How to Read a Corrupt or Unreadable Burned CD-R

By Andrew Meer

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As of the time of publication, a CD-R, or Compact Disc Recordable, provides up to 700 MB of storage space, making it a convenient way to store backup and other types of data. If you cannot read the files on a burned CD-R, use a recovery application such as Max Data Recovery, CD Recovery Toolbox or IsoBuster to recover them. These applications can recover and save the contents on a corrupt CD-R to your computer's hard disk.

Step 1

Use Max Data Recovery (see Resources). This application detects and displays all files on a corrupted CD-R. You manually select the files you want to recover, and the recovered files are then saved to the desktop. From this point, simply click the recovered files to open them.

Step 2

Use CD Recovery Toolbox (see Resources). This program has a simple user interface that automatically displays the corrupt files on a CD-R. After manually selecting the files you want to recover, specify a destination on the hard drive to save the data, then click the recovered files from their save location to read them.

Step 3

Use IsoBuster (see Resources). Select the unreadable files you want to recover, specify a destination to save them, then click the recovered files to open and read them. This program can also recover data on corrupted disc images and archives.

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