How to recover information from a hard drive. How to recover data from a hard drive with your own hands. What to do if the hard drive is not detected

Modern hard disks year after year they increase in capacity, speed, become more compact, technologically advanced, but... less reliable. Manufacturers do not care about quality: they strive to flood the market with their products and leave competitors “in the dust.” It is more profitable for them to exchange defective drives for new ones than to work on increasing their resistance to failures.

“What about the data? - you ask. “After all, they die along with the disk!” Data, friends, is our problem. We must think about how not to lose them. And if this happens, be able to save them. Today we’ll talk about how to recover data from a hard drive without resorting to the help of experts. And also about situations when you should not try to get them yourself, but it is better to immediately take the disk to a specialized service.

The easiest to restore are:

  • Files and folders deleted by the user past the recycle bin (by pressing Shift + Delete).

  • Information corrupted due to a file system failure.
  • Files erased by viruses.
  • Data in formatted partitions (with the exception of “low-level” formatting, in which all information on the disk is overwritten with zeros).

However, there cannot be a 100% guarantee of success in this matter. The files and folders that have been recently deleted have the greatest chance of survival, that is, the areas of the disk where they were stored were not overwritten. In the latter case, the chances of recovering information after quick formatting, since in this case only the file allocation table in the partition is erased, and they themselves remain in place.

In the following cases, data recovery is impossible or the probability of this is very low:

  • If the disk drive was formatted at a low level (essentially overwritten).
  • If the information was deleted using a file shredder application.
  • When another information was written on top of the deleted information. For example, if a user accidentally formatted, say, drive C to reinstall Windows, but only remembered that there were important files on it after installing new system.
  • In case of physical damage to the magnetic layer on which information is stored.
  • When files are damaged by encryption viruses, if there is no decryption key or effective decryptor. Searching for a key using the brute force method (brute force search) is, with rare exceptions, ineffective. The reason is that today there are more and more viruses that use strong 128- or 256-bit encryption. It is impossible to find a key for it with the current level of technology (and for 256 bits it is impossible in principle).

In the event of a hardware failure of the drive, if the electronics board has fallen or mechanical parts have failed, the probability of successful data recovery is about 50%. More precisely, it all depends on the type of breakdown and the qualifications of the technician. Unfortunately, it is not possible to recover information from a physically damaged disk using programs. Quite the contrary: attempts to turn on a disk that has broken down are fraught with irretrievable loss of data.

In what cases is it better to do nothing and take the device to a specialized service:

  • When the disk is not detected by the computer or periodically disappears (except for the case described below). Moreover, if it does not work at all: when connected, it does not show any signs of “life”, does not spin up, and does not get warm. External drive To check, you need to connect it to the computer as a regular internal one (via a SATA or IDE port, if available), since in case of failure only USB interface data is usually not damaged.
  • When HDD been hit or dropped. In this case, you should not even try to turn it on.
  • If, when accessing the disk, messages appear about serious problems with it or the operating system crashes into BSoD ( blue screen of death).
  • If there is a suspicion that the hard drive housing is leaking. By the way, under no circumstances should you open it yourself. A speck of dust that gets inside can damage the magnetic layer and irreversibly destroy the information on it the first time it is turned on.
  • In case of visible defects in the connection interfaces and the disk electronics board.
  • If there is a suspicion that liquid has entered the drive housing. This happens when a removable hard drive is placed in a bag next to a wet umbrella.

Data recovery services at service centers are not a cheap pleasure. “Treatment” of the mildest cases costs about half the cost of the drive (this is if the drive itself can be brought back to life without losing data). In difficult situations, the cost is 2 or more than the price of a new disk. It depends on the amount of information and the complexity of the restoration work.

What to do if the hard drive is not detected by the computer, freezes or works with errors

This life hack only applies to hard drives that have been in use for at least six months.

On the bottom side of the hard drive electronics board there are contact pads that are connected to the block of magnetic heads (BGM, a device for reading and writing information to the magnetic layer) with a flexible cable that goes inside the hermetic zone (disk case).

Over time, especially if the disk has been used in conditions of high humidity and significant heating, these areas are covered with a non-conducting layer of oxides - they become dull and dark, sometimes to the point of blackness. The oxide layer disrupts the contact between the HDM and the controller, which has an extremely negative impact on the operation of the disk: read/write errors, recognition problems, lags and other unpleasant things occur.

The solution to the problem is very simple: just remove the electronics board (for this you most often need a T6 screwdriver - a six-pointed star), clean the pads until they shine with a school eraser and wipe with alcohol. After such a simple procedure, many drives begin to work like new.

Programs for data recovery at home

- one of the most popular free utilities to recover data on a PC under Windows control. It is especially effective at restoring objects that have been removed past the recycle bin. It supports almost all types of files: graphics, music, videos, archives, documents, email messages and much more.

