Someone in the office deleted a folder from the shared drive, and it is not in their Recycle Bin. That is normal, and it catches a lot of people out. Files deleted from a network share or NAS (a Synology, QNAP or Windows file server, for example) do not go to the Recycle Bin on […]
Data recovery guides and news
Lost or broken iPhone? Find your computer backup first
Your iPhone is lost, stolen, smashed, or simply won’t turn on, and you are not sure your photos and messages were in iCloud. Before you assume they are gone, check your computer. If you ever plugged that iPhone into a Mac or a Windows PC and backed it up, there may be a complete copy […]
Dead computer? Moving the drive to a USB enclosure safely
When a laptop or desktop dies but the files are still inside, the most common piece of advice online is to pull the drive out, put it in a USB enclosure or dock, and plug it into another computer. Often that works well and costs very little. Sometimes it is the wrong move, either because […]
Location is not available? Check the drive first
You double-click a drive in File Explorer and instead of your folders you get a box titled “Location is not available”, followed by “E:\ is not accessible” and either “The parameter is incorrect”, “Access is denied” or “The file or directory is corrupted and unreadable.” The drive letter is there and the computer clearly sees […]
Camera card failed on set? What to do first
It’s the middle of a shoot and the camera throws a card error, the card shows as empty, or the offload stops halfway through. If that card holds the only copy of today’s footage, what happens in the next few minutes matters more than anything a lab can do later. Footage on a failed card […]
Snapped USB flash drive? How to save your files
USB flash drives have a weak spot: the metal connector sticking out of the computer. Someone bumps the laptop, a bag catches on it, or a chair rolls into it, and the stick snaps, bends, or goes loose. If that drive holds your only copy of a thesis, tax documents, or family photos, the damage […]
Stuck in a Windows Automatic Repair loop? Save your files first
Your PC restarts, shows “Preparing Automatic Repair” or “Diagnosing your PC,” and then ends up on a blue screen saying “Automatic Repair couldn’t repair your PC.” You restart and the same thing happens again. Windows is giving you a list of options, and one of them can wipe the files you are trying to save. […]
RAID 6 failed? What to do before forcing it online
RAID 6 is meant to be the safe choice. It can lose two drives and keep running, so when a server or NAS reports that the array has failed, or a volume drops offline overnight, the first reaction is often disbelief. The second is usually to reach for the controller’s force-online option. Don’t do that […]
Dash cam footage after a crash? Save it now
Your dash cam may have captured exactly what happened in a crash, a hit-and-run or a break-in, and that footage can matter to your insurance claim. The trouble is that a dash cam is built to throw old video away. If it keeps running, or the card has been damaged, the clip you need can […]
QuickBooks file lost after a drive crash? What to do
For many small businesses, one file holds years of invoices, payroll, and vendor history. If you run QuickBooks Desktop, that file lives on a computer or server you own. So when the hard drive dies, the server goes down, or QuickBooks suddenly can’t find or open the company file, it can feel like the books […]