How to Recover Data After Formatting Your NAS QNAP Turbo Station TS-459U-RP/SP / TS-459U-RP+/SP+ RAID Array: Detailed Steps

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.

Are there any specific system logs or event notifications to monitor for early detection of data loss on NAS QNAP Turbo Station TS-459U-RP/SP / TS-459U-RP+/SP+ devices?

Yes, there are specific system logs and event notifications that you can monitor for early detection of data loss on QNAP Turbo Station TS-459U-RP/SP / TS-459U-RP+/SP+ devices. Some of the key logs and events to monitor are:

1. System Logs: QNAP NAS devices maintain various system logs that can provide information about potential data loss. These logs can be accessed through the QNAP web interface under "Control Panel" > "System Logs."
2. SMART Logs: QNAP NAS devices support Self-Monitoring, Analysis, and Reporting Technology (SMART), which provides information about the health and status of hard drives. Monitoring SMART logs can help detect potential hard drive failures that may lead to data loss. SMART logs can be accessed through the QNAP web interface under "Storage & Snapshots" > "Disk Health."
3. RAID Logs: If you have configured your QNAP NAS with a RAID configuration, monitoring RAID logs is crucial. These logs can provide information about any issues or failures related to the RAID array. RAID logs can be accessed through the QNAP web interface under "Storage & Snapshots" > "Storage & RAID Management."
4. Event Notifications: QNAP NAS devices support event notifications, which can be configured to send alerts via email, SMS, or push notifications. You can set up notifications for various events such as disk failures, RAID degradation, or abnormal system behavior. Event notifications can be configured through the QNAP web interface under "Control Panel" > "Notification" > "Event Notification."

By regularly monitoring these logs and configuring event notifications, you can receive early warnings about potential data loss on your QNAP Turbo Station NAS devices and take appropriate actions to prevent or mitigate any data loss.

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

Although NAS Turbo Station TS-459U-RP/SP / TS-459U-RP+/SP+ 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.

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   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-459U-RP/SP / TS-459U-RP+/SP+. 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.

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How to recover data from a QNAP

Turbo Station TS-459U-RP/SP / TS-459U-RP+/SP+ has 4 HDD slots, and it supports the following array types:

• RAID 5;
• RAID 6;
• RAID 10;
• RAID 0;
• RAID 1;
• JBOD;

NAS supports:

• ZFS;
• 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-459U-RP/SP / TS-459U-RP+/SP+ network-attached storage keeps QTS (QuTS hero) 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