Recuva is capable of reading information not only from healthy, but also from logically damaged devices, as well as from formatted disk partitions. It recognizes any type of media - hard and optical discs, SSD, flash drives, memory cards, drives mobile devices etc. Works with NTFS, FAT16-32 and ExFat file systems.

How to use the program:

  • Download the installation or portable version of Recuva. Install or unpack it into a separate folder and run it with administrator rights.
  • If the program interface opens on English language, you can switch to Russian for convenience: click the “Options” button and select “Russian” from the “Language” list on the “General” tab.

  • While in the main window, open the list of disk partitions and connected drives. Select the area from which you want to recover information.
  • In the search bar (marked with a magnifying glass icon), enter the path to the object you are looking for, or click on the arrow and select the type of file you want to restore. In our example, this is graphics. By the way, text documents can be searched by keywords. To do this, open the "Analysis" menu and select "View Content." The “File Mask” field should indicate the type of document (doc, pdf, etc.), and in the “Search Line” you should indicate the word or phrase that the program should search for. After filling out both fields, click the “Analyze” button.

  • A list of found documents (or files of another type, depending on what you specified in the settings) will be displayed in the main Recuva window. In some cases, you can see the contents before restoring text documents and pictures in the “View” field (to the right of the list). The “Summary” contains information about the file: name, size, status and number of overwritten clusters. In the “Header”, accordingly, there are header service data.
  • Each list item has a colored circle next to it. Green color indicates good opportunity recover deleted files. Yellow indicates a questionable one, and red indicates its absence (since a significant part of the file has been overwritten).
  • Select the objects you want to return from the list and click the “Restore” button. Select the folder where the program should save them. It is important that this is a different logical partition of the same disk or a different physical device.

DMDE

DMDE is a cross-platform utility for restoring, backing up and editing the contents of drives. Works on Windows, Linux and DOS. Supports the following file systems: FAT12-16-32, ExFAT, NTFS, NTFS5, Ext2-3-4, HFSX, HFS+, and RAW (undefined). Capable of extracting data from healthy and damaged hard drives, solid state media and RAID arrays, as well as their sector-by-sector copies created in the program itself. Recovers not only deleted files, but also entire partitions that are no longer detectable due to corrupted service information. Has RAID reconstruction functions.

DMDE is available in free and two paid versions - home and commercial. The difference between the free version and the paid home edition is the absence of a group file recovery function and a quantitative limitation - the program allows you to restore up to 4000 objects from the current panel.

All versions of DMDE work without installation - just unpack the archive into a separate folder and run the Dmde.exe file.

How to use the utility:

  • After the main DMDE window appears on the screen, click the button top menu"Disk selection". Select the device or logical partition from which you want to recover information. Confirm your choice.

  • Next, select the desired partition again and click “Open Volume”.

  • In the left panel of the next window, select the “All found + reconstruction” option. Specify the file system reconstruction method and the search objects: all files, including deleted files, only deleted files, or all files excluding deleted files. If you want to get a list of only missing files, select “only deleted”, otherwise it may become too large.

  • After the program displays a list of everything found, right-click on the object of interest and select “Restore object” from the menu.

  • On the first tab of the recovery options window, specify the location to save the object.

  • On the “Filters” tab, you can set a mask of file names, their sizes (from and to) and exclude empty folders from processing.

  • As a rule, you don’t need to change anything in the settings. After clicking “OK”, the program will immediately begin the recovery process.

If the recovered files cannot be opened or the utility did not find what you wanted, the developers recommend performing a full scan of the volume and repeating the operation.

Or return to the disk selection section and try to read other volumes.

— a powerful software package of recovery tools for rescuing data from all types of media, including deeply damaged ones. This utility is often resorted to in cases where nothing else has helped.

Features of R-Studio include support for all types of drives and file systems, including undefined (RAW). And also - an improved algorithm for searching and restoring damaged and partially overwritten files. Additionally, the program contains functions for RAID reconstruction and creating virtual disk images from which information can be read as from physical ones.

How to use R-studio program:

  • Install and run the utility with administrator rights. The main window will display a list of connected drives.
  • Specify the media or partition from which you want to recover data and click the “Scan” button.

  • In the scanning settings window, define the file types that need to be found (the “Known file types” button), the rest can be left as default. To continue, click "Scan".

  • After the scan is completed, go to the “Disk” menu and click the “Recover all files” option.

  • Specify the location to save what you found and, if necessary, other recovery options (shown in the screenshot below). Click “Yes” to confirm. Wait until the operation is completed.

R-studio is an effective, but paid and very expensive program. However, there are “corrected” versions of it on the Internet.

How to properly recover information

  • The location where restored objects are saved should never be the same logical partition from which they were read.
  • It is better not to postpone the data recovery procedure until later. The fewer disk operations, the higher the chances of success.
  • If the program's capabilities allow, create virtual image partition or device on which the objects of interest are located, and restore from it. This will protect you from irretrievable data loss due to accidental overwriting or sudden drive failure.
  • If you are restoring from physical media, try to complete everything in one session. Repeated attempts may be less successful.

The hard drive is one of the main components of a PC, because it stores all the information and operating system files that enable it to run.

Sometimes a HDD can fail, which can make the data stored on it inaccessible. In this case, it is too early to despair - often it is still possible to restore them. In this article, we will look at the causes of mechanical and logical problems with hard drives and the process of repairing them.

Mechanical problems

Mechanical or physical problems with the HDD arise due to damage or failure of some of its components. Let's look at some of them.

The appearance of damaged hard disk sectors

This is one of the common problems that arises due to the appearance of “bad” sectors.

  • errors that appear when working with some files;
  • increased HDD loading time;
  • the appearance of a grinding noise when the disk operates.

This problem is not critical. Its solution uses specialized utilities, for example: HDDScan - to determine the presence of bad sectors, HDD Regenerator - to restore their functionality. If after applying them, data errors remain, you can try to recover them using special software. In this case, any data recovery program is suitable - Recuva, R-studio and others.

PCB fault

This problem occurs if there is a problem with the power supply to the drive. It is quite easy to determine - the hard drive either does not start or produces characteristic knocking sounds. Such a failure may be caused by an incorrect connection of the HDD to the PC.

In this situation you need:

  • check the correctness of the connection;
  • replace the board;
  • repair it.

Important! For replacement or repair printed circuit board You will most likely need professional help.

Problems with the magnetic head unit

This problem is quite serious.

Its “symptoms” are:

  • unstable operation of the hard drive;
  • the appearance of characteristic knocks and clicks.

A malfunction of the BMG can lead to data loss, so repairing this component must be carried out especially carefully. The solution to the problem is to replace the block, which it is advisable to entrust to professionals.

Logic problems

The second group of malfunctions are software failures that lead to certain errors. Read more about the most common ones below.

Formatting a disk drive

One of the most common problems of this kind. If formatting occurs accidentally or as a result of a failure, all previously recorded data disappears from the HDD. You can return them using special software.

Important! After formatting, it is necessary to ensure complete isolation of the hard drive. When writing new data to it, previous files will be completely lost.

Hard drive boot block failure

In this case, it becomes impossible to start the installed operating system. The error occurs during serious OS failures, as well as as a result of exposure to viruses. This problem is not very serious and the data can be recovered.

Video: Failed hard drive

Preparing to recover data from a damaged hard drive

If logical (software) failures occur, when the files on the hard drive remain in a state suitable for recovery, you can begin the process of “curing” and saving them. Before using the programs designed for this, you need to prepare the hard drive for connection to another PC, because installing and using them on a damaged device will not work.

Using an External Hard Drive Pocket

A hard drive pocket is a special device that allows you to connect it and run it using another PC.

Note! Pockets are available for different HDD models, so before purchasing, make sure it is fully compatible with your device.

The hard drive connection process will look like this:


Connecting the hard drive to the computer system unit

You can also start recovering data from a damaged hard drive by connecting it directly to system unit working computer. If you are using a laptop hard drive, you will need a special adapter, which can be purchased in specialized stores.


  • go into the BIOS by holding down the “Del” key when starting the system (may differ for different models);
  • find the section “Standard CMOS Settings” or “IDE Config”;
  • when setting up disks in “master” and “slave” modes, set all options to the “auto-detection” position;
  • save the changes and reboot the system.
  1. after the restart, go to “My Computer”, where a new device should be detected;
  2. view, copy or restore files.

R-Studio program

When the problematic hard drive is connected and detected by another computer, you can begin to restore data on it.

We will look at this process using the R-Studio utility as an example:

Once the data is accessible again and saved, the faulty disk can either be formatted and a new operating system installed on it, or (if there are serious problems) sent in for repair.

Now you know that if problems arise with your hard drive and files on it are unavailable, it is too early to sound the alarm. Depending on the severity of the problem, the data can be rescued on your own or with the help of a professional.

Very often situations arise in which the user loses important data. Without corresponding software it is impossible to restore them. There are many software (utilities) for data recovery, but each of them is designed for a specific situation.

Most Popular operating system is Windows. The hard drive is divided into logical drives or partitions. Logical drives are designated by the letters C, D, and so on. In addition, they can be assigned labels, for example, for a logical drive with an operating system (OS). These partitions can be formatted in various file systems (NTFS and FAT32).

Complete information about partitions, as well as file placement, is stored at the beginning of the hard drive and is called a partition table and service information about the physical disk (metadata). A logical disk consists of service information about the disk, information about files and folders (file allocation table).

The computer (PC), before performing data operations, first accesses the file allocation table (FAT), finds information about the file and goes directly to it using a pointer link. FAT is only 2: the original and a copy, which is what programs work with to recover lost data. Files are written to disk in parts (writing occurs in clusters), and parts of the file are not necessarily stored in adjacent clusters. They can be scattered throughout the hard drive and this is called file system fragmentation (FS).

