID failures we recover from most — multi-disk, controller, configuration and logical.
Every RAID level and configuration — hardware, software and NAS, on any controller, from a two-disk mirror up to a multi-array server. What’s possible is set by the configuration, not by whether we can take it on.
RAID 0, 1, 5, 6, 10, 50, 60 and JBOD · hardware, software (mdadm, Storage Spaces) and fakeRAID · Dell PERC, HP Smart Array, LSI MegaRAID, Adaptec and Areca controllers · Synology, QNAP, NETGEAR, Buffalo and Drobo NAS · servers, DAS and workstations.
RAID recovery means rebuilding the array without ever writing to your disks. We image every member drive read-only, work out the exact layout the array used, and reconstruct the volume virtually from the images — so the originals are never put at risk.
Give us the setup — RAID level, how many disks, what went wrong. We assess the array and send a written quote, usually inside 48 hours. If you can, note the disk order before unplugging anything.
Every member drive, failing ones included, is imaged read-only on specialist hardware — so the whole job runs on copies and your originals are never touched.
Where a member disk has failed mechanically or electronically, we repair it — swapping heads, rebuilding the board — enough to image it. Drive-level repairs need 50% of the fee upfront.
We work out the exact parameters the array used — disk order, stripe size, parity rotation and offset — from the images, and reconstruct the array virtually.
We rebuild the volume from the reconstructed array and extract your files, databases, virtual machines and shares, pulling the most consistent copy of the data.
We check the recovered files and volumes actually open and are complete before any of it comes back to you.
We return your data on a fresh drive or NAS sized for the volume, ready to put back into service.
We recover every RAID level and controller — from a two-disk mirror to a multi-array server — imaging each disk and rebuilding the array virtually, so your originals are never at risk.
Tell us what happened and we’ll get back to you, usually within a working day.
We’ll be in touch shortly. If it’s urgent, call 0191 406 1051.
Clear, tiered pricing for RAID — with a free diagnostic and a quote in writing before any work starts.
A handful of recent RAID recoveries across multi-disk failures, failed rebuilds, dead controllers and reconfiguration. Identifying details removed, every result verified.
One disk had failed weeks earlier unnoticed; when a second went, the array stopped. We imaged all six and rebuilt the array to recover everything.
Both members had faults but neither was fully dead. We repaired and imaged each, then rebuilt the mirror to recover the data.
The rebuild had partly overwritten the array. We imaged every disk and reconstructed the original layout to recover the volume.
The NAS hardware had failed but the disks were fine. We read the array layout and rebuilt the SHR volume off the box.
With no redundancy, one failed disk stops a RAID 0. We repaired the failed disk, imaged both and rebuilt the stripe to recover the project files.
Little new had been written. We reconstructed the original RAID 5 layout and recovered the shares and backups.
Real client stories from our two-decade testimonial archive.
We had a Qnap Raid 5 eight disk system. Two of the hard disk failed, we replaced disks and attempted a rebuild. After rebuild completed system would not start. We had business critical accounts, SQL Database and Exchange Database on Qnap server. Newcastle Data Recovery provided us with reassurance from the start that they could recover the data. They got the system in on Thursday and we downloaded the SQL and Exchange files from them on Sunday afternoon so all staff could work as normal on Monday. 1st class customer service.
I run a small photography business and our Drobo 5N Raid 5 External NAS system stopped working last week. We contacted Drobo support but they could not do anything. You guys recovered all our clients data within 4 days and backed up the 8tb of data onto 2 external drives. Great expertise and good communication.
Send the device in for its free diagnostic and tell us briefly what happened; an engineer reviews it and confirms your exact quote in writing before anything starts.
Getting your data back begins with getting the device to us. Pack it up safely, pop your contact details inside, and send it over — once we’ve run the free diagnostic, we’ll confirm your exact price in writing before any work starts.
