Software » CD/DVD recovery » ISOBuster 5.5.2 / 5.6 Beta

IsoBuster 5.6 Beta Released!
April 21, 2025
IsoBuster 5.6 Beta, a release candidate for IsoBuster 5.6, is ready !

This version features a lot of cool functionality again. See below list for all the details:

Please Install and Run this Beta version ! If there are any issues, now is the moment to report them. Don't wait until the final is out, which will be soon.

Let us know if you run into issues or have feedback

Changes / New:

Digital Audio playback of CD Audio tracks (from image files as well as real CDs)
Digital Audio playback [From-To] via Shift + right mouse-click on Audio tracks
Display of a (CD, DVD, BD) disc in Properties with all the (known) unreadable sectors to get a feeling of the damage
Preview (*) of a selection of picture files (via right mouse-click and in the Properties Window). Native support for: bmp, jpg, emf, wmf, ico, tiff and png. Built in Windows WIC support for: gif and whatever codecs are installed on your system
Preview (*) of a selection of video files (via right mouse-click and in the Properties Window). Currently enabled for: mpg, mp4, wmv, avi, mov, vob, vro, m2ts and trp files. Playback is done via excellent LibVLC and works independently from possibly installed codecs. LibVLC is the engine of VLC. [NOT installed with IsoBuster]
(*) Use Preview ONLY on stable working media (or in image files). Not on failing media ! Preview involves a lot of reading by third party components (e.g. Windows, WIC, picture parsing code, video parsing libraries (including its plugins) etc. It is not wise to subject marginally readable media (for whatever reason) to possibly excessive reads. IsoBuster still does all the reading, and it applies various mechanisms to keep things in check, but it also has to surrender some of its control to be able to serve the needs of the preview functionality

Improvements:

Show recordings that possibly couldn't be found before on Panasonic DV Recorders (MEIHDFS v 2.0, 2.1 and 2.2) (for example DMR-EH55)
Default to using the ANSI code page to interpret filenames on Pioneer DV Recorders (dynamically check for UTF8 as well)
Improved imlst support by allowing quotes where possible
Improved filename magic support in CUE files
History navigation buttons are now disabled when starting up without a device selected
Improved finding missing -VR recordings on DVD(-R/W)
Plenty of other tweaks and improvements, lots of changes under the hood
Fixes:

Fixed exception error while parsing recovered -VR on DVD(-R/W)
Fixed some regression in IsoBuster 5.5.0, in particular for discs (or image files) containing the High Sierra or CD-i file system (also fixed in 5.5.1)
Fixed some regression in IsoBuster 5.5.0, in particular when generating XML reports in combination with special characters in file- and folder-names (also fixed in 5.5.2)
Known issues :

None

Rescue lost files from a bad or trashed CD, DVD or a Blu Ray disc. Recover deleted files from a Hard Drive, Memory card or of from flash media that Windows says needs to be formatted ! Save important documents, precious pictures or video from the family, your only system backup,... IsoBuster can do it all!

One tool, supporting all formats, for only one very democratic price.

No accumulated cost if you need more than one type media or file system supported. IsoBuster is a highly specialized yet easy to use media data recovery tool. It supports all disc formats and all common file systems. Insert a disc, USB stick or memory card, Start up IsoBuster and select the drive or media (if not selected already) and let IsoBuster mount the media. IsoBuster immediately shows you all the partitions or tracks and sessions located on the media, combined with all file systems that are present. This way you get easy access, just like explorer, to all the files and folders per file system. Instead of being limited to one file system that the OS picks for you, you have access to "the complete picture". Access data from older sessions or hidden partitions, access data that your OS (e.g. Windows) does not see or hides from you etc.

Combine this all-revealing functionality with far better read and recovery mechanisms, scanning for lost files functionality, workarounds for a wide range of drive and software bugs, limitations or shortcomings and you have an enormously powerful data recovery tool. IsoBuster is must-have-software for every PC user and is deliberately kept low priced to be able to offer a solution for everybody.

