Guide to Recovering Data from a Formatted ReFS Partition

Want to recover data from a formatted ReFS partition in Windows? You can find an easy and effective method here.

What Is ReFS?

ReFS, the abbreviation of Resilient File System, is a new file system introduced by Microsoft to address the growing need for data storage and resilience. It is crafted to optimize data availability, scale efficiently across diverse workloads with large datasets, and ensure data integrity with resilience against corruption. It endeavors to cater to an expanding range of storage scenarios and set a foundation for future innovations.

What if You Format a ReFS Partition Unexpectedly

However, even with its advanced features, data loss can still occur, and one common scenario is the accidental formatting of a ReFS partition.

What does formatting a ReFS partition do?

Formatting a ReFS partition involves preparing the storage space for use by creating a new file system structure on the partition. However, it’s crucial to understand that formatting leads to the removal of all existing data on that partition. The process erases the file allocation table and related metadata, effectively resetting the partition to an empty state.

In the context of ReFS, which is designed for enhanced resilience and data integrity, formatting might be done for various reasons, such as preparing the partition for a new set of files, resolving file system errors, or addressing corruption issues.

Formatting has two options: Quick Format and Full Format

Quick Format is a faster method of formatting a storage device compared to a Full Format. It just initializes the file system and overwrites the existing data structure. However, the actual data on the disk remains largely intact. It is a more convenient option when you are confident that the disk is in good condition and you want to erase the file system and prepare it for new data without spending much time on the process.

Full Format is a more thorough and time-consuming method because it checks the entire disk surface for errors, marks bad sectors, and ensures a complete overwrite of the existing data. It provides a more thorough assessment of the disk’s health and reliability. It is also used when you want to wipe the disk completely before reuse or disposal.

See: Quick Format VS Full Format

Can You Recover Data from a Formatted ReFS Partition?

If you perform a Quick Format, you still have a chance to rescue your files. However, if you perform a Full Format, the possibility is 0.

In many cases, you may not be aware of the format option you have used. On the format drive interface, the Quick Format option is selected by default. If you haven’t paid special attention, you are probably using this formatting mode.

Regardless, if you wish to recover files from a formatted ReFS drive, consider using a free data restore tool to scan your drive and determine if it can locate the necessary files. Upon receiving a positive response, proceed to use the tool to recover all the needed files.

In this article, we will introduce a file recovery tool that is worth trying.

How to Recover Files from a Formatted ReFS Partition?

You should follow these moves strictly to get the best data recovery effect.

Move 1: Stop Using the Partition

The moment you realize that you have formatted a ReFS partition accidentally, it’s crucial to stop using the drive immediately. Continued use may overwrite the data you want to recover, making the process more challenging. Unplug the drive if it is an external drive to avoid any unintentional data writes.

Move 2: Run MiniTool Power Data Recovery to Perform a Formatted ReFS Partition Data Recovery

MiniTool Power Data Recovery is a good choice as it is a professional data recovery software that can recover deleted photos, documents, Emails, videos, and audio files from both internal and external hard drives, SSDs, memory cards, USB flash drives, pen drives, SD cards, and more.

This software is versatile and effective in various situations, including formatted ReFS partition data recovery.

You can first try MiniTool Power Data Recovery Free to scan your drive and check if it can find the files you want to recover. The free edition also allows you to recover 1GB of files, which means you can also check whether the recovered files are available.

Now, you can download and install MiniTool Power Data Recovery Free on your device to have a try. To avoid data overwriting, you should not install the software onto the drive you want to recover files from.

MiniTool Power Data Recovery FreeClick to Download100%Clean & Safe

Here are the steps to recover data from a ReFS partition using this software:

Step 1. Properly connect the target drive to your PC if it is an external drive.

Step 2. Launch MiniTool Power Data Recovery. Then this software will show all the detected partitions under Logical Drives. Find the drive according to its drive letter. However, if it has no drive letter for some reason, you can find it based on its capacity. Hover the drive and click the Scan button to make the software start the scanning process.

Step 3. While you can view the files that have been found during the scanning process, we recommend patiently waiting until the entire scanning process concludes, as this ensures the best data recovery results.

After scanning, this software will list all found files by path. You can open each path to locate the necessary items. Alternatively, you can switch to the Type tab to have the software display files by type. This allows you to find files based on their type, potentially saving time, especially when dealing with a large number of files.

Step 4. To verify if the selected file is the one you want to recover, you can utilize the Preview function of the software to confirm. Click on the file and then select the Preview button to preview the content. Alternatively, you can double-click the file for a preview.

