Summary: Have you accidentally deleted photos from your USB drive? Learn the tested and workable methods to recover deleted files from flash drives. Additionally, read how Photo Recovery software can be used to recover photos, videos, and other files from a USB Flash drive.
USB flash drives are popular portable data storage devices used to store and transfer data.. They are also used to back up your photos, audio, videos, and important documents. However, flash drives are susceptible to data loss like any other storage device.
Here, we have shared various reasons which can lead to data loss from USB and how to recover deleted files from the flash drive.
Reason behind Losing Photo Files from USB Flash Drive
Files stored on the USB Flash Drive can disappear or get lost due to various reasons. Some of the most common reasons for photo loss from flash drives are:
- Accidentally deleting the file in the USB.
- Formatting the USB flash drive and erasing the data.
- Data in the drive becomes invisible, hidden, or inaccessible.
- USB drive gets infected by virus.
- The present file system of the USB is not compatible.
- USB shows blank or folder is empty messages.
- Flash Drive is not recognized.
- The USB drive is corrupted.
- Sudden or intentional shut down of PC when USB is in use.
- Improper ejecting or removing the USB flash drive.
- The USB device is damaged, broken, or corrupted.
Tips to Recover Deleted Photos from Flash Drive
Irrespective of the reasons, there are a few things you must follow to successfully recover deleted files from a USB flash drive:
- Disconnect the flash drive from your system and store it safely.
- Stop using the USB drive after data loss.
- Also, don’t try to copy the data from or into the flash drive to avoid data overwriting.
How to Recover Deleted Photos From Flash Drive?
There are various ways to recover deleted photo files from a flash drive. Here, we have discussed the top four methods to recover deleted photos from flash drive:
Method 1: Recover Deleted Files from Flash Drive using Backup and Restore
You can even use the Backup and Restore feature of Windows to restore deleted USB drive files. However, this method will only work if the Windows backup feature is enabled.
Steps to recover deleted photos using Windows Backup and Restore
- Type backup settings in the search bar and click Open to launch it.
- Click on the ‘Go to Backup and Restore .
- In the Backup and Restore page, click Restore my files.
- Next, click Search, Browse for files, or Browse for folders to look for the files you want to restore.
- Select the location to store your recovered files and click Restore.
Method 2: Recover Deleted Photos from Flash Drive using Stellar Photo Recovery
The most effective and easy way to recover deleted photos or videos from USB drives is by using professional photo recovery software like Stellar Photo Recovery. This tool can be used to recover lost or deleted photos, audio, and videos from damaged, corrupted, or inaccessible USB flash drives.
This photo recovery software works with all types of USB Flash drive brands, such as SanDisk, Kingston, Samsung, and others.
Steps to recover deleted photos from Flash Drive using Photo Recovery Software
- Download and install Stellar Photo Recovery software on your system.
- Connect your USB flash drive to the system.
- Launch the software, and select your USB drive media.
- Next, go to Settings, click File List, and then check the box next to Photo formats and uncheck others if you wish to recover photos only. Click Close.
- Now, click Scan to start the recovery process.
- Once the process is completed, you can see the list of recoverable media files and can preview the photos.
- Next, click Recover and then browse the location to save the recovered media files.
Method 3: Restore deleted photos from the USB drive using the Restore Previous Version Feature
The Restore Previous Version feature of Windows makes it possible to recover deleted files i.e. videos, audio, photos, etc. without any third-party tools. However, this method will only work, if you have enabled the File History feature for the USB flash drive.
Steps to restore deleted files from flash drive with the Previous Version Feature
- Connect the flash drive to your computer.
- Right-click on the folder from where your photos are lost in USB and select Properties.
- Go to the Previous Version tab.
- Under the File versions section, you can see the list of available recovery options with date and time.
- Choose the file version you want to restore and click Restore to retrieve the USB drive files.
Method 4: Recover Deleted Files from Flash Drive using CMD
If your photo files are not deleted but missing from the USB drive, then you need to use Command Prompt to attempt recovery of hidden files.
Steps to recover deleted photo files from a USB Flash drive using CMD:
- Connect your flash drive to the system.
- In the search bar, type cmd and press Open to launch it.
- Now, type chkdsk G:/f and hit Enter key. Here G, is the drive letter assigned to the flash drive.
- Type ATTRIB -H -R -S /S /D G:*.* and click Enter.
- Once the process gets completed, restart your system.
- Now check if you can see the deleted photos and videos on your USB flash drive.
Conclusion
With all the reliable methods shared in this blog, you now know how to recover deleted files from the flash drive. The first thing you need to do after losing your photos is to check if you have a backup on your system. If you have a backup, just restore it from there using Windows Backup & Restore feature.
The File History feature will restore your files only if you have enabled it earlier. However, if there is no backup history, then use reliable photo recovery software to restore your lost or deleted files from a USB flash drive.
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