UFS Explorer Network RAID is the most advanced edition in the Сlassic product family. It includes all features of UFS Explorer RAID Recovery and adds one key capability: it can access drives connected to other computers on the local network as if they were local. This is especially useful when a RAID array contains more member drives than a single workstation can physically host, when specialized hardware has a limited number of ports, or when a remote machine offers a more suitable operating system or performance environment for a specific task.
At 10 Gbit LAN speeds, the practical difference between a local SAS connection and a network connection is minimal. Even on 1 Gbit networks, the workflow remains efficient for most recovery operations. The software communicates with other UFS Explorer instances using either standard iSCSI or its own UDP-based protocol with lower overhead. Both are available at the same time.
The iSCSI target capability, in addition to the iSCSI initiator, allows assembled volumes to be shared with any iSCSI-capable client, including Windows iSCSI Initiator, other UFS Explorer editions or compatible third-party tools. A common workflow is to expose a reconstructed NAS volume as a local virtual disk on the recovery workstation, then access it using standard OS tools alongside UFS Explorer.
When the software is licensed, only the instance used to save recovered files requires a license. Instances running on remote machines and used solely for sharing drives over the network do not need to be licensed.
UFS Explorer Network RAID is designed for data recovery workflows that span more than one physical machine. The scenarios below describe cases that require functionality beyond UFS Explorer RAID Recovery.
Large RAID arrays of 12, 16, 24 drives or more often exceed the port capacity of a single workstation's HBA cards. In such cases, drives can be distributed across two or three machines on the same LAN, with each machine sharing its drives to the UFS Explorer Network RAID instance performing the assembly.
After assembling a NAS or RAID volume, the iSCSI target can present it as a standard SCSI disk to iSCSI clients. Windows iSCSI Initiator can mount it as a local drive letter, making the recovered data directly accessible in File Explorer or other applications without prior copying.
Access UFS Explorer Professional Recovery’s hardware-level capabilities, including DeepSpar DDI and specialist HBA support, without applying a Professional Recovery license for data saving. The software provides a fully functional free trial, allowing it to run on a remote machine and expose the connected drives and storage to UFS Explorer Network RAID over the local network.
When drives from a Linux-based NAS need to be connected to a Linux system for correct low-level handling, but the recovery workstation runs Windows, UFS Explorer Network RAID bridges the two environments. The Linux machine shares the drives, while the Windows workstation performs the RAID assembly and recovery.
As an iSCSI initiator, the software connects to standard iSCSI targets on the network, including SAN servers, NAS devices running in iSCSI mode, DeepSpar DDI hardware or other UFS Explorer instances. This allows the program to treat a drive connected to a remote machine as if it were locally attached.
As an iSCSI target, the software exposes assembled volumes, including reconstructed RAID arrays, to the network. Any iSCSI-capable client can connect, such as Windows iSCSI Initiator, Linux iscsiadm or another instance of UFS Explorer in a multi-stage workflow.
UFS Explorer Professional Recovery, the flagship product in the Professional family, runs a network agent that exposes its connected storage to other UFS Explorer applications. Because UFS Explorer Professional Recovery has a fully functional free trial, it can be installed and used on a remote machine purely as a data-sharing agent without any licensing cost required for that machine.
The recovery workstation, running licensed UFS Explorer Network RAID, connects to the Professional Recovery agent, accesses the drives it provides, assembles the RAID and performs the recovery. This combination makes the full hardware-level capabilities of UFS Explorer Professional Recovery available, including its extended HBA support and forensic tools, while the actual data saving is performed on the UFS Explorer Network RAID side.
UFS Explorer Network RAID inherits all specifications of UFS Explorer RAID Recovery. The items below describe only the additional capabilities introduced in this edition. For details on RAID levels, NAS vendor support, file system coverage, disk image formats and system requirements, see the UFS Explorer RAID Recovery specifications page.
Network protocols and connectivity
Trial version limitations
Licensing model
Only the instance used to save recovered files requires a license. Remote machines running UFS Explorer Network RAID or UFS Explorer Professional Recovery solely to share drives over the network do not need to be licensed.
