{"id":26817,"date":"2020-01-09T00:56:37","date_gmt":"2020-01-09T00:56:37","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.cleverfiles.com\/howto\/?p=26817"},"modified":"2025-05-07T12:20:27","modified_gmt":"2025-05-07T12:20:27","slug":"testdisk-review-best-alternative","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.cleverfiles.com\/howto\/testdisk-review.html","title":{"rendered":"TestDisk Data Recovery Review: Pros &#038; Cons"},"content":{"rendered":"<p>In this review, we\u2019ll evaluate TestDisk data recovery software features, ease of use, recovery performance, how it stacks up against similar tools, and what everyday users have to say about it. We\u2019ll score each area and use that to determine our final verdict.<\/p>\r\n<div class=\"summary\"><p><\/p>\r\n<p>&#x1f4cc; <b>Here\u2019s our brief summary:<\/b><\/p>\r\n<p>If you\u2019re tech-savvy and need a tool that can recover lost partitions, repair boot sectors, or fix corrupted partition tables, TestDisk is hard to beat &#8211; especially considering it\u2019s completely free and open-source. But make no mistake: this is not a tool built for beginners, and it\u2019s not great for recovering deleted individual files. For that, you\u2019d want to pair it with PhotoRec &#8211; or just use a more modern tool like Disk Drill.<\/p>\r\n<p>In our tests, TestDisk successfully restored a corrupted partition and rebuilt the NTFS boot sector. It didn\u2019t take long but the lack of graphical interface and step-by-step guidance makes it a tough sell for casual users.<\/p>\r\n<table>\r\n<thead>\r\n<tr>\r\n<th>&#x1f44d; Strengths<\/th>\r\n<th>&#x1f44e; Weaknesses<\/th>\r\n<\/tr>\r\n<\/thead>\r\n<tbody>\r\n<tr>\r\n<td>\r\n<ul>\r\n\t<li>Completely free and open-source<\/li>\r\n\t<li>Powerful for partition repair and boot sector recovery<\/li>\r\n\t<li>Cross-platform (Windows, macOS, Linux, and more)<\/li>\r\n\t<li>Lightweight and portable<\/li>\r\n\t<li>Works well even on RAW or unmountable drives<\/li>\r\n\t<li>Supports many file systems and partition types<\/li>\r\n\t<li>Trusted, transparent development by a well-known open-source maintainer<\/li>\r\n\t<li>Often included in bootable rescue environments<\/li>\r\n<\/ul>\r\n<\/td>\r\n<td>\r\n<ul>\r\n\t<li>Text-based interface &#8211; not beginner-friendly<\/li>\r\n\t<li>Not ideal for recovering individual deleted files<\/li>\r\n\t<li>Lacks the polish and ease-of-use of commercial tools<\/li>\r\n\t<li>Easy to make critical mistakes if you&#8217;re unfamiliar with drive structure<\/li>\r\n\t<li>No preview, no filtering, no recovery tree<\/li>\r\n\t<li>No session saving or scan resume feature<\/li>\r\n\t<li>Requires technical knowledge to operate confidently<\/li>\r\n<\/ul>\r\n<\/td>\r\n<\/tr>\r\n<\/tbody>\r\n<\/table>\r\n<p><\/div>\r\n<div class=\"alert alert-secondary\" role=\"alert\">\r\n<p>&#x1f50e; <b>Why You Can Trust Us:<\/b><\/p>\r\n<p>Every app review is the result of a hands-on, multi-step process run by team experts. Our QA specialists run recovery tests on real drives. Then, lab engineers verify the results to make sure every text is accurate. Experienced technical editors present the results in a clear, reader\u2011friendly format.<\/p>\r\n<p><b><a href=\"\/howto\/how-we-test.html\">See how we test<\/a> \u2192<\/b><\/p>\r\n<\/div>\r\n<h2><span class=\"ez-toc-section\" id=\"main_recovery_features_in_testdisk\"><\/span>Main Recovery Features in TestDisk<span class=\"ez-toc-section-end\"><\/span><\/h2>\r\n<p>TestDisk is a <a href=\"\/free-data-recovery.html\">freeware data recovery tool<\/a> developed and maintained by Christophe Grenier. It is fully Open-Source software and is distributed under the terms of the <a href=\"https:\/\/www.gnu.org\/licenses\/gpl.html\">GNU General Public License<\/a>. The application\u2019s main purpose is to recover lost disk partitions and fix bootable disks that are no longer booting correctly. You can also use TestDisk to generate information concerning a corrupted drive which can be used for troubleshooting by technical support specialists.<\/p>\r\n<div class=\"table_wrapper table_heading\"><p><\/p>\r\n<table>\r\n<tbody>\r\n<tr>\r\n<td>Key Info<\/td>\r\n<td>Details<\/td>\r\n<\/tr>\r\n<tr>\r\n<td>&#x1f4bb; Platform Support<\/td>\r\n<td>Windows, macOS, Linux, DOS<\/td>\r\n<\/tr>\r\n<tr>\r\n<td>&#x1f193; Free Version<\/td>\r\n<td>Yes (fully open source)<\/td>\r\n<\/tr>\r\n<tr>\r\n<td>&#x2699;&#xfe0f; Interface Type<\/td>\r\n<td>Text-based (command-line interface)<\/td>\r\n<\/tr>\r\n<tr>\r\n<td>&#x1f9f0; Main Capabilities<\/td>\r\n<td>Partition recovery, boot sector repair, undelete FAT\/NTFS\/ext2 files<\/td>\r\n<\/tr>\r\n<tr>\r\n<td>&#x1f4c2; File System Support<\/td>\r\n<td>FAT12\/16\/32, exFAT, NTFS, ext2\/3\/4, HFS+, ReiserFS, XFS, and more<\/td>\r\n<\/tr>\r\n<tr>\r\n<td>&#x1f4be; Storage Devices<\/td>\r\n<td>HDDs, SSDs, USB drives, SD cards, CF cards<\/td>\r\n<\/tr>\r\n<tr>\r\n<td>&#x1f4c8; Best Use Case<\/td>\r\n<td>Recovering lost partitions or fixing broken file systems<\/td>\r\n<\/tr>\r\n<tr>\r\n<td>&#x1f4e6; Portable<\/td>\r\n<td>Yes (no installation required)<\/td>\r\n<\/tr>\r\n<tr>\r\n<td>&#x1f30d; Developer<\/td>\r\n<td>Christophe Grenier (since 1998)<\/td>\r\n<\/tr>\r\n<tr>\r\n<td>&#x1f4dc; License<\/td>\r\n<td>GNU General Public License<\/td>\r\n<\/tr>\r\n<\/tbody>\r\n<\/table>\r\n<p><\/div>\r\n<h3><span class=\"ez-toc-section\" id=\"os_compatibility_file_system_coverage\"><\/span>OS Compatibility &amp; File System Coverage<span class=\"ez-toc-section-end\"><\/span><\/h3>\r\n<p>TestDisk is fully cross-platform. It runs on Windows, Linux, macOS, FreeBSD, NetBSD, OpenBSD, and even DOS. It\u2019s one of the few recovery tools that doesn\u2019t care what system you\u2019re using &#8211; it just works, provided you\u2019re comfortable in a terminal window.<\/p>\r\n<p>Here\u2019s a breakdown of what it can recognize and work with:<\/p>\r\n<ul>\r\n\t<li><b>Windows<\/b>: FAT12\/16\/32, exFAT, NTFS, ReFS<\/li>\r\n\t<li><b>Linux<\/b>: ext2\/ext3\/ext4, XFS, JFS, ReiserFS 3\/4, Btrfs, GFS2, LUKS, Linux Swap, LVM\/LVM2<\/li>\r\n\t<li><b>macOS<\/b>: HFS, HFS+, HFSX, APFS<\/li>\r\n\t<li><b>BSD\/Unix<\/b>: UFS\/UFS2, ZFS<\/li>\r\n\t<li><b>Other<\/b>: BeFS (BeOS), WBFS (Wii), CramFS, and more<\/li>\r\n\t<li><b>RAID<\/b>: Supports detection and basic handling of RAID metadata (RAID 1\/4\/5\/6 with mdadm), as well as LVM and partition maps (MBR, GPT, Mac, etc.)<\/li>\r\n<\/ul>\r\n<p>That gives it coverage across most common drives and removable storage, especially those formatted on Windows or Linux. However, keep in mind that it doesn\u2019t offer full metadata-based recovery for all these file systems &#8211; its primary role is still partition and structure repair, not content-level recovery.<\/p>\r\n<h3><span class=\"ez-toc-section\" id=\"partition_recovery_file_system_repairs\"><\/span>Partition Recovery &amp; File System Repairs<span class=\"ez-toc-section-end\"><\/span><\/h3>\r\n<p>This is where TestDisk earns its reputation. Its primary focus isn\u2019t on recovering individual files &#8211; it\u2019s built to <b>recover lost partitions<\/b> and <b>repair file system structures<\/b> when things go sideways.<\/p>\r\n<p>If your drive suddenly shows up as RAW, won\u2019t mount, or seems like the partition table just vanished &#8211; TestDisk is the kind of tool that can bring it back. It supports:<\/p>\r\n<ul>\r\n\t<li>Rebuilding partition tables (MBR, GPT, and others)<\/li>\r\n\t<li>Recovering deleted partitions<\/li>\r\n\t<li>Fixing corrupted file system structures<\/li>\r\n\t<li>Repairing NTFS boot sectors and MFTs<br \/>\r\nRestoring FAT32 boot sectors and FAT tables<\/li>\r\n\t<li>Locating and restoring ext2\/ext3\/ext4 superblocks<\/li>\r\n<\/ul>\r\n<p>It doesn\u2019t scan blindly &#8211; it reads the disk structure, identifies known partition signatures, and lets you manually recover or rewrite broken records.<\/p>\r\n<h3><span class=\"ez-toc-section\" id=\"boot_sector_repair_undelete_capability\"><\/span>Boot Sector Repair &amp; Undelete Capability<span class=\"ez-toc-section-end\"><\/span><\/h3>\r\n<p>Another thing TestDisk is capable of is repairing boot sectors &#8211; something many recovery tools overlook. If your system refuses to boot because the boot sector\u2019s damaged or missing, TestDisk can often bring it back to life. It can:<\/p>\r\n<ul>\r\n\t<li>Rebuild NTFS, FAT12\/16\/32 boot sectors<br \/>\r\nRecover backup boot sectors<\/li>\r\n\t<li>Fix MFT using its mirror (NTFS)<\/li>\r\n<\/ul>\r\n<p>And while its main job isn\u2019t recovering individual files, it can undelete files from several file systems, including FAT12\/16\/32, exFAT, NTFS, and ext2. But this isn\u2019t its strong suit &#8211; it\u2019s rather rudimentary and basic. You won\u2019t find many people using TestDisk specifically to recover a few accidentally deleted files. That\u2019s just not what it\u2019s built for. It can do it, yes &#8211; but overall workflow makes it a last resort rather than a go-to.<\/p>\r\n<div class=\"alert alert-secondary\" role=\"alert\">&#x1f4ac; As <a href=\"http:\/\/www.linkedin.com\/in\/alexei-vaschenko-592a33185\/\">Alex Vaschenko<\/a>, QA team specialist at CleverFiles, puts it: <i>\u201cTestDisk includes PhotoRec in the same bundle, and that\u2019s the tool you\u2019ll want to use if your goal is to recover deleted files. PhotoRec scans raw data for file signatures, supports a huge range of formats, and doesn\u2019t rely on the file system. The tradeoff is that you\u2019ll lose file names and folder structure, but it\u2019s much more effective for broad file recovery than TestDisk itself.\u201d<\/i><\/div>\r\n<div class=\"alert alert-success\" role=\"alert\">&#x1f31f; <b>TestDisk Features Score:<\/b> &#x2b50;&#x2b50;&#x2b50;&#x2b50; | 4.0<\/div>\r\n<p>And the first score in our TestDisk review is <b>4 out of 5<\/b>.<\/p>\r\n<p>TestDisk isn\u2019t overflowing with bells and whistles &#8211; but it nails what it sets out to do. Its support for a huge range of operating systems and file systems is unmatched in the free recovery space. The ability to rebuild boot sectors, repair partition tables, and even recover deleted partitions is genuinely impressive, especially for a tool that\u2019s 100% free and open-source.