What is included in Stellar Data Recovery 12?

200+ file types – Recovers documents, photos, videos, audio, and archives.
Deep Scan engine – Locates data after formatting, deletion, or corruption.
BitLocker recovery – Restores files from encrypted Windows drives.
Photo & video repair – Fixes corrupt media in Premium edition.
Performance Metric – Deep Scans run up to 40% faster.
Important – Commercial use rights require the Technician edition.

What are the main benefits of Stellar Data Recovery 12?

Stellar Data Recovery 12 is a do-it-yourself Windows suite that restores lost, deleted, and formatted files from hard drives, SSDs, USB media, SD cards, and supported NAS units. Higher editions extend this with disk imaging, drive-health monitoring, RAID reconstruction, and corrupt photo and video repair.

No expertise needed – Guided scan, preview, and recovery in steps.
Preview before saving – Verify recoverable files before you restore them.
Faster Deep Scans – Version 12 shortens long scan times.
NAS recovery – Supports QNAP and ASUSTOR network storage.
Resume scans – Save scan results and continue them later.
Drive health monitor – SMART alerts flag disks before failure.

Data loss is expensive: How backups help you avoid outages
For more background on backup planning, read our guide:

What does Stellar Data Recovery 12 do?

Stellar Data Recovery 12 is a Windows recovery tool that restores files lost to deletion, formatting, corruption, or partition damage. It scans more than 200 file types, including Office documents, PST email files, photos, videos, and ZIP/RAR archives, and lets you preview results before saving anything. The version 12 engine adds up to 40% faster Deep Scans and new recovery support for QNAP and ASUSTOR NAS devices. It works across NTFS, exFAT, FAT32, and 4K-sector drives, and can recover individual files larger than 4 GB while preserving the original folder structure.

What is the difference between the Standard, Professional, Premium, and Technician editions?

The editions differ mainly by how deep the recovery reaches. Standard handles deleted and formatted file recovery from common Windows drives; Professional adds lost-partition recovery, disk imaging, unbootable-system recovery, and drive-health monitoring; and Premium layers on corrupt photo and video repair. Technician is the only edition with RAID 0, 5, and 6 reconstruction and commercial deployment rights. Match the edition to the failure you face: a single deleted folder needs only Standard, while a failed RAID array requires Technician.

Can Stellar Data Recovery 12 recover BitLocker-encrypted, RAID, or mobile phone data?

It recovers from BitLocker-encrypted Windows drives, but RAID array recovery is limited to the Technician edition and higher, which rebuilds RAID 0, 5, and 6 volumes without the original controller card. The software does not recover data directly from iOS or Android phones; it targets computer drives, SSDs, USB media, SD cards, and supported NAS units. Photo and video repair is also absent from Standard and Professional and begins only at the Premium edition. Confirm your storage type and failure scenario against the right edition first, because a lower tier will not open a RAID set or repair corrupt footage.

Does Stellar Data Recovery 12 repair corrupt photos and videos?

Yes, but only in the Premium edition and above, which include built-in modules for repairing damaged photos and corrupt or unplayable videos. The video module rebuilds severely corrupt 4K UHD footage and handles formats such as MP4, MOV, MKV, AVI, AVCHD, MTS, and WEBM, including the SOWT and TWOS codec combinations added in version 12. This matters when a memory card or camera write fails mid-recording and the clip no longer opens. If you only need to retrieve existing files rather than fix broken ones, Standard or Professional covers that and the repair tools are unnecessary.

What should users check before choosing Stellar Data Recovery 12?

Check three things: the storage type, the kind of data loss, and whether commercial use is required. Recovery covers Windows computer storage, external drives, SD cards, and supported NAS, but not mobile phones, so phone data needs a different tool. If the work is for clients or a business, only the Technician edition grants commercial deployment rights, while the lower editions are licensed for personal use on a single system. Also decide whether you need photo and video repair, since that capability appears only from the Premium edition upward.

Frequently asked questions about Stellar Data Recovery 12

Is there a free version of Stellar Data Recovery 12?

Yes. The Free edition scans and previews recoverable files and lets you recover up to 1 GB of data, which is enough to confirm whether your lost files are still retrievable before moving to a paid edition.

Can it recover data from Mac or Linux formatted drives?

The Windows Toolkit edition can read and recover from Mac (HFS, HFS+, APFS) and Linux (ext2, ext3, ext4) file systems, while the standard Windows editions focus on NTFS, exFAT, and FAT volumes. For routine Windows recovery the lower editions are sufficient; the Toolkit matters mainly in mixed-platform environments.

Does Stellar Data Recovery 12 support optical media such as CD or DVD?

The Professional edition and higher can recover files from scratched or partially burned CDs and DVDs, in addition to hard drives, SSDs, USB sticks, and flash media. The Standard edition does not include optical media recovery.