Download an undelete utility.
Alright, so in the best case scenario you haven’t lost your entire hard drive and still have a functioning computer in front of you. This means that you shuold be able to get your data back with a little bit of wrangling. First thing you will want to do is pick up an undelete software. This software basically does what it says in the title, recovers items that you have accidentally or regretfully deleted. After you have picked your undelete software, whether the free or paid version, you will want to pick the hard drive that had previously housed the data as your scanner. Point the undelete software at the location where the file once was and hit scan. At the end of that scan you will see a list of file names, ignore most of them. Just look for the file name or type of the data that you lost. Once you find the matching name of the lost data simply right click the file and choose ‘recover’. This should be a relatively straightforward option for most people who are struggling with average lost data issues. However if your lost data problems are not recovered here, move on to step 3.
Download an undelete utility
Hire a data recovery service.
At the end of the day you might choose to value your time and sanity more than your frugality. If you are having severe issues with lost data it may just be time to call up a data recovery service to aid you. At this point they will let you know what all you need to bring into their store in order to recover what was lost. Typically be prepared to move your entire computer for them to use, ignoring the monitor and sound devices. This is the most expensive way to go about recovering your lost data but it is also the most dependable way. These professionals will have access to tools and software that don’t typically make it to the open market.
Hire a data recovery service