Start by counting. One damaged document on an otherwise healthy machine is a file problem with a straightforward fix. Several failing across unrelated folders is the storage telling you something — and running repair tools on a failing drive is how that gets worse.
$ mdr diagnose /dev/sda → Device: WD My Passport (2 TB) · external → Status: CORRUPT — file system RAW, data intact → Client: confidential · Burnley BB11 $ mdr engineer-working → Forensic image: taken · originals untouched → File system: rebuilt from NTFS structures → Restored: 2,840 folders · 61,200 files $ mdr verify → ✓ documents — 38,400 files → ✓ photos — 22,800 files → ✓ drive readable again — recovered
One corrupt document on an otherwise healthy machine is a file problem. Several files failing across different folders is a storage problem — and running repair tools on failing hardware makes that considerably worse.
The most useful diagnostic here, and you can do it in a minute.
If a single document will not open and everything else on the machine is fine, the file itself was damaged — usually by an application crashing mid-save, a network drop while writing to a share, or a removable drive pulled before Windows finished with it. The storage underneath is healthy and the job is repairing one file.
If several files fail, particularly across unrelated folders, the storage is the problem and the corruption is a symptom. Repairing the files individually treats the wrong thing, and every repair pass is more reading and writing on hardware that is already struggling. Check SMART before touching anything — that distinction decides everything that follows.
Structured formats are highly predictable, which is what makes repair possible at all.
Faster and better than any repair, because a repaired file is rarely as good as an intact one.
Word, Excel and most editors keep autosave copies in their own folders, frequently more recent than you would expect.
Right-click the folder, look at Previous Versions on Windows, or enter Time Machine on macOS. Both keep copies quietly.
OneDrive, SharePoint, Google Drive and Dropbox all retain prior versions, and the web interface exposes more than the sync client does.
Emailed to someone, copied to a stick, opened on another machine. A clean copy from a week ago usually beats a repaired copy from today.
Where the storage is healthy, this is frequently a job you can finish yourself.
Where corruption stems from a failing drive, recovery is from £300 +VAT after a free 48-hour diagnostic — the drive is imaged first and the files repaired from the copy, never on the original.
Where the hardware is fine and it is one damaged file, check the four places above first. Between autosave, version history and a copy someone else has, most single-file corruption resolves without anyone paying for anything.
Get the device to us with a short note on what happened. The diagnostic that follows costs nothing, and the figure that follows it is fixed in writing before any work begins.
Nothing can begin until the device is on the bench, which makes this the only step that needs anything from you. Pack it properly, put your details in with it, and send it over. What follows is a free diagnostic and a written figure, in that order.
Posting it? Use something tracked and insured — whatever is on the drive is worth considerably more than the postage. Bringing it in? Weekdays, 9am to 5:30pm, and it still wants packing as above for the journey.
Tell us what the device is, what it is doing, and anything already tried — an engineer will come back with a realistic view of the odds and a price band, before you commit to posting anything.
We’ll be in touch shortly. If it’s urgent, call 0161 871 0788.
What people most often ask about recovering corrupted files and drives.
Often, depending on the format and how much is damaged. Structured formats like Office documents, databases and video containers repair well because their expected structure is predictable. Encrypted and heavily compressed files are far less forgiving.
Commonly an application crashing mid-save, a network interruption while writing to a share, a removable drive pulled too early, or a power cut. Where several files are affected, the cause is usually the storage rather than the files.
Count them. One bad file on an otherwise healthy machine is a file problem. Several failing across unrelated folders points at the drive — check SMART before running any repair tool, because repairs on failing hardware make things worse.
Only once you know the storage is healthy. On a failing drive, repair passes mean more reading and writing on hardware that is already struggling, and many tools write their changes in place with no way back.
Not always. Repair reconstructs what can be reconstructed, so some content may be missing or altered — which is why finding an intact copy in version history or autosave is nearly always the better outcome.
From £300 plus VAT where a failing drive is involved, after a free 48-hour diagnostic. For a single damaged file on healthy hardware, check autosave and version history first — it usually resolves without a bill.
A free diagnostic, no fix no fee on most jobs, and corruption recovery from any drive, stick or card. Leave the repair tools alone — start your recovery today.