We value your privacy

We use cookies to analyse site traffic and improve your experience. You can accept all cookies or reject non-essential ones. See our Privacy Policy for details.

GR IT SERVICES
  • Contact
hello@gritservices.ae
  1. IT Services
  2. Data Recovery Dubai
Data Recovery Dubai

Data recovery in Dubai when your backup did not save you.

When the drive fails, the RAID rebuilds the wrong way, the ransomware encrypts the backups too, or the deleted folder turns out to be the one nobody backed up. Data recovery is what happens after the prevention failed. We deliver recovery services across mechanical drive failure, RAID and NAS rebuild, ransomware decryption, Microsoft 365 restoration, mobile devices, and forensic recovery from damaged media. UAE-based, written quote before work begins, no-recovery-no-charge on standard cases.

Start a recovery caseSee recovery scenarios
Data recovery for UAE businesses: RAID, NAS, ransomware, M365 restoration
  • No-feeDiagnostic step
  • 24/7Emergency intake
  • ISO Class 5Clean-room partners
  • 15 minInitial assessment
Nine recovery scenarios we handle

The real situations that bring UAE businesses to data recovery.

Data recovery is not one thing. Each scenario has a different process, different tooling, different cost structure, and different success probability. We handle the nine common ones below; for the rest we partner with specialist clean-room labs.

Mechanical drive failure

Clicking drives, head crash, motor failure, platter contamination. Logical extraction first, then escalation to ISO Class 5 clean-room partner if the drive needs physical opening. Common on older laptops, servers, and external USB drives.

RAID and NAS rebuild

Synology, QNAP, Drobo, ReadyNAS, Buffalo plus server-side RAID 0, 1, 5, 6, 10. Failed rebuilds, missing parity, configuration loss, multi-drive failure beyond redundancy. We image drives first, work on the image, return data on a new array.

Ransomware decryption and forensic recovery

Encrypted files with intact original volume structure: shadow copy review, known-decryptor application where keys are public (LockBit, REvil, Hive, Conti variants), file-carving from unencrypted slack space. We do NOT pay ransoms. Forensic isolation maintained throughout.

Accidental deletion and overwrite

Files deleted from Windows or Mac, formatted drives, lost partitions, overwritten files (depends on time since overwrite). Often the simplest recovery if the system has not been heavily used since the loss. Stop using the affected drive immediately.

Microsoft 365 and OneDrive restoration

Deleted Exchange mailboxes, SharePoint sites, OneDrive folders, Teams messages, Outlook PST corruption. Native M365 retention plus Microsoft Graph-level recovery, plus third-party backup restore if you have Veeam M365 Backup, AvePoint, or similar. Time-sensitive: 30 day soft-delete then permanent.

Mobile device recovery

iPhone, iPad, Android. Failed updates, water damage, broken screen with locked device, deleted photos and contacts. iCloud, Google account, local-device extraction depending on situation. Forensic-grade tooling for legal cases.

SSD and flash memory recovery

SSD failure differs from HDD: controller fail, NAND degradation, firmware corruption, encryption-at-rest barriers. Lower recovery probability than HDD in many cases; we set realistic expectations during the diagnostic phase.

Virtual machine recovery

VMware ESXi, Hyper-V, Proxmox VMs. Corrupted vmdk or vhdx files, lost snapshots, failed storage migration, datastore corruption. Image-based recovery from datastore, then individual file extraction.

Database recovery

SQL Server, MySQL, PostgreSQL, MariaDB. Corrupt transaction logs, accidentally dropped tables, partial database files. Page-level extraction where transaction log replay is not possible. Cooperation with your DBA throughout.

Why UAE businesses use us for recovery

Four reasons we are different from a generic computer-repair shop.

No-fee diagnostic, written quote before work

The diagnostic step (1 to 5 days depending on case complexity) is free. After diagnostic we send a written quote with recovery probability, time, and AED price. No work proceeds without your written approval. No-recovery-no-charge applies on most standard cases; we set the boundary explicitly in the quote.

Forensic chain-of-custody

For cases that may end in legal proceedings (disputes, fraud, employee data theft), we maintain forensic chain-of-custody throughout. Tamper-evident handling, documented timestamps, hash-verified imaging, expert testimony if required.

Clean-room partner network for physical damage

ISO Class 5 clean-room recovery for severely damaged media (water, fire, mechanical) is handled through verified partner labs. We project-manage the case end-to-end so you have one point of contact, transparent pricing, and SLA on turnaround.

24/7 emergency intake

Data loss does not respect business hours. 24/7 emergency intake with initial assessment in 15 minutes for paying clients. Most cases start with a phone or WhatsApp triage to determine whether you should power off the affected device immediately or whether normal-hours intake is fine.

Recovery scenarios we see most

Six UAE business situations we handle weekly.

Finance and trading firms

Locked Excel files, deleted P&L spreadsheets, corrupt accounting databases (Tally, QuickBooks, Sage), ransomware affecting partial volumes. Often time-critical for regulatory filings or quarter-close.

