Common Causes of Partition Loss
Disk partitions are used to store personal data, applications, or files required to run Windows systems. Usually, we divide a disk into multiple partitions to separate personal data from system data. This helps prevent the system partition from becoming full and causing the system to become slow or unusable, and it also facilitates disk management and backup.
However, during the daily use and management of disks, partitions may be deleted or lost under various situations. Here is a true example:
“Hi! I accidentally made a mistake and already deleted a wrong-selected partition with data on it through the Diskpart app on Win 10. I have a backup of course but some of the files are not included in the last backup. I would like to recover the partition. Is there a good and free app to do that kind of task? Or what do you prefer from these commercial apps to buy for home users? Such of app would be handy I think on most of our PCs...Cos we never know when such of accident can happen.”www.tenforums.com
Here are some common causes why internal/external/removable disk partitions get deleted:
- Accidental deletion: Partition deletion due to human error is the most common cause of partition loss. You can delete disk volumes through multiple tools such as Disk Management, CMD, PowerShell, etc.
- Partition table damage: If the partition table is damaged, the system will not be able to locate the partition from which it was booted, which may result in data corruption, data loss, or partition loss.
- Bad sectors: If one or more sectors on the hard disk are physically damaged, data or partition loss may occur.
- Power failure: If you encounter a power failure during disk operations, such as formatting, the partition may be damaged or deleted.
- Virus infection: If your computer or hard drive is attacked by a virus, the disk volumes may get lost.
- …
Regardless of the circumstances under which the partition is lost, as long as the lost partition contains important files, you should stop using the disk as soon as possible and recover files. This can effectively prevent the data on the deleted partition from being overwritten by new data. Overwritten data cannot be recovered by any data recovery tool.
Now, you can see how to recover data from a deleted partition.
How to Recover Data After Deleting a Partition
If you have completed data backup in advance, you can easily recover lost data from the backup image and recreate the partitions. If there is no backup available, then you need to choose a free data recovery software to perform lost partition recovery.
Way 1. Use MiniTool Power Data Recovery
MiniTool Power Data Recovery, one of the most powerful secure data recovery services, is designed for scanning for and recovering deleted, lost, and existing files. It supports recovering data from both unallocated space and lost partitions.
In addition to partition loss, MiniTool Power Data Recovery is also good at handling other file loss or inaccessible situations, such as hard drives keeping disappearing, recovering data when Windows is corrupted, SSD reporting the wrong size, external hard drives showing 0 bytes, etc.
This file recovery tool works well on all Windows versions, including Windows 11/10/8/7.
Now get this Windows file recovery software installed and start to recover data from a deleted partition.
MiniTool Power Data Recovery FreeClick to Download100%Clean & Safe
Step 1. Select the unallocated space/lost partition to scan.
Launch MiniTool Power Data Recovery Free. Under Logical Drives, all detected partitions, including deleted/lost partitions and unallocated space are displayed here. You need to move your cursor to the target lost partition according to the volume size, and then click the Scan button.
How long the scan duration takes mainly depends on the data amount of the lost partition. It may take some time to complete the whole scan process, and you are advised to wait patiently until the entire process is completed to get the best scan result.
Step 2. Preview the found files.
After scanning, you can expand each folder to find the needed items, but this is a little bit time-consuming. To locate the wanted files faster, you can use the Filter and Search features.
- Filter: Typically, a large number of files appear in the scan results window. You can click the Filter button to filter out unwanted file types, file categories, files that do not match a specific modification date, and files that do not fall into a specific size.
- Search: You are allowed to locate a specific file/folder with a certain name. Both a partial and complete file name is supported.
Most importantly, MiniTool Power Data Recovery Free Edition supports recovering 1 GB of files for free. So, to avoid useless files occupying the free data recovery quota, you need to preview the listed items. You are allowed to preview assortments of file types, such as documents, pictures, videos, audio files, etc.
Step 3. Select and save the required files.
Finally, tick the checkboxes next to all required items, then click the Save button. In the pop-up window, choose a file storage location and click OK.
Once you see the Recovery Completed window, you can click the View Recovered button to view and use recovered files.
If the selected files exceed 1 GB, you will be prompted that there are no free recovery remaining after you recover 1 GB of files. If you need to continue recovery, you should upgrade the software to an advanced edition.
Once you get all the needed items from the deleted partition, now you can create a new partition from the unallocated space without worrying. You can create a new partition in Disk Management, or you can do this by using MiniTool Partition Wizard, a free partition management tool.
MiniTool Partition Wizard FreeClick to Download100%Clean & Safe
After making a new partition, if necessary, you can transfer the recovered files to the newly created volume.
