[4 Free Ways] How to Recover Deleted Files from USB Flash Drive

Millions of users rely on flash drives or similar storage devices to save their data. Unfortunately, flash drive technology is just as susceptible to data loss as any other storage technology. What's worse, external storage devices remove the safety net nowdays. When you delete a file, it bypasses the recycle bin and is deleted permanently.

What causes data loss on a flash drive?

Many reasons lead to data loss from flash drive, but most reasons including:

✦ Accidental deletion - It's one of the biggest data loss scenarios. You may simply click the "Delete" button or "Shift + Delete" keys, or accidentally delete files while cleaning the disk, etc.
✦ Formatting - When you insert the flash drive, you may be asked to format it and inadvertently click the "Format" option, causing data loss.
✦ File system errors - File system errors can be caused by bad sectors, Windows updates, etc., indicating a problem with how data is stored or accessed.
✦ Virus or malware infection - Viruses or malware may reside on your flash drive or the system in which it is inserted as a result of visiting suspicious websites, clicking unknown links, and so on.
✦ Software bugs or hardware damage - If your software has defects or there is physical damage (eg: shock) on a flash drive, your data may be lost during this process.
✦ Other reasons - flash drive data loss may occur due to power loss, partitioning mistakes, driver issues, etc. as well.

Easiest Way to recover deleted files on USB flash drive 🔥

Using 3rd-party tools like AOMEI FastRecovery to recover deleted files from USB flash drives or any other storage device is the easiest method. It will scan your disk thoroughly to retrieve and locate all the deleted or lost files. You can then recover all or some of them in Windows 7, 8, 10, 11, etc.

 

Why Choose AOMEI FastRecovery?

• It has a free edition that can recover data over 500MB.
• Top algorithms - Combine Quick Scan & Deep Scan technologies to thoroughly scan the disk and detect all deleted or lost files.
• Recover deleted Word files, PPT, Excel, 3FR, MP3, MP4, JPG, PNG, etc., in over 1000+ file formats.
• Search or filter files quickly through file names, extensions, data types, etc.
• Preview files before recovery.
• Recover specific files or folders instead of all.
• Support all brands of flash drives, such as SanDisk, Samsung, Transcend, Kingston, Patriot, etc.
• Retrieve files in any scenario, such as accidental deletion, formatting, virus infection, etc.

Download Software
Win 11/10/8.1/8/7 & server

100% Secure

Now, click the download button to get started.

Step 1. Open AOMEI FastRecovery. Hover the mouse over the USB flash drive and click Scan.

Step 2. Then the scanning process will start automatically. During scanning, you can search or filter files to find them quickly. Once found, preview or select them to recover immediately.

Step 3. Select all the files you want to recover and click Recover xx files to recover deleted files from USB flash drive. You will be asked to choose a destination path to save the restored files. Please select a new location.

How to recover deleted files from a flash drive without software

If you don't want to use any software, try Windows built-in features - Previous Versions, CMD, and Windows File Recovery.

▶ Option 1. Recover deleted files with Previous Versions

The first option is to recover deleted files from flash drives with Previous Versions. As its name suggests, it keeps the previous version of your files and you can choose to restore them if you accidentally deleted files or lost them.

Step 1. Connect the USB to the PC.

Connect the USB flash drive to your computer and make sure it can be recognized.

Step 2. Right-click the USB drive and select Properties.

Open This PC. Then, find your USB flash drive, right-click it and select Properties.

Step 3. Click the Restore from Previous Versions.

Navigate to the Previous Versions tab and look at the list of available recovery options. Select a previous version and click Restore.

▶ Option 2. Recover deleted files from flash drive using CMD

If you suspect the cause of deleted files is a file system error, try chkdsk command. It's able to check file system error and fix it. To retrieve any readable information, i.e. hidden files, try the attrib command. You can then access your files on the flash drive again.

Step 1. Plug in your USB flash drive to your computer. Type cmd into the search box and select Run as administrator.

Step 2. Type chkdsk G: /f and press Enter to fix your flash drive when it is corrupted or cannot be summoned. Replace the letter G with the drive letter of your USB flash drive

Step 3. Input attrib -h -r -s /s /d G:*.*and press Enter to display or remove attribute files and unbidden hidden files. Replace the letter G with the drive letter of your USB flash drive

▶ Option 3. Get files back from flash drive with Windows File Recovery

Windows File Recovery is a command-line data recovery utility released by Microsoft, which can recover deleted files from different storage devices, such as internal or external hard drives, USB drives, SD cards, etc. Click how to use Windows File Recovery to learn more. Note you need to download it from the Microsoft Store manually.

Step 1. Check the file system. Navigate to This PC > right-click on the drive that has lost files > Properties.

Step 2. Choose a recovery mode based on file system and scenarios.

Step 3. Choose switches to help you narrow the scanning range.

Step 4. Open Windows File Recovery. Then, input the recovery command based on the syntax and example :

winfr source-drive: destination-drive: [/mode] [/switches]

To put it simply, let’s take an example. You deleted a file named “paper” in D: drive 3 weeks ago, and you want to recover it to E: drive. Please type as follows:

winfr D: E: /extensive /n *paper*

Wait for the scanning process to complete, and then you will get your files recovered.

Bonus tip - Backup flash drive to avoid further data loss

Windows provides users with two backup software - Backup and Restore (Windows 7) and File History. But you may be frustrated when try to backup your flash drive. It only supports backing up data on the internal disk. So please turn to a third-party backup software, such as AOMEI Backupper Standard to back up your entire USB flash drive in just a few simple steps. Let’s take a look.

Step 1. Download, install, and launch AOMEI Backupper Standard on your computer. Connect the flash drive to your computer.

Step 2. Under the Backup tab, select the Disk Backup option.

Step 3. Edit the task name for distinguishing. Click Add Disk and you will see all the available drives. Select the flash drive in the Select Disk window.

Step 4. Select the destination path to store the backup images. Network path and cloud drive are supported.

Step 5. Click Start Backup to carry out disk backup and wait until the operation is complete. Click Finish to exit the interface.

Conclusion

This post mainly introduces 4 proven methods on how to recover deleted files from a flash drive. If you have accidentally deleted your important files or you have lost your files for any other reason, you can follow the steps in this post to get your files back.

Besides, you’re also advised to backup your USB flash drive in case there are something unexpected happens.

FAQs