Recuva excellent condition but cannot be opened. File recovery with Recuva. Data recovery process

Probably, many have come across a situation when the necessary files were deleted randomly or when the system malfunctions. Nobody is immune from this. But what to use for fast file recovery? In this regard, the free program Recuva, which has unique algorithms and capabilities, is perfect. Let's consider its use in as much detail as possible.

Recuva software: main features

The most important thing is that it is not just an application allowing from the "Recycle Bin". This program for recovering files can search for them and perform operations even when scanning problematic or damaged media (hard drives, flash drives, MP3 players, cameras, etc.).

At the same time, not to mention the possibility of recovering some specific content, the application also allows the so-called reliable removal of unnecessary objects. The technologies used in it are based on the fact that when you delete a file from the same "Recycle Bin", in fact, it does not disappear anywhere. The first character in its name is changed, replaced by a dollar sign ($), as a result of which the standard operating system tools do not see such an object. If the sector in which the file was located was not overwritten, the recovery process will be simple.

Recuva: how to use the installer?

First, you need to install (integrate) the application into the system. The installer uses a standard "Wizard", which you need to follow. The program itself is insignificant and will not take up much disk space.

If you do not do the standard installation, you can use the portable utility of the same name. Both versions have a Russified interface, and do not cause any special difficulties in use.

Integration into the Windows Recycle Bin menu

If a user has a stationary version of Recuva installed, it will be clear how to use it if you take a closer look at the "Trash" menu invoked by a right click.

Naturally, you can launch the application through the main executable file of the EXE format or click on the program's shortcut. However, calling it through the "Recycle Bin" looks simpler (of course, provided that objects were deleted through it, and not using special keyboard shortcuts like Shift + Del or changing the global settings of the "Recycle Bin" so that the object would not initially fit into it ).

Application launch options and file types selection

Let's move on to the practical application of the Recuva program. How do I use this utility? Easy peasy. We launch the application in any of the above ways. After that, a welcome window of the "Recovery Wizard" is displayed. In it, we press the continue button and proceed to the selection of the required types of objects.

Convenience is that you can select all files (scanning, however, will take more time), but you can apply only one type (music, video, e-mail messages, archives, office documents, etc.).

Once you have made your selection, press the continue button again, after which the Recuva Windows application prompts you to specify the original location of the deleted files. The trick here is that the user can use the appropriate line if he does not remember exactly where the necessary objects were originally stored. Again, the scan will be performed on all available media, hard drives and logical partitions.

  • green - full recovery is possible;
  • yellow - there is a possibility of partial restoration;
  • red - recovery is impossible.

Data recovery process

This process can take quite a long period of time, especially if too many objects are selected.

Deleting files with Recuva

Finally, there is one more application feature that few people know about. In the scan results, you can mark unnecessary files that are subject to physical removal from the hard drive or any other media.

Let's take a closer look at the Recuva utility. How do I use this feature? Simple too. We mark the necessary objects by ticking the boxes, and then by right-clicking we call the additional context menu, in which we use the safe deletion line. All marked objects will be deleted without the possibility of subsequent restoration.

Conclusion

Although many believe that Recuva performs data recovery better than other programs, one can disagree with this. For example, when scanning video files, the application often marks most of the objects found in red, which indicates the impossibility of recovery. Whoever says anything, a 1.5 GB full-length film cannot be restored. But there are no problems with short clips.

With other formats, the application works fairly well, except that music files cannot always be restored, and some objects that are not included in the list of supported formats are not displayed at all. In general, you can use the program as a free and fast tool. But if you need a professional approach to these processes, it is better to use packages like R-Studio (at least for removable memory cards used in mobile devices).

Read, why after data recovery some files do not open or open with an error... How to fix broken files or get data back from them. Any information stored by users is of great importance to him, regardless of the field of its application. By deleting it, users can perform recovery and get all data back. However, a situation often occurs when the recovered files cannot be opened. Next, we will describe the possible reasons that prevent you from opening files after they are restored, and suggest ways to restore access to such files.