Healthcare practices

Patient records on practice management systems, X-ray and imaging archives on local NAS, EHR database corruption. PDPL-compliant handling: data never leaves UAE jurisdiction, recovery process documented for regulator if needed.

Retail and hospitality

POS database corruption, CCTV footage on failed NVR drives, customer database on aging RAID. Frequently combined with rebuild of the underlying infrastructure once data is recovered.

Construction and engineering

CAD drawings, project files, contract documentation on dropped laptops, failed NAS, water-damaged office equipment after the unusual rainstorms UAE has had in recent years. Often months of work to lose.

Professional services

Law firms, accountants, consultancies losing client files, contract documents, audit evidence. Legal-grade chain-of-custody important for cases that may end in court.

Education and training

Student records on aging school servers, course content on individual teacher laptops, exam data on USB drives. Often slow-developing situation where the device has been failing for weeks before total failure.

Data recovery vs data backup vs disaster recovery

Three things UAE businesses confuse.

When you engage
Data recoveryAfter data loss happens
Data backupBefore data loss (prevention)
Disaster recoveryAfter major outage
Cost model
Data recoveryPer case, often substantial
Data backupPredictable monthly fee
Disaster recoveryPredictable monthly fee
Success probability
Data recoveryVariable, depends on case
Data backupNear-certain if tested
Disaster recoveryHigh if planned
Outcome
Data recoverySome or all of lost data restored
Data backupContinuous protection
Disaster recoveryService restored to known state
Best practice
Data recoveryHopefully never needed
Data backupEssential foundation
Disaster recoveryRequired for critical systems
How we deliver
Data recoveryCase-by-case recovery service
Data backupBackup-as-a-Service or DIY
Disaster recoveryDRaaS or runbook
Feature
Data recovery
Data backup
Disaster recovery
When you engage
After data loss happensBefore data loss (prevention)After major outage
Cost model
Per case, often substantialPredictable monthly feePredictable monthly fee
Success probability
Variable, depends on caseNear-certain if testedHigh if planned
Outcome
Some or all of lost data restoredContinuous protectionService restored to known state
Best practice
Hopefully never neededEssential foundationRequired for critical systems
How we deliver
Case-by-case recovery serviceBackup-as-a-Service or DIYDRaaS or runbook
How a recovery case runs

From emergency call to data return.

  1. 1

    Emergency triage

    15 minutes

    Phone or WhatsApp triage: what failed, when, what has been tried, what state the affected media is in now. Critical: most recovery cases get harder if you keep using the affected device after data loss. We tell you whether to power off immediately.

  2. 2

    Diagnostic and quote

    1-5 days

    In our Business Bay facility: assessment of the case, imaging of the affected media (no work on the original), written quote with recovery probability, expected timeline, AED price, no-recovery-no-charge applicability.

  3. 3

    Recovery work

    1-15 days

    Logical recovery in-house. Physical damage cases routed to clean-room partner with our project management. Daily status update for cases over 48 hours. No work outside the scope of the signed quote.

  4. 4

    Return and prevention review

    1 day

    Recovered data returned on a new encrypted drive or to your designated cloud location. Brief written report of what failed and why. Recommendation on prevention (backup-as-a-service, DR plan) so the same loss does not happen twice.

“Our 8-bay Synology NAS had two drives fail in the same week. The rebuild started but stopped. We thought our 4 years of client work was gone. GR took the array, imaged every drive, rebuilt the RAID 6 on the image (not the originals), and returned 99.7% of the data in 8 days. They also pointed out our backup schedule was set to local-only on the same NAS, which is why we had no real backup. We now have offsite backup-as-a-service with them and have not needed recovery since.”
Founder
Operations · Architectural practice, Business Bay
99.7% data recovered from failed RAID 6, prevention plan in place
Data recovery FAQ

What UAE businesses ask when something has gone wrong.

Often yes. Clicking is usually a head problem; rapid clicking can be a stuck spindle. Both need clean-room recovery (do not keep powering it on; each attempt makes recovery harder). Success rate for clean-room HDD recovery is typically 70 to 90%. We image the drive in clean-room conditions, then extract data from the image. SSD with similar symptoms is harder; success rates lower.

Power off the affected device. Do not run "recovery software" downloaded from the internet (most overwrite data). Do not let anyone try to fix the underlying issue first. Call us before doing anything. Continued use of the affected device is the single biggest factor in reduced recovery probability.

Wide range. Simple logical recovery (accidental deletion, partition table corruption) can be straightforward. Failed RAID rebuild is multiple times that. Clean-room HDD recovery for physical damage is higher again. Ransomware decryption depends on the specific variant. We quote in writing after diagnostic; no work proceeds without your approval, and no-recovery-no-charge applies on standard cases.

Logical recovery (no physical damage): typically 1 to 3 days. RAID rebuild: 3 to 7 days. Clean-room HDD recovery: 7 to 15 days due to clean-room scheduling. Mobile device recovery: 1 to 5 days. Ransomware cases: variable, depending on whether decryptor is available. We give specific timeline in the written quote.