During deletion, complete destruction does not occur, since the file name is prefixed with a dollar ($) prefix at the very beginning, for example, file1. txt becomes $file1.txt. This indicates that it can be overwritten. Therefore, until it has been overwritten, the probability of recovery is quite high. It is thanks to this feature that it becomes possible to recover deleted data from a hard drive.

Basic Data Recovery Methods

There are 2 methods of recovering information from a hard drive (HDD), but one thing must be taken into account - overwriting a file indicates its complete loss. Methods for recovering deleted information from a hard drive:

  1. Analysis of information about files and directories (folders).
  2. Signature search type.

The first method is used during superficial scanning of the FS by the program, and this is the initial stage of resuscitation. The program not only searches for data, but also resuscitates its structure and placement paths. If the FS is severely damaged, the program simply assigns names to them and offers to restore them to a folder specified by the user.

The second method is effective if the first one has a negative result. It does not create original file and folder names. This method is based on searching a file by its contents, and then finding its beginning and end, after which it allocates it from disk space. Despite the effective resuscitation of data, there are limitations when using method 2:

  1. Some file types only have a file signature at the beginning, making it difficult for the program to figure out the end. Some have no discernible signature at all.
  2. High fragmentation.
  3. File intersection.
  4. Getting false results. For example, the signature of an mp3 file starts with ID3, but each file can have this set of characters. And this does not mean that a piece of program code (a constant or variable has the name ID3) is an mp3 file.

There is another recovery method deleted files from the hard drive, which is used by software for professional data resuscitation - combined. Information is partially restored using methods 1 and 2.

Reasons for losing information

Very often, damaged PS can lead to various consequences. The ability to recover files on a hard drive, flash drive or other disk drive depends on the specific case.

If the drive itself is faulty (physical damage), then you need to contact a service center. It is not advisable to solve the problem yourself, as it can lead to complete loss important information.

If the disk is removed by mistake or the power supply fails, service information is damaged (if the information has not been saved) . In this case, a positive result can be guaranteed.

If the drive was mistakenly partitioned, the software will restore the data from the FAT backup copy. However, partial loss of information is possible, since when creating a new partition, service information will be overwritten. A synchronization search will most likely not be needed at all.

When a partition or drive is formatted incorrectly, more data is lost than when partitioned. It all depends on the type of formatting. Formatting is complete and quick. If it is fast, the probability is very high, and it is necessary to use 2 methods simultaneously. When completely overwritten, the values ​​00 and FF are rewritten and the probability of a positive solution to the problem is minimal.

When restoring files from a damaged file system, you can restore information from the backup copy (if it is not damaged). A combined method is used.

If the PC freezes during defragmentation or partitioning of the hard drive using software that splits the data disk, it is almost impossible to recover the data.

Reanimation programs

It is advisable to perform recovery not in the OS itself, but use boot disk For hard recovery disk or files and folders. The main reason is blocking the operation of searching and restoring files using a signature method. This mode is reacted to antivirus programs, because almost everyone uses a heuristic analyzer, which signals a non-standard access to the file system. The process of creating a boot disk is described in detail on the Internet. After creating a boot disk, you need to set the boot in SETUP (BIOS).

Types and description of functionality

The best program for recovering deleted files is R-Studio, which is distinguished by its support for a large number of file systems, it is possible to work with local and network drives, flash drives and CDs, has a large selection of recovery settings, which can reduce scanning time. To use this software you need to follow these steps:

  1. Download and install.
  2. Launch and select recovery mode.
  3. Start the scanning process.
  4. View the results and save them to your hard drive.

It should be remembered that it is necessary to save the data not to the current drive on which the recovery procedure was performed, but to another, since repeated recovery is possible (provided that the file turned out to be corrupted).

In addition, this program is capable of treating bad sectors. During treatment, a rewriting (magnetization reversal) procedure occurs and, if this does not help, then this sector is marked and no data is written to it. The ability to seamlessly restore a hard drive with a full format is available.

Using Power Data Recovery software, it is possible to recover information from damaged hard drives that are undetectable on the computer. The main advantage of the program is intuitive recovery thanks to the recovery wizard.

The HDD Regenerator program allows you not only to recover files, but also drives that are not recognized when connected. It is significantly inferior to R-Studio, but thanks to the possibility of low-level access and formatting, it allows you to restore the functionality of the hard drive. In addition, it allows you to identify bad blocks and restore them by reversing magnetization, and allows you to diagnose the disk surface. Can create bootable disks and flash drives to recover lost information.

The Recuva program is also very effective in recovery. The main highlight is the ability to restore files by their types.

Among the paid software, EaseUS Data Recovery Wizard should be highlighted. Very easy to use (there is a Russian version). Allows you to find most files and folders, and it is also possible to specify the search path, for example, in the user’s documents folder.