IsoBuster full feature list:
Data recovery from all possible CD, DVD and Blu Ray (BD & HD DVD) formats:
CD-i, VCD, SVCD, SACD, CD-ROM, CD-ROM XA, CD-R, CD-RW, CD-MRW, DVD-ROM, DVCD, DVD-RAM, DVD-R, DVD-RW, DVD+R, DVD+RW, DVD+MRW, DVD+R Dual Layer, DVD-R Dual Layer, DVD+RW Dual Layer, DVD+VR, DVD+VRW, DVD-VR, DVD-VRW, DVD-VM, DVD-VFR, BD-ROM, BD-R, BD-R DL, BD-RE, BD-RE DL, BD-R SRM, BD-R RRM, BD-R SRM+POW, BD-R SRM-POW, BDAV, BDMV HD DVD-ROM, HD DVD-R, HD DVD-R DL, HD DVD-RW, HD DVD-RW DL, HD DVD-RAM, HD DVD-Video,... And the list continues.
Data Recovery from Hard Drives, USB flash / thumb sticks, Memory stick, compact media cards, MMC media cards, SD, Micro SD, Mini SD, xD, GSM, CF, SDHC, SDSC, SDXC, SDIO, mobile phone memory card, memory cards that are used in digital cameras, camcorders, cell phones, MP3 players and any other type media cards, Floppy, Zip and Jaz drives etc.
All device access, media access, data gathering and interpretation is done exclusively by the software. It does not rely on Windows to provide or interpret the data and so can work completely independent from Windows' limitations.
Better error handling and several retry-mechanisms to aid you in getting the data anyway.
The use of both generic and alternative ways to get to the data, get the best out of your CD/DVD-ROM drive.
The use of primary and secondary file systems to get to the data and/or make use of file system data that might be ignored or 'forgotten' by popular OS. Explore the alternatives.
CDs stay 'readable' after problems (such as Buffer Under-run,...).
Read / Extraction from open sessions.
All sessions, including older ones, are accessible and can be recovered.
Supports mounting several virtual sessions inside a single DVD+RW or DVD-RW track.
Read and Extraction of files, CD/DVD images, tracks and sessions from all optical media.
Scanning for lost UDF files and folders. More on UDF recovery.
Scanning for lost ISO9660 / Joliet sessions.
Scanning for files based on their file-signature.
Scanning for IFO / BUP / VOB file systems on VIDEO and AUDIO DVDs.
Scanning for lost, deleted and orphaned FAT files and folders.
Find lost data on CDs, DVDs, BDs or HD DVDs, created with integrated drag and drop applications, otherwise also known as packet writing software. Optimized, but not exclusive, for:
Roxio Direct CD, Roxio Drag-to-Disc
Ahead / Nero InCD
Prassi / Veritas / Sonic DLA
VOB / Pinnacle Instant-Write
CeQuadrat Packet CD
NTI FileCD
BHA B's CLiP
Microsoft Windows XP, VISTA, 7, 8
Sony abCD,...
Support for Direct CD compressed files. Decompression on the fly.
Support for Microsoft's Live File system.
Built in UDF Reader, UDF 1.02 (e.g DVDs), UDF 1.5 (e.g. Packet writing on CD-R, DVDR, CD-RW and DVDRW), UDF 2.01, 2.50, 2.60 (e.g. BD-R SRM+POW),...
Find lost pictures created and saved to CD or DVD with Sony Mavica, other digital cameras or other devices with embedded UDF write functionality.
Find lost movies created and saved to CD,DVD, BD or HD DVD with Hitachi, other digital cameras or other devices with embedded UDF write functionality.
Auto find extensions based on file content to try and give an appropriate name to an orphaned file. This built in file identifier assigns the proper extension to the file so that Windows applications can open the file. Only needed for orphaned files without a name.
Support for Mount Rainier CD-RW and DVD+RW discs in MRW compatible and non-MRW compatible drives. Auto detection and automatic remapping which can be switched off or forced at all times. Built in MRW remapper / reader. (Built in Method 3 remapper).
Support for formatted CD-RW discs mounted in very old drives that do not know the CD-RW fixed packet format yet. Auto detection and automatic remapping which can be switched of or forced at all times. Built in Method 2 remapper.
Built in HFS Reader supporting HFS and HFS+, the Apple Mac file systems.
Transparent built in support for Mac Resource Fork extensions in the ISO9660 file system.
Transparent built in support for Mac Resource Fork extensions in the UDF file system.
Supports multiple Mac Partitions on one medium (e.g. multiple partitions on a CD or in a dmg file).