If you have the password, yes. If you do not (deceased employee, lost credentials), recovery is sometimes possible through specialised tools and only with explicit legal authorisation. We require documentation of legal right to the data before proceeding with bypass attempts on encrypted devices.

Yes. NDA signed before any work. Engineers handling cases are background-checked. Forensic chain-of-custody for sensitive cases. Recovered data delivered on encrypted media. Original failed media returned or destroyed per your instruction. We have handled cases for law firms, financial services, healthcare, and government-adjacent clients with appropriate confidentiality.

No. We do not pay ransoms and we do not advise clients to pay. Paying does not guarantee decryption, funds further criminal activity, and may breach sanctions (OFAC, UAE, EU). For ransomware cases we focus on: known decryptor application where keys are public, shadow copy review, file carving, restoration from any backup the attackers missed, and forensic investigation. Then we help rebuild the environment with prevention measures.

Yes within Microsoft retention windows: 30 day soft-delete for most items, longer with retention policies, legal hold, or third-party backup. Beyond those windows, Microsoft permanently deletes. Time-critical. If you discover deletion, contact us within hours not days. We also recommend Veeam M365 Backup or AvePoint for clients without one already.

Data recovery focuses on restoring lost data. Digital forensics focuses on investigating what happened (who did what, when, evidence of intrusion or theft, chain-of-custody for legal proceedings). The two overlap; some cases need both. We deliver data recovery with forensic chain-of-custody for cases that may end in legal action, and partner with specialised digital forensics labs for full forensic investigations.

Backup-as-a-Service with the 3-2-1-1-0 principle (3 copies, 2 different media, 1 offsite, 1 immutable, 0 errors verified). Microsoft 365 specifically needs third-party backup; Microsoft retention is not a backup. Tested DR plan with documented RPO and RTO per system. Endpoint backup for laptops. We can put all of this in place; the prevention is much cheaper than the recovery.
Adjacent recovery and continuity services

Related pages on prevention and continuity.

Data Backup

Backup-as-a-Service across M365, endpoints, servers, with immutable cloud copy.

Learn more

Backup as a Service Dubai

Managed backup for UAE businesses with 3-2-1-1-0 model.

Learn more

Disaster Recovery as a Service

DRaaS with documented RPO and RTO, annual failover testing.

Learn more

Ransomware Protection

Multi-layer ransomware defence: EDR, immutable backup, segmentation, IR runbook.

Learn more

Business Continuity Planning

Documented BCP with tabletop exercises and tested runbooks.

Learn more

Incident Response

Cybersecurity incident response with forensic investigation.

Learn more
Start a data recovery case

Power off the affected device and call us first.

24/7 emergency intake. Initial triage in 15 minutes. Diagnostic in 1 to 5 days. Written quote with recovery probability before any work begins. No-recovery-no-charge applies on most standard cases.

Start a recovery caseSee backup services

Related Services

Explore more solutions that work great with this service

Veeam Backup Dubai

Immutable repositories and tested, evidenced restores

Learn more

Backup as a Service

M365, endpoint, server backup, immutable

Learn more

DRaaS

Tested disaster recovery on Azure

Learn more

Ransomware Protection

Defender XDR and Sentinel-driven ransomware defense

Learn more

Business Continuity Planning

BCP, RPO/RTO design, and DR runbook authoring

Learn more

Incident Response

24/7 incident response and forensics in Dubai

Learn more
GR IT SERVICES

Leading IT services provider in Dubai,
delivering enterprise-grade solutions
for businesses across the UAE.

Microsoft CSP PartnerApple Jamf PartnerCISGuard

Get the Helpdesk app

Raise and track IT tickets from your phone.

Download on the App StoreGet it on Google Play
Learn more about the app

Microsoft 365

  • Microsoft 365 Administration
  • M365 Reporting & Auditing
  • Microsoft 365 Licensing
  • Microsoft Copilot
  • Microsoft 365 Apps
  • Windows 365 Cloud PC
  • Microsoft SharePoint
  • Outlook & Exchange

Security

  • Microsoft Defender
  • Microsoft Purview
  • Microsoft Intune
  • Microsoft Entra
  • Compliance Manager
  • Cybersecurity Audits
  • Copilot for Security
  • Microsoft Sentinel
  • Microsoft Priva
  • Edge for Business

Apple

  • Apple Business
  • Apple Jamf Pro
  • Apple Device Management
  • macOS Management
  • macOS Security Hardening
  • Jamf School
  • Jamf Licensing
  • Apple School Licensing

IT Services

  • Managed IT Services
  • IT Support Dubai
  • IT AMC Dubai
  • Remote IT Support
  • On-Call IT Support
  • Disaster Recovery & BC
  • Google Workspace
  • Cloud Migration Services
  • Active Directory
  • Server Management

Company

  • About Us
  • Careers
  • Contact
  • Blog

Contact

  • Iris Bay Tower, Office 903,
    Business Bay, Dubai, UAE
  • +971 0541300988
  • hello@gritservices.ae
  • gritservices.ae

© 2026 GR IT Services. All rights reserved.

Privacy PolicyTerms of UseCookie Policy