Way 2. Use MiniTool Partition Wizard
Some users may want to know if there is a way to recover deleted partitions Windows 11/10/8/7 directly instead of only recovering the volume data. Fortunately, you can perform lost partition recovery as long as you use MiniTool Partition Wizard.
MiniTool Partition Wizard is a professional and green partition management tool that helps recover a deleted partition with data on it. Besides, it enables you to create/delete/move/resize/extend/shrink disk volumes, clone a hard drive, convert MBR to GPT, etc.
Here you can see how to scan hard disk for deleted partitions and restore them.
Step 1. Download, install, and launch MiniTool Partition Wizard Free.
MiniTool Partition Wizard FreeClick to Download100%Clean & Safe
Step 2. When you access the main interface of this MiniTool software, click the Partition Recovery option.
Step 3. Click Next.
Step 4. Select the disk where the deleted/lost partition should exist, and then click Next.
Step 5. In the new window, choose a scanning range (Full Disk, Unallocated Space, or Specified Range) for the selected disk. After that, click Next.
Step 6. In the pop-up window, choose a scanning method and click Next.
- Quick Scan: It aims to recover lost/deleted partitions if they are contiguous. When MiniTool Partition Wizard finds a deleted partition, it will jump to the end of the partition and continue scanning for other lost partitions.
- Full Scan: It scans every sector in the specified disk. The scan duration will generally be longer if you choose this method.
Step 7. Wait until the whole process ends. After that, all found partitions are listed on the scan result page. You need to select all needed volumes, including deleted partitions, lost partitions, and existing partitions, and then click the Finish button.
If you are using MiniTool Partition Wizard Free, after clicking the Finish button, you will be prompted to unlock advanced features. You need to complete this task according to the on-screen instructions.
Step 8. Finally, click the Apply button from the lower left corner to save the found partitions.
Way 3. Turn to the Data Recovery Service Center
If you are unwilling to download third-party data and partition recovery software, then you need to take your computer device or data storage device to a professional data recovery agency and seek help from professionals. However, this typically comes at a significant financial cost and puts you at risk of information leakage.
Key Precautions for Partition Loss
For partition/data loss prevention, it’s important to focus on the following suggestions:
Back up Files/Partitions/Disks Regularly
Developing the habit of regular backups is essential for data and computer system protection. Here MiniTool ShadowMaker is recommended for file backup, partition backup, and disk cloning. It is fully compatible with all Windows versions, including Windows 11/10/8/7.
Download the MiniTool ShadowMaker Trial Edition (30-day free trial), and you can get your data and disks well protected with just a few clicks.
MiniTool ShadowMaker TrialClick to Download100%Clean & Safe
Use Professional and Reliable Partition Management Tools
Using a reliable partition management tool to manage your disk can effectively reduce the risk of partition loss. You can use Windows built-in tool, Disk Management or File Explorer, to manage hard disks. Moreover, MiniTool Partition Wizard is still recommended here.
Replace Old Hard Drives Promptly
The lifespan of a disk is not permanent. If you notice signs of hard drive failure, such as a system blue screen, the disk not being recognized, the disk making noise, etc., then you need to transfer the disk data in time and replace the old disk in case of unexpected situations.
Safely Remove External Hard Drives/Removable Drives
For external hard drives or removable drives, if you do not remove the disk correctly, it may result in data loss or partition corruption. To avoid this, you should use the “Safely Remove Hardware and Eject Media” option provided by the operating system before removing the disk.
Use Reliable Antivirus Software to Kill Viruses
Virus attack is an important factor leading to data loss and even system failure. Windows comes with a virus scanner, Windows Defender, to protect your computer from virus attacks. It is recommended to keep Windows Defender turned on.
Think Carefully Before Deleting Files/Partitions
Partition missing due to accidental deletion by human operations accounts for a large part of partition loss. Therefore, please exercise caution before deleting/formatting a partition or performing other operations that may result in data loss.
Wrapping Things Up
All in all, this post introduces two professional and green data/partition recovery tools to help you recover data after deleting a partition. You can choose the one you prefer to perform data/partition restoration or turn to a data recovery agency.
By the way, you are suggested to take note of the precautions for partition/data loss listed above.
If you encounter any problems while using MiniTool software, you can feel free to contact us via [email protected]. We are always ready to provide you with detailed assistance.
About The Author
Position: Columnist
Shirley graduated from English major and is currently an editor of MiniTool Team. She likes browsing and writing IT-related articles, and is committed to becoming a professional IT problem solver. The topic of her articles are generally about data recovery, data backup, and computer disk management, as well as other IT issues. In spare time, she likes watching movies, hiking and fishing.