Deleted a File by Mistake? Here is What to Do
by: jameswalsh
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Believe me, unless you completely demolish your hard drive with a sledge hammer, it is practically possible to recover the data saved on it, even if it is deleted. A mistaken pressing of the Delete button will not destroy your data forever. Surely you must be thinking that I am joking. Well, a thorough and in-depth understanding of how a hard drive works will certainly help you comprehend, how it is possible to recover the deleted files.
Where do Deleted Files Go?
A hard drive consists of many hard round platters. These platters are coated on either side by a magnetic material. The data is stored on these platters in binary notation comprising of 0s and 1s. Each of these platters is capable of holding data on both its top and bottom surfaces. Thus, a drive with four platters will have eight surfaces capable of storing data, which can store large number of individual bits of information.
Each of the individual surfaces of these platters is further divided into concentric tracks, which are again redefined into sectors. This is called formatting and its purpose is to divide all the storage space on a hard drive into small multiple storage areas. A group of many sectors is called a cluster. Practically speaking, a cluster is the smallest unit of storage space accessed by the Operating System of a computer. The number of clusters occupied by a file depends upon its size. A single file may not be stored on the contiguous clusters on the disk and the Operating System may scatter a file to clusters located on the different parts of a disk. This is called file fragmentation.
The cluster on which the data is stored is called the ‘allocated cluster’ while the cluster which is vacant is called an ‘unallocated cluster’. All the allocated clusters are assigned an entry into the File Allocation Table (FAT). Once a file is deleted, the Operating System erases the first letter of the name of the file from the File Allocation Table and declares the clusters holding the deleted file as unallocated.
The thing to be kept in mind is that the data stored on these unallocated clusters remains intact until it is overwritten. Though this file can no more be traced by the Operating System, yet it is very much intact and retrievable.
How to Recover a Deleted File
With data loss being a common problem and data recovery services becoming expensive, you can certainly use some DIY data recovery software to retrieve your deleted file. They often prove very effective in case of data loss due to logical problems such as accidental deletion of files. However, data recovery software may prove to be a two-edged sword, which can also cause the permanent loss of the data to be recovered. So you should be careful and cautious while selecting one. Hundreds of data recovery software are available on the internet. Read the comparative reviews in IT magazines and see which ones are in the top three. Compare and contrast the various products available in the market and try to ensure the veracity of the product you use.
Precautions to be Taken While Selecting a DIY Data Recovery Software
Be sure that the software used by you comes from some authentic source. Verify the credentials of the company from which the software is being procured and be sure about the safety profile of your choice. The software selected by you should be user-friendly and should not demand any special expertise on your part. Choose software, which is specific to your problem. You do not need to buy a costly and bulky program when a cheaper and compact version will do.
The software selected by you should be usable from some other source. Installing the program on the same drive from which the file is to be recovered may lead to that file getting overwritten and lost forever. Ensure that the software has a preview option which enables you to have a view of the files that can be recovered before you purchase it. Any good software should certainly have an Undo option. Most important, the company providing the software should offer an excellent after-sale support.
About the Author
James Walsh is a freelance writer and copy editor. If you are concerned about data loss and would like more information on Data Recovery see http://www.fields-data-recovery.co.uk
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