Data on SDHC Card but no Container

[zelot]

Good Morning experts

I have a big problem and have no idea anymore, how to resolve the problem. I had a wonderful videoshooting and recorded the sound to my harddsik recorder (4Minx) to a SDHC card. The card get full of data, but the recorder didn't write a filename (container). So I see only, that the card is full of data, but no file or folder is to see.
Is there a way, to recognize the data? To give access to the disorganized data?

Thanks for any help. Sending all the best.
Zelot

[LoRd_MuldeR]

"No filename" and "no container" are two totally different things.

The container format is determined by how the file was created, i.e. by the content of the file. The file's name (with or without extension) doesn't matter at all.

For example: If I have an MP4 file "foo.mp4" and I rename this to "foo.avi", it still remains an MP4 file! The same holds true, when I rename it to "foo.bar" or just "foo" ;)

If you have a file and you are not sure which format it is, use a tool like MediaInfo to find out what it is. Then you can rename it to the "correct" file extension.

There can be data that has no container at all. Like "raw" H.264 streams, for example. But as soon as you have audio+video in one file, it necessarily has a container.

[StainlessS]

I'm not really sure what your problem is, you need to clarify the problem a little more.
However, the recovery software I would recommend would be TestDisk & PhotoRec (GPL Open source).
Here on WikiPedia: http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/TestDisk

Read instructions carefully, and take your time.

[zelot]

Thanks for your inputs, and sorry for my impreciseness.
My problem is:
I recorded sound with my hardrecorder to a empty sdhc card. The recorder didn't write a file. (I don't see a file in my explorer, the card seems to be empty).
But if I check the space of the card, I see, that some data must be on the card. (but in no files). So the recorder recorded data to the card, but didn't put them into files.
I already checked Test Disk, but it could'nt allocate the space to files.
Is there a software, that can allocate undefined data to files?

[LoRd_MuldeR]

This sounds very much like there was some error during the recording process, e.g. the file was not closed correctly.

You would often encounter this kind of problem, when the recording was not stopped correctly, but instead the device went out of power.

This means the data might actually have been written to the SD Card, but there is no file system entry to actually map that data to a file.

Without the correct file system entry, it is impossible to know which of the "raw" data blocks actually belong to the file - and in which order.

All you can do in this situation is NOT write any data onto the SD Card and use some data recovery tools, as StainlessS said.

(I once used "PhotoRec" to recover the photos from a friend's memory card, which he had formated "by accident" - it was successful)

[zelot]

Thanks LoRd_MuldeR, for your answer. I already tried with StainlessS recommended recovery tools. But no success till yet. anyway: thanks all.

[StainlessS]

Try again, I think I'm correct in saying that PhotoRec can identify media files by their content (some time since I had to use either),
also there is (I think) a quick scan method and a slow scan which scans entire disk, use that. Do not try to recover in-situ, and choose
to write recovered data to a hard drive. One of them (TestDisk I think) has a drive imaging function, so you can take a snapshot of
entire SD card and write to a file, and do recovery work on that image file.
You are unlikely to find recovery software, either free or commercial that is significantly better than the mentioned utilities.
(Although they may have a nicer interface or GUI)

[StainlessS]

Here link to PhotoRec:
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/PhotoRec

And here a list of file formats recovered (EDIT: by sector content) by Photorec, it is quite comprehensive:
http://www.cgsecurity.org/wiki/File_Formats_Recovered_By_PhotoRec

[Ghitulescu]

@OP: put back the card into the recorder and play the recordings. If they do, as I would expect, then the recorder used a special format so you have to use its tools to get the music back to computer. Using "recovery" tools you may distroy the original formatting in an attempt to "correct" the "errors".
Are you sure you know how to operate the recorder?

[hello_hello]

I had a look at the 4Minx manual last night, but got distracted and forgot to post. Without downloading the manual again.....

The 4Minx uses the fat32 file system for SDHC cards. It saves the audio as files which are basically wave files with a different extension (I can't remember what it is off the top of my head).

If something went wrong, I've no idea what or why, but it sounds like you should be able to see the files on the card with a PC. Have you used the SDHC card before and know there's nothing wrong with it? It's not a "fake" or anything like that... something which claims to have more capacity than it really does? Have you used the same card in the PC before without a problem?

[marquis]

Is there anyway that you can avoid this type of corruption from happening? Sometimes we don't pay attention to battery life or something goes wrong, so it would be nice to have a little back up and to not have to work so hard to get the file. Or, is it just best to have a good file backup system around? I have had this problem before when I was young, but the files weren't all that important so I just left it.Thanks for asking the question and all those who have responded.

