Embodiments of the invention efficiently improve the stray field robustness without changing the size or weight of the drive on a large scale. Because a stray field concentrates on a magnetic field element, a symptom in which already recorded data is erased is prevented. According to one embodiment, in a magnetic recording system that uses a perpendicular recording medium having a soft magnetic under layer, a soft magnetic shield is provided on an upper part and a side of a slider on which a magnetic head is mounted, and a distance C between the shield and the medium is made smaller than a distance A or B between the shield and the slider.