<\/p>\r\n<p>That said, we\u2019re holding back the full score because it doesn\u2019t handle content-level file recovery as smoothly as modern GUI tools, and its feature set, while powerful, is clearly geared toward users who already know what they\u2019re doing. Still, for structural drive repair and partition recovery? It\u2019s one of the best.<\/p>\r\n<h2><span class=\"ez-toc-section\" id=\"how_to_recover_data_using_testdisk\"><\/span>How to Recover Data Using TestDisk<span class=\"ez-toc-section-end\"><\/span><\/h2>\r\n<p>We\u2019re breaking this section down into three parts: <b>Testing Process<\/b>, <b>Installation &amp; Scanning<\/b>, and <b>Recovery Results<\/b>.<\/p>\r\n<p>First, we\u2019ll explain how we set up our environment to test TestDisk &#8211; what kind of hardware and scenarios we used. Then, we\u2019ll walk through the actual recovery process step by step so you\u2019ll know exactly what to expect if you decide to use it yourself. Finally, we\u2019ll wrap things up with our recovery results: what worked, what didn\u2019t, and how well the tool performed in real-world use.<\/p>\r\n<h3><span class=\"ez-toc-section\" id=\"testing_process\"><\/span>Testing Process<span class=\"ez-toc-section-end\"><\/span><\/h3>\r\n<p>For our TestDisk review, we used a 16GB USB 3.0 flash drive formatted with two partitions. Each one had around 4GB of mixed files &#8211; photos, PDFs, videos, Office docs, and a few larger formats. We basically mimicked a realistic flash drive setup: everyday data scattered across two partitions.<\/p>\r\n<p>Then came the intentional \u201coops.\u201d We erased the second partition using Disk Management on Windows (since it\u2019s way easier to model a situation like this on Windows, we went with that). Just like that, half the drive was gone. No file table\u2014just blank space where the data used to be. As you can see in the screenshot below, it now shows up as Unallocated. You can\u2019t open it in File Explorer, you can\u2019t access the files\u2014Windows treats it like it never existed.<\/p>\r\n<p><img class=\"border-blue border-radius-10 aligncenter wp-image-54892 size-full\" src=\"\/howto\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/04\/unallocated-space.jpg\" alt=\"unallocated space on drive\" width=\"1112\" height=\"814\" srcset=\"https:\/\/www.cleverfiles.com\/howto\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/04\/unallocated-space.jpg 1112w, https:\/\/www.cleverfiles.com\/howto\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/04\/unallocated-space-300x220.jpg 300w, https:\/\/www.cleverfiles.com\/howto\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/04\/unallocated-space-500x366.jpg 500w, https:\/\/www.cleverfiles.com\/howto\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/04\/unallocated-space-768x562.jpg 768w\" sizes=\"(max-width: 1112px) 100vw, 1112px\" \/><\/p>\r\n<p>That\u2019s the scenario we set up: one partition still intact, the other accidentally wiped. The goal? See if TestDisk could bring the lost partition &#8211; and the files inside &#8211; back to life. No ideal conditions, no cherry-picked scenarios. Just a basic user error and a real test of what the software can do.<\/p>\r\n<p>Here\u2019s the setup we used to run our TestDisk recovery test:<\/p>\r\n<ul>\r\n\t<li>&#x1f4bb; <b>OS<\/b>: Windows 11 Pro (latest version at time of testing)<\/li>\r\n\t<li>&#x26a1; <b>CPU<\/b>: Intel Core i7-11800H<\/li>\r\n\t<li>&#x1f9e0; <b>RAM<\/b>: 16 GB<\/li>\r\n\t<li>&#x1f9f1; <b>Test Device<\/b>: 16GB Kingston USB 3.0 flash drive<\/li>\r\n\t<li>&#x1f4be; <b>Drive Setup<\/b>: Two ~8GB partitions (both exFAT), one deleted<\/li>\r\n\t<li>&#x1f4c1; <b>Test Files<\/b>: ~4GB of mixed content per partition (JPG, DOCX, PDF, MP4, MP3, MKV, TIFF)<\/li>\r\n<\/ul>\r\n<h3><span class=\"ez-toc-section\" id=\"installation_scanning\"><\/span>Installation &amp; Scanning<span class=\"ez-toc-section-end\"><\/span><\/h3>\r\n<p>Okay, first things first &#8211; how do you download TestDisk?<\/p>\r\n<p>You\u2019ll see two versions on the official site: the stable release <b>TestDisk 7.2 (Feb 22, 2024)<\/b> and a <b>7.3-WIP beta<\/b> (Work In Progress). While the beta includes some newer features, we decided to stick with the latest <b>stable<\/b> version &#8211; <b>7.2<\/b> &#8211; since that\u2019s what most users will be downloading for reliability.