by James Walsh
This might leave you wondering about the reason behind the failure of your PC, especially when you cannot see any apparent signs of damage.

If you have faced a similar problem with your PC, then what you might be probably looking at is termed a logical failure.

Logical failure is the breakdown of a computer for reasons other than physical damage. For the normal functioning of a computer, both the hardware as well as the software needs to be in a good condition. The failure that occurs due to non-functionality or corruption of the software is known as logical failure.

Reasons behind Logical Failure

Logical failure might be caused due to intentional or unintentional human interference. These failures are a major threat to the valuable data stored on the hard disk. Hence, in order to avoid these failures, we need to first understand the various logical errors that pose a major threat to our data

Let us see a few of the prominent reasons behind logical failures:

1. Operating System Crash: A computer cannot start without booting the Operating System (OS). When vital system files are corrupt, it makes the OS unusable and prevents booting of the OS. If this happens, then you might not be able to work with your PC or access data present on the hard disk drive, although the data is still safe on the drive.

2. Reformatting the Storage Media: If you have formatted your storage media, without knowing that it would lead to data loss, there is a high probability that you have not backed up your data. When you format your hard drive, the tracks and sectors on the storage device are erased and your computer will not be able to locate the data.

3. Accidental Deletion and Employee Sabotage: A person might mistakenly delete important data on the computer. Sometimes, an employee can deliberately delete important information in an attempt to take revenge on his colleagues, higher officials or to bring loss to the organisation.

4. Software Corruption: Sometimes, software installed in the computer might go corrupt, leaving it difficult to access the data stored on the hard drive. Also, installation of certain software might conflict with the Operating System, giving error messages. You might not be able to boot to the OS or access any data, unless the software is uninstalled.

5. Virus Attack: Virus attacks contribute to about 7% of total data loss. There are different types of viruses on the Internet and the severity of the damage varies. While some viruses target only specific types of files, there are more dangerous viruses that could corrupt all the data and crash the Operating System.

6. Power Spikes and Electrostatic Discharge: The sudden flow of excessive electricity might damage the components in a computer. The discharge might be caused due to lightning, power spikes or electrostatic discharge. Although this prevents you from accessing the computer, the data stays intact in your hard drive.

Recovering the Data

Data can be recovered from your hard drive, unless it has been overwritten by fresh data. Each type of data loss has its own method of data recovery. For example, if the data loss was due to an Operating System crash, you could try repair installation or parallel installation. However, unless you are familiar with these procedures, it might not be a wise decision to perform these recovery steps on your own.

You could also try using data recovery software available on the Internet to retrieve the data. While, this method could be cheaper and faster, it cannot recover data lost due to serious OS issues. Also, using some cheap software could cause permanent loss of data.

The best option is to resort to the services of data recovery experts. While this might prove to be a costlier option, you have the highest probability of success using this method.

Protecting your Computer against Logical Errors

Here are a few tips to guard your computer against logical error:

1. Run the disk defragmenter regularly. This helps to arrange the fragmented files together. This not only helps in easy access of information; it provides a greater chance of recovery in case of a data loss.

2. Have updated anti-virus programming running constantly on your computer.

3. Make use of a surge protector to protect your computer against surge.

The Last Word

More than 50% of the total data loss occurs due to logical errors. While your precautionary measures could help to minimise the risk, it cannot completely eliminate the chances of data loss. Hence, it is better to constantly back up all the important data, so that you are not affected by a sudden incident of data loss.

James Walsh is a freelance writer and copy editor. For more information on computer crime and Computer Forensics see http://www.fieldsassociates.co.uk

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