Programs for recovering lost data are varied and can almost completely eliminate problems, but not in all cases. When overwriting files repeatedly, no program will help, and even if it does restore it, then, in most cases (exceptions are possible), the file will be broken or incompletely restored. Basic recommendations will help you avoid problems and waste of time on recovery:

The main reason for data loss is user inattention, and therefore, before carrying out any operation with a PC, you need to think about the consequences.

Thus, to properly recover data from drives, you must clearly understand the basic principle of deleting a file or folder from the file system and correctly use the appropriate software. In addition, you need to constantly follow recommendations for saving important information, because if data is lost, a lot of time is spent restoring it.

If problems arise when working with a PC or laptop, the computer does not see the HDD, extraneous noise is heard, files in some folders do not open, or the equipment does not start at all, hanging on the boot screen, then the HDD of this device is not working. At the same time, on problematic equipment, access to a lot of information is lost: Word, Excel, 1C database, photos, videos and more.

In such cases, if it is necessary to recover information from a hard drive, we invite you to our Service center. Our engineers have been working with hard drive problems since 2000, so the type, interface, problem or manufacturer is not important - we will help in any case.

  • controller malfunction
  • malfunction of the magnetic head unit
  • spindle wedge
  • damage to service information
  • The disk is not detected, does not spin up
  • heads sticking to the surface
  • unreadable sectors (bad blocks)
  • other
  • after formatting
  • deleted files
  • lost section
  • rearranged windows
  • virus
  • hackers
  • lost files

How we will recover your hard drive

Clean room class 100

Rearranging plates

Soldering stations

  • How is data recovered from a hard drive?

Why is data lost?

Typically, the problem is a physical failure of the disk. There may be no external reasons for this. This is a complex device that has failed: the motor, head unit, firmware or electronics board have failed. The disk began to crumble or stopped working at once, extraneous sounds appeared or the media, on the contrary, became silent. In this case, the PC does not work or slows down, and when opening files it gives an error. In all of the above cases, it is possible to recover data from the disk.

The next most popular reason for information loss is external influence or human factor, which consists of careless use of equipment or programs:

  • Deleted files or formatted the disk;
  • Reinstalled Windows, reflashed, updated or reset the device to factory settings;
  • Did not install or update the antivirus on time, which resulted in files being damaged by viruses;
  • An external HDD, computer case or laptop was dropped on the floor, dropped out of a car while moving, hit, stepped on;
  • Fire, flood, power surge or short circuit online.

How we are working

Delivery

free courier

Diagnostics

fast and free

recovery

on professional equipment

examination

quality and completeness of restoration

only if successful

How is data recovered from a hard drive?

Recovering digital data from a hard drive is possible in nine cases out of ten. Even if the disc is severely damaged, do not rush to despair and resign yourself to the loss of a photo archive, the results of work performed, or a collection of rare music or films. Our engineers will restore the information.

Recovery from a damaged disk comes down to eliminating the malfunction and reading data using a special hardware and software complex. Sometimes the problem is fixed - the disk works as before, and the data is available. But such repairs are extremely rare. As a rule, the disk is temporarily brought into a state suitable for reading information onto another serviceable medium. To do this, depending on the problem you will need:

  • replacing faulty magnetic heads or rearranging the platters into a similar working disk body;
  • fixing errors in the firmware;
  • replacing the board with resoldering or reprogramming the ROM;
  • eliminating sticking of magnetic heads on the surface of the plates;
  • overcoming the consequences of unprofessional intervention in the device, and so on.

We also use special recovery tools to solve problems with disks with unreadable sectors. Such malfunctions lead to programs freezing, and an error occurs when trying to open or copy files. Recovery attempts standard means in such cases, they lead to a worsening of the situation and complication of further work. The experience of our engineers and the correct use of professional tools provide maximum results without creating additional risks for a faulty device.

In case of problems on working media, we use special programs, designed to restore hard drives after formatting, deletion, viruses or logical errors. The method is based on searching for information available from file records found during media scanning. As a result, the exact directory structure is recreated, the names are preserved, and the files are in their original places.

If, as a result of a logical failure, the file table is overwritten and the method described above does not give a positive result, the headers of each individual file on the hard disk are searched. This will allow you to get the contents of the files, but with the loss of names and folder structure, which is definitely better than complete loss of information.

As a rule, hard drive problems are complex. Unreadable sectors lead to logical destruction, a power failure damages both the external and internal electronics of the disk, a firmware failure and damage to the defect sheet causes a massive appearance of unreadable sectors or areas on the disk, faulty heads damage the surface of the platters, and so on.

The key to effective data recovery on a disk is the work of experienced professionals in a laboratory equipped with the necessary specialized equipment and software. Therefore, if problems arise on your hard drive, do not play Russian roulette - do not interfere with the device and do not seek help from specialists without experience in working with faulty HDD drives.

