Data Recovery Case File · NAS & Network Storage · Why Some and Not All
An Appliance Recycle Folder Catches Deletions Made by Some Routes and Not Others
This enquiry reports a partial success and asks about the remainder, which is exactly the right question. A laboratory appliance where a user deleted data accidentally, "most of which we recovered from the recycle folder using the built-in interface, but some portion is still missing." The split is not random: a recycle folder intercepts deletions arriving by particular routes, and whatever came by another route was never placed in it.
| Media | Multi-drive network storage appliance in laboratory use — content deleted by a user, partially restored from the appliance recycle folder; a remainder unaccounted for |
| Reported situation | Network storage appliance in laboratory service · content deleted accidentally by a user · majority restored from the appliance recycle folder through its own interface · a portion of the deleted content still missing · appliance remaining in service · recovery of the remainder sought · cost structure queried |
| Fault class | Deletions arriving by routes the recycle mechanism does not intercept — unreferenced content retained on the volume; continued appliance use consuming the space holding it |
| Equipment used | Recycle interception behaviour established to explain the split before any recovery was scoped · appliance taken out of service before further writing · all members imaged individually write-blocked · array geometry reconstructed and the volume assembled offline · unreferenced content recovered from the assembled filesystem and carved where structures did not reconcile |
The decode: why the split happened, and what continued use is costing
What an appliance recycle folder actually is: a move, not a safety net. When a deletion arrives by a supported route, the appliance moves the item into a hidden folder instead of removing it.
Why that only covers some deletions: the interception happens in the file-sharing service. A deletion arriving through the protocol the service handles is intercepted; one arriving another way reaches the filesystem directly.
What the common exceptions are: more than people expect. Deletions over other protocols, from the appliance's own interface, by scheduled tasks, or by an application writing directly frequently bypass it.
Why size can also matter: some appliances impose limits. Items above a threshold, or deletions that would exceed a quota on the recycle folder, are removed rather than moved.
Why this explains a partial result precisely: the user's deletion was not uniform. Content deleted by one route was caught and content deleted by another was not, which produces exactly the split reported.
What that means for the missing portion: it was genuinely deleted. Those items had their references removed, and their content remains on the volume until something writes over it.
Why that is recoverable in principle: deletion removes description. The content sits where it was, unreferenced, and is located from residual structures or by its own shape.
Now the urgent part, and it is genuinely urgent: the appliance is still running. A laboratory appliance in service is being written to continuously, and every write lands in space the deletion released.
Why that outweighs everything else about the case: it is the only variable left. The deletion has happened and cannot be undone; the overwriting has not all happened yet.
What should happen before anything is quoted: the appliance out of service. Hours of continued use may cost more than any decision about the recovery.
On the bench
Recycle interception behaviour was established to explain the split before any recovery was scoped — an appliance recycle folder moving items into a hidden location when a deletion arrives through the file-sharing service, while deletions over other protocols, from the appliance interface, by scheduled tasks or by direct application writes bypass it, as can items above a size threshold. The remainder was therefore genuinely deleted, with content unreferenced but present. The appliance was taken out of service.
The outcome
Interception behaviour established to explain the split, the appliance taken out of service, and the volume assembled offline from individual member images. Free assessment, one fixed written figure including VAT, charged per drive, with 50% of parts and labour upfront where a drive has to be opened. The decode: a recycle folder catches deletions arriving by particular routes and not others, which is why you got most and not all. Take the appliance out of service now — that is the only variable still open.
When a recycle folder restored some of a deletion
Take the appliance out of service immediately — it's still being written to, and every write lands in the space the deletion released, which is the only variable still under your control. The split isn't random: a recycle folder intercepts deletions arriving through the file-sharing service, while those from other protocols, the appliance's own interface, scheduled tasks or direct application writes bypass it, as can items above a size threshold. The remainder is recoverable until overwritten.
Take it out of service — call Cambridge Data Recovery on 01223 655015; interception behaviour established to explain the split, members imaged individually, volume assembled offline.
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Our case files are drawn from genuine enquiries received by our laboratory over the past ten years, anonymised to protect client confidentiality. Each one describes the diagnostic and recovery procedure our engineers apply to that fault, using the equipment listed.