<\/p>\r\n<p><img class=\"border-blue border-radius-10 aligncenter wp-image-54886 size-full\" src=\"\/howto\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/04\/download-testdisk.jpg\" alt=\"download testdisk from official site\" width=\"1999\" height=\"685\" srcset=\"https:\/\/www.cleverfiles.com\/howto\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/04\/download-testdisk.jpg 1999w, https:\/\/www.cleverfiles.com\/howto\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/04\/download-testdisk-300x103.jpg 300w, https:\/\/www.cleverfiles.com\/howto\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/04\/download-testdisk-500x171.jpg 500w, https:\/\/www.cleverfiles.com\/howto\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/04\/download-testdisk-768x263.jpg 768w, https:\/\/www.cleverfiles.com\/howto\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/04\/download-testdisk-1536x526.jpg 1536w\" sizes=\"(max-width: 1999px) 100vw, 1999px\" \/><\/p>\r\n<p>We tested on Windows, so we grabbed the <b>Windows 64-bit<\/b> archive. If you\u2019re on a Mac, go for the <b>TestDisk for Mac OS X Intel 64-bit<\/b> build\u2014it covers all macOS versions from 10.6 and up.<\/p>\r\n<ol>\r\n\t<li>Once downloaded, all you need to do is extract the archive, open the folder, and run <b>testdisk_win.exe<\/b>. Make sure to right-click and choose <b>Run as administrator<\/b>\u2014that\u2019s important. Without admin rights, TestDisk might not have the access it needs to detect all connected drives properly.<img class=\"border-blue border-radius-10 aligncenter wp-image-54887 size-full\" src=\"\/howto\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/04\/run-as-admin-testdisk.jpg\" alt=\"run testdisk on pc\" width=\"1307\" height=\"800\" srcset=\"https:\/\/www.cleverfiles.com\/howto\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/04\/run-as-admin-testdisk.jpg 1307w, https:\/\/www.cleverfiles.com\/howto\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/04\/run-as-admin-testdisk-300x184.jpg 300w, https:\/\/www.cleverfiles.com\/howto\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/04\/run-as-admin-testdisk-500x306.jpg 500w, https:\/\/www.cleverfiles.com\/howto\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/04\/run-as-admin-testdisk-768x470.jpg 768w\" sizes=\"(max-width: 1307px) 100vw, 1307px\" \/><\/li>\r\n\t<li>From here, TestDisk launches in a terminal window. Yep &#8211; all text-based. You navigate with arrow keys and hit Enter to select options. There\u2019s no scanning animation or progress bar &#8211; just a very old-school menu flow.<\/li>\r\n\t<li>Next, we were asked to select the storage device we wanted to scan. TestDisk listed our Kingston 16GB flash drive, and we picked it using the arrow keys.<img class=\"border-blue border-radius-10 aligncenter wp-image-54889 size-full\" src=\"\/howto\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/04\/select-drive-in-testdisk.jpg\" alt=\"select drive for scan in testdisk\" width=\"1247\" height=\"737\" srcset=\"https:\/\/www.cleverfiles.com\/howto\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/04\/select-drive-in-testdisk.jpg 1247w, https:\/\/www.cleverfiles.com\/howto\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/04\/select-drive-in-testdisk-300x177.jpg 300w, https:\/\/www.cleverfiles.com\/howto\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/04\/select-drive-in-testdisk-500x296.jpg 500w, https:\/\/www.cleverfiles.com\/howto\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/04\/select-drive-in-testdisk-768x454.jpg 768w\" sizes=\"(max-width: 1247px) 100vw, 1247px\" \/><\/li>\r\n\t<li>Once selected, TestDisk automatically detected the partition table as <b>Intel<\/b>, which matched our setup, so we stuck with the default.<img class=\"border-blue border-radius-10 aligncenter wp-image-54890 size-full\" src=\"\/howto\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/04\/select-partition-table-type.jpg\" alt=\"select partition table type\" width=\"1247\" height=\"737\" srcset=\"https:\/\/www.cleverfiles.com\/howto\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/04\/select-partition-table-type.jpg 1247w, https:\/\/www.cleverfiles.com\/howto\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/04\/select-partition-table-type-300x177.jpg 300w, https:\/\/www.cleverfiles.com\/howto\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/04\/select-partition-table-type-500x296.jpg 500w, https:\/\/www.cleverfiles.com\/howto\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/04\/select-partition-table-type-768x454.jpg 768w\" sizes=\"(max-width: 1247px) 100vw, 1247px\" \/><\/li>\r\n\t<li>From there, we hit \u201c<b>Analyze<\/b>\u201d to begin checking the current structure of the disk. TestDisk showed that the second partition was missing &#8211; just as we expected after wiping it in Disk Utility.<img class=\"border-blue border-radius-10 aligncenter wp-image-54885 size-full\" src=\"\/howto\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/04\/analyse-drive.jpg\" alt=\"analyze drive with testdisk\" width=\"1247\" height=\"737\" srcset=\"https:\/\/www.cleverfiles.com\/howto\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/04\/analyse-drive.jpg 1247w, https:\/\/www.cleverfiles.com\/howto\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/04\/analyse-drive-300x177.jpg 300w, https:\/\/www.cleverfiles.com\/howto\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/04\/analyse-drive-500x296.jpg 500w, https:\/\/www.cleverfiles.com\/howto\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/04\/analyse-drive-768x454.jpg 768w\" sizes=\"(max-width: 1247px) 100vw, 1247px\" \/><\/li>\r\n\t<li>We selected \u201c<b>Quick Search<\/b>\u201d to look for lost partitions. No luck &#8211; it didn\u2019t find anything.