How to Recover Deleted/Lost Partition on External Hard Drive

Losing a partition on an external hard disk is a nightmare, especially if it contains important data. Whether it was accidentally deleted or lost due to a malfunction, the good news is that there are several ways to recover your lost partition and the data within it. In this article, we'll explore various methods to help you recover a deleted/lost partition on an external hard drive. With a little patience, you can often reclaim the files you thought were gone forever.

Understanding Partitions Loss

Before delving into external hard drive partition recovery methods, it is necessary to understand what a "partition" is and whether the data stored on it still exists after it disappears. A partition is a specific section of your disk that acts as a separate storage area. It allows you to manage and organize your data more efficiently. When a partition is deleted or lost, the data isn't immediately erased but becomes inaccessible until it is overwritten by new content.

Causes of Disappear a Partition

Understanding how you might have lost a partition is the first step in recovery. Partitions on an external hard drive can disappear or become inaccessible due to various reasons, leading to potential data loss or the inability to use the storage space. Here are some of the common reasons why partitions disappear:

• ❌ Accidental Deletion: Users might unintentionally delete a partition while managing their disk space or mistakenly modify partition settings using disk management tools.
• 🛠️ Disk Management Errors: This could happen during partition resizing, merging, or splitting, especially if the process is interrupted or encounters an error.
• ⚠️ File System Corruption: Its corruption due to improper shutdown, malware attack, or software failure renders the partition unreadable or invisible.
• 🦠 Malware or Virus Attacks: Maliciously changing or damaging the partition table (the information that tells your computer where partitions start and end) or the file system, making partitions disappear.
• 💢 Master Boot Record (MBR) or GUID Partition Table (GPT) Corruption: These records contain key information about how the external disk partitions are organized. If corrupted, they can make it difficult for the operating system to locate and access the partition.

No matter how the partition of your external hard drive got lost, it is important to stop using it as soon as you notice this. Continued use may overwrite data on the partition, making recovery more difficult or impossible.

How to Recover Partition in External Hard Drive

Several methods can restore a lost or deleted partition on an external hard disk. Here, we will focus on the most common and effective approaches.

Method 1: Using Recovery Software

Utilizing a third-party recovery tool is often the easiest method for most users. Here, iBeesoft Data Recovery provides a user-friendly interface to help you accomplish this difficult task.

Steps to recover deleted partition on the external hard drive using iBeesoft Data Recovery:

1. Connect the external disk to your system using a USB cable.
2. Choose the correct version and install it.

3. Launch it and select the lost partition of the external hard drive to scan. It's usually the one with the yellow warning icon.

4. After completing the scan, select all data once stored in the volume and click the "Recover" button to save them.

Method 2: Using DiskPart Command

For those comfortable using command-line tools, Windows offers the DiskPart utility, which can help recover a lost partition on an external hard drive without additional software. However, this method requires caution, as incorrect commands can lead to further data loss. Here is a guide:

1. Press "Windows + X" and select Windows PowerShell (Admin).
2. Type "diskpart" and press Enter.
3. Type "list disk" and press Enter.
4. Type "select disk X" (replace X with the external disk number).
5. Type "list volume" and press Enter.
6. Type "select volume *" and press Enter. (replace "*" with the lost partition number)

7. Type "assign letter#" and press Enter. (replace "#" with an available drive letter)

That's all the details for rescuing a lost partition using the command prompt. You can also use it to CMD recover deleted files.

Method 3: Using TestDisk

For more experienced users, you can use TestDisk, a powerful open-source software designed to resume lost volumes, fix non-bootable disks, and make disks bootable again. Here's a step-by-step guide on how to use TestDisk to recover a lost partition partition on an external hard drive free:

1. Go to the official TestDisk website and download the version compatible with your system.
2. Extract the downloaded file and launch TestDisk.

3. Select "Create > Your external hard drive > Partition Table Type > Analyze > Quick Search > Lost Partition."
4. Once you've selected the lost volume, navigate to the "Write" option to write the new partition structure to the disk.

With the above 3 effective methods, you should be able to successfully recover external hard drive partition. However, volume corruption is also a common reason for its loss. To solve this problem, you can go to the next section.

How to Repair Corrupted Partition on External Hard Drive

Fixubg a damaged partition on an external hard disk can be critical for recovering your data. Here's a guide to attempting this repair process on Windows and macOS systems.

For Windows Users:

1. Connect your external disk to your Windows PC.
2. Click the "Start" and type "CMD."
3. Choose "Command Prompt" in the list and click "Run as administrator."

4. Type "chkdsk E: /f /r" (replace "E" with the letter of your external hard drive) and press Enter.
5. Wait for Completion.

For macOS Users:

1. Go to Applications > Utilities > Disk Utility.
2. Select the partition that you believe is corrupted. If you're not sure, start with the entire disk.

3. Click on the "First Aid" in top toolbar. Confirm that you want to run it by clicking "Run" in the opening dialogue.

Through the above 2-part solution, you can ensure the security of your partition and data. If you wish to adjust its partition, go to the next section.

How to Create or Resize a Partition of External Hard Disk

Partition can help you organize your data more efficiently, allowing you to separate different types of files or operating systems. Here's a step-by-step guide on how to do this on both Windows and macOS systems:

For Windows PC:

1. Press "Windows + X" and select "Disk Management."

2. Find your external hard drive and choose the following methods to resize your partitions.

   If the disk already contains data and you want to partition only part of it, right-click on the existing volume and select "Shrink Volume" or "Extend volume."

   If there is unallocated or free space on this removable drive, you can right-click on the area and select "New Simple Volume."

3. Follow the wizard's instructions. (NTFS is usually recommended for Windows).

For Mac:

1. Open Disk Utility
2. Choose the external disk in the sidebar of Disk Utility.
3. Click the "Partition" button in the toolbar.
4. Click the "+" button to add a partition. You can enter values directly to resize partitions.
5. Name your partition, choose a format (APFS or Mac OS Extended (Journaled) are common choices), and set a size.
6. Click "Apply". Disk Utility will confirm your actions; click "Partition" to proceed.

Losing a partition can be frustrating, but as we've seen, several methods exist to recover a partition on the external disk and fix and create it. However, the best strategy is to avoid such a disaster from happening again. Therefore, you can check out the following tips.

Best Practices for Avoiding Partition Loss in the Future

• 📤 The most effective step to minimize data loss is to create regular backups of your external hard drive onto another storage medium.
• ⏏️ Always use the 'eject' or 'safely remove hardware' option before unplugging your external hard drive to avoid file system corruption.
• 🧐 When performing any operations on your external hard drive, think twice and ensure you make the correct changes.
• 📈 Monitor your drives' physical conditions and run diagnostics if you suspect an issue.
• 🛡️ Running the latest antivirus software can help protect against malware that can cause partition loss.

FAQs

Where do you start when dealing with a lost or deleted partition in your external hard drive? Here are frequently asked questions to guide you through the recovery process, helping to salvage your valuable data and restore your peace of mind.

Conclusion

We've covered the gamut of partition recovery on the external hard drive, from understanding the anatomy of partitions, causes of their loss, repairing damaged partitions, and creating volumes to detailed instructions on recovery methods. Remember to act swiftly and thoughtfully, and never lose hope when facing partition and data loss—the key to recovery is often just a few clicks or commands away. Finally, you can also follow our preventive measures to avoid this type of accident happening again.