Data Recovery for SD Card

With 25+ years of forensic-grade data recovery, Sheffield Data Recovery handles every memory card format and failure mode—from accidental deletion and file-system corruption to controller failures and physically damaged monoliths. We support consumer, professional video/photography, industrial and CCTV workloads.

Submission: Place your card in an anti-static sleeve (if available), pad securely in a padded envelope or small box, include your contact details, and post or drop off to us. Diagnostics are free; we’ll confirm findings and options before proceeding.

Top 30 Memory Card Brands (UK) & Representative Best-Selling Series

SanDisk (Extreme / Extreme PRO / Ultra) · Samsung (EVO / EVO Plus / PRO Plus) · Kingston (Canvas Select/Go! Plus / Canvas React/React Plus) · Lexar (Professional Gold/Silver / 1066x/1800x) · Transcend (300S/700S / 500S / High Endurance) · PNY (Elite-X / Pro Elite / Turbo) · Integral (Ultima Pro / High Endurance / CFexpress Pro) · KIOXIA/Toshiba (Exceria / Exceria Pro) · Sony (Tough-G/M, SF-G, CFexpress Type A) · Panasonic (Gold/Pro, P2 for pro video) · Delkin Devices (Power / Black / CFexpress) · ProGrade Digital (Cobalt / Gold) · Angelbird (AV PRO line: SD/microSD/CFexpress) · ADATA (Premier / Premier Pro) · TeamGroup (T-Force / GO / ELITE) · Silicon Power (Superior / Elite / High Endurance) · Verbatim (Pro+ / Premium) · Patriot (EP / Viper) · Netac (Pro / High-Endurance) · Goodram (IRDM / IRDM Pro) · EMTEC (SpeedIN / Power Plus) · HIKVISION (High-Endurance CCTV) · Gigastone (Pro / Gaming) · Polaroid (High-Speed microSD) · Duracell (Performance microSD) · Fujifilm (xD-Picture legacy) · Olympus (xD-Picture legacy) · Manfrotto (photo-accessory branded cards) · Greenliant (industrial microSD/SD, long-life) · Swissbit (industrial, extended endurance)

Main card types we handle:
SD / SDHC / SDXC / SDUC, microSD / microSDHC / microSDXC / microSDUC, CompactFlash (CF), CFast 2.0, CFexpress (Type A/B/C), XQD, Memory Stick/PRO Duo (legacy), xD-Picture (legacy), SmartMedia (legacy), MMC/RS-MMC/miniSD (legacy), SxS (Sony, pro video), P2 (Panasonic, pro video), UFS Card (industrial, niche).

Our Lab Methodology (What We Actually Do)

1. Forensic Intake & Write-Protection
   • Record CID/CSD, capacity, controller family; enable hardware write-block. No writes occur to original media.
2. Non-Destructive Forensic Imaging
   • For healthy interfaces, acquire a bit-exact, sector-by-sector clone with hardware imagers using unstable-media profiles (variable block sizes, reverse reads, timeout/backoff, ECC-aware retries).
3. Controller/Translation Layer Handling (Flash FTL)
   • Identify controller (Phison, Silicon Motion, Realtek, Alcor, Maxiotek, JMicron, etc.).
   • Where mapping is accessible, extract logical-to-physical (L2P) tables, bad-block maps, wear-level metadata, and ECC/XOR parameters.
4. Monolith & Chip-Level Procedures (When Required)
   • For monolith microSD/SD/xD with interface failure: pinout discovery (VCC, VSS, D0–D7, CLE/ALE/WE/RE/CE/RB), micro-probing; or controlled decapsulation to copper pads.
   • NAND die dumps (per plane/channel), then apply ECC correction, XOR/scrambler de-obfuscation, interleave/de-interleave, and page/Block order reconstruction to build a virtual image.
5. File-System Reconstruction & Carving
   • Rebuild FAT/exFAT/NTFS/HFS+/APFS/EXT/XFS metadata: FAT chains, upcase tables, boot sectors, allocation bitmaps, B-trees.
   • Content-aware carving for RAW/JPEG/HEIC/CR3/NEF/ARW/RW2, MOV/MP4/MXF/GOP-based streams; repair headers and container indexes (moov/mdat).
6. Integrity Verification & Handover
   • SHA-256 manifests, sample opens (images/videos/databases), directory tree audits. Secure delivery as agreed.

