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No Time Machine · No iCloud · No problem
Mac data recovery when there's no backup
Most people who call us never set up Time Machine and only had photos in iCloud, if anything. That's fine. The files are almost always still on the Mac. We get them back.
Older Macs and external drives
On a hard drive, your files are stations on a spinning line.
iMacs, Mac minis and MacBooks up to 2012 store files on spinning platters, read by a head that floats a hair's width above them. When a drive starts clicking, the head is failing. Every extra minute of power can scratch the platter and take files with it.
Switch it off and bring it in. We copy the whole drive to a healthy one first, then recover your files from that copy.
How your Mac stores data decides how we recover it
Find your exact model in the list of every Mac from 2007 to 2026. Each page says which of these applies.
Removable drive or SSD module
Most Macs up to 2017. The data survives a dead board and we read the drive directly.
Soldered SSD
12-inch MacBook and 2016–2017 Touch Bar MacBook Pro. The board must work, or the chips are moved to a donor board.
Encrypted and tied to the board
T2 Macs from 2018 and every Apple silicon Mac. A new board means the files are gone for good. Only repairing the original board brings them back.
How a recovery works
Call us first
Before anyone replaces a board or erases the Mac. Tell us the A-number and what happened.
Diagnosis
We find out why the Mac failed and where your data is, then give you a fixed quote.
Board repair or drive read
We repair the original logic board under the microscope, or read the drive or SSD module directly.
Copy and check
Your files are copied to a new drive and checked folder by folder with you.
What we recover from
- Dead MacBooksNo power, no charging, no picture, stuck on the Apple logo. Every model from 2007 to the MacBook Neo.
- Liquid-damaged MacsBoards cleaned and repaired enough to power up and copy the data safely.
- Apple silicon & T2 MacsEncrypted storage tied to the board. Recovery is done by repairing that board.
- Failed SSD modulesApple's removable SSDs from 2010–2017 Macs, repaired and read with the correct adapter.
- Failed hard drives & Fusion DrivesiMacs and older MacBooks with clicking, slow or undetected drives.
- External drivesTime Machine drives, hard drives and SSDs that have stopped working.
Questions
Data recovery FAQ
My Mac won't turn on and I never set up Time Machine or iCloud. Can you help?
Yes. That's most of the people we see. The files are usually still on the storage. We repair whatever stopped the Mac working, or read the drive directly on older models, and copy everything to a new drive for you.
Can you recover data from an M1, M2, M3, M4 or M5 Mac?
Yes, by repairing the original logic board. On Apple silicon Macs the storage is encrypted by the chip and cannot be read anywhere else, so board repair is the only route to the data.
Can you bypass my login password?
No, and nobody honestly can. On encrypted Macs the password is part of the key. Bring the password you use to log in to the Mac. Your Apple ID password is not needed.
Apple replaced my logic board. Is my data gone?
If you still have the old board, probably not. Your data is on it. Get it back from whoever did the repair and call us.
Will you look through my files?
Only as far as needed to check the recovery worked. Your data is copied to a drive that goes back to you, and our working copy is securely erased when you confirm you have everything.
What do I get back?
Your files on a new external drive, or on your own drive if you bring one, organised in the same folders as on your Mac.