Content

Introduction

Users regularly use various computer devices, spending a significant part of their time on them every day. Personal computers and laptops, tablets and smartphones, digital cameras and game consoles, etc. are used everywhere and help users in various fields: in professional activities, for personal use, entertainment, services, etc.

The main elements associated with the use of computing devices are various types of information. With the development of new modern computer devices, the main flow of information falls on its digital part. And additionally, already existing data stored on different types of media are converted into digital format.

Therefore, the ways of storing, processing and exchanging any kind of information are of paramount importance for each of us. Users pay special attention to the security and safety of information, as well as protecting data from unforeseen losses. Important personal data, confidential personal or professional information, financial documents, various photographs and media resources, etc. are handled responsibly and are of the utmost importance to every user.

Each computer device is designed to use a variety of storage devices: hard drives, external drives, "USB" flash drives, memory cards of various formats, etc. All of them allow you to store, process and exchange any data at the request of the user.

However, important user data can be lost due to various reasons, ranging from the usual accidental deletion of data and ending with damage to the file system. Regardless of the reasons that led to the loss of data, users can restore their files and return the lost information back for later use.

But, quite often, users may face a situation when, after restoring a file, its internal content becomes inaccessible and it is not possible to open the file. Such a result can lead to undesirable consequences when the user may decide that important data has been lost forever. However, it is too early to make a final conclusion about the irrecoverable loss of data. There are several ways, as a result of the use of which, the data can still be returned. In our article, we will consider the possible reasons for which, after recovering files, the user cannot open them, and show several ways to eliminate such a problem.

Common reasons why a file cannot be opened after recovery

The reasons that will entail the impossibility of opening files after recovery can be different. In most cases, each cause is individual and depends on a number of factors. However, there is a general list, which presents the most common reasons:

  • Physical damage to the storage device: Any mechanical damage to the storage device can damage the information stored on it. As a result, the user will not be able to open such a file after recovery, due to the lack of direct physical access to individual data during the file check-in process.
  • Bad sectors on the storage device: One of the possible reasons why the contents of the recovered file are unavailable is the presence of so-called "BAD-blocks"(inaccessible sections of the storage device) that contain file information but cannot be accessed by the system. If the bad sector contains information about the file structure, then the corresponding level of logical connection disappears, which leads to the impossibility of opening the file after recovery - the file becomes unreadable.
  • Deformation or erasure of the contents of a sector as a result of a malicious virus attack: Malware (virus) developers use various algorithms to destroy or damage the internal contents of a file, and the range of malware is unusually wide. Viruses can deform information in a file to exclude the possibility of its subsequent correction, even after using professional data recovery software (for example, filling the contents of a file with ones or zeros, erasing records about the logical structure of a file, etc.). As a result, the user will no longer be able to open such files.
  • Full or partial overwriting of file contents with other data: When you delete a file, only the file mark is deleted, which contains all information about it, size, location, format, etc. and additionally, the system marks the disk space occupied by a particular file as unused and available for new data recording. When executing a command aimed at saving a new file, the system checks the drive for empty space, according to its labels, and writes new data. Following its own logic, the system can select all or individual sectors and write new information into them, thereby destroying the previous record. The more such overwritten sectors there are, the higher the chance that after recovering a deleted file, its contents will not be displayed.
  • Severe fragmentation of the storage device: The data storage device writes any information to sectors (clusters) that are free and available for recording at a given time. If the sectors are located side by side on the disk and the recorded file is a single whole, then it is much easier for the recovery program to perform a signature analysis of the file contents and restore it without damaging it in full. But, in the case when the contents of the file are divided into many fragments, chaotically scattered throughout the body of the drive, such a situation can lead to the loss of individual sectors, which may contain important information that affects the reconstruction of the file. The absence of data on the file header or individual sectors, with a high degree of probability, may not allow opening the file, even after its recovery.
  • Damage to the master boot table ( "MBR") : Damage to the boot record can lead to the result when the operating system cannot detect partitions or correctly determine their parameters. This can lead to damage to the logical structure of the partition, destruction of the internal contents of the table or the record about partitions in one of the chain links. "Extended Partition"... Partial or complete damage can lead to the absence of content in the recovered file, and, as a consequence, the inability to open it.
  • File system corruption: Outward signs are quite similar to the problems from the previous section, with the only difference that the section is available for use, but not detected by the operating system. When restoring the file system, errors are corrected, however, quite often, such an action is not enough, and the system may consider some of the files as lost chains, which, even after recovery, may have problems with opening.

Possible ways to return data

Now we will look at ways to get back important data when such files cannot be opened after recovery. In this case, you can use three methods that can help you in the situation that has arisen.

Recover your data with another file recovery software


Today, users have access to a wide variety of programs for data recovery from various manufacturers. Therefore, when after restoring files they do not open, then use a program from another manufacturer and perform the restore again.

Regardless of the degree of damage to information, a partition or an entire disk, various actions (formatting or deleting a logical partition), virus attack, file system failure, etc. program for recovering deleted data "Hetman Partition Recovery" easily cope with any tasks assigned to it, and restore all possible information.

The use of a set of advanced algorithms allows the program to perform deep low-level scanning and return to the user, for further analysis and use, any data lost for various reasons. For example, deletion by mistake, loss of data as a result of disk formatting, irrecoverable deletion methods, data loss as a result of the harmful effects of a virus program, any kind of system failure of a drive or computer device, physical damage, etc.

"Hetman Partition Recovery" Ideal for successful data recovery from various kinds of devices and recovering user data from fully functioning drives as well as from inaccessible and damaged drives.

The program has a built-in preview function that allows you to easily view or listen to the contents of any recovered file before saving it, thereby prompting the user to select, from the proposed options, healthy and working files.

Use the services of a specialized laboratory to recover deleted data

In most cases, the first two options will allow you to open files after recovering them and get full access to their contents, regardless of the original file format. However, in rare cases, there is a possibility that some files will not be available to you, and you will not be able to open them after the recovery procedure. Then, as an option, you can use the services of a specialized laboratory to recover deleted data.

The specialists of such laboratories have professional equipment for recovery and have sufficient experience to perform such work.

However, the services of data recovery lab specialists have a high final cost. Therefore, you need to decide whether you are satisfied with the opportunity to get your data back commensurate with the price you will have to pay. As a rule, laboratory specialists do not give users any guarantees that their information will actually be recovered. The percentage of successfully recovered files is very small, and very often the data cannot be recovered. However, the user, in any case, will have to compensate for the cost of all data recovery work performed, even if there is a negative result, having incurred significant financial costs.

The Recuva program from Piriform is one of the worthy representatives of tools for recovering deleted data (for example, after formatting or damaging removable drives). By the way, Piriform has made another good program - Speccy, we have it.

You can download Recuva completely free of charge on the official website. There is also a paid version (as of February 2018, its cost is 800 rubles), but it does not provide serious advantages. When installing, do not forget to select Russian and refuse to install CCleaner:

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  • How to recover data with Recuva

    After starting the program, a wizard will automatically start to help you recover your lost data. You can specify the type of files you want to recover, this will speed up the search (you can select the types: images, videos, documents, and so on):

    Be sure to specify the path to the drive where you want to search, because by default Recuva will search for files wherever possible. It will take a very long time, and it will be difficult to find anything in the huge number of results.

    If the files were simply deleted, Recuva will find them without any problems and offer to restore them:

    If your drive has been formatted, and in other difficult cases, Recuva will offer you to do an in-depth analysis - agree. It can take quite a long time, depending on the size of the disk:

    After the end of the search, click the "Switch to advanced mode" button, you will see something like this:

    There can be quite a lot of items, because Recuva will find files and folders that have been deleted for a long time. You will be able to sort your files by type, size or location. It remains only to select the necessary files and click the "Restore ..." button.

