How to Recover Disappeared Videos from SD Card

Have you ever had videos on your SD card or other storage devices just disappeared? Can you recover deleted/disappeared videos and other types of files on your SD card? Don’t worry, you will find three useful ways to recover videos disappeared from SD card in the following guide.

Why do videos disappear from SD card?

There are several factors might cause video files disappeared from SD card, including accidental deletion, SD card formatting, files being hidden, system bugs, and so on.

Fortunately, most disappeared files can be recovered. But only if you stop using the SD card as soon as the video disappears from it, in case the new data overwrites the data that needs to be recovered.

How to get videos disappeared from SD card retrieved

You can connect SD card to a Windows computer and follow one of the three methods mentioned below to recover videos from SD card.

Way 1 and Way 2 introduce you how to make use of command line to get disappeared videos back. They’re kind of complicated but workable.

While in Way 3, you will get a professional data recovery software for SD card to recover SD card videos at high speed and recovery rate.

Way 1. Recover videos from SD card using attrib Command Prompt

If you haven't manually wiped videos, but they disappear from your SD card, they may have been hidden rather than deleted. You can utilize the built-in Windows CMD (Command Prompt) to recover SD card videos without software. The specific steps are as follows.

Step 1. Insert the SD card into computer with compatible cable > type cmd in the search box > Choose Command Prompt > Click Run as administrator.

Step 2. Type the command in the window: attrib -h -r -s /s /d/ X:\*.* (Replace X with the letter of your SD card) > Hit the Enter key to continue.

Way 2. Recover videos from SD card by Windows File Recovery

Windows File Recovery is Microsoft's official data recovery tool, a command-line application for recovering lost files from your storage device. It is a sophisticated command-line utility for recovering permanently erased files from SD memory cards and other storage media.

It lacks a graphical interface, making it challenging for beginners. So, with the introduction below, you can learn step by step how to recover videos disappeared from SD card.

Before the recovery process, you need to check the file system of your SD card. Insert your SD card into computer > Click on This PC > Locate and right-click on the SD card > Select Properties to view it in the File System section.

Now, follow the steps below to know how to recover deleted videos from SD card on PC with Windows File Recovery.

Step 1. Search for Windows File Recovery in the Microsoft Store and click Get to install it on your PC.

Step 2. Search for the program in the Windows search box, and click it > Click Run as administrator.

Step 3. Choose a suitable mode to recover your MP4 files based on the File System you just check.

File system	Circumstances	Recommended mode
NTFS	Deleted recently	Default
NTFS	Deleted a while ago	Segment, followed by Signature
NTFS	After formatting a disk	Segment, followed by Signature
NTFS	A corrupted disk	Segment, followed by Signature
FAT and exFAT	Any	Extensive

Step 4. Follow the prompts to enter the correct command line, such as winfr D: E: extensive /n *paper* > Click Y to continue.

Switches	Definition	Supported mode(s)
/n	Filter the scan range: scans for a specific file with its file name/path/type, etc.	All
/y:	Recover specific extension groups.	Signature
/k	Recovers system files.	NTFS Segment​​​​​
/u	Recovers undeleted files, for example, from the Recycle Bin.	NTFS Segment

Note: The destination drive of the recovered videos should not be your SD card. You can save the recovered videos to anywhere else and move them to the SD card later.

Way 3. Recover videos from SD card with MyRecover

It is frustrating enough that videos disappeared from SD card, why don’t you choose a simpler way to recover lost videos as soon as possible? Here the professional data recovery software - MyRecover is highly recommended.

Step 1. Insert your SD card to computer > Launch MyRecover > Hover the mouse over the drive and click Scan to scan.

Step 2. All the lost files will be automatically detected and listed in different folder, you can open each folder to have a preview during the scanning.

Notes: You can also head to the search bar on the upper-right corner to find the lost or deleted videos based on their name, Type, Data Modified and Size.

Step 3. When you get all the files you want to recover, select them and click Restore files, then choose a storage location to save the recovered videos.

Conclusion

Hope your videos disappeared from SD card can be recovered after trying the methods mentioned in this guide. If you don't want to utilize a command-line with complex settings to restore your files, MyRecover, a professional SD card video recovery tool, may help. If you find this guide useful, please share it with others.