What to do right now
- If the preview worked, the data is on the disk. Stop using that drive.
- Scan again with a free tool that has no size limit and save to another disk.
- If the disk shows signs of bad sectors, check its health before scanning again.
How to recover everything for free
Check the drive's health first
Every scan puts load on the disk. Look at the SMART values such as reallocated and pending sectors in FileFix Ultimate's disk health view. If they look bad, image the disk first and recover from the image.
Run the portable version
Extract the portable ZIP somewhere other than the drive you are recovering from and run it. Administrator rights are needed to read drives directly.
Scan and preview
In deleted file recovery, pick the drive, scan, and preview photos, PDFs and text. Large disks take a while, so review the quick scan results first.
Save what you need
Choose a different disk as the destination and save. With no size limit, you can recover whole folders at once.
Read the result badges
Results are labelled validated, partial or extracted. Run partially recovered files through damaged file repair to save the readable part.
Compared with Disk Drill Free
Based on public information in October 2026, Disk Drill for Windows recovers around 500 MB for free, and some help pages state a lower figure. Beyond that, a subscription or lifetime licence is required. Byte-level backups and deletion protection are real strengths of Disk Drill.
FileFix Ultimate has no recovery limit, and imaging of disks with bad sectors and SMART health checks are free. Version 1.0.4 adds pause and resume during scans and saving files while a scan is still running, so a large disk can be handled in several sessions.
Is a second scan safe?
On a healthy disk, scanning only reads, so it does no harm. A disk that makes noises or keeps disconnecting is different: each scan can make it worse, so stop right away. Disk Drill is a trademark of its owner and is not affiliated with FileFix Ultimate.
When an alternative will not help
- Files that did not show in any preview are likely overwritten.
- Old deleted files on an SSD with TRIM are empty.
- Physically failing disks need a professional recovery lab.
How FileFix Ultimate helps
- Saves recovered files for free with no size limit.
- Shows SMART health and runs a surface read test before you scan.
- Images a disk with bad sectors to another disk so you can recover from the image.
- From version 1.0.4, pause and resume and saving during a scan.
FileFix Ultimate is free, works offline and never writes to the drive you are recovering from. Check the signature before you run it.
Frequently asked questions
How much does Disk Drill Free recover on Windows?
Based on public information in October 2026, around 500 MB. Terms change, so check the official page.
Disk Drill previews the file, but the recovered copy will not open.
A preview sometimes shows only the start of a file. If the rest was overwritten or fragmented, the result is partial. Try damaged file repair to save the readable part.
Can I scan the same disk with several tools?
On a healthy disk, yes; scanning only reads. Disks that make noises or disconnect are the exception.