Audio · exFAT field recorder card
Broadcast Wave/BWF: recover after deletion
How can I recover BWF recordings with production metadata after deletion?
Short answer
Yes, often, including the metadata: bext, iXML and timecode live inside the BWF file itself, so a fully recovered take brings them back with the audio. Stop recording, remove the card and scan it read-only. Then check that timecode, scene and take names still match your sound report before relinking in the edit.
The situation
BWF recordings with production metadata no longer appears in its recording folder even though the storage device is still detected.
The production data travels inside the file: bext, iXML and the timecode stamp sit in chunks of the take itself, not in a separate database. A take that comes back complete therefore brings scene, take, roll and timecode with it, which is what makes relinking in the edit possible.
01 / Diagnose
Work out what actually disappeared
Deleting a take on the recorder releases its directory entry while the chunks stay on the card until new recording claims the space. BWF stores bext near the beginning and, depending on the recorder, iXML at the start or at the end. A take recovered only in part can therefore keep its metadata and lose audio, or the other way round.
Deletion can release a directory reference before later writes reuse every block that belonged to the file. For Broadcast Wave/BWF, this matters because bext, iXML and timecode metadata may matter alongside the PCM payload
Check the last known path, trash and backups without writing to the original device.
02 / Protect the source
Preserve the best recovery chance
- 1
Stop the recorder, eject the card and store it apart from the cards still in rotation for the shoot.
- 2
Take your sound report and note roll, scene, take and timecode start for the missing material before scanning.
- 3
Scan the card read-only in a card reader and export the takes to an internal drive, never back to the card.
- 4
Read the bext and iXML chunks of each recovered take and match them line by line against the report.
Do not keep rolling on this card because the shoot must go on; swap in a fresh one instead. Do not write new metadata into recovered files before they are checked, since an overwritten bext chunk removes the evidence needed to identify a take.
03 / Choose the method
Match the tool to the source
For stable, readable exFAT, NTFS and FAT16/FAT32 or uncompressed IMG, DD, RAW and BIN images.
Unconfirmed exports are marked .UNVERIFIED.
File Recovery Hero reads exFAT, NTFS and FAT16/FAT32 cards read-only on macOS and Windows and returns whole files with the chunks they contain; it neither reads nor writes metadata, and takes whose blocks were reused come back damaged. Repairing a single damaged take lies outside its scope.
04 / Verify
Check the recovered content, not just its name
A recovered take is right when timecode start, scene, take and roll in its bext chunk match the sound report, the audio plays to the end and the length equals the entry in the report. Timecode that jumps mid-file, or a scene name from another roll, marks a take assembled from foreign blocks.
Keep the source until two verified copies exist. One working preview is not enough.
Sources and technical references
FAQ
Questions about this recovery case
Can exFAT field recorder card be recovered in this situation?+
The production data travels inside the file: bext, iXML and the timecode stamp sit in chunks of the take itself, not in a separate database. A take that comes back complete therefore brings scene, take, roll and timecode with it, which is what makes relinking in the edit possible. The result still depends on what remains readable on the source.
What should I avoid before scanning?+
Do not keep rolling on this card because the shoot must go on; swap in a fresh one instead.
Does scanning write to my memory card?+
Your memory card is only read. Nothing is saved to it.
How do I know whether the result is complete?+
A recovered take is right when timecode start, scene, take and roll in its bext chunk match the sound report, the audio plays to the end and the length equals the entry in the report.