Data recovery

Data recovery covers a wide range of situations, and what's possible depends entirely on why the data is inaccessible in the first place. A drive that's failing mechanically, a drive that's been formatted by accident, and a laptop that simply won't boot are three completely different problems with different odds of success.

What's usually recoverable

If the laptop itself has died but the drive wasn't the cause, a cracked screen, a dead motherboard, liquid damage that didn't reach the drive, the data is almost always intact and recoverable by connecting the drive to another machine. Accidentally deleted files, and even a formatted drive, are frequently recoverable as long as nothing has been written to the drive since, which is why stopping use immediately matters so much.

What's harder

A drive that's failing mechanically, clicking, grinding, or not spinning up at all, needs careful handling rather than repeated attempts to access it normally. SSDs that have failed electronically depend heavily on which component failed. And anything encrypted, BitLocker being the common one on Windows, is only recoverable with the original recovery key, since that's what encryption is designed to guarantee.

What it costs

$150 to $1,200. The range is wide because the situations are so different: pulling files off a drive that's otherwise healthy sits at the low end, while a mechanically failing drive needing careful, specialised recovery sits at the top. We assess the drive and give you a real number before starting any recovery work.

How recovery works

1. Stop using the drive

   The single biggest factor in what's still recoverable.

2. Assess the drive

   What actually failed, and how recoverable it is, before any cost is agreed.

3. Recover to a new location

   Files are never written back to the failing drive itself.

4. Hand over your data

   Onto a new drive, an external drive, or however suits you.

Common questions

I accidentally deleted a file or folder. Can you get it back?

Often, yes, especially if you notice quickly and stop using the drive straight away. Every file you save afterward risks overwriting the space the deleted one used to occupy, so the sooner you bring it to us, the better the odds.

My laptop doesn't work at all, but the drive was fine before it died. Can you still get my files?

Usually, yes. If the fault was the screen, the motherboard, or anything other than the drive itself, we can pull the drive out and recover from it directly.

Is there a difference recovering from an SSD versus a hard drive?

Yes. Hard drives fail mechanically and often respond to the kind of recovery described above. SSDs fail electronically, and recovery depends more on which specific component failed, which we assess before quoting.

Can you recover a formatted drive?

Often, yes, as long as nothing has been written to the drive since the format. The sooner you stop using it and bring it in, the better the odds.

What about a drive that's encrypted, like BitLocker?

Recovery is still possible, but you'll need the recovery key. Without it, encrypted data is designed specifically to be unrecoverable, which is the whole point of encryption.

What if you can't recover it?

You don't pay for a recovery that doesn't work. We'll tell you honestly up front if a drive's condition makes success unlikely.