How much does it cost to restore a disk?

description of the problem price
Copying data from working media (without data recovery work) 2000 rub.
Creating a sector-by-sector copy of working media 2000 rub.
"Logics" (removal, formatting, partition magic/acronis/ghost errors, reinstalling windows, missing files/folders, viruses, asks to format/disappeared partition, RAW file system, etc.

Hello.

Not long ago I had to recover several photos from a flash drive that was accidentally formatted. This is not an easy matter, and while we managed to recover most of the files, we had to get acquainted with almost all of them popular programs to recover information.

In this article I would like to provide a list of these programs (by the way, all of them can be classified as universal, since they can recover files both from hard drives and from other media, for example, from an SD memory card or flash drive USB).

The result was a rather small list of 22 programs ( further in the article, all programs are sorted alphabetically).

Website: http://7datarecovery.com/

OS: Windows: XP, 2003, 7, Vista, 8

Description:

Firstly, this utility immediately pleases you with the presence of the Russian language. Secondly, it is quite multifunctional; after launch, it offers you 5 recovery options:

Recovering files from damaged and formatted hard drive partitions;

Recovering accidentally deleted files;

Recovering files deleted from flash drives and memory cards;

Recovering disk partitions (when the MBR is damaged, the disk is formatted, etc.);

Recover files from Android phones and tablets.

Screenshot:

Website: http://www.file-recovery.net/

OS: Windows: Vista, 7, 8

Description:

A program for recovering accidentally deleted data or data from damaged disks. Supports working with multiple file systems: FAT (12, 16, 32), NTFS (5, + EFS).

In addition, it can work directly with a hard drive when its logical structure is damaged. In addition, the program supports:

All types of hard drives: IDE, ATA, SCSI;

Memory cards: SunDisk, MemoryStick, CompactFlash;

USB devices a (flash drives, external hard drives).

Screenshot:

3. Active Partition Recovery

OS: Windows 7, 8

Description:

One of the important features of this program is that it can be run under both DOS and Windows. This is possible due to the fact that it can be written to a bootable CD (or flash drive).

This utility is usually used to recover entire hard drive partitions, rather than separate files. By the way, the program allows you to make an archive (copy) of MBR tables and hard disk sectors ( boot data).

Screenshot:

4. Active UNDELETE

Website: http://www.active-undelete.com/

OS: Windows 7/2000/2003/2008/XP

Description:

Let me tell you that this is one of the most versatile data recovery programs. The main thing is that it supports:

1. all the most popular file systems: NTFS, FAT32, FAT16, NTFS5, NTFS+EFS;

2. works in all Windows OS;

3. supports a large number of media: SD, CF, SmartMedia, Memory Stick, ZIP, USB flash drives, external hard USB drives, and etc.

Interesting features of the full version:

Support for hard drives larger than 500 GB;

Support for hardware and software RAID arrays;

Creating emergency boot disks (about emergency disks);

The ability to search for deleted files using a variety of attributes (especially important when there are a lot of files, the hard drive is capacious, and you definitely don’t remember the file name or its extension).

Screenshot:

Website: http://www.aidfile.com/

OS: Windows 2000/2003/2008/2012, XP, 7, 8 (32-bit and 64-bit)

Description:

At first glance, it is not a very big utility, and also without the Russian language (but this is only at first glance). This program is capable of recovering data in a variety of situations: software error, accidental formatting, deletion, virus attacks, etc.

By the way, as the developers themselves state, the percentage of file recovery with this utility is higher than many of its competitors. Therefore, if other programs cannot restore your lost data, it makes sense to take the risk of checking the disk with this utility.

Some interesting features:

1. Restores Word files, Excel, Power Pont, etc.

2. Can restore files when reinstalling Windows OS;

3. A fairly “strong” option for restoring various photographs and pictures (and on different types of media).

Screenshot:

Website: http://www.byclouder.com/

OS: Windows XP/Vista/7/8 (x86, x64)

Description:

What pleases us about this program is its simplicity. After launch, it immediately (and on the great and mighty one) prompts you to scan the disks...

The utility is capable of searching for a wide variety of file types: archives, audio and video, documents. You can scan different types media (though with varying degrees of success): CDs, flash drives, hard drives, etc. Quite easy to learn.

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7. Disk Digger

Website: http://diskdigger.org/

OS: Windows 7, Vista, XP

Description:

Quite simple and convenient program(does not require installation, by the way), which will help you easily and quickly recover deleted files: music, movies, pictures, photos, documents. The media can be different: from a hard drive to flash drives and memory cards.

Supported file systems: FAT12, FAT16, FAT32, exFAT and NTFS.

To summarize: a utility with fairly average capabilities will help mainly in the “simplest” cases.

