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The Best Data Recovery Software For PCs

Justin Thomas — Fri, 29 Jul 2011 14:08:51 +0000

Unwanted data loss can occur through accidental deletion, damage to the file system, operating system failure, or physical damage to the storage medium. Data recovery software can be used in these cases in an attempt to salvage whatever possible after the loss. Data recovery software is available to rescue information from a variety of media: hard disks, flash drives, optical discs, storage tapes, etc. This article focuses on a common need: recovering deleted files from a PC’s main storage device, the hard drive.

By reviewing sources such as Maximum PC, PC World, About.com, Recovery-Review.com, Download.com, and CNET, these are the top rated data recovery software for PCs:

Recuva (Free)

Pros:

Good results
Friendly, step-by-step recovery wizard
Free

Cons:

Not as full-featured as some paid programs

Top Review Sources:

Maximum PC: 7/10 “We have no trouble recommending Recuva as our favorite free file recovery app”
PC World: “If you just want a good un-delete program with a small disk footprint at no charge, then Recuva is what you’re looking for”
About.com: 5.0/5.0 “Recuva is, without a doubt, the very best free file recovery software available today”

Piriform’s Recuva guides you through the recovery process in a simple, non-intimidating fashion. It does a good job recovering files when you use the step-by-step wizard, and a great job recovering files when you explore the program’s advanced options. Nice features include a preview pane and the ability to re-establish a file’s folder structure. Recuva provides plenty of detail about the files it recovers so you can quickly find the one you are looking for. Recuva also includes a sector-based recovery tool, useful when you’ve had a serious crash and can’t boot your operating system. Recuva’s file shredding tool allows you to delete a file beyond recovery.

Recuva is available for free on Piriform’s website.

Quetek File Scavenger 3.2 ($50)

Pros:

Superior scanning
Preserves original file names

Cons:

Cost

Top Review Sources:

Recovery-Review.com: “Quetek…managed to create a program that is easy to navigate, even for beginners.”
Download.com User Reviews: 4.0/5.0 (170+ reviews)
Maximum PC: 9/10 “If you’re willing to pay for file recovery, this is your program”

Reviewers are impressed by File Scavenger 3.2’s huge list of file types from which you can select to narrow your search. This element is just one example of the program’s robust feature set. You can search very specifically for files in certain areas of the drive, plus you can choose from different scan types—from the instantaneous Quick to the time-consuming and very thorough Long. Its recovery performance is top-notch. You can view results in a convenient tree structure as well as sort them by common attributes like type, date, location, etc. Unlike many file recovery programs, Quetek File Scavenger 3.2 reconstructs original file names, rather than return results that still have the additional characters added by the Recycle Bin.

Quetek File Scavenger 3.2 is available for purchase on the manufacturer’s product page.

Pandora Recovery (Free)

Pros:

Straightforward interface
Great performance
Free

Cons:

Beginners may be confused by advanced options

Top Review Sources:

CNET: 4.5/5.0 “File recovery has never been easier thanks to Pandora Recovery”
PC World: 3.5/5.0 “For restoring files that you’ve deleted from your hard drive, Pandora Recovery is one solid option”
About.com: 4.0/5.0 “The wizard included with the program is the easiest to use and understand wizard that I’ve seen in an undelete program”

Pandora Recovery’s interface is exceptionally clean and straightforward, yet reviewers are even more impressed with the program’s file recovery wizard. This intuitive, step-by-step guide leads you through the recovery process, anticipating your needs along the way. As you proceed, its interface changes to accommodate your selections. You’ll be able to narrow the search down as best you can before initiating a scan. Once a scan starts, you won’t have to wait long for results. Pandora’s speed is not at the expense of its accuracy, however; the program impresses with its successful restoration of deleted files.

Download Pandora Recovery for free on the official site.

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The Best Data Recovery Software For Macs

Justin Thomas — Thu, 28 Jul 2011 14:15:20 +0000

If you’ve lost pictures, music, documents, or other important files because of accidental deletion, you may be in luck. Many companies offer data recovery software for Mac OS X that is capable of examining your hard drive and recovering files you thought were gone for good. Data recovery software for Macs works in much the same way as data recovery software for other operating systems. When you click Delete, your operating system simply marks the space as free. The reference to the data is erased, but the data itself remains. As long as new information isn’t written over the old data—this is why it is important to use data recovery software as soon as possible after an accidental deletion—data recovery software is typically able to locate and restore files marked as deleted.