<img class=\"border-blue border-radius-10 aligncenter wp-image-54894 size-full\" src=\"\/howto\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/04\/use-quick-search.jpg\" alt=\"run quick search\" width=\"1247\" height=\"737\" srcset=\"https:\/\/www.cleverfiles.com\/howto\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/04\/use-quick-search.jpg 1247w, https:\/\/www.cleverfiles.com\/howto\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/04\/use-quick-search-300x177.jpg 300w, https:\/\/www.cleverfiles.com\/howto\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/04\/use-quick-search-500x296.jpg 500w, https:\/\/www.cleverfiles.com\/howto\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/04\/use-quick-search-768x454.jpg 768w\" sizes=\"(max-width: 1247px) 100vw, 1247px\" \/><\/li>\r\n\t<li>So we chose \u201c<b>Deeper Search<\/b>\u201d.<img class=\"border-blue border-radius-10 aligncenter wp-image-54893 size-full\" src=\"\/howto\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/04\/use-deep-search.jpg\" alt=\"run deep search to find more\" width=\"1247\" height=\"737\" srcset=\"https:\/\/www.cleverfiles.com\/howto\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/04\/use-deep-search.jpg 1247w, https:\/\/www.cleverfiles.com\/howto\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/04\/use-deep-search-300x177.jpg 300w, https:\/\/www.cleverfiles.com\/howto\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/04\/use-deep-search-500x296.jpg 500w, https:\/\/www.cleverfiles.com\/howto\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/04\/use-deep-search-768x454.jpg 768w\" sizes=\"(max-width: 1247px) 100vw, 1247px\" \/> TestDisk dug through the disk sector by sector, and after a few minutes, it found the lost partition. We checked the partition by hitting <b>P<\/b> to list its contents &#8211; and sure enough, there were our lost files.<img class=\"border-blue border-radius-10 aligncenter wp-image-54888 size-full\" src=\"\/howto\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/04\/scan-process-testdisk.jpg\" alt=\"scan screen testdisk\" width=\"1247\" height=\"737\" srcset=\"https:\/\/www.cleverfiles.com\/howto\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/04\/scan-process-testdisk.jpg 1247w, https:\/\/www.cleverfiles.com\/howto\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/04\/scan-process-testdisk-300x177.jpg 300w, https:\/\/www.cleverfiles.com\/howto\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/04\/scan-process-testdisk-500x296.jpg 500w, https:\/\/www.cleverfiles.com\/howto\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/04\/scan-process-testdisk-768x454.jpg 768w\" sizes=\"(max-width: 1247px) 100vw, 1247px\" \/><\/li>\r\n\t<li>To lock it in, we marked the partition as <b>Primary<\/b> and selected \u201c<b>Write<\/b>\u201d to restore it. TestDisk asked for confirmation, and once approved, the tool wrote the partition structure back to the drive.<\/li>\r\n\t<li>A quick reboot (or just replugging the flash drive) and&#8230; there it was. Our test files were accessible again.<\/li>\r\n<\/ol>\r\n<p>That\u2019s how an average TestDisk recovery session looks. Yeah, it\u2019s not the simplest process &#8211; but if you\u2019ve got a bit of command-line experience and you follow step-by-step guides, it can be a powerful tool. Thankfully, the official site has a ton of helpful documentation, like the <a href=\"https:\/\/www.cgsecurity.org\/wiki\/TestDisk_Step_By_Step\">TestDisk Step by Step guide<\/a>.<\/p>\r\n<p>That said, TestDisk doesn\u2019t hold your hand. There\u2019s no TestDisk GUI, no additional safety prompts, no training wheels. You\u2019re working directly with your disks, so if you don\u2019t have at least a ballpark idea of what you\u2019re doing, it\u2019s easy to make things worse instead of better. You have to be careful &#8211; TestDisk won\u2019t stop you from restoring to the wrong partition or writing over important data. It\u2019s a capable tool, but it assumes you know how to use it.<\/p>\r\n<h3><span class=\"ez-toc-section\" id=\"recovery_results\"><\/span>Recovery Results<span class=\"ez-toc-section-end\"><\/span><\/h3>\r\n<p>Well, recovery &#8211; as you\u2019ve probably gathered &#8211; was a success. We were able to restore our lost partition and all the data it contained using TestDisk.<\/p>\r\n<p>TestDisk was able to detect the deleted partition almost immediately with the <b>Deeper Search<\/b> option (the <b>Quick Search<\/b> didn\u2019t find anything). From launching the program to fully recovering the partition took around <b>8 minutes<\/b>. Some of those minutes weren\u2019t even about the scan itself &#8211; it was us double-checking whether we chose the right command (since, you know, one wrong move and you could overwrite something for good).