I accidentally deleted the backup folder on my Seagate Backup Plus external drive and need help recovering the files. I’m not sure if Seagate recovery software, Windows recovery tools, or another data recovery method is the safest option.
First thing: don’t try to “fix” the Seagate drive yet. If the files vanished or the drive suddenly shows up as empty, RAW, unreadable, unallocated, or asks to be formatted, the data may still be there. The risky part is writing anything new to the drive, since that can overwrite files you might still be able to recover.
So for now, stop using the drive. Don’t format it. Don’t initialize it. Don’t run repair tools. Don’t copy new files onto it.
Before using recovery software, check whether this looks like a hardware issue. Plug the Backup Plus in just long enough to see how it behaves. If it spins normally and stays connected, that’s a better sign. If you hear clicking, grinding, beeping, repeated spin-up and spin-down, or the drive keeps disconnecting, I would not keep messing with DIY tools. At that point, look into Seagate’s Rescue Data Recovery Services. Some Backup Plus models came with limited Rescue coverage, so it’s worth checking the serial number.
If the drive sounds normal and your computer still detects it, then it may be a logical file system problem instead of a dead drive. That’s the situation where recovery software can often help.
For DIY recovery, use recovery software before trying file system repairs. Disk Drill is one option that can scan Seagate external drives for lost partitions, damaged file systems, deleted files, and issues caused by unplugging the drive without safely ejecting it.
A safer order would be:
- Install the recovery program on your internal drive or another external drive, not on the Seagate drive you’re trying to recover.
- If the data matters or the drive seems flaky, create a byte-to-byte image first. Then scan that image instead of repeatedly stressing the original drive.
- Try a different USB cable, USB port, adapter, or direct connection without a hub. A bad cable or weak connection can make portable drives look much worse than they are.
- Scan the drive or the image. When results appear, preview the files before recovering them. If a file previews correctly, that’s usually a good sign.
- Recover the files to a different storage device. Do not save recovered files back onto the same Seagate drive during recovery.
If the drive doesn’t show up in File Explorer or Finder, check the lower-level disk tools instead. On Windows, look in Disk Management. On macOS, use Disk Utility. On Linux, use a disk utility or a command-line disk listing tool. If the drive appears there with the correct capacity, recovery software may still be able to read it even if the OS can’t mount it normally.
Once the files are recovered, test the drive before trusting it again. SeaTools makes sense for a Seagate drive, though any reliable full-disk diagnostic tool is fine. If it fails, replace the drive. If it passes, you can reformat it and keep using it, but I still wouldn’t make it your only backup.
Also, be patient. Scans on larger external drives can take hours, sometimes longer. If the drive is detected, shows the right size, and isn’t making bad noises, there’s still a reasonable chance the files are recoverable.
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If the deleted folder was only a backup set and the original files still exist on your computer, recovery may be the wrong job. In that case I’d verify the originals first, then make a fresh backup to another drive if possible. Chasing a deleted backup folder can waste a lot of time if you can simply recreate it from the source data.
If those backups were the only remaining copies, then I agree with the “stop using the drive” advice, but I’d check the boring Windows stuff before scanning for hours. Plug the drive in, open Recycle Bin while the Seagate is connected, and see if the folder is listed there. Some external drives do use a Recycle Bin, some deletes bypass it, so it depends on how Windows saw the drive. Don’t empty the bin or run cleanup tools.
If it is not there, use recovery software from a different disk and recover to a different disk. Disk Drill is fine for this kind of scan if the drive is healthy enough to read, but don’t judge the result only by file names. Deleted backup folders can come back with broken paths, renamed files, or partial versions, so preview a few important files before spending time recovering everything. If the drive starts disconnecting, clicking, or showing the wrong size, stop the DIY route and check whether your model has Seagate Rescue Data Recovery coverage instead.
The ugly catch with backup folders is that “recovering the folder” and “getting a usable backup set back” are not always the same job. If the Seagate drive was just storing normal copied files, you’re in decent shape. If the folder was created by backup software, it may have extra catalog files, version folders, indexes, logs, or weird renamed chunks that the backup program needs in order to restore properly.
That is where I’d slow down before running a big recovery and dumping random found files somewhere.
Try to figure out what kind of backup it was:
If it was a plain folder you manually copied, then recovery software can usually be judged by whether the recovered documents/photos/videos open.
If it was made by Seagate Toolkit, old Seagate Dashboard, Windows File History, Mac Time Machine, or some other backup app, try to recover the entire backup structure, not just the files you recognize. The boring little database/configuration files may matter.
If it was encrypted or password-protected by the backup software, don’t expect recovered loose files to open unless the needed metadata comes back too.
I agree with the stop-using-the-drive advice, but I would not start by “fixing” the drive or rebuilding anything on it. No chkdsk, no Windows repair prompt, no formatting, no “scan and fix.” Those tools are meant to make a disk usable again, not preserve deleted data. Sometimes they help later. Sometimes they tidy up exactly the traces a recovery program needs.
Disk Drill or a similar recovery tool is fine if the drive is physically healthy, but I’d scan with a specific goal: recover the highest-level backup folder and its hidden/system files if possible. Turn on options to show hidden files in the recovery results if the program has that. Don’t just select “Documents” and “Pictures” unless you only care about loose copies and not restoring through the backup program.
A practical order I’d use would be:
- Leave the Seagate unplugged until you’re ready.
- Make sure you have another drive with enough free space for recovered data.
- If the backup was created by software, write down the name of that software before you forget.
- Run the recovery program from your computer’s internal drive, not from the Seagate.
- Recover to the other drive.
- After recovery, test files directly first. Then test whether the original backup app can recognize the restored backup set.
Don’t be surprised if the scan shows two types of results: the old folder tree and a big pile of “found files” sorted by type. The old folder tree is usually more useful for a backup set. The found-files section can still save important photos or documents, but it may lose names, dates, folder locations, and version history. For a normal photo folder that might be annoying. For a versioned backup, it can be a mess.
Another small trap: if this was your only backup and the original computer still has some of the files, don’t mix recovered files back into the original location right away. Put recovered files in a separate folder on another disk and compare later. Otherwise you can end up overwriting newer files with older backup copies, or keeping five versions of the same thing without knowing which is current.
Seagate Rescue is worth checking if the drive itself is acting strange, but for a simple accidental delete on a drive that mounts normally, professional recovery may be more than you need. The line I’d draw is pretty simple: normal spinning, correct capacity, stable connection, no scary noises means DIY scan is reasonable. Clicking, disconnecting, wrong size, or “needs to be initialized” means stop poking at it.
So yes, recovery is possible, but set expectations correctly. You may get the files back. You may get the backup folder back. Those are not always identical outcomes. For a backup made by software, the best result comes from recovering the complete folder structure to a different disk and only then trying to restore from it.