Includes a vast range of features for Mac files support on PC (HFS, ISO9660, UDF), including Mac Binary extraction of files.
Recover data from blanked or quick formatted DVD+RW media.
Mpg (*.dat) Extraction and dat2mpg 'in one' from SVCD and VCD.
Ability to create managed image files (*.IBP / *.IBQ).
Enormous file system coverage and different ways to use them all (find the one suited best for your needs). CDs and DVDs often have different file systems pointing to the same files. This offers possibilities.
Rock Ridge (e.g. for Commodore users, Server use, etc.).
HP SimpleSave support.
Full FAT: FAT12, FAT16, FAT32, ExFAT and FATX support (for instance on DVD-RAM, BD-RE, HDD, Flash media etc.).
NTFS on all types of media.
FAT Undelete
NTFS Undelete
DOS / Windows Partitions
EFI / GUID Partitions (GPT)
HFS / Mac Partitions
Extended Master Boot Record (EMBR) Partitions
Finds VIDEO and AUDIO IFO / BUP / VOB file systems independently from other file systems.
Transparent support for (open) DVD+VR(W) discs, remapping of the content etc. Open +VR discs' files can be seen and extracted right away.
Show (and allow to extract) the Nero project file if available on the optical disc.
Support for the CD-i file system and the different behavior from drives trying to mount a CD-i disc.
Information and file system properties (a must for FS developers).
CD/DVD/HD DVD/BD Surface scan to see if there are physical read errors.
Opens checksum files (*.md5) and automatically verifies the image with the checksum file.
Check if all files and folders are readable without having to extract all data to HD.
Single sector extraction. Extraction of CD/DVD/BD/HD DVD blocks (e.g. for engineering purposes).
Sector Viewer. Check a sector's content in IsoBuster's editor and print or save to HD. Engineers and computer savvy people find missing data making use of Sector View.
Compile (and edit, save, print) lists of all files that contain physical read errors.
Compile lists of all files, including their Logical block address (ideal to find the logical play order for mp3 CDs).
CD-Text support from CD and various image files (*.PXI, *.CCD, *.B5T and *.CUE image files).
Creation of image files (*.ibp and *.ibq,*.iso, *.bin, *.tao.)
Creation of checksum files (*.md5).
Creation of cue sheet files (*.cue).
Conversion of all supported image files to iso/tao/bin/cue/ibp/ibq files.
Support for Plugins so that various other images files can be opened and/or created.
Handles opening of multi-file image files.
Extraction of Audio tracks to wave files.
Support for the Expert Witness compressed Format (EWF).
Play audio analogue. Instruct the drive to play the audio through the analogue output.
Ability to pause a number of seconds between retries to allow the drive to "recover" (useful for older drives in combination with marginally readable media).
Creation of multi-file image files or disc spanning to specified size.
Support for bootable CDs and DVDs. Support for the El Torito standard. Perfect aid to slipstream Windows installation CDs.
Add, Edit, Delete files found based on their signatures.
Show file extents. (Show the different parts of a file, when it is fragmented on disc).
Ability to add/edit extents on custom created files (e.g. Lost and Found and Customizable file system).
Ability to add a customizable file system (where you can add, edit files, for engineering purposes).
Support for command line parameters.
Comprehensive help file (also available online).
On top of this, IsoBuster interprets image files, such as:
*.DAO (Duplicator)*.TAO (Duplicator)*.ISO (Nero, BlindRead, Creator)*.BIN (CDRWin)*.IMG (CloneCD)*.CCD (CloneCD)*.CIF (Creator)*.FCD (Uncompressed)*.NRG (Nero)*.GCD (Prassi)*.P01 (Toast)*.C2D (WinOnCD)*.CUE (CDRWin)*.CDI (DiscJuggler)*.CD (CD-i OptImage)*.GI (Prassi PrimoDVD)*.PXI (PlexTools)*.MDS (Alcohol)*.MDF (Alcohol)*.VC4 (Virtual CD)*.000 (Virtual CD)*.B5T (BlindWrite)*.B5I (BlindWrite)*.DMG (Apple Macintosh)*.IBP (IsoBuster)*.IBQ (IsoBuster)*.NCD (NTI)*.FLP (Floppy image)*.E01*.S01*.L01 (Expert Witness Format)*.RMG (Rimage)*.DSK (Generic Disk Image)*.VMDK (virtual Machine Disk)*.UDF (UDF Image)*.DD*.XISO*.XBX*.VHD (Microsoft)*.VHDX (Microsoft)*.VDI (Oracle VM VirtualBox)