<\/p>\r\n<div class=\"alert alert-secondary\" role=\"alert\">&#x1f4ac; <i>\u201cTestDisk\u2019s great at what it does, but it doesn\u2019t give you much room for error. I always tell people, before you touch anything, make a full disk image. If something goes wrong and TestDisk ends up making things worse, at least you\u2019ll still have the image. You can always scan that later with tools like Disk Drill or PhotoRec to recover the data.\u201d<\/i> \u2014 <a href=\"http:\/\/www.linkedin.com\/in\/alexei-vaschenko-592a33185\/\">Alex Vaschenko<\/a>, QA Specialist at CleverFiles<\/div>\r\n<p>Then came watching the scan progress bar crawl. But hey, the result speaks for itself: clean recovery, no missing files, no errors. Just a slightly nerve-wracking ride to get there.<\/p>\r\n<p>Once restored, all the files were intact and readable. We double-checked everything, and yes, everything survived.<\/p>\r\n<p><img class=\"border-blue border-radius-10 aligncenter wp-image-54891 size-full\" src=\"\/howto\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/04\/test-files-on-drive.jpg\" alt=\"restored data with testdisk\" width=\"1302\" height=\"813\" srcset=\"https:\/\/www.cleverfiles.com\/howto\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/04\/test-files-on-drive.jpg 1302w, https:\/\/www.cleverfiles.com\/howto\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/04\/test-files-on-drive-300x187.jpg 300w, https:\/\/www.cleverfiles.com\/howto\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/04\/test-files-on-drive-500x312.jpg 500w, https:\/\/www.cleverfiles.com\/howto\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/04\/test-files-on-drive-768x480.jpg 768w\" sizes=\"(max-width: 1302px) 100vw, 1302px\" \/><\/p>\r\n<p>In total, we got back:<\/p>\r\n<ul>\r\n\t<li>1 partition<\/li>\r\n\t<li>609 files<\/li>\r\n\t<li>Roughly 3.86 GB of data<\/li>\r\n<\/ul>\r\n<div class=\"alert alert-success\" role=\"alert\">&#x1f31f; <b>Recovery Results Score:<\/b> &#x2b50;&#x2b50;&#x2b50;&#x2b50; | 4.0<\/div>\r\n<p>TestDisk earned a <b>solid 4 out of 5<\/b> here &#8211; and honestly, that\u2019s us judging it for what it is, not what it\u2019s not. If you\u2019re asking how does TestDisk work, the answer is: it works well, as long as your goal is to fix structural disk issues. Lost partitions, busted boot sectors, corrupted file tables &#8211; that\u2019s where it shines.<\/p>\r\n<p>But let\u2019s be real: it\u2019s not the right tool for undeleting individual files. That\u2019s why we didn\u2019t test or score it in that context. it\u2019s just not really cut out for that job. And while the GUI-less process isn\u2019t exactly fun, it delivers results (assuming you know what you\u2019re doing and don\u2019t mind stepping through prompts like it\u2019s year 2000).<\/p>\r\n<p>So yeah, if you&#8217;re okay with a little terminal work and you\u2019ve got a partition to recover, TestDisk is more than capable. Just don\u2019t expect modern UX &#8211; or much hand-holding.<\/p>\r\n<h2><span class=\"ez-toc-section\" id=\"testdisk_alternatives\"><\/span>TestDisk Alternatives<span class=\"ez-toc-section-end\"><\/span><\/h2>\r\n<p>Look, we respect what TestDisk brings to the table. It&#8217;s free, open-source, and wildly powerful for fixing lost partitions or boot sector issues. But let\u2019s be honest &#8211; it&#8217;s not for everyone. The command-line interface alone is enough to make some users run for the hills. And if your goal is recovering specific deleted files, TestDisk just isn\u2019t the best fit.<\/p>\r\n<p>Here\u2019s a comparison between TestDisk and popular alternatives to help put things into perspective:<\/p>\r\n<div class=\"table_wrapper table_heading\"><p><\/p>\r\n<table>\r\n<tbody>\r\n<tr>\r\n<td>Tool<\/td>\r\n<td>Type<\/td>\r\n<td>Main Strength<\/td>\r\n<td>GUI<\/td>\r\n<td>File Recovery<\/td>\r\n<td>Partition Recovery<\/td>\r\n<td>Ease of Use<\/td>\r\n<td>Cross-Platform<\/td>\r\n<td>Price<\/td>\r\n<\/tr>\r\n<tr>\r\n<td>TestDisk<\/td>\r\n<td>Free, Open Source<\/td>\r\n<td>Partition repair &amp; boot sector fixes<\/td>\r\n<td>No (Text-based only)<\/td>\r\n<td>Limited (structural focus)<\/td>\r\n<td>Yes<\/td>\r\n<td>Low<\/td>\r\n<td>Yes (Win\/Linux\/macOS)<\/td>\r\n<td>Free<\/td>\r\n<\/tr>\r\n<tr>\r\n<td>Disk Drill<\/td>\r\n<td>Freemium \/ Paid<\/td>\r\n<td>File recovery with modern UI, disk imaging, RAID support<\/td>\r\n<td>Yes (Modern UI)<\/td>\r\n<td>Advanced file recovery<\/td>\r\n<td>Partial<\/td>\r\n<td>High<\/td>\r\n<td>Yes (Win\/macOS)<\/td>\r\n<td>Free up to 100MB (Windows) \/ Pro $89<\/td>\r\n<\/tr>\r\n<tr>\r\n<td>Recuva<\/td>\r\n<td>Freemium \/ Paid<\/td>\r\n<td>Simple file undelete for FAT\/NTFS<\/td>\r\n<td>Yes (Simple UI)<\/td>\r\n<td>Basic file recovery<\/td>\r\n<td>No<\/td>\r\n<td>High<\/td>\r\n<td>Windows only<\/td>\r\n<td>Free \/ Pro $24.95<\/td>\r\n<\/tr>\r\n<tr>\r\n<td>DiskGenius<\/td>\r\n<td>Freemium \/ Paid<\/td>\r\n<td>All-in-one disk and partition manager with recovery features<\/td>\r\n<td>Yes (Classic Windows