To answer this question, we need to start with explaining how data recovery actually works. There are so many file formats supported by Disk Drill, but in many cases, the format (or binary signature) of a specific file is not the definitive factor of its recoverability.
The actual list of file types recoverable with Disk Drill for Mac and Windows is comprehensive – and, in some cases, as you can see below, unlimited. It all depends on the type of recovery that is available for a particular volume. Here is a break down of the scanning methods and the types of files available for recovery.
We made Disk Drill as simple as we could for every user. That’s why in most cases when you run its scan for lost data, you will be dealing with our Universal Smart Scan.
This is what Disk Drill does when you don’t set a specific scanning method. In this scenario, Disk Drill will create the most effective sequence of scanning algorithms specifically for your storage device.
Each of these scanning methods can locate different types of recoverable files. And depending on your specific recovery scenario, you can achieve the best results by choosing one of them, or letting Disk Drill combine the most effective ones.
Can it recover any file type? Yes
Quick Scan finds recently deleted files that have been marked by the file system as deleted, but are still physically present on your disk.
Quick Scan can recover any file format, but it often isn’t comprehensive enough and a Deep Scan (see below) might be needed to recover all deleted data. It works best in the following situations:
Can it recover any file type? Yes
In case your system cannot read a live device storage, Disk Drill may try extracting the existing data from it using its own low-level data reading techniques.
Allocate existing data may help when your storage device is detected by your computer, but shows up empty, even though it was never erased or formatted.
Can it recover any file type? Yes
Disk Drill features 2 data protection algorithms: Recovery Vault and Guaranteed Recovery. They both have to be enabled prior to a data loss accident to work.
This method can recover any file type, but it can only be used in the following situations:
Can it recover any file type? No, it can recover only known file formats, read on.
Deep Scan reads your storage device data sector-by-sector and detects patterns that belong to specific file formats. We teach Deep Scan to recognize new file types with every new update of Disk Drill.
Unlike the two previous methods, Deep Scan recovery method can be used in any situation – on any volume with any file system or even without it. The only drawback is that while it can recognize over 350 file types, it cannot reconstruct all of them on every scan (see the factors above).
Below is a list of all file types recognized by Deep Scan, organized by type (Video, Audio, Image, Document and Archive) and then by file extension. If you’re not sure of the file extension for your application, search this page by application name or other keyword. If you don’t see the file format you need listed, please send us a request.
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