Best File Recovery Software?

Software & Apps
#1

Here’s the situation: I backed up all my data on a USB hard drive. Then I reformatted. After the reformat when I tried to load to load my data onto the hard drive I discovered that the device won’t start-up. I have already sent an email to tech support but I would like to recover as much data as possible from the hard drive itself. What program do you guys suggest?

PS: My OS is WinXP Pro SP2.

Thanks for your help,
-Jonathan.

#2

So the external drive went dead? Ouch.

First thing I’d probably do is open up the case and plug the drive directly in to my computer, to see if it’s just a problem with the drive’s external enclosure.

#3

At work we use BadCopyPro. It’s been very successful.

#4

One tech from Canada (Quebec) told me he used Easy Recovery Pro and that worked well for him.

#5

Easy Recovery works fairly well - IF it supports your drive. It has problems with drivers that don’t expose the full BIOS functionality (like my SATA controller, for example).

Other tools I use:

  • Restorer 2000. This tool will find EVERYTHING on a drive.
  • Badcopy. This is great if there are bad sectors or crosslinking and other tools go “oh I can’t deal with this file”.
  • O&O’s undeleter is pretty decent, too.

I no longer use Executive Undelete (the people who make Diskkeeper) because it just doesn’t find bupkiss. :frowning:

#6

Those are all pretty good ideas… I think the definite first step is to find out if the enclosure just went dead and the drive is fine, though.

#7

SoftLogica’s Handy Recovery 2.0.

Very easy to use, but found files that far more advanced and expensive ones missed.

Ben :slight_smile:

#8

http://club.cdfreaks.com/showpost.php?p=1025550&postcount=25

btw Easy Recovery

#9

“Get data back”

#10

I just blew by that post–tehGrue’s right–check that first. :stuck_out_tongue:

#11

I’ve had good luck with File Scavenger from QueTek

#12

Here is a good site, that reviews data recovery software:
http://recovery-review.com

There, you can read about different recovery apps, and find the one that meets your taste.

For your problem, I think, something like DiskInternals Partition Recovery 1.9 or HDD Recovery Pro would be great. You just need to plug it directly to the motherboard, as a regular HDD, without all this USB-thingy…

#13

@[B]darkquad[/B]: The recovery-review site is registered by the same company that makes the recovery software they have “reviewed” and “recommended”. Furthermore you’re connected with the linked site, and spamming your own commercial site is not allowed here. :cop: