This case study highlights a high-efficiency recovery of a massive 217 GB SQL Server 2008 R2 database following an attack by the .mkp ransomware. By utilizing manual header reconstruction, our team achieved a 100% restoration in record time, minimizing business downtime for the client.

Client & Data Information

• Client Name: Confidential
• Data Type: SQL Server 2008 R2 (.MDF / .LDF)
• Data Capacity: 217 GB
• Ransomware Extension: .mkp

Incident Summary

The client’s server environment was hit by a targeted .mkp ransomware attack, which encrypted the entire file system. The 217 GB database—the core of the company’s ERP operations—was rendered unreadable. Despite the massive file size and the aggressive nature of the .mkp virus, our forensic analysis determined that the internal data pages remained highly intact, with the primary damage localized to the file headers.

Technical Analysis

Our engineers conducted a deep-sector scan of the 217 GB database file, leading to several key findings:

• Header-Specific Corruption: The .mkp variant primarily targeted the initial blocks (headers) of the database file to prevent the SQL engine from mounting it.
• High Page Integrity: The vast majority of the data pages within the 217 GB structure were untouched, preserving the actual records and tables.
• Consistency Potential: Because the core data remained intact, a manual reconstruction of the file’s structural metadata was identified as the fastest path to recovery.

Recovery Solution

The recovery strategy focused on Manual Header Block Reconstruction. Rather than attempting a slow, full-file decryption or extraction, our specialists manually rebuilt the corrupted file headers to match the original SQL 2008 R2 specifications. This “surgical” repair ensured system consistency and allowed the database to be mounted directly by the SQL engine.

Recovery Process

• Forensic Sector Analysis: Identifying the exact boundary between the encrypted header blocks and the intact data pages.
• Manual Header Reconstruction: Manually repairing and rebuilding the encrypted file header to restore the database’s internal identity.
• System Consistency Check: Running specialized diagnostic tools to ensure the reconstructed headers aligned perfectly with the existing data pages.
• Integrity Validation: A 100% validation scan of the 217 GB database to ensure no relational errors existed.
• ERP Deployment: Verifying that the restored database could be used immediately by the client’s ERP software.

Recovery Results

• Recovery Integrity: 100%
• Recovered Files: 217 GB SQL Server 2008 R2 Database
• System Status: Fully restored; database is directly usable by the ERP system.
• Total Recovery Time: 1 Hour

Expert Reminder from Shenzhen Excellent Data Recovery Center: Important data must be backed up frequently. In case of a .mkp infection, contact professionals immediately. We provide a 100% original database recovery guarantee for specific failures, and databases of any size—even over 200 GB—can be recovered immediately.