3 Methods | How to Recover Data from SD Memory Card

Can you recover data from an SD card?

I have an SD card, which is connected to a dash camera that reformats quite often due to its constant recording. I have some very vital footage that I would like to recover. Can I recover data from a micro SD card? How to recover data from memory card? Does anyone know of any method that might help me?

When it comes to SD memory cards, everyone should be familiar with them. They are widely used in digital cameras, tablet computers, multimedia players, dash cameras, and other devices. Although SD cards are small in size, they can store a large amount of data.

But the accompanying problem is that important data on SD cards may be easily lost for various reasons. Knowing how to recover data from SD memory card can help you get back data in case of data loss.

Common reasons for SD card data loss

There may be many reasons for the loss of SD card files, and we list some common ones as follows:

✦ SD card files are accidentally deleted.

✦ SD card was accidentally formatted causing all data to be wiped out.

✦ Removing the SD card during data transfer resulted in file system corruption.

✦ Malware and virus attacks cause all data to be lost.

✦ SD card is broken or other hardware problems occur.

How to recover data from SD memory card

There are many ways on how to recover data from SD cards. But it should be noted that after data loss, you should stop uploading new files to the SD card as soon as possible to avoid the original files from being overwritten. Now let's see what solutions are available for SD data recovery.

Way 1. Find hidden SD card data using CMD

CMD, commonly known as Command Prompt, is one of the most powerful features in Windows computers that can be used to solve many problems like recovering hidden files from a USB, external hard disk, SD card, etc.

But this option is very technical and only supports displaying hidden data on SD cards. If your data is deleted from the SD memory card, it cannot be found. In this case, please turn to other SD card data recovery methods.

If you want to learn how to recover lost memory on SD card using CMD, please follow the steps below.

Step 1. Type “cmd” in the Windows search box and select Run as administrator. Then click Yes to allow this app to make changes to your device.

Step 2. Copy the command “attrib -h -r -s /s /d G:\*.*” in it and hit Enter.

✍Note: You can replace the letter G: with the drive letter of your SD card.

Step 3. After the process is complete, your lost data will appear in its original location.

Way 2. Restore files from SD card via Windows File Recovery

If SD card data is deleted, you can use a free data deletion recovery tool, Windows File Recovery, officially released by Microsoft, which supports recovering files from hard disks (local & external), SD cards, and other storage devices. Available for Windows 10 version 2004 and later, this tool NTFS, FAT, exFAT, and ReFS file systems, whether documents, photos, or videos can be restored with the winfr command.

It is noteworthy to mention that Windows File Recovery is a command-line tool, so novice users may find this option complicated to operate. Before learning how to restore data from SD memory card with this tool, let's take a look at some basics of using it.

The general command line syntax to recover files via Windows File Recovery is: winfr source-drive: destination-drive: [/mode] [/switches].

You should check the SD memory card drive file system by clicking This PC > right-click the SD card drive > check the File System in Properties and choose the right mode.

Now, figure out how to recover deleted files from SD card without software but with Windows File Recovery.

Step 1. Find “Windows File Recovery” in the Microsoft Store and click Get to install it on PC.

Step 2. After installed, search Windows File Recovery in the Windows search box and tap Run as administrator.

Step 3. Input the command line, for example, winfr D: E: /extensive /n *paper*. Then, click Y to continue.

Tip: There is another free Windows file tool called WinfrGUI, which can be used as a Windows File Recovery alternative with clickable buttons. This tool can help you to recover deleted files by getting rid of complicated commands.
Apart from recovering accidentally deleted files, it also supports you to recover data from corrupted micro SD memory cards and recover damaged hard drives. But it is only available on Windows 10 and 11.

Way 3. Recover data from SD memory card with SD card recovery tool

If you find that how to recover micro SD card files failed with the foregoing two methods, reliable data recovery software like MyRecover can work you out.

MyRecover, compatible with Windows 11/10/8/7 & Windows Server, allows you to recover more than 200 types of deleted files including media files, images, audios, videos, etc. from SD cards. It is also suitable for restoring lost data from formatted hard drives/partitions, computer crashes or virus attacks, and so on.

This software uses quick and deep scanning methods to help you retrieve lost data completely and safely without missing any files. It offers to preview data before recovery. Install this easy-to-use data recovery utility on computer and follow the how to recover data from SD memory card beneath to proceed with data recovery easily.

Step 1. Run MyRecover and make sure the SD card is connected to computer.

Step 2. Hover the mouse over the SD card drive, click Scan, and it will examine all deleted files on this drive automatically.

✍Note: With no need to wait for the scan to complete, you could recover data directly during the scan.

Step 3. You can search or filter the files you want in the top-right corner. Select files you want to recover and click the Recover x files button in the lower right corner to start SD card data recovery.

Conclusion

That’s all about how to recover data from SD memory card. The easiest method to get back lost data on SD card is using the MyRecover software, which can perform data recovery in 3 steps.

If you want to completely avoid the risk of data loss, we believe that creating backups for your data is a foolproof method. You can use AOMEI Backupper to backup SD memory card, USB, and other storage devices without a hitch.