By surveying reviews on sites such as Macworld, Mac|Life, CNET, MacWorld UK, ExpertReviews.co.uk, MacNation.org, and MacUpdate, we’ve created this list of the top rated data recovery software for Macs:

Data Rescue 3

Data Rescue 3 ($85)

Pros:

Excellent results
Slick interface

Cons:

Will not recover original file names

Top Review Sources:

Macworld: 4.0/5.0 “Data Rescue 3 is a program that every Mac user should at least know about, if not own outright”
Mac|Life: 4.0/5.0 “We easily recovered deleted files, and were even able to recover the contents of files that we deliberately made unreadable”
CNET: 4.5/5.0 “Friendly interface, good documentation, and impressive recovery capabilities”

Prosoft’s Data Rescue 3 offers a slick interface and effective data restoration. For an immediate idea of the type of problems you are facing, Data Rescue 3 is able to perform a quick diagnostic test. But for the real work—deeply scanning and attempting to recover files—Data Rescue 3 will probably need a few hours. This isn’t unusual in data recovery, but worth noting nonetheless. The wait typically pays off, however, because Drive Rescue 3 does a great job finding and restoring deleted files. The program recognizes a remarkable number of file types and even has the ability to learn previously unknown file types. Two things to keep in mind: you’ll need to connect a second drive (external or internal hard drive, USB flash drive, etc.) for Data Rescue 3 to use for data caching purposes, and you’ll probably be spending a while manually sorting through the results of a scan, as Data Rescue 3 will not recover original file names. Data Rescue’s user interface is modern, functional, and blends in with the Mac aesthetic.

You’ll find Data Rescue 3 for sale on Amazon.

FileSalvage 7

FileSalvage 7 ($90)

Pros:

Great results
Can also scan external drives, memory cards, and optical discs

Cons:

Scans can take hours

Top Review Sources:

MacWorld UK: 4.0/5.0 “FileSalvage is part of a range of recovery tools and is the most comprehensive consumer offering of the lot”
ExpertReviews.co.uk: 4.0/5.0 “In the end…it’s the results that count, and FileSalvage did what it claimed to do”
MacNation.org: 4.0/5.0 “A very promising piece of software and the support department is top-notch”

SubRosaSoft’s FileSalvage 7 is the most recent version of the company’s Macintosh data recovery software. FileSalvage recognizes an impressive number of file types and provides options for narrowing your search in cases when you have good idea what you are looking for or where it may be. Like other data recovery software, FileSalvage uses a separate volume to save recovered files. After an easy installation, you’ll be presented with the main window, where you can choose to Recover Deleted Files, Salvage All Files, or Explore A Drive. Recover Deleted Files examines the free space of your drive for recently removed information. Salvage All Files is a more extensive operation to be used on faulty or corrupted disks. It attempts to copy all useable data from the disk to another volume. Explore A Drive allows you to initiate precise search and rescue operations rather than attempt to recover all the data on a disk. In Explore A Drive mode, you can teach the program to recognize file types it doesn’t currently know. In all three modes, you’ll be able to preview your results before undeleting. Be prepared for extensive scans to take hours, and know that FileSalvage won’t typically be able to recover file names along with the data.

You can purchase and download SubRosaSoft’s FileSalvage 7 on the official website.

Disk Drill Pro

Disk Drill Pro ($90)

Pros:

Recovers data on HFS/HFS+, FAT, and NTFS drives
S.M.A.R.T. disk monitoring
Recovery Vault enhances data recovery

Cons:

Scanning is free, but recovery requires upgrade

Top Review Sources:

CNET: 4.0/5.0 “A good option for getting [data] back, especially for less technically inclined users”
MacUpdate User Reviews: 4.0/5.0 (20+ reviews)
MacWorld UK: 4.0/5.0 “Disk Drill’s interface is bright and bold and helps you through every stage of the recovery process”

Disk Drill Pro by Cleverfiles is a powerful utility for do-it-yourself undeletion. There is a free edition of Disk Drill, but it only performs lost data scans; to recover deleted files, you’ll need to purchase the Pro edition. With the Pro edition, you get a user-friendly interface and helpful documentation, making it one of the best data recovery programs for those unsure about the process. For the tentative, it is worth downloading the free edition for a thorough test-drive, then upgrading if you are happy with what you see. In the Pro edition, you’ll find flexible scanning and recovery options, as well as a long list of known file types. Disk Drill’s innovative Recovery Vault acts a bridge between backup and recovery; turn it on and Disk Drill starts monitoring and preserving deleted files, making it quick and easy to get them back if you need to. Recovery Vault-restored files will have their file names preserved, a rare accomplishment in the world of Mac data recovery software. Recovering erased files not protected by Recovery Vault takes longer and won’t restore your file names, but the results are still excellent. S.M.A.R.T. disk monitoring is included, meaning Disk Drill Pro will be scrutinizing the health of your hard drive and alerting you to overheating and other impending calamities.

Cleverfiles’ Disk Drill Pro is for sale on the official website.

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