Top 75 Memory Card Recovery Faults — and How We Resolve Them (Technical)

1. Accidental deletion (camera review): Clone → unallocated scan → signature-guided carving (JPEG/RAW) → EXIF/time-ordering rebuild.
2. Accidental formatting (quick): Boot sector/FAT re-creation → metadata salvage → carve for missing chains.
3. Full format (overwrite limited): Clone → assess overwrite ratio → carve contiguous residues → partial previews.
4. File-system corruption (FAT/exFAT): FAT chain loss → reconstruct from directory entries & data signatures → rebuild allocation.
5. Damaged boot sector/backup boot: Use backup boot; if missing, infer BPB from heuristics → restore mountability on clone.
6. Cross-linked clusters: Normalize chains → export intact files; carve conflicted extents.
7. Lost directory entries: Directory record reconstruction from cluster signatures & EXIF; graft orphans.
8. exFAT allocation bitmap corrupt: Rebuild bitmap from used-cluster analysis; validate against directory entries.
9. exFAT upcase table damage: Replace with standard table; recover filenames; data unaffected.
10. “Card not recognized” (enumeration fails): Voltage/clock train checks → alternate readers/hosts → if still dead, monolith workflow.
11. Read/write errors (I/O retries): Imaging with adaptive block sizes, reverse pass; map weak areas.
12. Bad blocks (NAND wear): Multi-read majority voting; ECC relax/retune; dump then re-assemble.
13. Controller failure (no ID): Force test mode; if locked, bypass to chip-level NAND dump.
14. Firmware hang (controller BSY): Power-cycling matrix; vendor commands; if unresolved, chip-off.
15. Power-loss mid-write: Incomplete FAT/dir entries → journalless repair + carving; for video, atom/index rebuild.
16. Overwritten data (continued shooting): Quantify overwrite; extract remaining ranges; per-frame salvage for codecs.
17. Partition table loss (MBR/GPT): Heuristic boundary detection via FS signatures; rebuild partition.
18. Logical encryption (camera/app): Require keys; otherwise carve only (no plaintext mapping).
19. Virus/malware (hidden files/shortcuts): Restore attributes on image; copy real content; verify integrity.
20. Controller translation loss (FTL map gone): Recreate mapping from spare area markers, sequence numbers, die/plane patterns.
21. Wear-level metadata corruption: Infer block order; use temporal patterns from file EXIF to stitch.
22. ECC uncorrectable spikes: Lower read speed; soft-read repeats; per-page majority vote.
23. XOR/scrambler unknown: Derive via known-plaintext (FAT/exFAT headers, JPEG SOI markers); apply across dump.
24. Monolith pad oxidation/damage: Micro-polish; reinforce with micro-wires; stabilize before dump.
25. Bent/broken pins (SD): Replace shell/connector; if controller pads torn, go monolith.
26. Water immersion: Controlled dry; corrosion mitigation; then image; avoid power until dry.
27. Saltwater damage: De-ionize rinse, ultrasonic (controlled), dry; if pads compromised → monolith.
28. Fire/heat exposure: Visual die check; if encapsulant intact, attempt dump; expect ECC heavy.
29. Physical cracking: If controller intact → image; otherwise chip-off NAND salvage.
30. Microfractures (BGA bond): Thermal stabilization; minimal attempts; fall back to chip-off.
31. xD-Picture (legacy) interface fail: Identify NAND topology; reconstruct Olympus/Fuji mapping.
32. SmartMedia (legacy): Handle bad block markers (0xF0/0x00); custom interleave rules; rebuild FAT12/16.
33. CF (PATA) card controller fail: Access via TrueIDE; if dead, chip-off TSOPs.
34. CFast 2.0 SATA fault: Native SATA imaging; if no ID, controller/ROM recovery.
35. XQD media: PCIe controller analysis; otherwise chip-level if feasible.
36. CFexpress Type B (NVMe) logical issue: NVMe namespace imaging; repair FS; for controller fail, vendor-specific.
37. Sony SxS media: PCIe host; map partition; if controller dead, proprietary handling/chip-off when possible.
38. P2 cards: RAID-like span across NAND modules; rebuild stripe order; recover MXF.
39. UHS timing issues: Use UHS-I fallback; stabilize bus; then image.
40. Counterfeit capacity (F3 “wrap-around”): Map real capacity; recover true region; warn on missing tail.
41. Controller-side encryption (unknown key): Metadata recovery only; carve content; full logical recovery requires key.
42. Bit flips (retention): Multiple reads, temperature-tuned reads; ECC assistance.
43. Read-disturb: Refresh strategy across affected blocks; prioritize critical ranges.
44. CCTV endurance exhaustion: Heavily cycled areas: recover timeline segments; reconstruct GOPs.
45. GoPro/Action cam spanning: Rejoin spanned files; rebuild MP4/MOV moov atoms.
46. DJI/UAV: Metadata-heavy; stitch TEASER fragments; rebuild index.
47. Canon/Nikon RAW directory loss: Recreate from maker notes and preview JPEGs.
48. Sony ARW sidecar issues: Rebuild linkage; carve RAW + .XML sidecars.
49. Panasonic RW2: Header repair; recover embedded JPEGs if RAW partial.
50. ProRes/CinemaDNG on CFexpress: Recover per-clip directories; fix frame indexes.
51. File name garbling (exFAT codepage): Restore via upcase tables; where missing, infer from EXIF date order.
52. Allocation loop (FAT cross-link): Break loop; duplicate and carve conflicting sectors.
53. Directory tree wiped: Root dir rebuild; orphan grafting; carve residuals.
54. Wear-out end of life (read-only): Image entire device; rebuild logically.
55. Sudden “needs formatting” prompt: Do not format; image; repair boot/FAT structures.
56. Windows shows 32KB capacity: Fake firmware map; dump and reconstruct real size region.
57. Mac won’t mount (HFS+/APFS) on card: image; rebuild catalog/object map.
58. Linux EXT on card: Superblock/backup superblock recovery; journal replay.
59. NTFS on card (rare): $MFT/$Bitmap repair; carve if incomplete.
60. Hidden vendor partition: Expose; image both; merge logical view.
61. Write-protect switch failure (SD): Mechanical switch/reader sensor workaround to allow imaging.
62. Incompatible readers causing corruption: Stop further writes; image with lab reader; repair FS.
63. Camera firmware bug (directory overflow): Manual directory rebuild; carve overflow files.
64. TRIM-like behavior (some controllers): If zeroed, carving limited; focus on residual ranges.
65. eMMC/UFS card (industrial): Access via ISP; dump, reconstruct L2P, then FS.
66. Glue-potted monolith: Controlled de-potting; pad discovery; dump.
67. Controller remap after power loss: Infer new mapping; analyze sequence numbers.
68. Over-erased blocks: Adjust read reference voltages; recover marginal pages.
69. Cold-solder joints on microSD shell: Re-shell; stabilize contacts; image.
70. Contact contamination: Clean contacts (isopropyl) → stable imaging.
71. Short on data lines: Isolate; limited-speed mode; or chip-off.
72. Damaged CID/CSD: Use tolerant reader; if necessary, bypass controller and dump.
73. Camera-imposed encryption (select pro cams): Require keys; otherwise carve.
74. File size zero but data present: Directory repair; fix size fields; export.
75. Massively fragmented filesystem: Heuristic reassembly by EXIF/time and content similarity; deliver partials with notes.