[StainlessS]

Just noticed that TestDisk and Photorec have been released (18 April 2015) at version v7.0 (my old version was v6.14).
https://www.cgsecurity.org/wiki/TestDisk_Download
And v7.0 Release notes:- https://www.cgsecurity.org/wiki/TestDisk_7.0_Release

(there is also a v7.1.Beta available via above link)

EDIT: I somehow 'lost' a partition, attempting recovery.
EDIT: Recovery successful.

[foxyshadis]

(there is also a v7.1.Beta available via above link)

Nice find, I'll run that against the ISO I still have of my corrupted memory card. 7.0 got most things back, but there are other pics that are still out there.

[StainlessS]

Foxy,

Today I zapped a load of files deliberately, then realized that there were I few mixed in that I had not intended delete (NTFS disk).
I did a quick recovery using Photorec, but then after about 20 minutes, thought that I would try another app (was gonna take long time and I wanted to select
files types to recover [ie video]).

So I tried one prog that I have installed on all (except W10 for some reason) machines, PiriForm Recover, v1.53:- https://www.ccleaner.com/download

Quick recovery mode in Recover, failed to recover several files that PhotoRec recovered, however I noticed that about 3 of the files that PhotoRec recovered
were corrupt near end whereas Recover versions were intact. (not the files I was wanting recovery for).

Anyways, just thought I'de suggest trying Recover if you still have corrupt ISO, might be worth a bash.
[It could be that the 3 corrupted PhotoRec files were being recovered when I aborted the recovery (it would not stop <quick enough> so I did a Forced Reboot),
EDIT: However, think is unlikely that PhotoRec was simultaneously trying to recover 3 files at once. It could be that there were more than one version
of the corrupt files on the disk, ie Photorec could have found different ones to those recovered by Recover].

PiriForm (makers of CCleaner [Crap Cleaner]) Recover is currently at v1.53 and has been for quite some time I think, and that could indicate that it is in quite stable state.

EDIT: I just used the Free version Recover.

[StainlessS]

Testdisk & PhotoRec updated to v7.1 Stable, July 2019:- https://www.cgsecurity.org/wiki/TestDisk_Download

Also a v7.2 Beta available from same link.

There is also a forum where expert assistance may be available:- https://forum.cgsecurity.org/phpBB3/

EDIT:
PhotoRec & QPhotoRec
Improvements

Log the correct filenames in photorec.log file
Reduced false positives for tar
Fix recovery of mobius camera videos.
Fix recovery of progressive jpeg
Extract the filesize from sqlite header when available
Recover more fragmented files

New file formats recovered by PhotoRec:

.aes: Synology AES key files
.axp: Pinnacle Studio
.bdm: AVHCD index
.cpi: AVCHD Clip Information
.DS_Store: Apple Desktop Services Store
.dvr: RT60
.gi: Roxio Creator
.gpx: Guitar Pro 6
.gp4: Guitar Pro 4
.iam/.ipt Autodesk Inventor part
.icns: Apple Icon Image
.jsonlz4: Mozilla bookmarks
.lyx LyX 2.X
.mpl: AVHCD playlist
.tg Tux Guitar 1.2
.vdj: VirtualDJ
.wee: weecast
.xar: XAR Archive

EDIT: For Photorec GUI version, you want to start qphotorec_win.exe [photorec_win.exe is DOS box style].

[StainlessS]

Just came across this thread again when searching, here is a tool to assist in recovery of simple text files.

ShowTextFiles.avs - Show textfiles on blank video

Scan directory of text files, showing first few lines of each file on frame
[original intent to aid recovery of accidentally deleted text files from 10,000 possible recovered txt files].
Outputs list of Files with SearchWord found to DebugView, even when DEBUG=False
https://forum.doom9.org/showthread.php?t=177366

[StainlessS]

Nice find, I'll run that against the ISO I still have of my corrupted memory card. 7.0 got most things back, but there are other pics that are still out there.

Foxi, see here: FREE Fully Licensed Retail Version Lexar Image Rescue 3 Software:- https://www.raymond.cc/blog/free-fully-licensed-retail-version-lexar-image-rescue-3-software/
For XP/Vista/Win7 [Win 10 unknown]
Also download for MAC.

I have not tried it [yet].
Lexar are heavy duty into SD cards [They also provide SD card formatters with special options].

EDIT: All comments from users at above link are +ve.