Format Recovery
Accidental formatting of a drive can result in the total loss all data on that disk. This is easier to do than it might seem, with several command line and graphic utilities allowing the user to do complete formats on a hard drive. When a drive is formatted, the partitions are deleted and the data becomes inaccessible. The important point, however, is that the data remains on the hard drive until it is overwritten. Format recovery can be done with a number of free utilities on the internet today.
The first step in format recovery is to do nothing at all. Avoid writing anything to the accidentally formatted hard drive. Although the data actually remains on the drive after it has been formatted, that data will be permanently lost if any storage is done on the drive. This is because data formerly on the drive has simply been marked as writable, and not actually erased. Any further writing will take the place of lost data, making that loss permanent. To avoid permanent data loss, leave the drive completely alone after an accidental formatting.
Download a utility such as TestDisk, or the Easeus Data Recovery Wizard.
With the computer booting off of another intact drive, TestDisk can then take a look at the formatted disk. Programs like TestDisk can see the contents of a drive despite the lack of any partitions. With a few simple clicks, users can have utilities such as TestDisk working to recover the entire drive and its contents. Working to rebuild missing drive partitions, TestDisk will soon have the accidentally formatted drive back in working condition.
Although an accidental format may seem to do great damage to the content of the drive, it is important to remember that the data has not actually gone anywhere. The only real risk to the data is that of being overwritten, and that will not happen unless you install something on that drive.
Utilities like TestDisk are useful even outside of format recovery. It is even easier to accidentally erase a single file, and TestDisk can help here as well. Just as with an entire drive format, the data of a single lost file is still on the hard drive. As long as the information is not overwritten, it can still be easily recovered. The key in recovering such information is to act quickly. This is even more important than with a total drive format, as the operating system may save over the data at any time.
File Recovery Wizard is another great utility that can help with both format recovery and the loss of a single file. Having such utilities around can make otherwise catastrophic file losses easy to deal with. When a file is lost like this, all it can take is a few simple clicks to get things back as they were.
Filed under: Format Recovery