How to Recover a Lost/Deleted Partition in Windows 11/10

Updated on Jun 14, 2024 | by Edwards

If you are a Windows user, even you would have created multiple partitions to ease your work and keep it organized. After all, a partition can help you serve with numerous benefits:

⛱️ Protects data by creating multiple partitions for neat segregation to separate personal and professional files. This facilitates file management and improves search speed.
🏷️ Allows running multiple OS on a single system, where you can install a new version of Windows on a distinct partition without affecting the current one. This will also generate less fragmentation, stabilize the system, and extend the hard drive's life.
🗃️ Keep Windows system files and other data in separate partitions. If the system crashes and needs reinstalling, your files will not be lost!
📈 Partition creation helps boost performance by reducing strokes of mechanical HDDs.

However, if you cannot access your partition and wish to find it and the saved data, you have arrived at the right corner. This article will pave the way to help you recover deleted/lost partition from the hard disk in Windows 11/10 by providing you with five ingenious solutions. Stay tuned to check each one and pick the one that best fits your needs.

Quick Navigation: Part 1. What is a Partition and Common Causes of Partition Loss; Part 2. 4 Ways to Recover Deleted Partition in Windows 11/10 (Free and Paid); Part 3. Comparison of the 4 Partition Recovery Methods; Part 4. How to Repair Corrupted Partitions; Part 5. How to Avoid Partition Loss or Deletion

Part 1. What is a Partition and Common Causes of Partition Loss

Usually, a hard drive is divided into several partitions to make the disk available to the operating system and personal data. The various types of partitions are:

🖥️ Primary cells: Stores the operating system
💽 Extended volumes: Stores the extra disk partition
📑 Logical partitions: Helps organize the data files

So, generally, a hard drive has a primary and active partition where the OS installs by default. And one or more logical partitions where all the documents, movies, images, videos, personal files, etc., are stored. Sometimes, we are using them and find out that the partition is deleted or lost due to the following situations:

😭 Accidental deletion or formatting errors can be one of the main reasons for partition disappearance.
🚧 Partitioning or tweaking the files in improper sizes can lead to a partition loss if you are not thorough with the details of the process.
🤖 Computer malware and virus attacks infect the systems and the hard drives resulting in a partition loss/removal.
🔌 Frequent and unexpected shutdowns like power outages, irregular BIOS upgrades, infected applications, etc., lead to system malfunctions and, in turn, affect the partitions of a hard drive.
🚨 Ensure the partition table is not damaged, as a corrupt partition table can lead to a partition loss.
📀 If a user mistakenly selects to clean the hard drive instead of the system partition during the system reinstallation, it leads to a partition loss or deletion.
⌛ Bad sectors fail to correctly recognize the data and drive, resulting in corrupt partitions.

Part 2. 4 Ways to Recover Deleted Partition in Windows 11/10 (Free and Paid)

A deleted volume can become a data catastrophe if you fail to take the required measures in time. You were finding a volume has become relatively easy with the help of multiple ways. Here we present before you the top five methods and the quick steps to use them to help you recover partition in Windows 11/10 for free and paid. Go through all the methods and select the one best fits your needs and requirements.

Way 1. Restore Partition Using Diskpart:

DiskPart is a free and inbuilt feature of the Windows PC system that you can use to recover partition free if you have lost it due to the loss of drive letter. It is a command-line utility that works via diverse command lines to perform disk partitioning tasks. DiskPart works efficiently on Windows 11, Windows 10, Windows 7, and Windows 8.

After entering Diskpart in the search box, click Run as administrator.
Type in List disk and press Enter.
Select disk X (where X is the letter of the disk that has lost the partition) and press Enter.
Type List volume and press Enter
Select volume m (where m is the lost partition) and press Enter

Assign letter: g press Enter. (g is a drive letter you want to give it)

Note: Once the whole process of operation takes place, Windows Explorer will show your volume as the unallocated space. If the partition table is deleted mistakenly, in that case, the DiskPart might fail to recover deleted partition free efficiently.

Way 2. Recover Deleted Partition Free by Deep Data Recovery:

After the partition table is lost, the saved files will also disappear. First, we should ensure that the data is extracted correctly and then rebuild the partition. Here we will use a powerful data recovery freeware (Qiling Free Data Recovery) to help us retrieve files lost after partition deletion. It uses its two scan modes, the Quick Scan and the Deep Scan, to scan every sector to ensure any data is fully recovered. It is also highly compatible with all Windows OS and Mac computers. Here are the complete steps to free recover deleted partition in Windows 11, 10, and more:

Download to install and launch the Qiling Free Data Recovery tool to your Windows PC.
Irrespective of the partition deletion on your system, Qiling will quickly find and display all the hidden and deleted partitions as a yellow warning icon and the name "Lost Partition -1/2/3 or Local Disk (*)". You can select the one you lost based on Capacity and click the Scan button.

Once the scanning process finishes, all the files will list into categories and will display on the right side. You can then select the ones you require and preview them effortlessly.
Select the ones you need to recover and hit the "Recover" button to save the files to drives.

Open Disk Management and select the volume shown as "Freespace." Right-click on "New Simple Volume" and follow the wizard to complete the partition reconstruction.

