MiniTool Power Data Recovery is a powerful data recovery software designed to help users recover lost, deleted, or inaccessible data from a variety of storage devices, including hard drives, USB drives, memory cards, and even optical discs. It is capable of recovering files lost due to accidental deletion, system crashes, formatting, virus attacks, partition loss, or other data loss scenarios.
The software utilizes advanced scanning and recovery techniques to restore lost files by identifying both the file system’s metadata and the actual data remnants on the storage device. Below is a step-by-step explanation of how MiniTool Power Data Recovery works to recover deleted data:
When a file is deleted from a storage device, the operating system typically removes the file's entry from the file system directory (e.g., NTFS, FAT32, exFAT). However, the actual data (the file contents) typically remains on the disk until it is overwritten by new data. The deleted file's space is marked as "free," meaning that new data can be written over it, but until this happens, the file can often be recovered.
MiniTool Power Data Recovery takes advantage of this principle by scanning the storage device for deleted files and attempting to reconstruct them, even if the directory information (file name, path, etc.) is no longer available.
MiniTool Power Data Recovery uses a combination of file system scanning and raw data scanning to recover deleted files. The process is divided into several stages, from simple scans to more advanced methods, depending on the type of recovery needed.
Step 1: File System Scan
Quick Scan: When you initiate the recovery process, MiniTool Power Data Recovery first performs a Quick Scan. This scan looks at the file system for "orphaned" files—files that have been deleted but have not yet been overwritten. During the Quick Scan, the software searches for files by examining the file system's directory structures (e.g., Master File Table (MFT) for NTFS) and checks for references to deleted files.
The Quick Scan will also try to recover the file names, paths, sizes, and metadata associated with the deleted files.
This is a faster process and works well for files that were recently deleted or lost.
Step 2: Deep Scan (Advanced or Raw Recovery)
Deep Scan: If the Quick Scan does not recover the needed files or if the file system is severely damaged (e.g., after formatting, partition loss, or file system corruption), MiniTool Power Data Recovery performs a Deep Scan.
Deep Scan works at a lower level than the Quick Scan. Instead of looking at the file system’s metadata (such as file entries), it scans the raw data sectors of the disk for file signatures—unique patterns of bytes that identify the type of file (e.g., JPG, PDF, MP4).
This scan is slower than the Quick Scan because it thoroughly checks every sector of the storage device for traces of deleted files. It doesn’t rely on the file system structure, so it can recover files that no longer have a directory entry or file name.
File Signature Detection: During the Deep Scan, MiniTool Power Data Recovery looks for specific file signatures that identify the type of file being recovered. For example:
JPEG images start with the bytes FF D8 FF and end with FF D9.
MP3 audio files start with 49 44 33 (ID3) or FF FB (MPEG frame header).
PDF documents start with %PDF-.
This technique is useful for recovering files that were deleted or lost due to partition loss, file system corruption, or formatting. It can also recover fragmented files by identifying their individual data pieces and reconstructing them.
Step 3: Analyzing and Organizing the Results
Once the scan is complete, MiniTool Power Data Recovery organizes the results into recoverable files. The software categorizes the files and displays them by their file types (documents, images, videos, archives, etc.). You can then browse through the files, preview them (if supported), and check which ones you want to recover.
File Preview: The software allows you to preview recoverable files before restoration. You can view images, documents, and sometimes even videos or audio files to verify their integrity before initiating recovery. This is particularly helpful if you’re trying to recover specific files but are unsure whether the recovered data is intact.
Step 4: File Recovery
Once you've identified the files you want to recover, MiniTool Power Data Recovery allows you to restore them. The software provides several key options for recovery:
Recover to a Different Location: It’s important to recover the deleted files to a different storage device or partition than the one they were deleted from. This prevents overwriting any other recoverable data that may still be on the disk. For example, if you’re recovering files from an external USB drive, you should restore them to your computer's internal drive (or vice versa).
File Types and Selective Recovery: You can choose to recover individual files or specific file types (e.g., only images or only videos). This selective recovery feature makes the process more efficient, especially when you're only interested in specific data.
