Emergency · exFAT SDXC source
Read-only scanning for an SD card
How can I scan an SD card without writing to it?
Short answer
Only with a tool that reads from the card and never offers it as the export target. File Recovery Hero opens exFAT cards read-only and can also scan an unchanged IMG or DD sector image instead. Recovered files must go to another disk; exporting back to the same card could overwrite the entries you want back.
The situation
The card needs analysis without changing deleted entries or allocation metadata.
Read-only is a property of the whole workflow, not a checkbox in one dialogue. The scan has to open the card at device level without mounting it for writing, and the export target has to be a different disk, otherwise the recovery consumes its own source.
01 / Diagnose
Work out what actually disappeared
Two things can quietly break this. The operating system may mount the volume read-write the moment the card appears and write its own index or thumbnail files there, and a recovery tool may offer the source itself in the export dialogue. A sector image removes both risks, because after the image is taken the card can be put away entirely.
A true read-only workflow separates source access from destination writes and never selects the source as the export location.
Check the last known path, trash and backups without writing to the original device.
02 / Protect the source
Preserve the best recovery chance
- 1
Insert the card with a reader whose lock switch is engaged if you have one, since a full-size SD adapter carries that switch and microSD cards do not.
- 2
Quit photo and backup applications before the card appears, so nothing mounts it and starts an import in the background.
- 3
Either scan the device read-only or write an unchanged IMG or DD image to another disk and scan that image instead.
- 4
Choose the export folder deliberately on a second drive and confirm in the dialogue that the card is not the selected destination.
Do not accept a prompt to repair, check or unlock the volume, and do not create a folder on the card to hold the results. Anything that writes even a few kilobytes of metadata can land on the clusters the scan is about to read.
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.
A read-only workflow protects the card; it does not make an unreadable one readable. File Recovery Hero opens exFAT, NTFS and FAT volumes and uncompressed IMG, DD, RAW or BIN images, but not APFS, HFS+ or ext4 sources.
04 / Verify
Check the recovered content, not just its name
After the scan the card should still report the same used and free capacity, and its modification dates should be unchanged. On the destination side, every exported file must open from that second disk while the card stays disconnected, which proves nothing depends on the source any more.
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 SDXC source be recovered in this situation?+
Read-only is a property of the whole workflow, not a checkbox in one dialogue. The scan has to open the card at device level without mounting it for writing, and the export target has to be a different disk, otherwise the recovery consumes its own source. The result still depends on what remains readable on the source.
What should I avoid before scanning?+
Do not accept a prompt to repair, check or unlock the volume, and do not create a folder on the card to hold the results.
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?+
After the scan the card should still report the same used and free capacity, and its modification dates should be unchanged.