There may be several reasons as to why a particular file format or several uncommon file formats are not 100% recoverable. But the most common reason is the data recovery software that you used to recover the deleted or formatted files.
For instance, a popular data recovery software such as Recuva supports less than 50 popular file formats. Whereas if you use software such as Stellar Data Recovery Standard, it recovers more than 300 unique file formats in video, photo, audio, documents, etc. categories.
And if you use the Professional variant of Stellar Data Recovery, you can recover virtually any file format, without limit.
Besides software limitations, a few more factors affect recoverability of deleted files, as follows:
- Prompt Action
The sooner you act upon a data loss situation, the better will be the chances of getting back all file formats successfully. A delay in data recovery can lead to permanent loss of critical file formats.
- Reason for File Loss
If you know the reason for data loss, you can implement a precise solution to effectively recover up to 100% data.
- Bad Sectors and Fragmentation
Bad sectors can cause drive corruption, partition loss, and corrupt existing or lost files. Fragmentation can cause excessive drive usage during recovery, which can cause overheating. Due to overheating, the drive may fail or accumulate more bad sectors that hinder recovery and may result in permanent data loss.
- Hit and Trial Attempts
If you don’t know what you are doing, stop right there. Most people often search for solutions and apply multiple fixes in an attempt to retrieve the lost data. These attempts often fail, and with each failed attempt, you may lose a file or part of the file due to overwriting.
3 Critical Steps to Ensure Recovery of All File Formats
Step 1: Don’t Use the Affected System or Drive
The most crucial step after file loss is to stop using the affected storage media or system, immediately. This helps prevent data overwriting that may cause file corruption or permanent data loss—beyond recovery.
By minimizing storage media use, you can improve chances of successful data recovery, up to 100%. But as mentioned earlier, the subsequent and critical part of data recovery is to choose the right data recovery software. But before that, find out the reasons of data loss. That’ll help you get the right tool for your data loss case.
Step 2: Find the Reason for Data Loss
Find out if you’ve lost data due to—
- Accidental deletion
- Formatting
- Drive corruption
- Power failure
- System Crash
That’s because every data loss situation is different and needs a specific approach and tools to recover all file formats successfully.
Step 3: Choose the Right Data Recovery Software
Now that you know the reason for data loss, choosing a data recovery software would be easier. For instance, choose a software that helps your overarching data recovery needs, both immediate and future. Also, ascertain it’s utility in terms of supported drives, file formats, effectiveness in different data loss situations, ease-of-use, etc. Stellar Windows Data Recovery would make a good ‘practical’ choice and overall value. It recovers data lost due to deletion, formatting, media corruption, lost partition and more causes. And, you can recover just about any standard or custom file format.
Watch the following video to know more.
Conclusion
With growing variety of media, the number of file formats is also growing invariably. It’s common to lose data due to reasons like deletion, corruption, media formatting, etc. But it’s not easy to get back all the lost data in completeness due to the many variables involved. For instance, you may not be able to recover 100% of all the file formats lost in most cases wherein you run a data recovery software. That’s because the software may not have support for all the file formats.
So, when it comes to data recovery, don’t rely on just any run of the mill software, but use one that’s reliable and supports all common file formats. Stellar Data Recovery Standard makes the ideal pick, as the DIY software recovers more than 300 unique file formats in 3-simple steps. Going up, its Professional variant recovers virtually any file type from Windows PC and external storage media.
Besides the software part, it’s also important to stop using the affect storage media or device, which is a common cause of permanent data loss due to overwriting. It’s recommended to stay clear of hit-and-trial methods and instead seek a data backup if it’s available. Or, better get yourself a reliable software like Stellar Data Recovery Standard to recoup the lost files without wasting time.
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