How to Recover Data From an External Hard Drive (Free Steps First)

At a glance: what to do for each symptom

At a glance: the three programs

Do these free steps before any recovery software

Stop writing to the external drive. Don't copy anything onto it, don't let a backup job run, and don't install a recovery program on it. Deleted files stay on the disk only until new data lands on the same spot, so this one habit protects you more than any program can.

Check the connection before you blame the drive. A surprising number of "dead" external drives are bad cables or weak USB ports.

• Try a different USB cable, especially on a drive with a short or worn one.
• Plug straight into a USB port on the computer, not a hub. On a desktop, use a rear port.
• If the drive has its own power adapter, confirm it's on and the light comes up.
• Try another computer. If it works there, the first PC's port or driver is the problem and your data was never at risk.

Open Disk Management. Right-click the Start button and choose Disk Management. It shows drives that File Explorer can't, and what it says tells you which section below to read:

• Healthy, with a size, but no drive letter: right-click the partition, choose Change Drive Letter and Paths, and add a letter. That may be the whole fix.
• RAW: the file system is damaged. Read the RAW section below.
• Unallocated: the partition is lost. Don't create a new volume. Scan the whole physical disk with recovery software.
• Not Initialized: if Windows pops up asking to initialize the disk, click Cancel. Initializing writes to the disk.
• Not listed at all: skip to the not-detected section.

You deleted files from the external drive

Deleted files are the easiest case, because the drive itself is fine and the files are only marked as free space. Start with the Recycle Bin: an external hard drive usually has one of its own, but anything removed with Shift+Delete skips it, and so do files deleted from a USB stick. If you have a backup or a synced copy, restore from that and you're finished.

If the files aren't there, Hasleo Data Recovery is the place to start, since its Free edition saves up to 2 GB at no cost. Install it on the computer's internal drive, scan the external drive, and save what you find to a different drive. Over 2 GB, the Professional license is a one-time $49.

External SSDs are different. An SSD can erase deleted blocks in the background (TRIM), and once that's happened no software can read them. If the drive is an SSD, scan it right away and keep your expectations modest.

The drive shows RAW or asks to be formatted

Click Cancel on "You need to format the disk before you can use it." That message means Windows can't read the file system, usually after the drive was pulled out without ejecting or lost power mid-write. The files are generally still there, and formatting is the one button that makes the job harder. A quick format replaces the file system's records. A full format in current Windows writes zeros over the whole volume, which ends any hope of software recovery.

Next, run a free scan and look at the preview before you pay anything. Both programs here read the drive without writing to it. In Stellar Data Recovery Professional, choose the Physical Disk option, which Stellar recommends when a partition is missing, appears as Unallocated or has turned RAW. In Hetman Partition Recovery, pick the drive under Physical Disks and run a full analysis.

Which one? If the drive was formatted on a Mac or a Linux machine, or came out of a media recorder or a single-disk NAS, choose Hetman: Stellar for Windows reads NTFS, FAT, exFAT and ReFS only. If it's an ordinary Windows or exFAT drive and you only need 1 GB back, Stellar's free version may be all you pay for, so start with Stellar. Don't reformat the drive and reuse it until you've saved your files and checked that they open.

The drive works, but freezes or throws read errors

A drive that hangs, slows to a crawl or reports read errors is on borrowed time. First copy the few files you can't live without, by hand, smallest and most important first. Then make a full disk image onto a healthy drive and run the recovery scan on the image, so the failing drive only has to get through one read.

That's why Stellar Data Recovery Professional is our pick for this symptom. Its Create Image tool sits in the sidebar, and Recover From Image scans the result. Hetman offers imaging too, but note that disk imaging is the main reason to pay for Stellar's Professional edition over its Standard edition. You'll need free space on another drive at least as large as the failing one. If the image stalls in the same place over and over, or the drive starts making new noises, stop and treat it as the clicking case below.

The drive isn't detected at all

Recovery software can't scan a drive Windows can't see, so don't buy anything yet. Work through the connection checks above, then listen and feel: a healthy drive spins up with a faint hum and vibration.

• It spins and sounds normal, but no computer sees it: the USB adapter inside the case may have failed while the disk is fine. Many desktop-style enclosures hold a standard SATA drive that a repair shop can move to a new enclosure or connect directly. Be careful with this on portable drives: some have the USB connector built into the drive's own board, and some encrypt data in the enclosure's controller, so removing the disk can make things worse.
• It shows up in Disk Management but not File Explorer: go back to the Disk Management list above. This is a software problem and it's usually recoverable.
• It doesn't spin, or no computer ever sees it: this is lab work. Hetman's own guidance says software recovery is not appropriate for a drive that isn't detected or doesn't spin.

The drive clicks, beeps or grinds: stop and go to a lab

Turn it off now and don't plug it back in. A repeating click usually means the read heads can't find their track, and a grinding sound can mean they're touching the platters. Recovery software makes this worse, because a scan asks the damaged parts to read every sector of the disk for hours. Stellar's own FAQ says the same thing: when a drive has physical damage, software isn't the answer.

