For those who don’t know, Recuva is a well known data recovery program created by Piriform – a company which makes a number of popular software applications including CCleaner (for removing unwanted files from your computer) and Defraggler (for defragmenting your hard drive).
Recuva’s Strengths
Recuva is free: Recuva is 100% free to use. Only businesses and individuals who desire technical support need pay a fee.Recuva is extremely easy to use: Recuva’s recovery wizard takes you step by step through the whole process of recovering deleted files. Even without our helpful guide you would likely be able to figure it out – although we still recommend that you follow along :]
Recuva is portable: Some data recovery software must be installed on your computer before you can use it. This is fine if you are attempting to recover deleted files from an SD card, USB key, external hard drive, or CD/DVD. However, this is a horrible idea if you are attempting to recover deletes files from your recycle bin or local hard drive (we discuss this issue below)! Luckily, Recuva doesn’t need to be installed on your computer in order to be used which gives you greater freedom in the recovery process.
Recuva’s Weaknesses
Recuva isn’t the most effective program out there: We here at Seymour Computer Repair use Recuva frequently due to its simplicity. Most of the time it works perfectly well; however, we have noticed that Recuva isn’t quite as effective as some other data recovery programs.A Few Warnings about Recovering Deleted Files
Before we describe the actual process of how to recover deleted files using Recuva we want to provide a few warnings. Please read these warnings carefully!- Attempt to recover your files as soon as possible: The sooner you realize that files have been accidentally deleted, the greater the likelihood that you will be able to recover them!
- Don’t continue to use a device after accidentally deleting files from it: If you accidentally delete files from a device (local hard drive, SD card, USB, external hard drive, CD,DVD…) then stop using it immediately!
- Don’t install Recuva onto the device where the deleted files reside: Installing data recovery software onto a device where deleted files reside is a bad idea! As an example: if your deleted files are on a USB key then don’t install Recuva onto that USB key.
- Don’t recover deleted files to the same device: Recovering deleted files onto the same device they came from is a bad idea! As an example: if your deleted files are on a USB key then don’t recover these files onto the same USB key.
If you wish to know more then please don’t hesitate to take a look through our article: Deleted File Recovery: Do’s and Don’ts. It discusses a number of important concepts which highlight the ways in which deleted files can be lost permanently – something no one wants!
For computer novices: Don’t worry excessively! As long as you follow along closely, and choose the guides labeled safe, there is virtually no chance that you will permanently delete your files!
Where are your Deleted Files?
The first thing you have to do is decide where the deleted files you wish to recover are located as this will determine which guide you will follow. The most common locations for deleted files are:- In your recycle bin
- On an SD card
- On a USB key
- On an external hard drive
- On a CD or DVD
- Somewhere else on your local hard drive (C:)
Choose the Appropriate Guide
Option 1: Read How to Recover Deleted Files from the Recycle Bin or Local Hard Drive – Unsafe Method if:
- Your deleted files are located in the recycle bin or on your local hard drive (C: drive).
- You want a guide which is unsafe (some chance of permanent file loss) but faster.
Option 2: Read How to Recover Deleted Files from the Recycle Bin or Local Hard Drive – Safe Method if:
- Your deleted files are located in the recycle bin or on your local hard drive (C: drive).
- You want a guide which is safe (no chance of permanent file loss) but slower.
Option 3: Read How to Recover Deleted Files from an SD card, USB, External Hard Drive, or CD/DVD if:
- Your deleted files are located on an SD card, USB key, external hard drive, CD, or DVD.
- You want a guide which is safe (no chance of permanent file loss).
How to Recover Deleted Files from the Recycle Bin or Local Hard Drive – Unsafe Method
This particular guide assumes that you are attempting to recover a deleted file from the recycle bin or from somewhere on your local hard drive (C: drive). It is important to note that this guide is unsafe since it requires you to work with the computer where the deleted files reside; this creates a situation whereby deleted files can, potentially, become permanently lost! If your data is absolutely critical then we recommend that you read How to Recover Deleted Files from the Recycle Bin or Local Hard Drive – Safe Method instead. If some risk is satisfactory then proceed…What you will need:
- A USB key
- An external hard drive
- Access to the computer where the deleted files do reside (we will call this PC-DEL henceforth)
- Access to any working computer where the deleted files do not reside (we will call this PC-OTH henceforth)
Table of Contents
1) Download the Portable version of Recuva onto PC-OTH
2) Extract Recuva on PC-OTH
3) Put Recuva onto your USB key
4) Connect your USB key and External Hard Drive to PC-DEL
5) Open Recuva
6) Using Recuva
7) File Type Selection
8) File Location Selection
9) Scan Selection
10) Recovery File Selection
11) Recovering Files to your External Hard Drive
12) Surveying the Deleted Files
13) Done
download Recuva here:
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