profile

Tool Tips: DiskDigger

Two of the biggest challenges faced by all computer users are recovering accidentally deleted files, and ensuring that purposefully deleted files actually remain deleted.

One handy free utility that helps ease these processes is DiskDigger, which according to its maker's website can recover files from any type of media that your computer can read — including USB flash drives, memory cards such as SD, CompactFlash, Memory Stick and others, and hard drives too. Recoverable file types include photos, videos, music, documents and other formats.

Bypassing the Windows file system drivers, DiskDigger scans disk drives directly and reportedly can even scan reformatted or badly formatted disks to which Windows can't even assign a drive letter; as well as disks with bad sectors.

The program offers built-in support for the FAT12 (floppy disk), FAT16 (older memory cards), FAT32 (newer memory cards and hard disks), NTFS (newer hard disks), and exFAT (Microsoft's new successor to FAT32) file systems.

A single executable file, DiskDigger is compact and portable, with nothing to install and leaving no trace of having been run.

DiskDigger offers two modes of operation. The first scans the file system for deleted files and is fast and able to recover all file types and file names — although this mode doesn't support all possible file systems and doesn't scan the entire disk, limiting its search to only those files that the file system is aware of.

The second, more extensive mode scans the disk surface for all traces of lost files, thoroughly scanning every sector of your media and going underneath the file system to find hidden files. While it is sometimes much slower than the first method and unable to recover file names or fragmented files and only supporting certain file types, this mode will find all 'existing' and still-accessible deleted files.

DiskDigger is not magic nor is it a "repair" utility. It is strictly a "read-only" tool and does not change the contents of the scanned media nor will it attempt to fix the formatting of the media, if needed.

A work in progress, DiskDigger has new features added regularly, including support for more file formats, more configuration options, and more. It is claimed to be intuitive enough for most people to use without a written guide, but a tutorial is available from TechRepublic.

In my own personal tests, I in fact found DiskDigger able to retrieve image files from a disk that had been cleaned and fully formatted; making the utility handy for retrieving "lost" files and ensuring the total deletion of sensitive information. Try it for yourself.

Related:  

Copyright © 2025 Adnet Media. All Rights Reserved. XBIZ is a trademark of Adnet Media.
Reproduction in whole or in part in any form or medium without express written permission is prohibited.

More Articles

profile

WIA Profile: Reba Rocket

As chief operating officer and chief marketing officer of Takedown Piracy, long at the forefront of intellectual property protection in adult entertainment, Rocket is dedicated to safeguarding the livelihoods of content creators and producers while fostering a more ethical and sustainable industry.

Women In Adult ·
opinion

Protecting Content Ownership Rights When Using AI

In today’s digital age, content producers have more tools at their disposal than ever before. Among these tools, artificial intelligence (AI) content generation has emerged as a game changer, enabling creators to produce high-quality content quickly and efficiently.

Corey D. Silverstein ·
opinion

How Payment Orchestration Can Help Your Business

An emerging payment solution is making waves in the merchant world: the payment orchestration platform (POP). It’s quickly gaining traction as a powerful tool for managing online payments — but questions abound.

Cathy Beardsley ·
opinion

Fine-Tuning Refund and Cancellation Policies

For adult websites, managing refunds and cancellations isn’t just about customer service. It’s a crucial factor in maintaining compliance with the regulations of payment processors and payment networks such as Visa and Mastercard.

Jonathan Corona ·
profile

WIA Profile: Laurel Bencomo

Born in Cambridge, England but raised in Spain, Laurel Bencomo initially chose to study business at the University of Barcelona simply because it felt familiar — both of her parents are entrepreneurs. She went on to earn a master’s degree in sales and marketing management at the EADA Business School, while working in events for a group of restaurants in Barcelona.

Women In Adult ·
profile

Gregory Dorcel on Building Upon His Brand's Signature Legacy

“Whether reflected in the storyline or the cast or even the locations, the entertainment we deliver is based on fantasy,” he elaborates. “Our business is not, and never has been, reality. People who are buying our content aren’t expecting reality, or direct contact with stars like you can have with OnlyFans,” he says.

Jeff Dana ·
opinion

How to Turn Card Brand Compliance Into Effective Marketing

In the adult sector, compliance is often treated as a gauntlet of mandatory checkboxes. While it’s true that those boxes need to be ticked and regulations must be followed, sites that view compliance strictly as a chore risk missing out on a bigger opportunity.

Jonathan Corona ·
opinion

A Look at the Latest AI Tools for Online Safety

One of the defining challenges for adult businesses is helping to combat the proliferation of illegal or nonconsensual content, as well as preventing minors from accessing inappropriate or harmful material — all the more so because companies or sites unable or unwilling to do so may expose themselves to significant penalties and put their users at risk.

Gavin Worrall ·
opinion

Know When to Drop Domains You Don't Need

Do you own too many domains? If so, you’re not alone. Like other things we accumulate, every registered domain means something to us. Sometimes a domain represents a dream project we have always wanted to do but have never quite gotten around to.

Juicy Jay ·
opinion

Understanding 'Indemnification' in Business Contracts

Clients frequently tell me that they didn’t understand — or sometimes, even read — certain portions of a contract because those sections appeared to be just “standard legalese.” They are referring, of course, to the specialized language used in legal documents, including contracts.

Corey D. Silverstein ·
Show More