UI)<\/td>\r\n<td>Yes (file preview and recovery)<\/td>\r\n<td>Yes (direct partition table edits)<\/td>\r\n<td>Medium<\/td>\r\n<td>Windows only<\/td>\r\n<td>Free \/ Standard $69.95 one-time \/ Pro $99.90 one-time<\/td>\r\n<\/tr>\r\n<\/tbody>\r\n<\/table>\r\n<p><\/div>\r\n<p>There are definitely more beginner-friendly and feature-rich alternatives to TestDisk &#8211; especially if you need both file recovery and partition recovery in one package. Tools like <a href=\"\/data-recovery-software.html\">Disk Drill<\/a> not only help locate lost partitions, but also let you browse and preview the files inside them before recovery. <b>DiskGenius<\/b> brings together a partition manager and file recovery engine, which allows you to directly edit partition tables and recover data. Neither tool is fully free, but they offer freemium tiers: Disk Drill gives Windows users up to 100 MB of recovery without an upgrade (with unlimited preview), often sufficient for minor incidents. While DiskGenius lets you recover files smaller than 64 KB, a limit that\u2019s rarely practical in real use.<\/p>\r\n<p>If we talk about unlimited free recovery there\u2019s also <a href=\"\/howto\/recuva-review.html\">Recuva<\/a>, which doesn\u2019t limit anything in the free version. However, it\u2019s a basic file undelete utility and won\u2019t help if your issue involves lost or corrupted partitions.<\/p>\r\n<p>So to wrap it up: TestDisk is kind of its own thing. While there are clearly more advanced recovery apps that include partition repair as part of the package, almost none of them are 100% free &#8211; and those that are tend to be much more limited in scope.<\/p>\r\n<div class=\"alert alert-success\" role=\"alert\">&#x1f31f; <b>Value Score:<\/b> &#x2b50;&#x2b50;&#x2b50;&#x2b50; | 4.0<\/div>\r\n<p>We\u2019ll give TestDisk a <b>solid 4 out of 5<\/b> for value. It\u2019s 100% free and open-source, with no limitations, no upsells. You get full access to powerful low-level recovery features. The only reason it doesn\u2019t get a perfect score is the usability gap &#8211; unless you\u2019re comfortable in a terminal and understand partition structures, you\u2019ll probably struggle. Still, in terms of what it delivers for zero dollars? It\u2019s one of the better deals out there.<\/p>\r\n<h2><span class=\"ez-toc-section\" id=\"testdisk_users_reviews\"><\/span>TestDisk Users Reviews<span class=\"ez-toc-section-end\"><\/span><\/h2>\r\n<p>Now to wrap things up, we wanted to go beyond specs, features, and testing &#8211; and get a feel for what real users think of TestDisk. So we scanned through forums, Reddit threads, and niche recovery communities to see what people are actually saying.<\/p>\r\n<p>Here are a couple of takes:<\/p>\r\n<p>&#x1f4ac; One reviewer on <a href=\"https:\/\/www.g2.com\/products\/testdisk\/reviews#reviews\">G2<\/a> says:<\/p>\r\n<blockquote><i>\u201cLets you recover deleted files. Cross-platform, so I can run it on Windows, Mac, or Linux. Pretty straightforward to use. Can fix non-booting partitions.<\/i><br \/>\r\n<i>I just wish it had a GUI &#8211; especially on Linux &#8211; so I could install it through the Software Center.\u201d<\/i><\/blockquote>\r\n<p>&#x1f4ac; <a href=\"https:\/\/www.trustpilot.com\/reviews\/653079e64a22d1f7f57f218d\">Trustpilot<\/a> is a bit more poetic:<\/p>\r\n<blockquote><i> \u201cThe expertise and innovation infused into this tool are evident\u2026 A standing ovation for the developers! TestDisk is a testament to the unmatched power of open-source solutions.\u201d<\/i><\/blockquote>\r\n<p>&#x1f4ac; From <a href=\"https:\/\/www.reddit.com\/r\/sysadmin\/comments\/115byo\/anyone_familiar_with_testdisk\">Reddit\u2019s \/r\/sysadmin<\/a>:<\/p>\r\n<blockquote><i>\u201cIt\u2019s a fantastic program. Useful for whenever you have filesystem read errors or general hard drive failure woes.<\/i><br \/>\r\n<i>I once used it to recover data from a drive set up for RAID1 mirroring in Windows Server 2003. TestDisk handled it.\u201d<\/i><\/blockquote>\r\n<p>&#x1f4ac; And this one\u2019s probably our favorite &#8211; from a <a href=\"https:\/\/www.reddit.com\/r\/sysadmin\/comments\/2a80el\/what_is_the_best_disk_recovery_software_in_your\/\">user who shared this story<\/a>:<\/p>\r\n<blockquote><i>\u201cMy father (idiotically) deleted and overwrote someone\u2019s Windows Vista partition with Linux. Then realized he needed data from the original Windows partition.<\/i><br \/>\r\n<i>He managed to get TestDisk working on his own &#8211; which is itself amazing &#8211; and actually recovered a good amount of the data.\u201d<\/i><\/blockquote>\r\n<div class=\"alert alert-success\" role=\"alert\">&#x1f31f; <b>User Feedback Score:<\/b> &#x2b50;&#x2b50;&#x2b50;&#x2b50; | 4.0<\/div>\r\n<p>The people who get the most out of TestDisk tend to be a bit technical &#8211; or at least comfortable following detailed, step-by-step guides. Those who manage to get a handle on it often praise it highly. Most complaints, unsurprisingly, are about the UI &#8211; or more accurately, the fact that there isn\u2019t one. And it\u2019s understandable. Most users today just won\u2019t bother with command-line tools.