How to Recover an SD Card With Linux

By Nachiket Deshmukh

In the Linux operating system, it is possible to recover lost data files including video, documents and archives from hard disks or from digital camera memory, such as SD cards. PhotoRec is a Linux-based application which can recover deleted or lost data files even if your media's file system has been damaged or re-formatted. dd_rescue is another Linux-based application which can help to restore deleted data files. Following are instructions for recovery using PhotoRec.

Insert an SD card into its slot on your computer. Use the card from which you want to recover lost data.

Open a Linux terminal window from "Application menu" > "Accessories" > "Terminal."

Type "photorec" and press the "Enter" key to start the PhotoRec application.

Select the SD card media displayed on the screen using arrow keys and press the "Enter" key. For example, select "Disk dev/sda2 - 16 GB - Kingston."

Select the file type of the data you wish to recover using arrow keys and press the "Enter" key. For example, to recover deleted pictures, select the "png" option.

Press "Y" when prompted to store the recovered data to a default folder "recover" on your hard disk and press the "Enter" key.

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