Optical Media Disk Data Recovery

Data recovery from CDs and DVDs - optical media disks

• CDs
• CD-R, CD+R
• CD-RW, CD+RW
• DVD-R, DVD+R
• DVD-RW, DVD+RW
• DVD-ROM
• Mo Media
• All other WORM devices

CD's, DVD's and other optical media can be used for back-up and storage of files. Unfortunately they are not as durable as expected.

It has been suggested that the average life of a CD written with the standard CD burner is anywhere between two and five years. Factory burnt CDs have higher life span. The life span of this type of media meda also depends on the storage environment, ambient temperature, humidity and how often the CD is used.

Optical data recovery - damaged disks

Optical media can easily be damaged by finger marks, scratches, dust, rough handling or if written on to label the CD with a pen. Physical damage and scuffs to the reflective layers (on the top of the DVD or CD) can result in the data on the disk becoming inaccessible.

Some error messages generated when trying to open a corrupt CD/DVD are:

• d:\ is not accessible (where d:\ is your CD/DVD drive)
• Incorrect function
• The computer hangs while attempting to read the media.

Recovered data from DVDs and CDS

Recovered data is returned on similar media to which it is recovered from so:

• When we recover data from CDs the recovered data is returned on CD-ROM.
• When we recover data from DVDs or MO Media the recovered data is returned on DVD-R.

More information about specific media

• CD Data Recovery
• DVD Data Recovery