<\/p>\r\n<p>So, overall? The feedback aligns with everything we\u2019ve seen ourselves. The tool works, but it\u2019s not for everyone. Which is why we\u2019re giving it a <b>solid 4 out of 5<\/b> for user feedback.<\/p>\r\n<h2><span class=\"ez-toc-section\" id=\"final_verdict\"><\/span>Final Verdict<span class=\"ez-toc-section-end\"><\/span><\/h2>\r\n<p>Since all previous scores were 4s, the final score is (unsurprisingly) <b>4 out of 5<\/b>.<\/p>\r\n<p>TestDisk isn\u2019t a sleek commercial product. There\u2019s no GUI, no automation, and definitely no handholding. But it knows exactly what it is: a powerful, no-cost structural recovery tool made for people who aren\u2019t afraid of a terminal window.<\/p>\r\n<p>For those who just want to get some files back after a format or accidental deletion, there are better options. Tools that give you big buttons, clean design, and walk you through the process. Some of them are even free.<\/p>\r\n<p>But if you\u2019re dealing with partition loss, boot issues, or corrupted tables &#8211; and you\u2019re comfortable with command-line prompts &#8211; TestDisk is one of the most capable tools you can get. Just don\u2019t go in blind. Read the manual. Skim the how-to guides. Know what you\u2019re clicking. Because it can fix things, but it can just as easily make things worse if you don\u2019t.<\/p>","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"In this review, we\u2019ll evaluate TestDisk data recovery software features, ease of use, recovery performance, how it stacks up against similar tools, and what everyday users have to say about it. We\u2019ll score each area and use that to determine&#8230;","protected":false},"author":7882,"featured_media":0,"comment_status":"closed","ping_status":"closed","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"_acf_changed":false,"footnotes":""},"categories":[2642],"tags":[],"class_list":{"0":"post-26817","1":"post","2":"type-post","3":"status-publish","4":"format-standard","6":"category-software-reviews"},"acf":[],"yoast_head":"<!-- This site is optimized with the Yoast SEO plugin v26.3 - https:\/\/yoast.com\/wordpress\/plugins\/seo\/ -->\n<title>TestDisk Review and Tutorial: Too Good to Be True? 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Recover deleted files on Mac, Windows.","description":"","publisher":{"@id":"https:\/\/www.cleverfiles.com\/howto\/#organization"},"potentialAction":[{"@type":"SearchAction","target":{"@type":"EntryPoint","urlTemplate":"https:\/\/www.cleverfiles.com\/howto\/?s={search_term_string}"},"query-input":{"@type":"PropertyValueSpecification","valueRequired":true,"valueName":"search_term_string"}}],"inLanguage":"en-US"},{"@type":"Organization","@id":"https:\/\/www.cleverfiles.com\/howto\/#organization","name":"CleverFiles","url":"https:\/\/www.cleverfiles.com\/howto\/","logo":{"@type":"ImageObject","inLanguage":"en-US","@id":"https:\/\/www.cleverfiles.com\/howto\/#\/schema\/logo\/image\/","url":"https:\/\/www.cleverfiles.com\/howto\/wp-content\/uploads\/2021\/07\/dd-mac-1024-flat.png","contentUrl":"https:\/\/www.cleverfiles.com\/howto\/wp-content\/uploads\/2021\/07\/dd-mac-1024-flat.png","width":512,"height":512,"caption":"CleverFiles"},"image":{"@id":"https:\/\/www.cleverfiles.com\/howto\/#\/schema\/logo\/image\/"},"sameAs":["https:\/\/x.com\/Cleverfiles"]},{"@type":"Person","@id":"https:\/\/www.cleverfiles.com\/howto\/#\/schema\/person\/265ce959a1a65ecb648cb8ec8840d025","name":"Odysseas Kourafalos","image":{"@type":"ImageObject","inLanguage":"en-US","@id":"https:\/\/www.cleverfiles.com\/howto\/#\/schema\/person\/image\/","url":"https:\/\/secure.gravatar.com\/avatar\/650319c30d8542b16a13a51decb4bc14fc074d0f53430abdbc5482a7cb74fc2e?s=96&d=mm&r=g","contentUrl":"https:\/\/secure.gravatar.com\/avatar\/650319c30d8542b16a13a51decb4bc14fc074d0f53430abdbc5482a7cb74fc2e?s=96&d=mm&r=g","caption":"Odysseas Kourafalos"},"description":"Odysseas Kourafalos has been writing about computers and technology for over two decades. He specializes in software and has produced thousands of articles, from tutorials on Linux to mini-books about gaming console modifications. His journey in tech began with a Commodore 64, which he almost immediately short-circuited attempting \"to cheat in a game\". It was soon replaced by a Commodore 128, which in time gave way to an Amiga. When the era of Home Computing came to an end, he moved - with the times - to PCs. He's lost vast amounts of data on MS-DOS, then Windows, as well as various Linux distributions. \"Data\" stored on media ranging from ancient 5.25'' floppies to modern SSDs. Since joining us, he's losing his data on purpose. His work has been published on major Greek magazines, like Computer For All and PC World, popular tech sites - among which Make Tech Easier and Make Use Of, as well as countless blogs, like CyberPunks and VapoSearch. 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