If you confirm it is the needed item, proceed by clicking the Save button in the preview interface, and select a suitable location to save the file. The destination location should not be the formatted ReFS partition, otherwise, the formatted files could be overwritten and become unrecoverable.

Of course, you can also select the needed files from different paths at the same time, then click the Save button and choose a suitable directory to save files.

If you want to use this software to recover more than 1GB of files, you need to use a full edition.

We hope you are lucky enough that this ReFS partition data recovery software can find and recover files from the formatted ReFS drive.

MiniTool Can Help You Recover Data from a Lost ReFS Partition

Do you know how to recover data from a lost ReFS partition? In this post, we will show you how to do this using MiniTool software.

Read More

Move 3: Transfer the Recovered Files to the ReFS Drive

If you still want to save the recovered files to that ReFS partition, you can just transfer the files to it by directly copying and pasting the files to the target ReFS partition.

How to Format a ReFS Partition Without Losing Data

Move 1: Back up Your Files to Another Drive Using MiniTool ShadowMaker

You see, formatting a partition will make you lose all files on it. To protect your files, you need to back up files on it using professional backup software. MiniTool ShadowMaker is such a tool you should try.

MiniTool ShadowMaker is a comprehensive backup and recovery solution designed to safeguard your data by creating and managing system backups, disk/partition backups, and file/folder backups. It is useful for protecting your data against drive formatting, accidental file deletion, system crashes, or other unforeseen events. So, it is a good choice for you to back up your files before formatting a ReFS partition.

You can first try the trial edition of this Windows backup software to back up the partition. This freeware allows you to use the backup and restore features for free within 30 days.

To use MiniTool ShadowMaker, you would typically follow these steps:

Step 1. Download and install the MiniTool ShadowMaker Trial Edition on your device.

MiniTool ShadowMaker TrialClick to Download100%Clean & Safe

Step 2. Launch the program. Then, click the Keep Trial button to start using the trial edition.

Step 3. Click Backup from the left menu to enter the Backup interface.

Step 4. Click the SOURCE section, then click Disk and Partition, and select the target ReFS partition.

Step 5. Click the DESTINATION section and then select the drive where to save the backup file.

Step 6. Click the Back Up Now button.

Step 7. Click the OK button on the pop-up interface to start backing up the selected partition.

You need to wait patiently until the whole backup process ends.

This way will back up the drive to an image, which means you cannot directly view and use the files in the backup. If a data loss issue happens, you can restore the partition from the backup image with MiniTool ShadowMaker.

Move 2. Format a ReFS Partition Correctly

Format a ReFS Partition in File Explorer or Using Disk Management

If you still want to format the partition as a ReFS partition, you need to format it in File Explorer or Disk Management.

It is easy to do this: In File Explorer or Disk Management, you can right-click the target ReFS partition and select Format from the context menu. Next, you need to choose ReFS as the file system and select other available parameters if necessary. At last, you need to click the Start button (in File Explorer) or the OK button (in Disk Management) to start the formatting process.

Format a ReFS Partition Using MiniTool Partition Wizard

If you wish to format the partition with a different file system, such as NTFS or FAT32, MiniTool Partition Wizard is a good choice, as it supports formatting drives with various file systems.

MiniTool Partition Wizard is a dedicated free partition manager. With its Format Partition feature, you can format a drive to FAT32, exFAT, NTFS, and Ext2/3/4. This feature is available in MiniTool Partition Wizard Free.

Step 1. Download and install MiniTool Partition Wizard Free on your device.

MiniTool Partition Wizard FreeClick to Download100%Clean & Safe

Step 2. Open the software and you can see all partitions and disks on your computer. Find the partition you want to format, select it, and choose Format Partition from the left menu bar.

Step 3. Add a partition label, select your needed file system, and then click OK to go back to the main interface.

Step 4. Preview the effect, and then click the Apply button to format the drive.

Conclusion

With MiniTool Power Data Recovery, it is possible to recover data from a formatted ReFS partition. By following the steps outlined in this guide, you can increase your chances of recovering your data intact. Remember to act quickly, choose the right data recovery tool, and avoid further use of the formatted partition until the recovery process is complete.

Additionally, we also suggest backing up your files with the help of MiniTool ShadowMaker before you decide to format a ReFS partition in Windows. This can effectively safeguard your files if they are important to you.

Please contact us via [email protected] if you encounter issues while using MiniTool software.