Screenshot:

Website: http://www.easeus.com/datarecoverywizard/free-data-recovery-software.htm

OS: Windows XP/Vista/7/8/Windows Server 2012/2008/2003 (x86, x64)

Description:

Excellent file recovery program! It will help in a variety of troubles: accidental deletion of files, unsuccessful formatting, partition damage, power failure, etc.

It is possible to recover even encrypted and compressed data! The utility supports all the most popular file systems: VFAT, FAT12, FAT16, FAT32, NTFS/NTFS5 EXT2, EXT3.

Sees and allows you to scan a wide variety of media: IDE/ATA, SATA, SCSI, USB, external hard drives, Fire wire (IEEE1394), flash drives, digital cameras, floppy disks, audio players and many other devices.

Screenshot:

Website: http://www.krollontrack.com/data-recovery/recovery-software/

OS: Windows 95/98 Me/NT/2000/XP/Vista/7

Description:

One of best programs to restore information, which will help in case of a simple error during deletion, and in cases when you no longer have to rely on other utilities.

Separately, it is worth saying that the program allows you to successfully find 255 various types files (audio, video, documents, archives, etc.), supports FAT and NTFS systems, hard drives (IDE/ATA/EIDE, SCSI), floppy disks (Zip and Jaz).

Among other things, EasyRecovery has a built-in function that will help you check and evaluate the condition of the disk (by the way, in one of the articles we previously discussed the issue).

The EasyRecovery utility helps to recover data in the following cases:

Accidental deletion (for example, when using the Shift button);
- Viral infection;
- Damage due to power outages;
- Problems when creating partitions when Windows installation;
- Damage to the file system structure;
- Formatting the media or using the FDISK program.

Screenshot:

10. GetData Recovery My Files Professional

Website: http://www.recovermyfiles.com/

OS: Windows 2000/XP/Vista/7

Description:

Recover My Files is a pretty good program for recovering various types of data: graphics, documents, music and video archives.

In addition, it supports all the most popular file systems: FAT12, FAT16, FAT32, NTFS and NTFS5.

Some features:

Supports more than 300 data types;

Can recover files from HDD, flash cards, USB devices, floppy disks;

Special function for recovering Zip archives, PDF files, autoCad drawings (if your file fits this type, I definitely recommend trying this program).

Screenshot:

Website: http://www.handyrecovery.ru/

OS: Windows 9x/Me/NT/2000/XP/2003/Vista/7

Description:

Enough simple program, with a Russian interface, designed to recover deleted files. Can be used in a variety of cases: virus attack, software failures, accidental deletion of files from the recycle bin, hard formatting diskai etc.

After scanning and analysis, Handy Recovery will give you the opportunity to view the disk (or other media, for example, a memory card) just like in a regular Explorer, only along with “normal files” you will see files that have been deleted.

Screenshot:

Website: http://www.icare-recovery.com/

OS: Windows 7, Vista, XP, 2000 pro, Server 2008, 2003, 2000

Description:

A very powerful program for recovering deleted and formatted files from various types of media: USB flash cards, SD memory cards, hard drives. The utility can help recover a file from an unreadable disk partition (Raw) if the MBR boot record is damaged.

Unfortunately, there is no support for the Russian language. After launch, you will have the opportunity to choose from 4 masters:

1. Partition Recovery - a wizard that will help you recover deleted sections hard drive;

2. Deleted File Recovery - this wizard is used to recover deleted file(s);

3. Deep Scan Recovery - scanning the disk for existing files and files that can be recovered;

4. Format Recovery - a wizard that will help you recover files after formatting.

Screenshot:

13. MiniTool Power Data

Website: http://www.powerdatarecovery.com/

OS: Windows XP / Vista / Windows 7 / Windows 8

Description:

Quite a good file recovery program. Supports several types of media: SD, Smartmedia, Compact Flash, Memory Stick, HDD. It is used in a variety of cases of information loss: be it a virus attack or erroneous formatting.

The good news is that the program has a Russian interface and you can easily figure everything out. After launching the utility, you are offered several wizards to choose from:

1. Recovering files after accidental deletion;

2. Restoring damaged hard drive partitions, for example, an unreadable Raw partition;

3. Recovering lost partitions (when you don’t see that there are partitions on your hard drive at all);

4. Recovery of CD/DVD discs. By the way, it’s a very useful thing, because... Not every program has this option.

Screenshot:

14. O&O Disk Recovery

Website: http://www.oo-software.com/

OS: Windows 8, 7, Vista, XP

Description:

O&O DiskRecovery is a very powerful utility for recovering information from many types of media. Most deleted files (if you did not write other information to disk) can be recovered using the utility. Data can be reconstructed even if the hard drive has been formatted!

The program is very easy to use (besides, there is a Russian language). After launch, the utility will prompt you to select the media to scan. The interface is designed in such a style that even an unprepared user will feel quite confident; the wizard will guide him step by step and help recover lost information.

