Ontrack EasyRecovery Home
Ontrack EasyRecovery Home is a data recovery tool that retrieves deleted files from hard drives, SSDs, USB drives, and memory cards. It handles accidental deletion, formatted drives, corrupted partitions, and lost data from system crashes. Supports NTFS, FAT, exFAT, and HFS+ file systems. The Home edition costs around $79/year. Available on Windows and macOS.
What it does
Recovery starts with selecting the type of data you want back (photos, documents, videos, or everything), then picking the drive to scan. Quick Scan checks recently deleted files and finishes in minutes. Deep Scan analyzes raw sectors byte by byte, recognizing files by their signatures even when the file system is damaged or the drive has been formatted.
After scanning, you can preview found files before recovering them. Filters narrow results by file type, date range, size, and name. The disk imaging tool (Tools > Create Image) creates a sector level copy of a failing drive, letting you scan the image safely without stressing the original hardware.
Scan sessions can be saved and resumed later, useful for deep scans on large drives that take hours.
Advantages
- Guided wizard interface makes recovery straightforward for non technical users
- Preview files before recovery to confirm you found the right data
- Disk imaging protects failing drives from additional wear during scanning
- Save and resume scan sessions on large drives
Drawbacks
- $79/year subscription for software you may only need once
- Free alternatives like Recuva and PhotoRec handle many recovery scenarios
- No free tier or trial recovery - you must pay before recovering any files
- Disk Drill and R-Studio offer more advanced features at similar prices
Who it is for
Ontrack EasyRecovery Home is for people who accidentally deleted files or have a drive that stopped working and want a simple, guided recovery process. I found the wizard approach easier than R-Studio or TestDisk, but the yearly cost is hard to justify for one time use. If you just need to recover deleted files from a healthy drive, try the free Recuva first. For damaged file systems, PhotoRec is free and open source, though less approachable.
Frequently Asked Questions
Is Ontrack EasyRecovery free?
Can it recover files from a formatted drive?
What file systems does it support?
Are there free alternatives?
Features & How-To Guide
| # | Feature | How to use |
|---|---|---|
| 1 | Deleted file recovery | Run › Choose data type (photos/documents/video/other) › Choose drive › Scan › Preview › Check files › Recover › Choose save location. |
| 2 | Data recovery after disk formatting | Choose formatted drive › Deep Scan › Program analyzes raw sectors › Recognizes files by signatures › Recover. |
| 3 | Photo recovery from camera memory cards | Choose type: Photos › Choose memory card › Scan › Program recognizes RAW/JPEG/TIFF › Preview › Recover. |
| 4 | File preview before restore (alt) 2 | After scan › Click file › Preview (photos/documents/video) › Confirm correct file › Only then recover. |
| 5 | Filtering results by file type | After scan › Filter panel › Choose file type (e.g. JPEG/DOCX/MP4) › Date range › Size › Narrow results. |
| 6 | Recovery from damaged partitions | Choose physical drive (not partition) › Scan › Program detects lost partitions › Browse found files › Recover. |
| 7 | Disk image for safe scanning | Tools › Create Image › Choose damaged drive › Save image to healthy drive › Scan image instead of original. |
| 8 | Save and resume scanning session | During or after scan › File › Save Scan Session › Later: File › Resume Recovery › Continue without rescanning. |
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