SD cards are the most widely used form of data collection and are an invaluable resource for photographers and those who have embraced photography as a profession. A locked SD card provides a very congested environment for those using DSLRs. This article will tell you how to recover data from a locked SD card.
Also read: Memory Card Buying Guide for smartphones, Camera and Drone?
Tips to Unlock Locked SD Card and Recover Data
SD Card Unlocking:
There are several ways to unlock a locked SD card. You can unlock the SD card by moving the small button in the corner. Most SD cards come with locking and unlocking features.
Method 1:
You can use Windows PC to unlock the SD card. There are a few steps to unlocking an SD card on a Windows PC
- Step 1: Connect the locked SD card to the Windows PC
- Step 2: If you are using a microSD card you can use an adapter to fit the slot
- Step 3: Press Windows + R key. It runs like a command prompt administrator
- Step 4: Press the following commands and enter each key after each entry
- Step 5: Diskpart, list disk, select disk and press enter
- Step 6: Now you see ‘Attributes Disk ClearOnly’. Press the Enter key
- Step 7: If you see Disk Attributes Cleared Successfully, this is an indication that the disk is no longer protected and can be unlocked.
Method 2:
ES File Explorer also helps unlock SD cards. You can perform the unlock process by following these steps.
- Step 1: Download and Install ES File Explorer on your Android Phone
- Step 2: Insert a password-protected SD card on your Android device
- Step 3: See the MMCSTORE file and mmcstore.txt. Rename it
- Step 4: Open the file and write the password
- Step 5: Try accessing the memory card Enter the password that says Removing the Memory Card Password
How to Recover Files from an Unlocked SD Card
After successfully unlocking your SD card, you will need the Recovery Tool to recover the files. There are free recovery tools available online that you can use.
If you are a professional and want nothing but harm to valuable data, you have to pay for the Recovery Tool. You have to pay for them. But I found it to be more effective in restoring files.
Format the card if you don’t want to spend money on paid software. This wipes out the stored data but makes the card usable for future use. To format an SD card, right-click on Storage on My Computer and select Format.
The system takes some time to delete the files and make the card new.
