From time to time, we all erase important files. Whether it is part of human nature or just a permanent imperfection of all existing user interfaces, indeed, even the most cautious experts occasionally make such a mundane mistake.
In addition, we lose files not only because of a human error but also as a direct or indirect result of power failures, malicious software, or structural damage.
Nonetheless, it does not mean that we have to tolerate numerous losses of valuable data. Nowadays, there is plenty of diverse software tools, which are invented specifically to restore seemingly deleted files.
Furthermore, not all of them require costly subscriptions!
The Best Freeware for Data Restoration
On the contrary, you may easily find a decent selection of free and/or open-source data recovery programs for all types of operating systems, formats, and devices. Hence, let us look closer at the best option among them all.
In general, freeware solutions come with severe limitations when compared with premium versions. However, the situation is drastically different in the sphere of advanced data recovery. Here you can find powerful yet free SD recovery software for Mac and Windows with no troubles.
Disk Drill
Here is a current leader of the race, Disk Drill — a versatile solution, which works perfectly with almost all types of storage devices, including also SD cards.
It is compatible with the lion’s share of existing operating systems, capable of restoring more than 400 different types of files, and may be downloaded for free as a basic option.
This solution holds a special place among data recovery tools because of its distinct orientation towards ordinary users. It requires no special training or advanced skills.
On the contrary, it automatically organizes discovered files by category for your convenience, provides both deep and fast scanning options, and lets you filter the obtained data.
Disk Drill Pros
Its most prominent advantages include the following:
- A classy intuitive interface;
- Easy to work with and requires no special skills or technical expertise;
- Compatible with a great variety of formats and operating systems;
- Even the basic version comes with several advanced features, which safeguard your data and create backups, hence, decreasing the risks of further data losses;
- Two distinctly different modes of data restoration;
- The “Preview” feature;
- Can deal with protected data.
Disk Drill Cons
Furthermore, its drawbacks simply cannot overshadow its advantages. The very few of them are the following:
- Limited volume of data available for restoration in the basic version;
- Longer scanning in case of extremely large data volumes.
Unfortunately, this program does not come completely free. Even though its basic version contains almost all the features of the advanced package, it has a couple of limitations in terms of available volume. Nonetheless, its unique combination of versatile features, advanced scanning options, and simplicity makes it one of the best data recovery software.
How to Restore Lost Data with Disk Drill?
Widely recognized as one of the most user-friendly solutions, this program is indeed ultra-simple in use. Of course, it comes with a variety of additional features, which may come in handy when you have to deal with sophisticated cases, large volumes of data, and/or a severely limited timescale. However, you will rarely need them in ordinary cases. Therefore, to restore your data with Disk Drill follow this instruction:
- Download it from the official website
- Install it, using any hard drive except for the one, which contains the erased files. By installing the program, you may overwrite the very files you wish to recover. Therefore, if you are going to recover files from the external hard drive, you may install it on your main one. If you are recovering files from the main HDD, install the solution on the external storage device.
- Launch your freshly installed software to recover deleted files.
- Activate the scanning option (you can choose between deep and fast scanning modes).
- Preview the obtained results. Filter them and select those files you wish to recover.
- Save the recovered files on a reliable storage device.
Congratulations! After the restoring process is finished, you can once again use your HDD without worrying about overwriting lost files with new data.
FAQs | Frequently Asked Questions
Yes, Disk Drill is fully compatible with Mac. You can use it to restore any type of file on Mac with no worries.
It all depends on the amount of lost data and the hardware you are using. Nonetheless, if you are in a hurry, you can try the Quick Scan option. It is especially useful when you want to undelete recently erased files. Keep in mind that this option is not compatible with NTFS systems.
All types of software for data recovery work by scanning the entirety of the HDD in question. Hence, you cannot simply ask the program to recover the lost file even if you know where it has been — the utility has to find it first. However, you can preview the found files during the scanning. Once the program has found the file you are looking for, you can stop scanning and recover it without worrying about the rest of the scanning procedure.
Yes, Disk Drill allows you to restore entire partitions instead of dealing with a multitude of single files. You can choose the Universal Partition Search option, mount the recovered partition as a virtual image, and then look for files within.
As of today, the program is fully capable of recovering more than 400 formats. Keep in mind that its developers constantly add new options, so the list of available formats grows almost daily.
Conclusion
As we can see, choosing great software for dealing with data loss requires careful consideration. However, thanks to the abundance of such utilities in the market, there is little doubt that you will be able to find a convenient tool for personal use.
This is especially true when it comes to SD cards. As the popularity of SD cards grows, so does the demand for efficient tools for the retrieval of data lost when using them.
Once you consider the limitations of your software and hardware and create a backup, you are ready to proceed and recover valuable data.
Like This Post? Checkout More
