Recovering Data from Scratched CDs

The following information will explain and cover some special, painless techniques on how to create a full working CD from the scratched one. I have personally tested this and had fixed a CD that would not read data at all. This tip works best with small unreadable scratches, as some hard scratches are too deep and loose the data permanently.

Requirements:

• Alcohol 120% software
  
• Cooking oil
  
• Small piece of cotton
  
• Dry cleaner paper

Follow this simple steps to fix a scratched cd for repair purposes:

1. In step one you must do some preparation work on the CD. Begin by wetting the cotton with water. Begin to clean the CD in a vertical motion; three firm wipes shall be sufficient. Dry the CD with the dry cleaner paper.
   
2. Using another piece of cotton, apply oil to the CD surface. Be sure to do this with caution and not overuse oil. After a through cleaning, dry carefully. Particles from the oil will stay on the microsurface of the scratch. It appears that the oil helps the laser of the CD/DVD driver
   to read the surface again.
   
3. After downloading and installing Alcohol 120% software, run the program and select to create an ISO - image making wizard. Attempt to read the CD drive and test if the program can read the Alcohol 120% software is recommended for this, as it is known to recover data more efficiently than other ISO software.
   
4. If a sucessful read is obtained, I recommended creating a new CD immediately. Copy all the data from the CD to the hard drive or create an ISO of the CD for immediate use. With a favorite burning utility, burn the ISO or data onto a new CD.