Selecting a Scan Mode

The Quick Scan is fast but may not work in all cases. The Long Scan is comprehensive but takes significantly more time. It may also recover many defunct files you no longer want, thus cluterring up the results. The best strategy is to first try the Quick Scan and then use the Long Scan if necessary.

The Quick Scan is best for recovering files deleted accidentally or by a virus and for reconstructing a broken RAID or spanned volume. It is very fast. It uses the Windows file system structure and, therefore, almost always recovers the original folder paths. However, if the file structure is compromised, such as in the case of a corrupted or deleted partition, this mode may not work.

The Long Scan can be used when the drive has been reformatted, repartitioned or has become corrupted. In many cases, it can find files even when the Windows file system structure has been compromised. The Long Scan examines every sector of the drive and takes significantly more time. Under severe conditions, files may be found without the original folder or even filename. When the original filename cannot be determined, a sequential filename will be assigned in the following format:

File type + sequential number + file type.

For example, the first Excel file will be named xls000001.xls.

If a drive is corrupted or its integrity otherwise compromised, you may get better results by scanning the disk number instead of the drive letter. For example, if drive D: on Disk 1 is corrupted, scan Disk 1 instead of drive D:.