Maidenhead Data Recovery – Maidenhead’s No.1 Apple MacBook & iMac Data Recovery Specialists (25+ Years)

With over 25 years in specialist data recovery, we handle every Apple platform—from Intel-era MacBook/iMac with SATA or blade SSDs to T2-equipped models and Apple silicon (M-series) systems with soldered NVMe storage. Our workflow is forensically safe (read-only imaging, no writes to originals) and designed for APFS/HFS+ at scale.

Models We Recover From (representative “top 20” we see most)

MacBook / MacBook Air / MacBook Pro

1. MacBook Air 13″ (M1/M2/M3)

2. MacBook Air 15″ (M2/M3)

3. MacBook Pro 13″ (M1/M2)

4. MacBook Pro 14″ (M1 Pro/Max, M2 Pro/Max, M3 Pro/Max)

5. MacBook Pro 16″ (M1 Pro/Max, M2 Pro/Max, M3 Pro/Max)

6. MacBook Pro 15″ Retina (2012–2015)

7. MacBook Pro 13″ Retina (2012–2015)

8. MacBook Pro Touch Bar 13/15 (2016–2019)

9. MacBook 12″ (2015–2017)

10. MacBook Air (2011–2017, Intel)

iMac / iMac Pro
11. iMac 24″ (M1/M3)
12. iMac 27″ Retina 5K (2014–2020)
13. iMac 21.5″ / 4K (2012–2019)
14. iMac Pro (2017–2019)
15–20. Custom-configured iMacs with Fusion Drives, SATA SSD upgrades, or NVMe kits

(If yours isn’t listed, we still support it.)

Operating Systems & File Systems

• Classic OS X → macOS: 10.0 (Cheetah) through modern releases (Sierra, High Sierra, Mojave, Catalina, Big Sur, Monterey, Ventura, Sonoma, Sequoia).

• File systems: APFS (incl. encrypted, snapshots, Fusion), HFS+ (Journaled).

• Virtualisation/containers: APFS volumes inside sparsebundles, DMGs, Parallels/VMware images.

Storage Interfaces & Apple Storage Stacks

• SATA 2.5″ HDD/SSD; mSATA, micro-SATA (1.8″)

• NVMe/PCIe: Apple blade SSD (2013–2015), M.2 NVMe (Intel iMac mods), soldered NVMe (T2 / Apple silicon)

• Fusion Drive (HDD + SSD tier; CoreStorage or APFS Fusion)

• Legacy PATA/IDE, SCSI, SAS, U.2/U.3 (workstation mods)

Our Engineering Workflow (concise, step-by-step)

1. Intake & Preservation – Record serials/WWNs, capture symptoms, photograph condition, attach storage via write-blockers/current-limited PSU. Originals are quarantined once imaged.

2. Electronics & Firmware Triage – Rail integrity, TVS/motor driver checks; service-area access (SMART, P/G-lists, translator); suppress background tasks that stall reads.

3. Mechanical Stabilisation (HDD only) – Donor head-stack swaps, stiction release to ramp, platter/hub transplant if spindle seized; retain ROM/adaptives.

4. Hardware-Assisted Imaging – PC-3000/DeepSpar/Atola with head maps, adaptive timeouts, reverse passes, skip/late-fill; per-disk bad-block maps.

5. Apple-Platform Specific Recovery

   • APFS/CS Fusion pairing validation; rebuild Physical Stores; APFS checkpoint parsing; HFS+ journal replay.

   • Encryption (lawful, with credentials): FileVault/APFS unlock, T2/Apple-silicon data path via board-level revive; decrypt after imaging.

6. Logical Repair & Extraction – Rebuild B-trees, catalogs, snapshots; carve missing records; fix Photos/Lightroom/Mail/Final Cut libraries.

7. Verification & Delivery – Hash manifests, sample-open critical files, secure return (encrypted media or secure download).

Packaging / Intake: Place the device or loose drive(s) in an anti-static bag, then a padded envelope or small box with your contact details. Post or drop off in person—both accepted.

50 Apple MacBook & iMac Faults We Recover — and How We Resolve Them

A. Mechanical (HDD in older MacBook/iMac)

1. Head crash → Matched donor HSA swap; migrate ROM/adaptives; per-head imaging with limited retries.

2. Stiction → Controlled slider release to ramp; immediate soft-pass imaging.

3. Weak/aging heads → Build head map; image healthy heads first; targeted hard-pass on weak regions; donor if needed.

4. Spindle seizure → Platter/hub transplant to matched chassis; low-duty imaging.

5. Servo damage → Donor heads + adaptive tuning; servo-assisted reads.

6. Ramp damage/mis-park → Ramp replacement; head-select imaging.

7. Helium loss (He HDD) → Short duty cycles; parameter tuning; donor where needed.

B. Electronics & Firmware (HDD)

8. TVS diode short / rail fault → Replace/isolate TVS; verify rails; image.

9. Motor driver failure → Donor PCB; current-sense verification; resume reads.

10. Controller IC failure → Donor PCB with ROM/adaptive transfer; SA access; image.

11. Preamp failure → HSA swap (preamp integrated); recalibrate; image.

12. SA module corruption → Alt-head boot; patch modules; rebuild translator/defects.

13. Translator damage → Regenerate from P/G lists; re-zone; regain LBA access.

14. Background firmware loops → Disable media cache/background scans; queue-controlled imaging.

15. SMART/log overflow (slow init) → Clear logs; block idle-time tasks.

C. SSD / NVMe (Intel, T2, Apple Silicon)

16. Controller brick (0 MB / no enumerate) → Donor+ROM where possible; else chip-off + FTL rebuild (Intel-era only; not T2/Apple silicon).