MiniTool Power Data Recovery includes several advanced recovery features that help improve its ability to recover deleted or lost data:
A. Signature-Based File Recovery
File Signatures: During the Deep Scan, MiniTool Power Data Recovery uses file signature recognition to identify and recover files based on their unique header and footer data. This allows it to locate files even if they’ve been deleted, corrupted, or fragmented.
B. Partition Recovery
Lost or Damaged Partition Recovery: If a partition is deleted, lost, or corrupted (e.g., after formatting or partition table damage), MiniTool Power Data Recovery can scan the raw sectors of the disk to locate and recover the partition. Once the partition is restored, the files within it are often recoverable.
This feature is especially useful when recovering data after accidental partition loss, partition corruption, or disk reformatting.
C. File System Support
MiniTool Power Data Recovery supports a wide range of file systems, including:
NTFS, FAT32, exFAT (for Windows systems)
HFS+, APFS (for macOS systems)
ext3/ext4 (for Linux systems)
This broad file system support allows the software to recover data from a variety of devices, including external drives, SD cards, and Mac-formatted disks.
D. Recovery from Various Storage Devices
Hard Drives, SSDs, USB Drives, and Memory Cards: MiniTool Power Data Recovery can recover data from various types of storage devices, including:
Internal hard drives and external drives
USB flash drives and memory cards (SD, microSD, CF cards, etc.)
RAID arrays, virtual drives, and more
E. User-Friendly Interface
Easy-to-Use: MiniTool Power Data Recovery has a simple, intuitive interface that guides you through the recovery process, even for users who aren’t tech-savvy. The software presents a straightforward, step-by-step approach to scanning and recovering deleted files.
F. Recovery of Formatted Drives
Formatting Recovery: If a storage device is formatted, MiniTool Power Data Recovery can recover files even if the drive has been formatted using either a quick or full format. This is especially helpful for recovering files from drives that were accidentally formatted or repartitioned.
Free Version Limitations: The free version of MiniTool Power Data Recovery has a limitation where it only allows you to recover up to 1GB of data. For larger data recoveries, you’ll need to upgrade to the paid version.
SSDs and TRIM Limitations: Like other data recovery software, MiniTool Power Data Recovery has limitations when dealing with SSDs that have TRIM enabled. TRIM instructs the SSD to immediately erase deleted data, making recovery much harder or even impossible.
Deep Scan Duration: The Deep Scan process can take longer, especially on large drives, because it examines every sector of the disk and looks for file signatures. The scan speed depends on the size of the disk and the number of files being recovered.
Overview: MiniTool Power Data Recovery is another reliable software for recovering deleted or lost files. It supports various storage devices, including HDDs, SSDs, USB drives, and optical media.
How It Works:
Different Recovery Modes: It offers different scanning modes for deleted files, lost partitions, and damaged drives. The "Damaged Partition Recovery" feature is particularly useful for badly corrupted file systems.
Raw Recovery: It uses signature-based scanning to locate files even if the file system is corrupt or deleted.
Pros:
Supports a wide range of storage devices.
Recovery from damaged partitions.
Cons:
Limited free recovery in the trial version (only 1GB).
The interface can be a bit overwhelming for beginners.
Best for: Users dealing with severely corrupted or damaged partitions and those who need a versatile recovery tool.
MiniTool Power Data Recovery works by scanning the file system for references to deleted files and performing a more thorough raw data scan if necessary. It uses a combination of file system recovery (Quick Scan) and raw data recovery (Deep Scan) to locate deleted files, even if the file system is damaged or the files have been overwritten. With its ability to recover data from a wide range of devices, file systems, and data loss scenarios, MiniTool Power Data Recovery is a versatile and reliable tool for recovering deleted files.
Its support for signature-based recovery, partition recovery, and formatted drive recovery makes it a powerful choice for users who need to recover lost data. However, it does have limitations, particularly with SSDs that have TRIM enabled, and the free version restricts data recovery to 1GB. For most situations, though, MiniTool Power Data Recovery provides a comprehensive solution for file recovery.