SD cards are used by almost everyone around the world for a number of reasons. It is most often used to store various forms of multimedia, and since it can be plugged into a number of devices, this small electronic item has become popular in a very short span of time.
Unfortunately, these devices are quite fragile are prone to damage of various kinds. SD card corruption is a very common issue faced by many users, and while this is still salvageable, one needs to know how to perform a corrupted SD card data recovery.
In this article, we will discuss about the various reasons that can corrupt your SD card, how to identify whether you card is damaged, and how to recover your data easily.
How To Recover Data from Your Corrupted SD Card
SD cards can be damaged by a number of causes, such as:
- Physical damage – this is the hardest type of issue to come back from, since the damage is not just internal. SD cards should never be immersed in water, kept around to collect dust, dropped from a height or exposed to extreme temperature conditions.
- Damage from viruses – it is possible for SD cards to be damaged due to the presence of computer viruses. Since these cards are also plugged into other devices, there is a high possibility of transferring the virus.
- Undetected SD card – this is the most common problem that comes with using SD cards, and can be caused by a number of factors like driver corruption or USB port malfunction.
Coming to how you can identify the signs of a corrupted SD card, it would be pretty evident as you would not be able to access your files at all.
- SD card will not be detected: as mentioned above, this is the most common SD card malfunction that people face.
- Missing files: even if you are able to somehow access the card, you will notice that certain files are missing mysteriously. You may also notice that all your files have disappeared altogether. This may indicate corruption.
- Error messages: if these blow up on your screen as soon as you insert the SD card, or you are denied access to certain files or you are unable to save or copy items, your SD card may be corrupted.
- Read/Write error: in case you are unable to save files to your SD card, usually it is because of the write-protection. However, this can also be caused due to a corrupted SD card.
- Presence of strange unknown files: if you notice weird and unknown files in your SD card which you do not remember saving, this may indicate that your SD card has been corrupted with malware.
- Screen can get stuck: at times, you may notice that you are unable to access your files as the screen has gone black or has been frozen. If this problem does not persist when you take out your SD card, it is a definite sign that your card is corrupted.
In case you notice your SD card behaving oddly, you can match the behaviour with the points mentioned above to determine whether it is corrupted or not. As long as the card is not badly physically damaged, it is possible to perform a corrupted SD card data recovery to ensure that your existing files are not lost. However, before that, it is important to diagnose the real cause behind the corruption.
You can follow the steps given below to recover your data. These will give you easy access to the files in the card, which you can then save securely as a separate backup somewhere else.
What To Do
1. Change the card reader/adapter/USB port.
Try plugging the card in to a different device and check if the adapter, reader and USB ports are jammed. In this case, the card will not be detected.2.
2, Change the driver letter.
Once you have connected your SD card, right-click on ‘Start’- go to ‘Disk Management’- right click on the SD card option- press ‘Change Drive Letter and Paths’- clock on ‘Change’- choose a drive letter from the list- hit ‘Enter’.
3. Run CHKDSK.
You need to go to ‘My Computer’- ‘Manage’- ‘Disk Management’- press ‘Windows+R’ and type ‘cmd’- hit on ‘Enter’- type ‘chkdsk D: / f’- press ‘Enter’.
4. Use Windows diagnostics.
The troubleshooter option from Windows can be used to access your SD card and recover all your files.
These are the most common ways to access your SD card so that you can perform a corrupted SD card data recovery. In case the problem still persists, you may need to hire a professional data recovery specialist who can help you recover your lost files.
If you’re feeling frustrated, don’t worry, there’s plenty of things you can do!
Always back up your footage, shoot to dual slots and use reliable SD cards. Make your editing journey as easy as possible!
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