17. FTL corruption → Vendor/test mode; dump translation tables; rebuild L2P map.

18. NAND wear/retention loss → ECC-aware reads; voltage/temperature tuning; soft decoding.

19. DRAM-less cache collapse → Safe-mode init; emulate cache flush; restore map.

20. Power-loss metadata damage → Journal/cache recovery; map re-sync.

21. Namespace corruption (NVMe) → Rebuild namespace; export intact ranges.

22. Thermal throttling stalls → Heatsink & airflow assist; QD limits; cool-down cycles.

D. Apple T2 / Apple Silicon (security & storage coupling)

23. T2 logic board failure (soldered NVMe) → DFU Revive/Restore to bring board online (no data wipe); decrypt via user password/FileVault key; image live volume read-only.

24. Touch ID/SEP mismatch after board swap → Data tied to original SEP keys; recover by reviving original board to the minimum operational state; credentials required.

25. BridgeOS panic loops → DFU revive; disable problem kexts to stabilise long enough to image.

26. Apple silicon not booting (soldered NVMe) → 1TR/DFU recovery, reduce to minimal OS, mount APFS read-only, unlock with credentials; image over target mode.

Note: On T2/Apple silicon, chip-off is not viable for encrypted storage. Recovery requires a working board path and valid credentials for lawful decryption.

E. Fusion Drives (CoreStorage/APFS)

27. Lost pairing (HDD+SSD) → Identify Physical Stores; rebuild LVG/LV (CS) or APFS Fusion mapping; re-assemble virtual store; mount volumes.

28. One member failing (HDD) → Image both; prioritise SSD store for metadata; rebuild from best-of sectors; repair volume B-trees.

29. APFS Fusion checkpoint drift → Select stable checkpoint; roll forward logs; export.

F. File System / Volume-Level (APFS / HFS+)

30. APFS container damage → Parse NXSB checkpoints; rebuild B-trees (fsroot, extent, snapshot); resolve clones; mount RO.

31. APFS snapshot explosion / low free space → Prune stale snapshots in a clone; recover user paths; verify integrity.

32. HFS+ catalog/extent corruption → Journal replay; rebuild catalog/extent B-trees; orphan recovery.

33. Case-sensitive volumes + app paths broken → Normalise paths in extracted copy; preserve metadata.

34. Time Machine sparsebundle damage → Rebuild bands/index; extract latest state; roll back to good snapshot.

35. CoreStorage metadata loss → Recreate LVG maps from headers; unlock with passphrase; mount LV.

G. Logical / User-Error

36. Accidental deletion → Image; recover via APFS snapshots/MFT-like metadata; targeted carving for RAW/PSD/Photos/Final Cut.

37. Quick/full format → Signature scan; rebuild tree structures; recover originals with timestamps.

38. Partition table overwritten → Locate filesystem anchors; virtual re-map; mount RO.

39. Encrypted volume password forgotten → Recover only with valid keys/password/recovery key; otherwise not feasible (by design).

40. Mail/Photos libraries corrupted → Repair SQLite catalogs; relink originals; rebuild previews.

41. Lightroom catalog issues → Rebuild lrcat database; relink folder roots; salvage edits from previews/lrcat-data.

42. Final Cut Pro libraries → Reindex .fcpbundle, reconnect media, rebuild proxy/optimised files.

H. Power / Thermal / Liquid

43. Liquid ingress on storage board → Ultrasonic clean (board only), micro-jumpers, ROM migration; stabilise for imaging.

44. Overheating throttles I/O → Thermal control; low QD imaging; pause cycles.

45. PSU/battery brown-outs causing FS damage → Journal replay; repair allocation; verify.

I. Connectivity / Bridges / Target Modes

46. USB-C/Thunderbolt bridge faults → Bypass bridge; direct attach to HBA for imaging; or use Target Disk Mode/Share Disk (Apple silicon).

47. T2 Target Disk Mode not presenting → Ensure secure boot policy allows; DFU revive; mount APFS over USB-C/Thunderbolt for imaging.

J. Virtualisation / Containers

48. Parallels/VMware disk corruption → Rebuild sparse bundles; extract guest NTFS/ext4 volumes; export user data.

49. Boot Camp/Windows partition issues → Rebuild GPT; mount NTFS read-only; recover user profile.

50. Encrypted DMG/Keychain issues → Recover with passphrase; validate keybags; export contents.

Service Options & Turnaround

• Standard: diagnostics typically within 1–2 working days of receipt; recovery follows immediately after approval.

• Critical Service: expedited engineering with a target of ~48 hours for many cases (subject to parts/severity).

How to Send or Drop Off Your Device

1. Power down and do not attempt further boots.

2. Place the device or loose drive(s) in an anti-static bag, then a padded envelope or small box with your contact details and a brief description of symptoms.

3. Post or drop off in person at our Maidenhead location during business hours.

Why Maidenhead Data Recovery

• 25+ years of Apple recoveries (Intel, T2, Apple silicon)

• Advanced tooling: PC-3000, DeepSpar, Atola, APFS/CS parsers, DFU/BridgeOS workflows

• Large donor inventory (head-stacks, PCBs) and Apple-specific know-how

• Forensically safe methods, clear reports, and verified results