Microsoft Releases Windows File Recovery Tool

Microsoft has released a file recovery program for Windows 10. Windows File Recovery is command line based and is available in the Microsoft Store for version 2004, currently the latest, of the OS.

The tool can work based on the master file table to find files, but there is also segment mode for when the mft has run out of data about the file in question. Finally, there is signature mode, in which the data is searched purely, without the help of the mft or segments. You can search by file name and extension.

It is not known whether there will be an interface for the application. Microsoft has set up a help page for those who need it. In any case, the application does not currently support all file types. Popular types such as jpg, mp3, mp4, png, pdf, docx and zip are represented. A full list is on the support page.

Until now, users had to rely on third-party applications to recover a file. Applications such as Recuva and Photorec are widely used for this. While these are third-party and Recuva has paid features, they do have GUIs.