Do-it-yourself data recovery from Kroll Ontrack

Kroll Ontrack has released Ontrack EasyRecovery 11, which the company describes as a full-scale solution for do-it-yourself (DIY) data recovery, protection and destruction.

Kroll Ontrack highlights the following feature enhancements in Version 11:

Self-Monitoring Analysis and Reporting Technology (S.M.A.R.T. Scan)--These capabilities empower IT professionals and home users to proactively monitor hard drive health to prevent downtime and data loss. S.M.A.R.T. Scan quickly identifies the amount and type of data being used, the condition of sectors and other critical hard drive metrics (read error rate, spin-up time, reallocated sector count, seek error rate, spin retry count and temperature, allowing users to make informed decisions about whether to repair or replace hardware, budget for new hardware to mitigate a data loss situation or clean out hard drive space.

Permanent data deletion--Unlike standard data deletion that often leaves data still recoverable, Ontrack EasyRecovery 11 permanently deletes data at the file and folder level or across an entire drive at a lower cost than other permanent erasure solutions.

DIY data recovery and permanent deletion in virtual environments (Enterprise version only)--To assist IT professionals with data recovery and deletion in virtual environments, Ontrack EasyRecovery 11 supports the recovery of lost or deleted virtual data and offers permanent and secure deletion of virtual files and folders.

Installation of Ontrack EasyRecovery is fast with most users recovering data in minutes, says the company. The scanning engine builds a file list of all recoverable files from local/external hard drives (HDD/SSD), optical and digital media, iPods, tablet devices and mobile phones that work as removable storage and disk image files. Recoverable files can be previewed and all recovery operations are secure. Supported languages include Dutch, English, French, Italian, German, Spanish, Polish, Chinese and Japanese.

Ontrack EasyRecovery is offered in three editions. It is available via an annual, renewable license, which gives users the benefit of performing unlimited recoveries from local storage and external media, and the tool works on all drive capacities. The three editions are:

• Enterprise--A network recovery support solution for companies that need to protect multiple workstations. Key capabilities include: RAID recoverability for both hardware and software, VMware support for recovery and permanent data deletion, network support for recovering remote systems and advanced features consisting of proprietary diagnostic utilities and tools.
• Professional--A business tool equipped with data protection, recovery and eraser tools, including a deep scanning utility suitable for all recovery situations as well as advanced configuration settings.
• Home--A comprehensive tool for home users who need a quick and easy-to-use solution to protect, recover or erase digital photos, movies, music and important documents. The software allows for recovery from local hard drives, including emptied recycle bins and trash, and supports most media types: hard drives, optical and digital media.

A free trial is available.