How to Recover Mac Formatted Hard Drive?

What Happens After You Formatted Mac Hard Drive?

After formatting, all the file systems and their metadata, such as file and folder structures, permissions, and file attributes, are erased. As a result, the operating system no longer recognizes the file organization and treats the drive as empty.

Formatting primarily deletes the file system information, not the data stored within it. Therefore, there is a significant window of opportunity to recover the data if it has not been overwritten by other data. Specialized tools are available to recover data from formatted Mac hard drives.

Source: Apple Support

Tips for Successful Data Recovery from Formatted Hard Drive on Mac

To ensure the best possible recovery of the formatted hard drive, users need to follow certain do’s and don’ts. These precautionary measures can significantly enhance the recovery process.

Do’s:

• Stop using the hard drive to prevent data overwriting.
• Check if you have taken any backups previously.
• Seek professional assistance from experts experienced in Mac hard drive recovery.

Don’ts:

• Avoid using unreliable software and DIY methods that may further complicate the recovery of your formatted hard drive.
• Do not save the recovered data in the same location as before.

Recover Formatted Hard Drive Mac Using Yodot Mac Data Recovery

In the realm of data recovery, having a reliable tool at your disposal is crucial. That’s where Yodot Mac Data Recovery comes into play. Designed with a deep understanding of Mac file systems, it’s a tool that can navigate the complexities of APFS, HFS+, and HFSX.

It’s not just about compatibility, though. Yodot is also about versatility, with the ability to recover up to 300 different file types. So, whether you’re dealing with a formatted hard drive or just a few missing files, Yodot is equipped to handle the task.

Steps to Recover a Formatted Hard Drive using Yodot Mac Data Recovery are:

Step 1: Download Yodot Mac Recovery software from the official site containing no bloatware and advertisements.

Step 2: Launch the tool, click on Formatted/Reformatted Recovery, and select the drive

Note: If you are looking for a specific file format, you can select it before scanning to reduce the scan time.

Step 4: Wait till the scan completes, and once the scan is completed preview the file and save it in your desired location.

Note: If you are looking to recover data from Mac SSD then refer to this article.

Check Built-in Options to Unformat Mac Hard Drive

For Mac users, there are built-in backup solutions and recovery options available that come in handy when it comes to resolving data recovery and repair issues.

If you are not sure of how your hard drive got formatted.Or just facing error messages.

You can certainly give them a try as they won’t cause any harm or complexity in recovering data from a formatted hard drive.

A. Disk Utilities:

• Launch the Disk Utility and locate the formatted hard drive in the left sidebar.

• Select the drive and click on the First Aid button.

• This will attempt to repair errors and rebuild the drive structure if it fixes Mac system errors and enables to access the data again.

B. Time Machine:

This solution would work only if you made a Time Machine backup that backups the hard drive data from time to time.

• Click on the Time Machine icon on the top right menu bar and select “Enter the Time Machine”.

• The Time Machine interface opens with timelines on the right side of the screen.

• Navigate through the timeline and locate the backups that you need and click on Restore.
• This will restore the files and folders to their original locations on your Mac.

C. Just in Case(Check if you have encrypted your hard drive):

Mac systems with the new versions of macOS have prompted users to enable FileVault i.e. full disk encryption feature during the initial setup process, this has enabled increased habit of encrypting the hard drive on Mac systems. You can either use a login password or a decryption key to access the data.

Conclusion:

Formatting a hard drive is recommended to maintain drive health and prevent errors. However, performing a format without having a backup can result in the loss of precious files stored on the hard drive. We wrote this article intending to help users who feel stuck in this situation to recover the formatted Mac hard drive. Fortunately, Yodot Mac Data Recovery can efficiently recover lost data within a matter of minutes.

Frequently Asked Questions: