Hello, I’m looking for some recommendations on what data recovery software to use on a drive that has been reformated.
Story so far is that I have a fully functional SSD that used to contain NTFS partition but recently got repurposed and reformatted. The machine (a “toy” build because I had some hardware lying about) with the drive in question had proxmox installed on it but not much more after that and was turned off shortly after the install (waiting for me to start playing around with it again).
At that time I taught I would never ever need the files contained on that partition, but due to some other unfortunate event, I would like to recover some files if possible.
Given that the drive has seen very little use, I think there’s a decent chance to recover at least some files.
So, are there any favorite data recovery solutions that you would recommend? I am willing to pay a reasonable amount for a good solution.
First of all, I would create a 1:1 copy of your drive. That helps do in case you mess something up during the recovery process. I would do that with linux and DD or clonezilla. Just make sure that you are 100% certain that you don’t dd from the wrong drive to another.
After you have acquired the new disk, you have two options.
You could try to just recreate the partition with TestDisk (free).
If that does not work, you can use PhotoRec (free from the same vendor) which scans your whole drive for deleted files. Just make sure that you have yet another drive set as your destination for recovered files, NOT the drive you are recovering from.
Ohh and btw, TestDisk & PhotoRec are available for Windows or you could also live boot a linux distro that has them preinstalled. For example https://www.system-rescue.org
If the drive hasn’t been used much since formatting, there’s definitely a chance to recover some files. TestDisk and PhotoRec are solid options for DIY recovery, but keep in mind they might not get everything back, especially if the partition’s been altered.
There’s a guide on SalvageData that explains what formatting does and how recovery works: What Does Formatting A Hard Drive Do? - SalvageData. It’s worth checking out to understand your chances and the best way to proceed without risking the data further.
If the data is lost (aka hardware error or overwritten) they don’t work. Same with every other tool there is. A broken partition is the easiest problem you can have.
If the SSD has been of minimal use since it was reformatted, there’s a good chance you can recover at least some of your files. When a drive is reformatted, the data isn’t immediately erased; instead, the file system is reset, marking the space as available for new data. I recommend starting with recovery software like Stellar or EaseUS Recovery. Both are excellent for recovering files from reformatted drives and support NTFS file systems.
The best solutions have already been given to you by members in this discussion to make things a little more simpler for you I would say that there are no doubt good chances of your recovery as disk is not much used, so you can try the recovery software, as said by other members too.
TestDisk and PhotoRec are free and Stellar and EaseUs are paid, but being said that they also have a free version. So my suggestion would be that you first go with the solution provided by @ThisMightBeAFish of cloning the drive and then try with the free software if they don’t work then go for the paid ones and that too first try their free versions.
Do let me know which method helped you get your data back.
@alt.account how big are the files you want to recover and how many.
There are also paid products that can do better from the free ones but have limitations on file size and total size of the files you can recover.
I have used R-Studio many times and always worked for me, note I have a paid version but you can use demo to check and recover small files less then 256K. The limit is not ideal as most of the time the files will be bigger depending on the file.
This is not a promotion for R-studio but my exp from 22 years in the IT industry. I also used other tools but eventually bought a license for R-studio and used that since it worked for me.
I suggest you try with the free ones and if you can’t restore the files then try some of the mention paid/demo products
For recovering data from a reformatted SSD, try Stellar Data Recovery, EaseUS, or R-Studio (paid options). For free tools, use TestDisk or PhotoRec. Since the SSD hasn’t been used much, you should have a good chance of recovery. Start with the free tools first.