As a Mac user, I’m anxious about accidentally losing critical files from my external drive. I need a dependable solution to recover lost data, ensuring my important documents, photos, and backups are safe and easily retrievable.
External drives are a vital storage option for Mac users, but have you ever wondered what if your important files suddenly get deleted from these drives? Like other digital storage devices, external drives sometimes get failed, leading to data loss. Whether it’s accidental deletion, formatting, or physical damage, losing important data from an external drive on a Mac can put you in trouble. Luckily, there are several methods for data recovery on Mac that you can try to get your files deleted from external drives back.
This guide will explore various methods, from using built-in macOS tools to third-party Mac data recovery software, to help you learn how to recover data from an External drive on Mac. Let’s get started!
How Does Data Recovery on External Drive Work?
Data recovery on an external drive involves retrieving lost, deleted, or inaccessible data. When any file is deleted on the drive, it is not immediately erased. Instead, the operating system marks the space as available, allowing Mac data recovery software to access and restore the data. Along with this, there are several manual workarounds as well that you can try to get your deleted data back.
Some Common Data Recovery Scenarios:
- Accidental Deletion: Files deleted by mistake can often be recovered using data recovery software, provided the drive hasn’t been extensively used afterwards.
- Formatted Drive: When you format an external drive, recovery is still possible unless a low-level format (which writes zeros over data) is performed.
- Corrupted File System: Drives with corrupted file systems may become unreadable, but recovery tools can bypass the file system and recover raw data.
- Physical Damage: For physically damaged drives (e.g., due to drops or water exposure), professional recovery services are often required. They use specialized hardware to extract data directly from the drive components.
Immediate Steps to Recover Lost Data from External Drive Using Mac Data Recovery Software
Before jumping into manual methods for data recovery on Mac, try using a professional Mac data recovery software to get your lost or deleted files back. Tools like Stellar Data Recovery Professional for Mac allow you to restore files deleted due to several reasons, including accidental deletion, formatting, virus attacks, etc. You can use this tool to recover data deleted from any internal or external hard drives, such as Mac SSDs, fusion drives, and many more.
Key Features:
- Supports easy and quick recovery of files of multiple types, including photos, videos, audio files, documents, etc.
- Offers a ‘Pause and Resume’ scan to restore files while the scan is in progress.
- Compatible with the latest macOS Sequoia 15 and M3-powered Mac systems.
- Allows you to preview the recoverable files before saving them on your device.
- 100% reliable and no tech knowledge is required.
Install Stellar Data Recovery Professional for Mac software in your system that is available on their website in different versions. Check and compare their features, then download the one that best fits your requirements. Follow the 3 steps and get your valuable data in no time:
Step 1: Launch the software and from the homepage, select the type of file you need to restore and click Next to continue.
Step 2: Now, select the storage drive where your deleted data was earlier stored and click Scan to initiate the scanning process.
Step 3: Once the scan is completed, all the deleted files will appear on your screen to preview. Select the files you want and click the “Recover” button to save recovered data at the desired location on your Mac.
Other Alternatives to Recover Lost Data from an External Drive on Mac
In this part of the blog, we’ll go through some manual approaches to restore your lost data from an external drive on Mac:
Method 01: Check Trash on the External Drive
Every deleted file on Mac goes to the Trash folder and remains there until it is permanently removed. If you eject the external drive from the Mac, the deleted file will also disappear from the Trash. But as soon as you connect the hard drive back to your Mac, it will reappear.
Follow the below steps to restore your lost data from the External drive on Mac via Trash:
- Firstly, connect the external drive to your Mac.
- Launch the Trash folder by double-clicking the icon from the Dock.
- Go through the deleted files and select the one you need to restore.
- Right-click on the file you want and choose the “Put Back” option from the drop-down menu to restore the file to its original location.
Method 02: Recover Data from Backup
If the above steps don’t work, it’s time to check some previously created backups. If you are good at maintaining regular backups of your important files, you can use these backups to restore lost data. Some common backup options that you can try to recover data from an External drive on Mac are:
Using Time Machine Backups:
macOS provides built-in Time Machine backup utility which automatically backs up your Mac and connected external drives (if configured). If you’ve set up Time Machine to include your external drive, follow the below steps to recover lost data:
- Connect the Time Machine backup drive to your Mac.
- Now, go to the Apple menu and select System Settings > General > Time Machine. Or, you can click the Time Machine icon in the menu bar and select Enter Time Machine.
- Locate your external drive from the left sidebar and use the timeline on the right side to scroll through different backup points.
- Browse through files and folders and select the ones you need to recover.
- Click Restore to save the selected file to its original location on the external drive.
Using iCloud Drive
If you’ve been using iCloud Drive to store important files from your external drive, recovery is simple. All you have to do is:
- Go to Finder and click iCloud Drive from the sidebar.
- Browse through your iCloud Drive folders to locate the files you want to recover.
- Select the files or folders and drag them to your external drive or another safe location on your Mac.
Preventing Future Data Loss on External Drives
All the above-mentioned methods for data recovery on Mac are quite simple and easy to implement, but it is important to avoid such data loss instances. To prevent the deletion of files from External drives on your Mac, consider the below practices:
- Maintain Regular Backups: Set up Time Machine or use other backup solutions like iCloud or third-party cloud services.
- Safely Eject Drives: Improper ejection of external drives while transferring or saving files may lead to their deletion. Always eject external drives properly to prevent file system corruption.
- Protect Against Malicious Programs: Install a reliable antivirus software and keep your macOS updated to guard against viruses/malware that could corrupt your files.
Conclusion
Recovering lost data from an external drive on a Mac is possible with the above-mentioned tools and techniques. Start with basic checks, and if required, leverage third-party Mac data recovery software like Stellar Data Recovery Professional for Mac. For severe cases, professional services are your best bet. Implementing preventive measures like maintaining regular backups, installing a reliable antivirus software, etc. ensures you won’t have to deal with data loss frequently.
