IsoBuster

Nowadays, optical discs are still a great way of storing digital content, but they are also highly sensitive and can easily get scratched. In this case, you will end up with some CDs or DVDs that are completely useless, as the important data stored on them is unrecoverable. At least that's on paper. Practically, there is still hope for the information stored on scratched discs. And that hope is the software IsoBuster. This is a small and proficient CD/DVD data recovery program designed to retrieve data contents from damaged CDs, DVDs and Blu-ray discs.

IsoBuster’s install process takes very little time. All you have to do is to choose file associations and other standard things, like creating shortcuts, and, in a blink of an eye, IsoBuster will be ready to start doing its job. The user must pay not attention about selecting to install the IsoBuster toolbar during the process. It supports most versions of Microsoft Windows, from Windows 2000 up to Windows 7. Hardware requirements are the lowest possible and all that's needed for running the program is an optical drive.

The appearance of IsoBuster is not stylish but it is very easy to use and understand, especially by a beginner. Still, users should have a basic understanding of CD and DVD types and image file formats. The interface has a Windows Explorer style, making it easy for Windows users to familiarize with it. The program automatically detects if the user has a disc inserted in any of the computer’s CD or DVD-ROM drives and it displays all the contained files and folders in the two sections of the interface.

The menu seems very simple, but it contains everything a user needs.The File section allows creating an image file and saving it on the hard drive, viewing folder tree and file information, verifying if all the files on the disc are physically readable and finding missing files and folders. A large number of settings are available in the Options menu items and the user can tweak all the program’s aspects including supported image files extension, actions and the look and feel of the interface.