Screenshot:

Website: http://rlab.ru/tools/rsaver.html

OS: Windows 2000/ 2003/XP/ Vista/Windows 7

Description:

Firstly, this is a free program (given that free programs to restore information, I’ve missed the mark twice, this is a compelling argument).

Secondly, full support for the Russian language.

Thirdly, it shows very good results. The program supports FAT and NTFS file systems. Can recover documents after formatting or accidental deletion. The interface is designed in a minimalist style. Scanning is started with just one button (the program will select the algorithms and settings independently).

Screenshot:

Website: http://www.piriform.com/recuva

OS: Windows 2000/XP/Vista/7/8

Description:

A very simple program (and also free), designed for an untrained user. Using it, step by step, you can recover many types of files from various media.

Recuva scans the disk (or flash drive) quite quickly, and then displays a list of files that can be recovered. By the way, files are marked with markers (well-readable, which means it’s easy to recover; medium-readable - the chances are small, but there are; poorly readable - there’s little chance, but you can try).

Screenshot:

Website: http://www.reneelab.com/

OS: Windows XP/Vista/7/8

Description:

A very simple program for data recovery. Mainly intended for the recovery of photographs, pictures, and some types of documents. By at least, shows itself in this better than many other programs of this kind.

This utility also has one interesting feature - creating a disk image. It can be very useful, backup has not been canceled yet!

Screenshot:

18. Restorer Ultimate Pro Network

Website: http://www.restorer-ultimate.com/

OS: Windows: 2000/XP/ 2003/Vista/2008/ 7/8

Description:

This program dates back to the 2000s. At that time, the Restorer 2000 utility was popular, and by the way, it was not bad at all. It was replaced by the Restorer Ultimate program. In my humble opinion, the program is one of the best for recovering lost information (plus Russian language support).

The professional version of the program supports recovery and reconstruction of RAID data (regardless of the complexity level); It is possible to restore partitions that the system marks as Raw (unreadable).

By the way, using this program you can connect to the desktop of another computer and try to restore files on it!

Screenshot:

Website: http://www.r-tt.com/

OS: Windows 2000/XP/2003/Vista/7/8

Description:

R-Studio is probably the most famous program for recovering deleted information from disk/flash drives/memory cards and other media. The program works simply amazing; it is possible to recover even those files that I did not “dream of” before launching the program.

Possibilities:

1. Supports all Windows operating systems (except: Macintosh, Linux and UNIX);

2. It is possible to restore data via the Internet;

3. Support for just a huge number of file systems: FAT12, FAT16, FAT32, exFAT, NTFS, NTFS5 (created or modified in Windows 2000/XP/2003/Vista/Win7), HFS/HFS (Macintosh), Little and Big Endian variants of UFS1/UFS2 (FreeBSD/OpenBSD/NetBSD/Solaris) and Ext2/Ext3/Ext4 FS (Linux);

4. Possibility of restoring RAID disk arrays;

5. Creating disk images. Such an image, by the way, can be compressed and written to a flash drive or other hard drive.

Screenshot:

Website: http://www.ufsexplorer.com/download_pro.php

OS: Windows XP, 2003, Vista, 2008, Windows 7, Windows 8 (full support for 32 and 64-bit OS).

Description:

A professional program designed for data recovery. Includes a huge set of wizards that will help in most cases:

Undelete - search and restore deleted files;

Raw recovery - search for lost hard drive partitions;

Restoring RAID arrays;

Functions for recovering files during a virus attack, formatting, repartitioning the hard drive, etc.

Screenshot:

Website: http://www.wondershare.com/

OS: Windows 8, 7

Description:

Wondershare Data Recovery is a very powerful program that will help you recover deleted, formatted files from your computer, external hard disk, mobile phone, camera and other devices.

It’s nice to have the Russian language and handy instructors who will guide you step by step. After starting the program, you are given 4 wizards to choose from:

1. File recovery;

2. Raw recovery;

3. Recovering hard drive partitions;

4. Resumption.

See screenshot below.

Screenshot:

22. Zero Assumption Recovery

Website: http://www.z-a-recovery.com/

OS: Windows NT/2000/XP/2003/Vista/7

Description:

This program differs from many others in that it supports long Russian file names. This is very convenient when restoring (in other programs you will see “kryakozabry” instead of Russian characters, as in this one).

The program supports file systems: FAT16/32 and NTFS (including NTFS5). Also noteworthy is support for long file names, support for multiple languages, and the ability to restore RAID arrays.

Very interesting mode search for digital photos. If you restore graphic files- be sure to try this program, its algorithms are simply amazing!

The program can work in case of virus attacks, incorrect formatting, erroneous deletion of files, etc. Recommended to have on hand for those who rarely (or don't) backups files.

Screenshot:

That's all. In one of the following articles I will supplement the article with the results of practical tests, which programs were able to recover information. Have a great weekend and don't forget about backup so that nothing has to be restored...