    Recuva is designed for recover deleted files, has a pleasant look, simple and ascetic interface, immediately after installation suggested data recovery

    I have 2 in the hospital windows 7 is one for experiments :), so after an unsuccessful experiment, I deleted the system files (standard system file recovery did not help), and the system did not function properly because of this, I decided to try it all the same, although I honestly did not hope for success, since the program is free, and it is intended for file recovery of a different plan, it is unlikely that something will work out, I thought, but still continued to follow the instructions of this program

    About system files as you can see nothing is said, but no, no, I continued, I still don’t lose anything, although it is possible that there were some interesting pictures, or the video can be restored, I chose drive C on which the system is installed, as you can see in the screenshot below it is possible recover files from a flash drive but we're not talking about that ...

    As you can see, I didn't bother too much and started with data recovery the program started searching for deleted files on the entire disk

    It took me about 15 minutes, during which time the program had to scan the dick and find deleted files, at the end of the scanning process, the flashing icon reminded me of the completed task and I opened the program

    As you can see, there are a lot of files - there were lost, these files were marked in red, that's exactly what I needed to restore by selecting them all, I clicked on " recover data"I waited until the end and decided to switch to the" broken "system to see if it would function normally or not ... No, everything remained the same, only photos and unnecessary video were restored and some other documents, apparently I erased the system specifically)))

    Conclusion: You can try file recovery from a flash drive, but not system data.

    Convenient free file recovery software(photo, video, music), as well as documents and archives from flash drives for phones and cameras and other gadgets using drives, quickly, simply, conveniently, though not everything can be restored, preferably hot on the heels of using the program, if deleted, formatted a thousand times this program, and others, is unlikely to help. And know that file recovery is better done immediately and not after half a year :)

    Another program for recovering deleted files

    R.saver Free data recovery software
    This program is also free and easy to use to learn more how to recover deleted files with help R.saver I suggest watching a video on this.

    Recuva is a free file recovery utility from the developers of the British company Piriform. The fully functional version of the program can be downloaded for free, but there is also a paid edition of Recuva, which adds an automatic update function and support for recovery from a virtual disk.

    The Recuva benefits

    You can download the program on the official website of the developer. The Recuva installation file weighs a little over 4 MB, the installed utility occupies 6 MB of hard disk space. Other advantages include:

    • Completely free work.
    • Russified interface.
    • The presence of a recovery wizard that allows you to flexibly configure the procedure for searching for deleted files.
    • Ability to add the option "Search for deleted files" to Explorer and the Recycle Bin.

    The "Search for deleted files" option in Explorer allows you to quickly start scanning a specific folder from which data has been erased.

    For example, a photo was stored in the Pictures folder. If you accidentally erased a snapshot, right-click on the Images directory and search for deleted files. Only that specific folder will be scanned.

    Purpose of the program

    Recuva is a universal recovery program that can find and recover files of any format. In one of the windows of the recovery wizard, you can specify what type of files to search for.

    This filter allows you to speed up the process of searching for erased data. If, for example, a document created in Word, Excel or one of the LibreOffice applications is deleted, then you just need to check the corresponding option so that the program does not look for other formats.

    Recuva can find data that was on a formatted drive.

    Some of the files will be damaged, but 90 percent are usually recovered without problems - not bad for a utility that can be downloaded for free. However, in the event of a failure of the file system of a flash drive or disk, it is problematic to return information using this program.

    Recovery order

    Recuva has a friendly interface, but a small instruction manual will not hurt: it is useful to know how to use the program in order to achieve maximum effect.


    After the scan is complete, you will see a list of found data. Each file has a colored circle next to it.

    The color indicates the degree of damage:

    • Green - no damage, ready to repair.
    • Yellow - there are problems, the file may not open.
    • Red - data is damaged, cannot be recovered.

    To recover files, select them and click “Recover”. When restoring data, select a folder that is located on a different drive.

    You cannot save the found files to the disk from which they were deleted!

    If you are not satisfied with the recovery wizard, you can switch to the advanced Recuva mode. To do this, when starting the program, close the wizard window by clicking Cancel. In advanced mode, you can specify which media to scan. Pay attention to the "Settings" button.