How to Use Jihosoft File Recovery — Step-by-Step TutorialLosing files can be stressful, whether it’s an important work document, family photos, or a project you’ve been working on for months. Jihosoft File Recovery is a desktop tool designed to recover deleted or lost files from a range of storage devices. This tutorial walks through preparing for recovery, installing and configuring the software, performing scans, previewing and recovering files, and tips to maximize your chances of a successful restore.
Before you start: important precautions
- Stop using the affected drive immediately after noticing data loss. Continuing to write files to the drive (including installing recovery software on it) can overwrite deleted data and reduce recoverability.
- Work from a separate drive: install Jihosoft File Recovery and recover files to a different physical drive or an external USB/SSD to avoid overwriting.
- Check the device type: Jihosoft supports internal HDDs/SSDs, external drives, USB sticks, memory cards (SD, microSD), and some mobile devices when mass-storage mode is available.
- Know the file systems you may recover from (NTFS, FAT32, exFAT, HFS+, APFS, etc.) and any encryption that might prevent recovery.
1. Installation and first-run setup
- Download Jihosoft File Recovery from the official vendor site. Verify the download matches the official checksum if provided.
- Run the installer and follow prompts. Choose a custom install path if you need to avoid installing on the drive that lost data.
- Launch the application. On first run, allow any necessary permissions (administrator rights are often required to access low-level disk sectors).
Common settings to check on first run:
- Recovery destination path: set a default to an external drive.
- File type filters: enable common formats you expect to recover (documents, images, videos, archives).
2. Selecting the drive or device to scan
- From the main interface, locate the list of available drives and removable devices.
- Select the exact drive or partition where the files were lost. If you’re unsure which partition held the data, start with the whole physical drive.
- If your storage device is not visible, check physical connections, try a different USB port or adapter, ensure the device shows up in the OS Disk Management (Windows) or Disk Utility (macOS).
Tip: For slightly damaged drives, keep scans read-only and avoid tools with write operations until you’ve imaged the drive.
3. Choosing a scan mode
Jihosoft File Recovery typically offers at least two scanning options:
- Quick Scan (or Fast Scan): searches for recently deleted files using filesystem records. Faster, useful when files were deleted recently and the filesystem is intact.
- Deep Scan (or Full Scan): performs a sector-by-sector scan to find file signatures. Slower but more thorough; necessary when the filesystem is corrupted, a partition was formatted, or files were deleted long ago.
Which to use:
- If the deletion just happened and the partition appears normal, start with Quick Scan.
- If Quick Scan doesn’t find the files, run a Deep Scan. Deep Scan can take hours on large drives.
4. Running the scan
- Choose the scan mode and click Start or Scan.
- Monitor progress — the interface usually shows elapsed time, percent complete, and number of files found.
- While scanning, you can often pause or stop. Pausing is useful if you want to preview early results; stopping cancels the scan and you’ll need to restart to continue.
Notes:
- Deep Scans can be CPU- and I/O-intensive. Avoid heavy disk activity during the scan.
- If the drive is making unusual noises (clicking, grinding), power off and consult a data-recovery professional; continued operation can cause permanent damage.
5. Previewing found files
- After—or during—the scan, browse the recovered file list organized by file type, path, or date.
- Use the preview pane to open images, text files, and some documents. Previewing helps confirm file integrity before recovery.
- Pay attention to file names, sizes, and timestamps. Files recovered via deep scan may have generic names (e.g., file0001.jpg) and require sorting by preview or file signature.
Limitations:
- Some file types (complex office documents, multimedia with partial data) may not be fully previewable if corrupted.
- Previews are read-only and do not change the source drive.
6. Selecting and recovering files
- Check the boxes next to the files and folders you want to recover. Use filters to narrow by type (e.g., .docx, .jpg) or size.
- Click Recover (or Recover to) and choose a destination folder on a different physical drive. If available, create a dedicated folder for recovered items.
- Start recovery. The software will copy the recovered files to the chosen destination.
After recovery:
- Open several recovered files to verify integrity.
- If files are corrupted, consider re-running a deeper scan, or try different recovery software as alternative signatures and algorithms can yield different results.
7. Advanced tips and troubleshooting
- If the OS cannot mount the drive but the device appears in the list, create a sector-by-sector image of the drive (if Jihosoft or a separate tool supports imaging). Work from the image rather than the original device.
- For formatted drives: use Deep Scan and look for file-type folders (e.g., JPG, DOCX) or raw signature hits.
- If you see duplicate recovered files, compare file sizes and timestamps to pick the best version.
- For encrypted volumes (BitLocker/FileVault), you need the decryption key/password to access and recover original files.
- Corrupt video files may require specialized repair tools after recovery.
- If recovery fails repeatedly and the data is critical, stop and contact a professional data recovery lab. Continued DIY attempts can reduce the chance of successful professional recovery.
8. Post-recovery: verification and backups
- Verify recovered data by opening files and confirming contents.
- Create redundant backups: at minimum, keep recovered data in two locations (local external drive + cloud backup).
- Consider implementing an automated backup plan (File History, Time Machine, or third-party backup) to prevent future loss.
Example walkthrough (recovering deleted photos from a USB flash drive)
- Remove the USB stick from the computer and re-insert into a USB port. Use a different USB port if needed.
- Open Jihosoft File Recovery and select the USB drive from the device list.
- Run Quick Scan first. If photos don’t appear, run Deep Scan.
- Preview recovered thumbnails to locate the correct photos.
- Select photos and click Recover. Save them to an external SSD.
- Inspect several recovered photos to confirm quality; re-run deep scan if many files are missing or corrupted.
Common questions
Q: Can Jihosoft recover files from a physically damaged drive? A: Only partially — if the drive has physical damage, software tools are limited. Professional recovery services may be required.
Q: Will recovered files retain original filenames and folder structure? A: Sometimes. Quick Scan is more likely to preserve structure; deep/raw scans often yield generic names.
Q: Is it safe to install the software on the same drive that lost data? A: No. Installing or writing to the affected drive increases the chance of overwriting recoverable data.
Final notes
Data recovery success depends on how soon you act, the type of data loss, and the condition of the storage medium. Jihosoft File Recovery provides an accessible interface for most common recovery needs, but for physically damaged hardware or mission-critical data, consult a professional.
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