Finally, copy the recovered files to the newly created partition.

Way 3. Get Deleted/Lost Partition Table with DiskGenius

Disk Genius is a free tool to recover lost/deleted partitions in Windows 10, 11, and 8. It can fixes the corrupt or damaged partition table. This undelete or unformat partition software can also provides backing up data, disk utilities, and disk partition management.

Download and launch the Disk Genius app
In the left panel, select the disk that the lost partitions.
Select the Partition Recovery button directly from the toolbar.
Select a search range and hit the Start button to search for the lost cells.
After completing the scan, select your lost partition and click on the "File" tab to save the file like this screenshot.

recover deleted partition with diskGenius

After making sure the file is saved, right-click the target partition and click "Create New Partition."

Way 4. Partition Recovery Using a Disk Recovery Service:

Suppose none of those mentioned above methods works for you. In such a case, you must refrain from recovering the partition yourself to avoid further loss. Instead, another way to restore lost partition in Windows 11/10 is to find and visit a local disk recovery service provider. The professional experts can help you with the technicalities through expert skills and knowledge.

However, this method might not be economical for you. Additionally, it may take sufficient time to retrieve the lost data. And even if you recover it successfully, your sensitive information might fall into the wrong hands and threaten your privacy.

Part 3. Comparison of the 4 Partition Recovery Methods

After going through the thorough details of all the methods, you would indeed be looking forward to checking them for quick highlights. Here is a comparative analysis of all the three ways with their prices, simplicity in usage, and pros & cons to assist you in making your decision seamlessly.

recovery success rate
may be potential risks of privacy leakage
repair corrupt data
file preview
user interface
[P]rice

Diskpart
★★★☆☆
only a command line interface, which is challenging to use
Free

Qiling Free Data Recovery
★★★★★
friendly
2GB for free, Personal License: $49.95

DiskGenius
★★★★☆
difficult to use
$69.90

Disk Recovery Service
★★★★★
-
-

The Diskpart has a complex user interface, Disk Genius partition table recovery success rate is not high, and the disk recovery service is expensive and threatens privacy. So it will be best to use the Qiling software as it is a free and beginner-friendly data recovery software and does not require external professional help.

Part 4. How to Repair Corrupted Partitions

Here we have listed some common errors that might make the partition inaccessible. If your device is exposed to any of the reasons listed below, you must quickly act upon the given solution to repair the corrupt cells and avoid further damage.

Error 1. File or Directory Is Unreadable and Corrupt

Solution: Repair the file system error using chkdsk. The reason might lie in the File Folder, FAT damage, or the Master File Tablet (MFT).

Steps: Press win + r > Type cmd > Click Enter > Type chkdsk/ f drive letter: > Click Enter.

Error 2. Partition Turn into Unallocated Space

Solution: Recover partitions files using powerful recovery software like Qiling Free Data Recovery Software. Then, use Disk Management to create a new section.

Error 3. Access is denied

Solution: Format your drive to resolve the issue.

Steps: Connect the Drive to the system > Right-click on Computer > Manage > Disk Management > Right-click the Corrupt Drive > Select Format > Click Ok > Set the File System and Volume Level > Search Perform a Quick Format > Click OK.

Error 4. Drive Letter Is Missing

Solution: Get the missing drive letter by assigning a drive letter manually using Disk Management. Change the drive letter and path by giving it the letter not in use.

Steps: Right-click on partition > Click Change Drive Letters and Paths > Click Add > Select OK.

Error 5. USB Device Not Recognized

Solution: Ensure the USB is enabled in BIOS and the OS. Also, check the USB interface voltage to ensure it is up to the mark. Additionally, you can also use Disk Management to unhide the drive.

Part 5. How to Avoid Partition Loss or Deletion

Data is an essential part of all the users and is generally stored on hard drive partitions. However, you must check the possible reasons not to let a partition hamper your files and system in the future.

📜 Before splitting your drive partition, make sure to take a backup of your data- make a drive image (if possible).
📐 Opt for suitable partition sizes to leave sufficient space for your operating system to work smoothly.
🔋 Ensure a consistent power supply during the partition splitting process.
🔍 Scan and examine the partition's overall health using the CHKDSK command before splitting it to avoid data loss. In case of any errors, fix them to bypass any crashes or malfunctions.
📤 Avoid splitting the drive partition with your operating system as it may modify your device's setting and may further result in its malfunctioning.
🎖️ Use a reliable third-party partition tool to split the drive partitions- avoid the ones from unknown developers and sources.
⛱️ Ensure the protection of the partition table from damage to avoid any partition deletion or loss
🎛️ Avoid disk formatting or partitioning on your own to bypass any data loss issue.

Conclusion

Although you can recover a lost partition from external hard drive, built-in disk, USB drive using the viable options suggested here. But, it is advised not to load any new data until the recovery of the deleted partition to avoid any overwriting issues and make the possibility of any recovery grave or slim.

Finally, among all the listed methods, Qiling free partition recovery software is fully compatible with recovering lost/deleted partitions in Windows 11/10 for free. It works efficiently even if the files are lost due to deletion, repartition, hard drive crash, improper cloning, hidden, etc. This software does not require technical expertise, and your data stays safe.