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Jason Parker
The top apps for recovering data after a crash

Jason Parker
Contributing Editor, Downloads
Monday, Dec. 8, 2003
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A few days ago, when I booted up my Windows PC, I heard a loud clicking noise coming from the tower. It's a computer I put together myself, and I figured the sound was coming from one of the not-quite-top-of-the-line fans I installed to cool off the inner workings. But then I got--gulp--the Blue Screen of Death. The operating system didn't recognize my hard drive at all. This was not a fan problem.

My first worry was that I'd lose all the important files sitting on the hard drive. So I took the system over to a friend's house, hooked it up to his computer, and used some file-recovery software to get back my data. It worked pretty well: I got back almost all of my important data and transferred it to an external hard drive. Some stuff was unrecoverable, but at least I got most of the files I wanted.

For this I have to thank that file-recovery software. These aren't programs you'll use every day. But when the big crash occurs, you'll be glad you're prepared. Here are three of the best.

PC Inspector File Recovery lets you choose the drive you want to recover data from and then scans for deleted files. This one does an excellent job of finding most files and it's the only one in the group that's free. (Free/Windows)

R-Studio Data Recovery is a complex recovery utility that takes some time to get used to, but does a great job of recovering lost data. If you take the time to learn the interface and commands, this one might be your best bet. (Shareware/Windows)

GetDataBack Data Recovery is the most advanced of the group and also the most expensive (it costs $69). It reconstructs entire directories after a major data loss and advanced users can piece together files from scan logs and directory information that otherwise would be unrecoverable. (Shareware/Windows)

Have you ever had a big system crash? What happened? Did you use any software you'd recommend? TalkBack to me below!

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