• Don't run a scan, CHKDSK or a disk image.
• Don't keep power-cycling it to see if it comes back. Each spin-up is another chance for damage.
• Don't open the case, tap it or put it in the freezer. Dust on the platters and condensation both cost you data.
• Ask a data recovery lab for an evaluation and a written quote before you agree to any work, and ask whether you pay if nothing can be recovered. Stellar is one vendor that also runs lab services for physically damaged drives.

Lab recovery costs far more than software, so it's worth paying for only when the data justifies it. If you need help choosing a tool for an internal PC disk or a RAID array rather than an external drive, see our roundup of the best data recovery software for Windows PCs and RAID arrays.

Stellar Data Recovery Professional: for failing drives and easy RAW recovery

The Create Image screen from Stellar's user manual, with connected drives and physical disks listed and a Create button at the bottom. The manual's picture carries the older Premium edition's title bar.

Stellar Data Recovery Professional handles the external-drive jobs in one place: Physical Disk scanning for RAW and Unallocated drives, disk imaging, SMART monitoring, BitLocker support and scans you can pause and resume. Stellar's separate free version, on its own site, saves up to 1 GB, so a small rescue may cost nothing. The button below downloads the Professional installer, which scans and previews. The price is the catch: the license renews each year, and you'll probably want it once. If your drive isn't failing, Stellar's Standard edition also handles lost partitions and sells for $59.99 on Stellar's own store, though it has no disk imaging.

Download Stellar Free TrialBuy Stellar Data Recovery

Hetman Partition Recovery: for Mac and Linux drives, and a one-time price

Hetman Partition Recovery's main window, with hard disk drives, removable storage and a Physical Disks group for scanning a whole device.

Hetman Partition Recovery reads the widest range of file systems of these three: NTFS, ReFS, FAT and exFAT, plus APFS, HFS+, Ext2/3/4, XFS, Btrfs and others. It works in read-only mode, can image a disk with bad sectors before the scan, and saves its scan results so a long analysis doesn't have to run again after you buy. The trial lets you see everything but saves nothing, so the preview is your only test. Take that seriously, because Hetman's refund policy is strict: it usually refuses a refund if you skipped the trial, if the trial already showed damaged files, or once your key has saved files.

Download Hetman Free TrialBuy Hetman Partition Recovery

Hasleo Data Recovery Professional: for deleted files on a small budget

Hasleo Data Recovery's device list, showing each partition's file system and capacity with a Scan button at the bottom.

Hasleo Data Recovery is the cheapest route here, and Hasleo's Deep Scan handles formatted, corrupted and RAW partitions as well as plain deletions. Keep the two downloads straight. The button below is the trial of the paid edition, which saves only several files. The Free edition is a separate download on Hasleo's site and saves 2 GB. On Windows Home Edition you can get unlimited free recovery, but only by sharing the product online and asking for a one-year Home key, with no technical support. There's no disk imaging, so don't use it on a drive that's failing.

Download Hasleo Free TrialBuy Hasleo Data Recovery

Price and free limits side by side

Which should you choose?

Who should skip each one: skip Stellar Data Recovery Professional if you want to pay once and never think about a renewal. Skip Hetman Partition Recovery if you'd like to save a file or two before paying, or need BitLocker on the Home license. Skip Hasleo Data Recovery if the drive is failing, because it can't make an image first.

FAQs

Can I recover data from an external hard drive for free?

Yes, if the amount is small. Hasleo Data Recovery's Free edition saves up to 2 GB and Stellar's free version saves up to 1 GB, while Hetman Partition Recovery only scans and previews for free.

Why is my external hard drive not showing up on Windows?

An external hard drive that's missing from File Explorer usually has a bad cable or port, no drive letter, or a damaged file system. Check Disk Management: if the drive is listed there, it's a software problem you can usually fix. If it isn't listed on any computer, it's a hardware problem.

Will CHKDSK fix a RAW external hard drive?

Usually not, and it isn't the first thing to try. CHKDSK typically refuses to run on a RAW drive, and on a damaged but readable one its repairs can change the records that recovery software needs. Recover first, repair afterward.

Can I recover a Mac-formatted external drive on a Windows PC?

Yes, with Hetman Partition Recovery, which reads APFS and HFS+ on Windows. Hasleo Data Recovery reads HFS+ but not APFS, and Stellar Data Recovery Professional for Windows doesn't list either.

How long does it take to recover an external hard drive?

Plan on hours for a Deep Scan of a large USB drive, and on longer if it has bad sectors. Stellar Data Recovery lets you pause and resume, while Hetman Partition Recovery and Hasleo Data Recovery can save scan results so you don't have to scan twice.

How much free space do I need for the recovered files?

You need free space on a different drive at least as large as the files you want back, and as large as the whole external drive if you make a disk image with Stellar Data Recovery Professional or Hetman Partition Recovery.