How do I recover data from a crashed hard drive for free?

You can often recover usable data from a "crashed" drive at home if the damage is mild. Below is the exact ddrescue method we've recommended for years: grab the easy parts first, then carefully retry the hard parts. If it beeps, clicks, or isn't detected - stop and talk to a lab.

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Image-first recovery workflow

# Fast pass: grab everything that reads cleanly
ddrescue -f -n -a 5120000 /dev/sdX /dev/sdY logfile.log

Clone the failing drive to a good one, then work on the clone — never the original.

It's not "game over" just because your drive stopped booting. Many failures are limited to bad sectors or a weak area on the platters. With the right approach you can clone the readable parts to a healthy drive and then recover files from that clone.

Recover a dying drive at home -- without paying us

We'll use SystemRescue (a free Linux toolkit) and ddrescue to clone your failing drive (source) onto an equal-or-larger good drive (target). You'll then work from the clone, not the original.

Important: This only applies to mild failures. If the drive clicks, beeps, screeches, or isn't detected, powering it repeatedly can make recovery harder or impossible. In those cases, leave it to a lab.

Never open a hard drive at home! Opening a hard drive exposes it to microscopic dust particles and fingerprints that can destroy your data permanently. This is what happens when you attempt DIY disassembly.

What You'll Need

Gather these tools before starting the recovery process

SystemRescue USB

Bootable USB with ddrescue pre-installed

Create bootable USB →

Failing Hard Drive

Your source drive with the data to recover

Target Drive

Empty drive, equal or larger capacity

Cables/Adapter

SATA/USB dock or enclosure for connection

Step-by-Step Recovery Guide

Follow these steps carefully to maximize your chances of successful data recovery

Boot into SystemRescue

Plug in your SystemRescue USB drive and reboot your computer. On most PCs, press F12 or F11 during boot to access the boot menu. On Macs, hold the Option key and select the USB stick.

Select the default SystemRescue environment when prompted. You'll be dropped into a Linux command line interface.

Identify your source and target drives

Linux names drives differently than Windows. Use these commands to identify your drives. The source is your failing drive, and the target is your empty good drive.

Triple-check these drive names before proceeding - there's no undo! Writing to the wrong drive will destroy data.

# List all drives (sizes and names)
lsblk
# OR, show partition tables
fdisk -l

First pass: grab the easy parts fast

This initial pass copies all the data that reads quickly and skips slow/bad regions. Replace /dev/sdX with your source drive and /dev/sdY with your target drive.

ddrescue -f -n -a 5120000 /dev/sdX /dev/sdY logfile.log

-n = no scraping yet (fast pass)

-a 5120000 = skips regions reading slower than ~5 MB/s

logfile.log = tracks progress for resuming

Second pass: retry the hard areas

After the fast pass completes, we revisit the problematic areas with more patience. This command uses the same logfile to know what was already copied.

ddrescue -f -d -r3 /dev/sdX /dev/sdY logfile.log

-d = direct disk access (bypasses cache)

-r3 = retry up to 3 times on bad sectors

logfile.log = continues from where the fast pass left off

Mount the clone and copy your files

Once ddrescue completes, safely remove the failing source drive. Mount your target drive (the clone) and copy your data to a third healthy drive. Always work on the clone, never the original.

Success! Mount the clone read-only if possible. If the file system appears corrupted, run repair tools on the clone only, not the original failing drive.

Critical Warnings

Read these carefully before proceeding

Drive Size Matters

Your target drive must be equal to or larger than the source drive. A smaller target will truncate your data.

Never Repair the Original

Do not run CHKDSK, Disk Utility "repairs," or any write operations on your failing drive. Work only on the clone.

Know When to Stop

Clicking, beeping, or "not detected" drives need professional clean-bench work. Repeated powering can destroy data.

Didn't work? We can help.

If ddrescue can't complete your cloning, you may have failed heads, firmware issues, or severe physical damage. Our Austin lab performs clean-bench head swaps and advanced recovery using professional equipment.

Heads-up: DIY attempts do add wear to the drive. If you plan to hire a professional lab, it's better to stop early than to grind the drive into the ground trying to recover it yourself.

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See Professional Data Recovery in Action

Curious how we handle complex cases professionally? Here's a deep dive into recovering a Seagate Rosewood drive with head damage.