How many times have we happened to empty the Windows recycle bin, but then remember to have accidentally thrown a very important file or photo. Until a few years ago one thing of the generators could panic anyone, to the point of having to always ask the help of a professional in the sector (who could count on expensive and difficult to use programs). Today, however, it is much easier to recover files deleted by PC by mistake and we don't even have to bring the computer to the technician: we can do everything ourselves, with the right programs! In this article we will then show you the best free programs that to recover files deleted by mistake from your computer .
In most cases we will only have to install the program and click the mouse two times to start scanning the disk, in other cases we will have to select the drive to be scanned and the type of file to be recovered (to speed up the recovery process ).
READ ALSO: Programs to recover deleted or lost photos
Recovery time
In order for the file deleted by mistake to be recovered, we will have to proceed as soon as possible: in fact even if a file is deleted from the Windows recycle bin, its "traces" remain kept in the sector of the disk until it is committed to another file . So if we start the recovery procedure a few seconds after realizing that we have deleted the file, it will be recoverable in the vast majority of cases; if, on the other hand, the deleted file is old or days have passed, it may be difficult to recover it if its sector has been busy by another file. With mechanical disks, therefore, the speed in the execution procedure is fundamental to succeed in the enterprise: the sooner we use one of the programs proposed below, the more chances we will have to recover all the deleted files.File recovery on the SSD
On modern SSDs the issue of speed is even more important than mechanical disks: the speed of execution is everything to be able to recover a file deleted by mistake, since on these storage devices the TRIM is performed at regular intervals, i.e. the procedure which empties the unassigned cells and makes them ready to host new files.If a file is deleted by mistake and the TRIM has not yet been followed, recovery is as feasible as on any mechanical disk; however, if the file was deleted by mistake and the TRIM has already been performed, recovery may be impossible.
That's why it is always advisable to make a backup of the most important folders on your computer, so as to always have a healthy copy of the file deleted by mistake without having to rely on good luck.
Free file recovery programs
If the backup is not active and we must urgently recover a file accidentally deleted, we recommend using one of the following free programs as soon as possible. They are all more or less effective, but to obtain the best results we can also try 2 or 3, one at a time, so as to expand the chances of recovery.- Recuva has a very user-friendly interface and is good for fast but occasional recoveries. Recuva is the easiest program to use for novice users, it is among the fastest and is therefore always the first to try to recover deleted files on your PC.
- DMDE is an effective, simple and fast recovery program in disk scanning, with many options to customize the scan.
- PhotoRec and TestDisk : this is one of the most powerful programs out there, since it is able to recover files even from damaged or no longer accessible disks. Once downloaded and started its executable qphotorec_win.exe (present inside the folder unzipped by the ZIP file), a simple interface will open where you can select the disk on which to recover and insert the folder where to save the recovered files, to conclude by pressing the Search button. The program will start and recover all the files deleted but still present on the disk, an operation that can be very long (even 4 hours and more, so it is better to do it at night). At the end we will see the recovered files in the indicated folder, ready to be stored on the PC or moved to backup on an external drive. The program is optimized for recovering photos, but can recover any type of common file (including documents, videos, PDFs etc.).
- EaseUS Data Recovery Wizard Free for Windows PC and Mac allows you to scan your computer for traces of deleted files. This program is compatible with all file systems and the free version is limited to recovering 2 GB of files.
- Wise Data Recovery is a program that can also be used in a portable version, without installation, capable of recovering practically any type of file: music, videos, compressed, executable archives, etc. Once a disk is scanned, the recoverable files are highlighted in green color. Wise Data Recovery is available both as an installer and as a laptop which makes it a good addition to the USB toolkit. The interface is clean and simple to use, with only two buttons needed. The scan is very fast and you can see the files found in a window similar to the Windows Explorer.
- Undelete 360 allows you to restore your files with the help of a fast and efficient algorithm. In addition to recovering files from your computer's hard drive, it can also work on external devices such as smartphones and digital cameras.
- Puran File Recovery is a free, simple, immediate, file-free recovery program.
- DiskDigger is simple to use and is mainly used to recover images, photos, documents, videos and music from the PC, very similar to Recuva, also in terms of performance.
- NTFS Undelete is an excellent GUI software that manages to recover files that have been deleted by mistake. With this opensource tool you can also recover an entire hard disk and find all the files and data, even after it has been formatted.
- Disk Drill allows you to read the files that have been deleted by mistake to save and recover them. The program is portable for Windows 10, works with all types of memories, both hard drives and SD cards and USB sticks and is very simple to use with a wizard.
- Paragon Rescue Kit is a different program to recover files from a formatted hard disk or from a PC that does not boot.
- Stella Phoenix is a very powerful and fast paid program that can be used for free to recover up to 1 GB of deleted files from your PC.
Professional file recovery programs (paid)
These programs listed above, even if they are valid, must be used not very carefully to avoid damaging your computer and losing the entire hard disk and, in the most urgent cases, such as having to recover important data from damaged hard disks, are not height of professional and therefore paid data recovery programs .For maximum effectiveness we will have to rely on paid programs to recover deleted files, such as those listed below:
- DIY Data Recovery Software is used to recover data from the hard disk, not only from an erroneous deletion, but in many cases also from a subsequent formatting . It is a very complex program, before using it you must necessarily study the guide and take all the time you need both in the preparation of the program and during the recovery operations.
The cost of the software is very high.
- GetDataBack is a little less powerful than Easy Recovery but much simpler and faster to use and with the same functions; it also costs a little less.
- EaseUS Data Recovery Wizard Professional : exactly like the free version, but it allows you to recover even the largest files, at a faster speed, with various scenarios to be exploited based on the type of disk and an emergency disk to be able to recover the files even from newly formatted PCs (without Windows). A powerful and effective tool to recover deleted files from your computer.
- Data Recovery Pro : another very effective software to recover any type of file, also thanks to the continuous monitoring of the system (it manages to memorize all the paths of the deleted files so that they can be recovered in a second) and to the possibility of also displaying a preview of the recovered files (very useful if you have lost the original name and don't know where to look). Among the absolute best in the panorama of paid data recovery software.
To deepen the discussion on deleted files we can read the guide on how to recover files from a CD / DVD and the guide to recover files and photos from a USB stick or a memory card .
On another article, however, we will show you how to delete the files so that they cannot be recovered even with the programs mentioned above, so as to guarantee maximum privacy when selling a laptop or hard disk.
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