Windows File Recovery

Creating backups is a good habit everyone should have to avoid losing files accidentally. Windows comes with integrated backup and restore capabilities that help you create backups of important data. However, it might sometimes happen that files get lost or deleted without intention. The Windows File Recovery app was created for such cases, providing a simple means of trying to retrieve files that are no longer present on local storage devices.

Windows File Recovery can be accessed via the Microsoft Store and can only be used on Windows 10 build 19041 or later. It is a console application, which means regular computer users might not enjoy the lack of a standard interface. However, keep in mind that the syntax is rather simple and that usage instructions and examples are available.

Once installed, you can access it just like you would any other application, by typing in its name via the start menu. Since it is a Windows Store application, it can then be accessed directly via the Windows console as well, by typing in "winfr”, followed by the desired parameters. As a standard template, you must specify the source and the destination drives, as well as additional switches, if desired. Please note that paths should end in backslash (/).

It is possible to restore files with Windows File Recovery in three different modes, namely Default, Segment and Signature. The second mode uses file record segments and is fit for NTFS drives only, while the latter mode performs data recovery using file headers. You can configure the application to retrieve specific extension groups in Signature mode. In other words, it is possible to filter the file search if needed.

There is a list of advanced features that grant you even more control over the data recovery process. You can configure Windows File Recovery to also look for system files or non-deleted files and customize the way it handles doubles. Moreover, it allows you to exclude certain file types from the analysis.

Windows File Recovery can retrieve data from internal, external or portable storage devices, but shared network files and cloud storage are not supported. Working with it is intuitive and easy, even if you don’t have prior experience with the Windows console. And, since it is created by Microsoft, you can rely on it to find what you need.