Recovering Data After RAID Controller Failure on NAS QNAP Turbo Station TS-209 / TS-209 II / TS-209 Pro / TS-209 Pro II: Causes and Recovery

Contents

• Why can’t ordinary software tools restore files from RAID?
• How to take hard disks out of the NAS and connect them to a PC?
  • Restoring data with Hetman RAID Recovery
  • Safe recovery from disk images
  • Where are user’s files stored?
  • Comparison of software for RAID recovery

Why can’t ordinary software tools restore files from RAID?

Conventional hard disks keep user’s data by writing it to their surface in a consecutive way, and this is how an entire file is stored on a single hard disk. However, when data is written to a RAID system, a file is divided into several parts. Then these parts are written consecutively to all hard disks within such array. The size of such parts may range from 2 KB to 2 MB, so each file is stored on several hard disks at the same time.

Such approach helps to speed up read and write operations, and it is evident that saving two parts of a file having the size of 1 GB to two hard disks simultaneously is much faster than saving the same 1 GB of data to one hard disk. However, this peculiarity makes file recovery more complicated.

Various RAID levels store information in different ways. Additionally, manufacturers like QNAP also introduce some modifications to this process, and that is why data can be written to hard disk in a wide variety of ways.

How can data be recovered from a NAS QNAP Turbo Station TS-209 / TS-209 II / TS-209 Pro / TS-209 Pro II device after a malfunction or data loss event?

To recover data from a malfunctioning or data loss event on a NAS QNAP Turbo Station TS-209 / TS-209 II / TS-209 Pro / TS-209 Pro II device, you can follow these steps:

1. Check the hardware: Ensure that the NAS device is powered on and connected properly. Make sure all cables are securely connected and there are no physical damages.
2. Troubleshoot the NAS device: If the NAS is not functioning properly, try restarting it. If that doesn't work, reset the NAS to factory settings using the reset button on the device. Refer to the user manual for specific instructions.
3. Access the NAS management interface: Connect to the NAS device using a web browser and enter the IP address assigned to the NAS. Login with the admin credentials.
4. Check the storage status: In the NAS management interface, navigate to the Storage & Snapshots section and check the status of the storage volumes. Ensure that the volumes are recognized and not marked as degraded or crashed.
5. Perform a data recovery scan: If the NAS volumes are intact but data is missing, you can use the NAS management interface to perform a data recovery scan. This will scan the drives for any lost or deleted files and attempt to recover them.
6. Use data recovery software: If the NAS volumes are damaged or corrupted, you may need to use specialized data recovery software. Connect the NAS drives to a computer and use data recovery software like Recuva, EaseUS Data Recovery Wizard, or R-Studio to scan the drives and recover the lost data. These software tools can often recover data even from damaged or formatted drives.
7. Seek professional help: If the above steps do not work or if you are not comfortable performing the recovery yourself, it is advisable to seek professional data recovery services. They have specialized tools and expertise to recover data from NAS devices, even in complex scenarios.

Note: It is always recommended to have a backup of your important data to avoid data loss situations. Regularly backup your NAS device to an external storage device or cloud storage to ensure the safety of your data.

How to take hard disks out of the NAS and connect them to a PC?

Although NAS Turbo Station TS-209 / TS-209 II / TS-209 Pro / TS-209 Pro II can be accessed over the network, you still need to take the hard disks out of the storage device and connect them to a Windows computer. Only in this case will the software be able to scan them properly. Here is what you should do:

1. Turn off the storage and disconnect it from the power supply.

   WARNING! Before you start taking hard disks out of your NAS device, read the manual carefully. Incorrect actions may damage your network-attached storage and/or the hard disks within the RAID system.

2. Take the hard disks out of the NAS one by one, carefully removing them from their slots. Remember that the disks are extremely vulnerable: hitting or dropping them may result in serious physical damage.

3. Make sure to mark each hard disk in accordance with how they were installed inside the NAS.

4. Remove the hard disks and connect them to the computer. In this video, we have explored what ports are used to connect hard disks, and what to do if there are not enough ports or connectors.

   Go to view

   

   How to Order Remote Data Recovery

Restoring data with Hetman RAID Recovery

This program recovers data from damaged RAID arrays and is fully compatible with QNAP Turbo Station TS-209 / TS-209 II / TS-209 Pro / TS-209 Pro II. The hard disks that make up the RAID contain technical information about the algorithm used to save files. When launched, Hetman RAID Recovery reads this information and puts the damaged array together. Then you can open the disk and save your files. Also, you can recover the files accidentally deleted from the network drive.

Go to view

How to recover data from a QNAP

Turbo Station TS-209 / TS-209 II / TS-209 Pro / TS-209 Pro II has 2 HDD slots, and it supports the following array types:

• RAID 0;
• RAID 1;
• JBOD;

NAS supports:

• EXT4;
• EXT3;
• FAT32 (External Disk Only);
• NTFS (External Disk Only);
• HFS+ (External Disk Read Only);

Safe recovery from disk images

This utility lets you save an entire copy of the disk to file and then work with this image instead of the actual disk. Such feature helps to protect data on the disk from:

• Overwriting during the recovery process;
• Loss resulting from bad sectors;
• User mistakes.

To create an image, do the following:

1. Make sure that you have enough free space to save the image. The image file size usually equals the disk size.

2. Select the disk in the main window, and choose from the menu Tools – Save Disk. You can select multiple disks to be saved.

3. When the image creation wizard starts, you can choose to save the entire disk or select only a part of it. Specify the parameters and click Next.

   

4. At this stage, you need to choose a directory where to save the image. Choose any disk connected to this PC, or save the image by FTP.

   

Where are user’s files stored?

The QNAP Turbo Station TS-209 / TS-209 II / TS-209 Pro / TS-209 Pro II network-attached storage keeps QTS operating system files on a separate RAID 1 (mirrored) array. Usually, all NAS systems create several volumes on every hard disk, and the first of them takes up to 2 Gb of space. This is where operating system files are stored. Other volumes are united into a RAID array where user’s data is written.

Comparison of software for RAID recovery