extundelete

extundelete is a command line tool used to recover deleted files from an ext3 or ext4 file system. It is primarily designed for Linux systems and operates by scanning the file system for deleted inodes (index nodes) and attempting to recover the corresponding data.

The tool works on any block device that uses the ext3 or ext4 file system, including hard drives, solid-state drives, memory cards, and USB drives.

extundelete can recover files that have been deleted recently, as well as older files that may still have their inodes intact. However, successful recovery depends on factors such as how long ago the file was deleted, the amount of file system activity since deletion, and the extent to which new files have overwritten the deleted data.

To use extundelete, you need to have root or administrative privileges since it requires direct access to the storage device. It provides an interface with various options to customize the recovery process, such as specifying an output directory, recovering only certain file types, and searching for files by name or size.

The tool can recover files of various formats, including documents, images, videos, audio files, and archives. However, it may struggle with fragmented files, encrypted files, or files that were stored on faulty sectors of the disk.

extundelete has the ability to recover entire directory structures, ensuring that the recovered files are restored to their original locations. It also creates a log file during the recovery process, listing all the recovered files and their restoration status.

To optimize recovery chances, it is recommended to immediately stop using the affected drive and unmount it before attempting recovery using extundelete. Additionally, having a recent backup is always a safer approach to data recovery.