So i hope this isn't a terribly amateur question, but we have a mission critical server that is old and stopped working but needs to be up and running within the next day or so. Is it possible to take the hard drive out of that and put it in a different blade server and be able to extract some files from it?

what exactly is the problem?

"stopped working" does not tell us a whole lot... can you elaborate?

Indeed. "stopped working" tells us nothing.

We also need to know what OS was on there, whether it was OEM or not, and whether the blade servers match hardware-wise to be able to tell you if you can just swap out the drives. Or for just recovery, what type of information and what software uses that information would be needed to know if it's possible to get the data back (along with how it's not responding).

Backups, backups, backups.

Sorry about that.
Alright so the server turns on but then shuts off after a short time. We had a repairman come while im away on other business and I guess a fan isn't working. I think a new fan is coming on monday, but I need access to files that are only saved on that hard drive asap. We don't have a backup (stupidly the important records are on like the oldest server in the company.) Do you know of any way to get access to those files in its current state?

OS

What kind of files

Software on server accessing those files

your company dos not keep Backups?

thats kinda a poor business practice.. as the saying goes "your only as good as your most recent backup"...

and yes, this info would be helpful as well

Its windows server 2003. I'm not sure what the model is. I am currently heading back to where the server is, as I've been away for a few days taking care of other business. I'll update when I see it.

If it sounds like I don't know what I'm doing, its because I just started this job like 5 days ago... from working in restaurants... not that I don't know about computers, but its kind of a svcky situation to be in.

In that case, an external drive mount/enclosure will allow you to access the data on any other Windows computer. If you didn't use Dynamic Disks, you can access the data with Linux too.

This is assuming the data isn't in a RAID array. If it's in a RAID array it gets much more complicated and may not even be possible to transfer the disks.

Honestly, it sounds like you're a fall-guy. Any company not doing backups only hires greenies because no real IT professional would dare to work for them, so they need someone to fire when things go bad. If they're a small (<25) company and have never had an IT professional before, I could maybe see how that could happen, but then what are they doing with a Windows Server?

Its a proprietary software developed just for us. Its a report viewer and the CEO needs these reports. A couple days ago actually. My thought was maybe we could redownload (or whatever) the software and maybe our "account" would be backed up, but its apparently ancient, and that's a very slim chance.
Backups. Thats one of the things I want to do while I'm here. I've never worked for a company in IT department, but even I can tell these server rooms and setups are a friggen mess.
Again, i'll get back to you on the hardware info in a couple hours. If there's any info or advice you can give me right now, explain away.

Don't pull a single drive until you know everything. Pulling a drive could only end up killing your chances.

You need to find out if there's RAID as well as how the data is stored. If it is using RAID, you need to find out the RAID card.

Since it's using proprietary ancient software, there's a good chance you won't be able to access the data without the program even if you do get the drives functioning. Or at least won't be able to access the data in a meaningful way. In this case your only option would be either to:

1. Wait until the server is fixed.

2. Get a server with the same RAID card (otherwise the RAID array may not be recognized) and same general architecture (otherwise Windows Server 2003 won't boot). and very carefully swap the disks. You'll get a message about RAID changes and if you aren't careful, you could wipe the disks by mistake.

In any case: you need to start looking at software to replace whatever this ancient software is. Software that you can install yourself or that you have an active support license for. Otherwise this problem could just repeat over and over again. If you get any flac about it, just remind them how much this downtime hurt them and that this is the only course of action to keep it from happening again.

If you have an exact blade, with the same Mobo and firmware on it, then you should be able to swap the drive and fire it up. Unless of course this is a RAID array. But if it has the same parts, then it could be migrated. The only problem is establishing the correct order of the drives on the new controller. It would really be best to move a RAID array only as a last resort.

Barring that, yes, you can pull the files off the drive by mounting it in a drive enclosure. However, if this is an old enough drive, IDE enclosures are usually only available on line. You could use a cable in the new server you build, just tell the boot file to ignore the drive.