Help Photos disappeared after moved to SD card

Android Question · Nov 6, 2016

Hi,

trying my luck.
I moved my photos from device storage to SD card and they are all disappeard. the thing is that I have a file called .thumbdata3-1967..... with 3.7gb on my SD card. is there any chance to restore the pics?

thanks very much!

jove mickovski · Nov 6, 2016

Android Question said:
Hi,

trying my luck.
I moved my photos from device storage to SD card and they are all disappeard. the thing is that I have a file called .thumbdata3-1967..... with 3.7gb on my SD card. is there any chance to restore the pics?

thanks very much!

Did you moved them with PC?

Eyal e · Nov 6, 2016

unfortunately, No. with the My Files app on my Galaxy S5

mikedt · Nov 6, 2016

First thoughts with photos vanishing from a micro-SD, is that it could very well be a counterfeit. If it is a new micro-SD, definitely check its integrity with SD Insight.
https://play.google.com/store/apps/details?id=com.humanlogic.sdi
Which should show the correct stated size and a recognized manufacturer.

If it is a fake, your pictures are gone probably.

Eyal e · Nov 6, 2016

it shows samsung electronics model 0000
size 64gb
manufacturing date Apr 2016.
is it a fake? thought it was original when I bought it...

lvt · Nov 7, 2016

Did you try to open that huge .thum file on your SD card to see what's inside?

Eyal e · Nov 7, 2016

lvt said:
Did you try to open that huge .thum file on your SD card to see what's inside?

actually don't know how to do that. should I do it on Android or on a PC?

Thanks

lvt · Nov 7, 2016

Eyal e said:
actually don't know how to do that. should I do it on Android or on a PC?

Thanks

I mean you should check whether it's a folder or a compressed file with your photos inside. The chance is slim but keep looking.

Eyal e · Nov 7, 2016

lvt said:
I mean you should check whether it's a folder or a compressed file with your photos inside. The chance is slim but keep looking.

its a file that weights 3.7GB...

lvt · Nov 7, 2016

Eyal e said:
its a file that weights 3.7GB...

Don't delete that file, can you see the file's extension (if it has a dot and some letters at the end) ?

Eyal e · Nov 7, 2016

.thumbdata3-1967290299

lvt · Nov 7, 2016

Eyal e said:
.thumbdata3-1967290299

That's not good, the file has no use without extension.

Eyal e · Nov 7, 2016

lvt said:
That's not good, the file has no use without extension.

managed to restore some photos (I think) through some apps but unfortunately the quality is not good and it happened that my google photos was not backing up my photos over the last year.

Peakecorp · Nov 7, 2016

try other file manager

Eyal e · Nov 7, 2016

Peakecorp said:
try other file manager

What's file manager? can you please give an example?

thank you

lvt · Nov 7, 2016

Eyal e said:
managed to restore some photos (I think) through some apps but unfortunately the quality is not good and it happened that my google photos was not backing up my photos over the last year.

Some apps could work for you but those apps generally require rooting. Without rooting the possibility to recover your original photos is very low.

michaelkenward · Nov 7, 2016

You could try using data recovery software on a PC to see if it can retrieve the pictures.

EaseUS makes software for android recovery.

EaseUS MobiSaver for Android - Data Recovery for Android Devices

There are other software options.

Eyal e · Nov 7, 2016

EaseUS does not recognize my phone. is stellar phoenix good choice?
I think I have just rooted my Galaxy S5 (not sure though)/

Peakecorp · Nov 7, 2016

you can use file commander, i think problem not with your phone it can be with file manager or gallery software

Slug · Nov 7, 2016

@Eyal e, have you tried restarting the phone? The microSD card is scanned for new content at bootup, so there's still a chance the photos are there. Can you still see the folder(s) you moved using My Files?

Btw, the .thumbdata* file is a database containing low-res thumbnail images which are used to preview the full-res photos (for example in Gallery).

Eyal e · Nov 7, 2016

Slug said:
@Eyal e, have you tried restarting the phone? The microSD card is scanned for new content at bootup, so there's still a chance the photos are there. Can you still see the folder(s) you moved using My Files?

Btw, the .thumbdata* file is a database containing low-res thumbnail images which are used to preview the full-res photos (for example in Gallery).

didn't help... managed to restore some of the photos with some apps. not sure if all. However, all photos are now dated on as November 7. I learnt the lesson and from now on I will regularly check that the google back-up is on (unfortunately it was of since I upgraded to S5

lvt · Nov 7, 2016

Eyal e said:
didn't help... managed to restore some of the photos with some apps. not sure if all. However, all photos are now dated on as November 7. I learnt the lesson and from now on I will regularly check that the google back-up is on (unfortunately it was of since I upgraded to S5

Or simply use Copy command instead of Move, you can delete the source files after making sure that the operating is successful.

Kibaikasu · Nov 10, 2016

Not sure if you managed to recover your info yet Eyale, but there is a piece of software called PhotoRec which I use as my primary means of file recovery which you might wanna consider. It's free and works 98% of the time to recover most file types. You'll want to remove the microSD card from your phone, put it into an adapter and insert it into your PC's card reader so that you can recover the files directly from there rather than just plugging in your phone, but other than that it should work. Either way, good luck and hope you're able to recover your stuff!

MoodyBlues · Aug 6, 2019

Hi Cheayol! Welcome to Android Forums.

Just a heads-up: you might want to check a post's date before taking time to kindly provide an answer. The OP here was posted three years ago. :eek:

Help Photos disappeared after moved to SD card

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