Have you accidentally deleted an important file from your Windows system? Looking for the deleted data in the Recycle Bin which is also empty? Did you know you can now recover your files for free using Windows File Recovery Tool? This article has everything you need to know about Windows File Recovery and the best alternative to save your day and recover all your data.
Table Of Content:
What is Microsoft’s Windows File Recovery Tool?
Different Types of Modes To Recover Deleted Files On Microsoft Windows File Recovery
Which File Systems Does Windows File Recovery Tool Support?
How to Download and Install Windows File Recovery Tool?
How To Use Windows File Recovery Tool?
Recover Files Using Regular Mode In Windows File Recovery Tool?
Recover Files Using Extensive Mode On Windows File Recover?
Drawbacks of Windows File Recovery Tool
Yodot File Recovery To Recover Lost/ Deleted Files From Windows
Data loss has become common lately and it is turning out to be expensive for the people losing data. Data loss is an expensive loss, whereas data recovery is also expensive. Fortunately, Microsoft has tried to address this concern of users by releasing a free data recovery software for Windows users. Yes, Microsoft has its own data recovery tool.
What is Microsoft’s Windows File Recovery Tool?
Microsoft has released data recovery software called Windows File Recovery tool to restore deleted files from different storage types like an internal drive, external drive, and USB drive.
This tool allows the user to scan the various file systems like NTFS, ReFS, FAT, and exFAT. Whereas, Windows file recovery is only available for Windows 10 build 19041 and later versions.
Different Types of Modes To Recover Deleted Files On Microsoft Windows File Recovery
Microsoft Windows file Recovery has two types of modes i.e Regular and extensive mode. Let’s try to understand the different types of modes in – detail.
1. Regular Mode:
Regular Mode is used to recover the deleted fil0es that have been recently deleted or lost. This mode can be used when the recovery is done on a healthy storage device.
2. Extensive Mode:
Extensive mode is used to recover files that have been deleted a while ago, when a disk has become corrupted, or when a disk is formatted.
Below are some scenarios which help you in deciding the mode of operation
| Scenarios | File System | Modes |
| Recently deleted | NTFS | Regular |
| Accidentally deleted Files | NTFS | Extensive |
| Formatted Drives | NTFS | Extensive |
| Corrupted Drives | NTFS | Extensive |
Which File Systems Does Windows File Recovery Tool Support?
Windows File Recovery tool primarily supports all types of file systems, whereas for NTFS you need to use regular mode and for other file systems like FAT, and exFAT you need to use Extensive Mode.
How to Download and Install Windows File Recovery Tool?
Note: Remember Windows file recovery is only available for Windows 10 build 19041 and later versions.
- Open Chrome and Search Microsoft store
- Search for Windows File Recovery and Click on the Install button
- Once the application is installed press the Windows Key, type Windows File Recovery in the search box, and select Windows File Recovery.
- Now, allow the app to make changes to your device, and choose Yes.
- In the Command Prompt Window, enter the command in the format given below:
Winfr Source-drive: destination-drive: [/mode] [/switches]
Modes:
/regular – Regular (Standard recovery option for non-corrupted NTFS drives)
/extensive – Extensive (Thorough recovery option suitable for all file systems)
Switches:
/n <filter> – Filter search (wildcards allowed, trailing \ for folder)
/? – Help text
/! – Display advanced features
How To Use Windows File Recovery Tool?
To use the Windows recovery tool first you need to install the tool as explained in the above section and then you need to choose the mode of recovery.
As you already know Windows file recovery has 2 modes to recover lost or deleted files. We will be discussing both the modes in the below section.
Recover Files Using Regular Mode In Windows File Recovery Tool
Recovering the files using regular mode is quite easy. You just need to open the command prompt and type the commands in the same way which is shown in the below section.
Note: We are taking E: drive for example.
