How to recover data from Seagate Black Armor STCU8000200 NAS

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 Seagate 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 a NAS Seagate Black Armor STCU8000200 device's power management settings impact data availability and potential loss?

The power management settings of a NAS (Network Attached Storage) device like the Seagate Black Armor STCU8000200 can impact data availability and potential loss in the following ways:

1. Sleep Mode: NAS devices often have a sleep mode feature that automatically puts the device into a low-power state after a certain period of inactivity. While this can save energy, it may cause a delay in accessing data when the device wakes up from sleep. If the NAS is used for critical applications where instant data availability is important, this delay can impact productivity and potentially cause data loss if time-sensitive operations are interrupted.
2. Drive Spin Down: Some NAS devices allow you to configure the drives to spin down after a certain period of inactivity. This can reduce wear and tear on the drives and save power. However, if the drives take too long to spin up when accessed, it can result in delays in data availability. Additionally, frequent spin-up and spin-down cycles can increase the risk of drive failure, which can lead to data loss.
3. Power Interruptions: Power management settings that prioritize power savings may result in the NAS device shutting down during power interruptions or fluctuations. If the NAS is not properly configured to handle power failures, sudden shutdowns can lead to data corruption or loss. It is crucial to have appropriate backup power solutions, such as uninterruptible power supplies (UPS), to ensure continuous operation and protect against data loss.
4. Scheduled Power On/Off: Some NAS devices allow users to schedule automatic power on/off times. While this can be useful for saving energy during non-working hours, it can impact data availability if the NAS is powered off during critical times when data access is required. If important tasks or backups are scheduled during the NAS's off-time, data may not be available when needed, leading to potential loss.

To mitigate these risks, it is important to carefully configure the power management settings of a NAS device based on the specific requirements of data availability and potential loss. Regular backups to offsite or cloud storage, implementing redundancy (RAID), and having appropriate power backup solutions are essential measures to minimize the impact of power management settings on data availability and loss.

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

Although NAS Black Armor STCU8000200 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 Seagate Black Armor STCU8000200. 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 Seagate

Black Armor STCU8000200 has 4 HDD slots, and it supports the following array types:

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

NAS supports:

• exFAT, VFAT, FAT 12 / 16 / 32;
• NTFS / ReFS;
• APFS / HFS+;
• Ext2 / 3 / 4 / ReiserFS / XFS / UFS / ZFS / Btrfs;
• VMFS / HikvisionFS;

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 Seagate Black Armor STCU8000200 network-attached storage keeps Seagate NAS OS 4 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