Posting it? A tracked, insured service is what we’d recommend. Rather drop it in? You’re welcome Monday to Friday, 9am to 5:30pm — just package the device up as above first.
Want a bit more detail first? Fill in the form with more about your issue and an engineer will review it and send you a custom quote.
We’ll be in touch shortly. If it’s urgent, call 0191 406 1051.
RAID array recovery here covers every common level, and two deserve their own sentence. RAID 0 stripes data across drives with no redundancy at all — one member down takes the whole array with it — yet it recovers well on the bench: every member (including the failed one) is imaged, and the stripe set is reassembled virtually from the copies. RAID 5 survives a single failure but hides its real danger in the rebuild, where a second tired drive gives out under load; a degraded RAID 5 that matters should be powered down and imaged, never rebuilt in place. RAID 6 and RAID 10 follow the same discipline: members imaged first, array logic worked on copies.
The things people most often ask us about recovering a RAID array.
Usually, yes. A RAID 5 goes offline when a second disk fails, since it can only tolerate one — but often the first disk failed earlier and the data’s still recoverable. We image every disk, the failed ones included, and rebuild the array from the most consistent copies. Don’t let it rebuild, as that can overwrite the data.
Often not, but stop now. A failed or stalled rebuild is the commonest way arrays are lost, because rebuilding writes to the disks. We halt the process, image every member read-only and reconstruct the original array from the copies, so a failed rebuild rarely means the end.
Usually, yes. A dead controller or NAS doesn’t destroy the data on the disks; it just loses access to it. We read the array layout from the disks themselves, image them and rebuild the volume independently of the failed hardware, so you don’t even need the original box working.
Yes, please — send every disk in the array, failed ones included, and label the slot order if you can. RAID recovery works by reconstructing the array from all the members together, and even a dead disk often holds data we need to fill the gaps.
RAID 1 mirror recoveries start at £500 + VAT. Multi-disk arrays — RAID 5, 6, 10, 50 and 60 — start at £800 + VAT, depending on the number of disks and the work involved. Every job opens with a free diagnostic and a written quote, and most are no fix, no fee.
On most jobs, yes. For drive-level repairs we take a 50% deposit upfront and the rest is only due if we recover your data — so if we can’t, you’re not left with the full bill.
Every level and controller — RAID 0, 1, 5, 6, 10, 50, 60 and JBOD, hardware, software and NAS, on Dell, HP, LSI, Adaptec, Areca, Synology, QNAP and the rest. The configuration decides the method, not whether the data can be recovered.
Yes. Synology and QNAP units run RAID — often SHR or RAID 5 — and we recover them whether the fault’s in the disks, the volume or the NAS hardware itself. We rebuild the array off the box, so a dead NAS is no barrier to your shares and backups.
Usually, yes. Once the array’s rebuilt we recover whatever sits on it — VMware and Hyper-V virtual machines, SQL and other databases, shared folders and backups — and check the files are intact before returning them.
A RAID 1 mirror is usually turned around in 3 to 4 working days. Larger arrays run to 4 to 7, according to how many disks are involved and whether any need drive-level repair before imaging. The free diagnostic normally lands inside 48 hours, and pressing business jobs can often jump the queue.
Bring the disks to our Newcastle location Monday to Friday, 9am to 5:30pm, or send them by insured post. Include every disk from the array, each marked with its slot position and packed so they can’t rattle against one another, along with your name, address, phone and email — that lets us log the job and quote before anything starts.
Usually, yes — provided nothing is forced. RAID 0 has no redundancy, so the array stops the moment one member does, but the data still exists split across the drives. Recovery means imaging every member, bringing the failed drive back to a readable state on the bench where needed, and reassembling the stripe set virtually. What closes the door is re-initialising the array or reusing the drives before imaging.
A free diagnostic, clear tiered pricing from £800 for multi-disk arrays, and no fix no fee on most jobs — every RAID level and controller recovered, from NAS to server. Begin your recovery today.