Steps to Recover Deleted Files Using Regular Mode:
Recover your Documents folder from your C: drive to the recovery folder on an E: drive Don’t forget the backslash (\) at the end of the folder.
winfr C: E:\RecoveryDestination /regular /n Users\<username>\Downloads\
Example:
winfr C: E:\RecoveryDestination /regular /n Users\Yodot\Downloads\
Type Y to start the Recovery process.
To Recover PDF and Word files from your C: drive to the recovery folder on an E: drive
winfr C: E:\RecoveryDestination /regular /n *.pdf /n *.doc
Type Y to start the Recovery process.
Recover Files Using Extensive Mode On Windows File Recover
Recover files using Extensive mode by typing the commands in the command prompt which is mentioned in the below steps.
Steps to Recover Deleted Or Lost Files Using Extensive Mode:
winfr C: E:\RecoveryDestination /extensive /n Users\<username>\Downloads\
Example:
winfr C: E:\RecoveryDestination /extensive /n Users\Yodot\Downloads\
Type Y to start the Recovery process.
Recover jpeg and png files from the Pictures folder to the recovery folder on an E: drive.
winfr C: E:\RecoveryDestination /extensive /n *.png /n *.jpg
Type Y to start the Recovery process.
Drawbacks of Windows File Recovery Tool:
There are a few limitations of using the Windows File Recovery tool which is mentioned below:
- Windows file recovery is a command-line utility. To get back the file, you have to run some commands, which makes it quite complicated for non-technical users.
- This tool is available for only Windows 10, version 2004 and above. It doesn’t work on older Windows versions.
- Even if you recover the files, there may be chances that you will not be able to restore all of them. And, some of them could be corrupted as well.
If in case, you have faced the above limitation you can make use of Yodot File Recovery to recover the files.
Yodot File Recovery To Recover Lost/ Deleted Files From Windows:
Yodot File Recovery is the premium model to retrieve missing and deleted files and folders from a hard drive or any external drive. The simplest and most straightforward, yet most effective way of recovery.
Steps to Restore Deleted or Lost Files Using Yodot File Recovery:
- Download and Install the Yodot File Recovery tool
- Select Deleted File Recovery option
- Select the drive from where files are to be recovered and permit the software to scan the drive
- Preview the recovered file to ensure that file has been recovered
- Choose the drive, in which you want to store the recovered data.
| Features | Microsoft Windows File Recovery | Yodot File Recovery Software |
| Graphical Interface | NA | GUI is available in Yodot File Recovery |
| User Interface | Complex | Simple |
| Recovery Tool Type | Command-line utility | Yodot File Recovery Software |
| File Systems | NTFS, FAT, EXFAT | NTFS, FAT, EXFAT |
| Scan and Recovery Process | Regular mode and Extensive mode | Quick Scan and Deep Scan |
| Rate of recovery | The rate of recovery is low | Rate of recovery high |
| Speed of recovery | Time Consuming | Relatively faster |
Final Words:
Now that you are aware of Windows file recovery software along with its advantages and disadvantages, you can be the judge of whether to use it or not. We do not recommend Windows File Recovery Software it is going to be a tedious process and might cause more damage than recovering your files. Hence, it is recommended to make use of simple and safe data recovery software like Yodot File Recovery Software. The tool is not only simple and safe but also provides technical assistance for your data recovery needs.
Frequently Asked Questions
- Can I download the application from the other source?
No, It is not possible to download applications from other sources as windows file recovery is only distributed through the Microsoft store.
- Do I need to enter all the commands manually in the command prompt to recover files from the Microsoft recovery tool?
It is not compulsory to type all the commands manually. You can make use of the copy-paste function.
- Is there any other way to interact with Windows File Recovery apart from Command Prompt?
Windows file recovery doesn’t possess a graphical interface as of now, So unfortunately you need to interact with the software using Command Prompt
- Which is the best tool for recovering deleted files in windows?
As we have already discussed the limitations in the Microsoft Windows file recovery tool, it is suggested to use file recovery software to get the desired result.