Additional 25 Error Conditions (to complete a “Top 100” list)

76. “Card locked” message (switch sensor mismatch) · 77. “This card cannot be used” (camera whitelist) · 78. “Read-only” due to firmware flag · 79. “Parameter is incorrect” (Windows mount) · 80. “The file or directory is corrupted” · 81. CRC errors on copy · 82. I/O device error · 83. Disk Management shows RAW · 84. macOS asks to initialize · 85. Android reports “corrupted SD” · 86. GoPro shows “SD ERR” · 87. Dashcam “Card Full/Format” loop · 88. Drone “SD slow” warning · 89. “Write speed too slow” (UHS mismatch) · 90. “File index missing” (video) · 91. “Clip cannot be played” · 92. Partial thumbnails only · 93. 0-byte JPEGs · 94. Broken EXIF headers · 95. MOV/MP4 no audio track · 96. MXF spanned set missing piece · 97. Duplicate directory entries · 98. Illegal long file names · 99. Truncated RAWs · 100. Hidden malware “shortcut” replacing folders.

(For each, our workflow is: image first → analyze FS/metadata → targeted repair or content carving → validate & document any partials.)

Why Professionals Choose Sheffield Data Recovery

• 25+ years dedicated to flash & monolith recovery, from consumer SD to CFexpress and industrial microSD.
• Controller-aware workflows (Phison/SMI/Realtek/Alcor/etc.), chip-off & monolith capabilities with ECC/XOR/scrambler handling.
• Pro-video expertise (CFexpress/XQD/CFast/SxS/P2, MXF/ProRes/CinemaDNG/GOP repair).
• Forensic integrity: write-blocked imaging, SHA-256 verification, chain-of-custody available on request.
• Free diagnostics and clear, evidence-based recovery options before work begins.