An SSD that isn't detected — missing from the BIOS, absent in Windows, or dropping in and out — is usually an electronic fault, not lost data. In most cases the NAND chips still hold your files; it's the controller, the firmware or the board that has failed. That's often recoverable, and it's a different discipline to hard drives — one we handle in-house.
$ bdr diagnose /dev/nvme0 → Device: Samsung 970 EVO (1 TB, NVMe) → Status: NOT DETECTED — controller failure → Client: confidential · Belfast $ bdr engineer-working → NAND read: chip-off · raw flash dumped → Reconstruction: wear-levelling + ECC resolved → Imaging: 0.91 TB / 1.00 TB (91%) $ bdr verify → ✓ documents — 71,440 files → ✓ photos — 44,900 files → ✓ data reconstructed — recovered
With an SSD, writes are the enemy. If it's still partly detected, don't reformat it, don't run repair tools, and above all don't re-flash the firmware to try to revive it — a failed flash can lock the controller for good. Power it down, keep it out of the machine so its background housekeeping can't run, and talk to us first.
An SSD fails electronically, not mechanically — and where the fault sits decides how recoverable your data is. These are the ones behind a drive that won't show up.
We recover undetected SSDs from every major make — SATA, M.2 and NVMe drives, internal and external.
SATA and M.2 SSDs · NVMe drives · portable and external SSDs · and the SSDs inside laptops, PCs and Macs.
SSD recovery is a different discipline to hard drives, and it's done in-house. Where the controller can still be reached we work through it; where it's dead, we read the NAND itself and rebuild the drive's translation layer.
We identify whether the fault is the controller, the firmware, the NAND or the board, and whether encryption is in play, then send a written quote.
Where the controller still partly works, we use specialist SSD tools to talk to it directly, rebuild its translation tables and read the data around the fault.
Where the controller is dead, we repair the power components on the board to revive the original controller — which keeps its encryption key and decryption engine working.
Where the controller can't be revived, we read the NAND itself and reconstruct that model's translation and wear-levelling scheme, turning scrambled flash back into files.
For hardware encryption we work through the drive's controller; for BitLocker or FileVault we'll need your key or password. Then we rebuild the file system.
Recovered files are checked to confirm they open and are intact before anything is returned to you.
Your files come back on fresh media, or via our free download service for up to 75GB.
From SATA and M.2 SSDs to NVMe and portable drives, we recover undetected solid-state storage — working at the controller level where we can, and reading the NAND directly where we can't, always from a read-only image of the data.
Describe the SSD and its symptoms and an engineer will reply — normally within half an hour during the working day.
We will get back to you soon. If it is urgent, call 028 9002 0144.
A free diagnostic first, then a fixed written quote before any work begins. Where chip-level work is needed there's a 50% deposit toward the specialist bench time, with the balance only on success.
A representative selection of undetected SSDs we've recovered across different makes — device types and outcomes shown, customer details kept private.
The controller had died but the V-NAND was intact. We revived the original controller with board-level repair and imaged the drive in full.
Firmware corruption was hiding the data. We rebuilt the affected modules through the controller and recovered the full contents.
The USB bridge had failed. We bypassed it, read the internal NVMe drive directly, and recovered the data behind it.
Verified reviews from failed-SSD recoveries for Belfast clients will be published here as they’re received.
No invented reviews here. We're collecting verified, named reviews from our Belfast customers and will publish them here as they come in. In the meantime you're welcome to call and talk an issue through with an engineer on 028 9002 0144.
Post or drop in your device for a free diagnostic, with a note on what happened — an engineer reviews it and confirms your exact quote in writing before any work begins.
First step: get the device onto our Belfast bench. Wrap it well, tuck your contact details in the box, and post it over — the diagnostic costs nothing, and you’ll have a firm written price to approve before we touch a single sector.
Posting it? A tracked, insured service is best. Dropping it off instead? You’re welcome Monday–Friday, 9am–5:30pm — please still pack the device as above.
Not ready to send anything yet? Use the form to describe the fault in your own words and one of the engineers will come back with a quote tailored to your situation.
We will get back to you soon. If it is urgent, call 028 9002 0144.
The questions we're asked most about SSDs that aren't detected.
Usually not. A drive that's invisible in the BIOS or Windows most often has a dead controller or corrupt firmware, with the NAND — and your data — intact behind it. That's actually one of the more recoverable SSD situations.
Often not, and it's only fair to say so. Most SSDs use TRIM, which erases deleted data within seconds, so unlike a hard drive there's usually nothing left. If the drive itself has failed rather than a file being deleted, the outlook is much better.
It's the same discipline. NVMe, M.2 and SATA SSDs all store data in NAND behind a controller — the connector changes, the approach doesn't.
If it's BitLocker or FileVault, have your recovery key or password ready and we can work with it. If it's the drive's own hardware encryption and the controller has died, recovery may not be possible — the diagnostic will tell you honestly, before any charge.
Because on an already-failing SSD a firmware flash can fail partway and lock the controller permanently — taking the data with it. Leave the firmware alone, stop writing to the drive, and let us diagnose it first.
£300 + VAT per SSD, free diagnostic, and no fix, no fee across most jobs. Chip-level cases add a 50% deposit toward specialist bench time, the balance only due on success — the whole price confirmed in writing first.
You can hand the drive in at Cromac Square any weekday between 9am and 5:30pm, or send it by insured post. Box it securely with a note of your name, contact number, email and address inside — that’s everything we need to log it, run the free diagnostic and issue your quote.
A drive that's dropped off the BIOS usually has a dead controller with the data still on the chips. Power it down and send it in — we'll diagnose it free and tell you honestly what's recoverable. No fix, no fee on most jobs.