29 September 2010
When you press “Save” inside your word processor, in a matter of moments a file appears in your documents folder. Later on, you turn your laptop off, take it somewhere else, and turn it back on. Are you worried that your document will no longer exist? Obviously, you’ve come to know that the file will still be there the next day. But just how does a hard drive work? How is your file stored in a matter of moments and then recalled at a later time?
Everything you do in your computer breaks down to a long series of zeros and ones on the lowest level
Hard drives have existed since 1956. Over time, they have become smaller, more efficient, and more affordable. However, their basic functionality remains the same. We all know that machines and computers understand only binary; everything is either an on or an off, a zero or one. Everything you do in your computer breaks down to a long series of zeros and ones on the lowest level.
A hard drive disk contains a platter that contains tiny sectors capable of storing either a 0 or 1 value in the form of a magnetized charge. When you save a file, the hard drive spindle moves the platter to the location designated for storing your file and records all the zeroes and ones that make up your file by magnetizing or demagnetizing each of the sectors in order. Later, when you recall the file, the magnetic charges are read from the same location and translated by the processor back into the letters that make up your document. All this happens in a matter of seconds.
Modern USB drives use a different technique known as flash memory to store information. The same zeroes and ones make up your file at the lowest level. A flash drive does not use magnetism, but rather a series of tiny switches that direct flow of electricity. Much like a switch on a train track redirects the train to a different destination, these tiny switches cause electricity to flow and tell the computer whether it’s looking at a zero or a one. When read in order, the “DNA” of your file is brought back to the computer. This type of storage is slower but not as sensitive to heat, cold, magnetism, and shock making it the perfect medium for on-the-go storage.
Understanding how hard drives work on their most basic level really impresses on us just how far technology has come. But you can probably think of a lot of things that could go wrong with a tiny platter filled with magnetic charges that represent your company’s precious data. For this reason, secure storage and contingency plans are the only way to safely keep your company’s data protected.
If your hard drive fails, passing it to a data recovery professional as soon as possible offers the best chance of retrieving most, if not all, of your precious data.
