It is a well-known fact that the volume of data generated is growing exponentially. Of course, some of this data is completely absurd, but most of the data is precious to the users generating it, and they want to keep it safe and secure. However, data loss is not an alien scenario for any user and happens more frequently than you can imagine.
Apple Inc. has ensured that, there is minimum chance of data loss on Mac, but that needs a highly alert user. Although, as we know, ‘To err is human’ and thus, we face data loss even with multiple options to secure our data on Mac. Data recovery solutions for Mac systems are complex. Therefore, to answer the question ‘Yes, you need a Mac Data Recovery Software’.
How we lose data on Mac?
If you have lost data on your Mac system, it is no big deal. The data loss on a Mac system may occur for multiple reasons, some known and some unknown. The most common reasons for data loss on Mac are listed below:
- Accidental deletion of data.
- Crashing of the startup drive (Macintosh HD).
- Crashing of the volume on the Mac drive.
- Corruption of data.
- Bad sectors on the HDD/SSD of Mac.
- Virus or Malware attack.
Inbuilt Solutions to prevent data loss on Mac
It is important to understand that not each data loss scenario needs a third-party data recovery software until you are facing a situation where you have not created a backup of your data. Most of the data loss scenarios could be avoided or rectified only with preparedness. You can prevent data loss or recover lost data by taking the following actions:
- Backup data using Time Machine.
- Backup data on iCloud Drive
- Recover deleted files by restoring the complete Volume
Role of TRIM in Data Recovery on SSDs
Despite all the benefits, there was a challenge with the first Gen SSDs. Unlike traditional HDDs, where data can be overwritten on the existing data, SSDs need to erase the data prior to writing new data. The erasing is a slower process as compared to writing data, and thus it requires a longer time. Due to this drawback, the first-generation SSDs used to get slower with prolonged usage. Moreover, these SSDs had a communication gap with the OS.
Even if the OS deleted a file, the concerned space was identified as occupied by the SSD, thus creating a build-up of unknown and unavailable spaces. A new feature called TRIM was introduced to overcome this issue and create better communication between Mac’s SSD and macOS. This feature significantly improved the performance and usage of SSD.
Enabling TRIM on Mac reduces the possibilities of data recovery even by professional data recovery software. If the TRIM feature is enabled on your Mac, then deleting a file would result in the deletion of the index of the file, thus making it inaccessible. Most of the data recovery software are not capable of retrieving data lost on SSD, even if the TRIM feature is disabled, as the new generation Mac laptops are more secure and hard to be accessed for data recovery software.
Disable TRIM on your Mac
To disable the TRIM feature, you first need to ensure that it is actually enabled. Follow the steps below to check and disable TRIM on your Mac:
Step 1: Press Option key then click Apple Menu and select System Information.
Step 2: In the System Information window locate the SATA tab in the sidebar and click on it.
Step 3: Check the status in front of TRIM Support column.
Step 4: If the option in front of TRIM Support is Yes, then TRIM is enabled on your Mac.
Step 5: Launch Terminal on your Mac.
Step 6: Insert the command sudo trimforce disable in the Terminal and hit Return.
Now, the data recovery software will be able to identify all the data deleted from your Mac SSD.
How can a Data Recovery Software help?
Now that the TRIM has been disabled, you would like to know which data recovery software you should use to recover your deleted data securely. There are a plethora of Freeware and Freemium software claiming assured data recovery from Mac SSD, but only a handful of trusted professional software are capable of actually recover data securely and in a foolproof manner from Mac SSDs.
If you want to have hassle-free secure data recovery, you can choose Stellar Data Recovery Free Edition for Mac. This globally recognized DIY software recovers up to 1 GB of data free of cost. Other features that make it a favorite worldwide are as under:
- It can recover files that have been removed by emptying the Trash.
- You can use it to recover data from the Mac USB drive.
- Lost data from formatted partition can be retrieved.
- You can preview the files before saving them for recovery.
- It recovers almost any file type and format related to Mac.
- You can retrieve photos, Pages, Mail Files, MS Office Docs and much more with this software.
- Being a DIY software you don’t need any technical expertise to recover your data.
To Conclude
With all the discussions and analysis of technical facts, we can now easily answer the question ‘Do you really need a Mac Data Recovery Software?’ and the verdict is, Yes, you do need it. Not every data loss scenario can be addressed by the inbuilt features of Mac. Some require specialized professional assistance through data recovery software. However, you need to ensure that the data recovery software you are choosing fits your specific need.