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testdisk - recover partitions
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1. Run testdisk: Open testdisk from your command line or terminal. Ensure you have administrator privileges to write changes to the disk.

2. Select Disk: Choose the disk where the lost partition is located. Use the disk size and name to identify the correct disk.

3. Choose Partition Table Type: Select the appropriate partition table type for your disk. Common types include Intel and EFI GPT.

4. Analyze Disk: Choose the "Analyse" option to scan the disk and identify existing and lost partitions.

5. Quick Search: After analyzing, select "Quick Search" to find lost partitions quickly. This method is faster but may not find all partitions.

6. Deeper Search: If the quick search does not find the partition, proceed to "Deeper Search" for a more thorough scan. This process can take longer and may require more time to complete.

7. Select Partitions: Once the partitions are found, use the arrow keys to navigate and the space bar to select the partitions you want to recover. Be cautious not to select duplicate partitions, as this can cause errors.

8. Write Partition Table: After selecting the correct partitions, choose "Write" to restore the partition table to the disk. Confirm your choices carefully.

9. Check Recovery: After writing the partition table, reboot your computer and check if the partition is now visible and accessible. If the partition is an OS partition, it may not be bootable immediately.

10. Backup Data: Once the partition is recovered, it is recommended to back up the data to a safe location to prevent further data loss.

https://www.cgsecurity.org/wiki/TestDisk


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photorec - recover files
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1. Run photorec: Open photorec from your command line or terminal. Ensure you have administrator privileges to write changes to the disk.

2. Select Disk: Use the up and down arrow keys to navigate and select the disk from which you want to recover files. Press Enter to proceed.

3. Choose Recovery Options: You will be presented with three options: Search, Options, and File Opt. Select "Search" to begin the file recovery process.

4. Specify File System Type: Unless the file system is ext2, ext3, or ext4, select "Other" to proceed.

5. Choose Recovery Location: Use the arrow keys to select a directory where the recovered files will be saved. Press C to start the recovery process.

6. Monitor Recovery Process: PhotoRec will scan the selected disk and recover files. It will show a summary once the process is complete.

7. Review Recovered Files: The recovered files will be stored in directories named recup_dir.1, recup_dir.2, etc. You can access these files even if the recovery process is not yet finished.

8. Check File Integrity: Be cautious as PhotoRec does not recover original filenames or file structure. It may recover files even from corrupted filesystems.

https://www.cgsecurity.org/wiki/PhotoRec