SanDisk SSD Plus Cannot Be Read: Evaluate Custom NAND Recovery and Failed-Case Fees
Desoldering the NAND chips is not automatically a second recovery method. Once a SanDisk SSD Plus 1TB is not detected and a competent lab has already tried controller-level recovery, the useful question is whether another lab can name a specific additional method for that controller and firmware, not whether it owns a more expensive recovery tool.
In this failed SanDisk SSD laboratory case, the owner reported an undetected SATA SSD and an unsuccessful first lab. A later provider discussed custom access and decoding techniques, with a fee even if the attempt fails. That changes the decision from choosing software to evaluating evidence, probability and cost.
Why a Raw NAND Dump May Still Be Unusable
Even when memory chips can be read, the data may be distributed across NAND pages by the controller, with wear leveling, error correction, scrambling and possibly encryption. Rusolut's technical training material describes the reconstruction work required after raw flash extraction. A physical dump is not the same as a usable file system, and the ability to reconstruct this particular SSD model is not established by the Reddit discussion.
A second lab may have a different supported controller method, firmware access, or model-specific research. It may also encounter the same dead end. Neither an apparently intact NAND package nor a promise to develop custom tools establishes that usable data can be decoded.
What to Ask Before Paying for an Unsuccessful Attempt
Request a Written Diagnostic and Quote
- First-lab findings: What exact SSD and controller revision was identified? Was it invisible to SATA entirely, or could firmware/service access be obtained?
- New technique: What does the next provider expect to do differently, and does it already have a proven example for this controller family?
- Costs and custody: What fees remain due if no user files are recovered? Who owns any extracted images, and will the unmodified drive be returned?
- Success condition: Does payment depend on delivering verifiably intact requested files, or merely producing a NAND dump?
If the answers are vague, decline the fee-based experiment. If the files justify a costly research attempt, preserve the drive and ask for a clearly bounded agreement and a realistic chance-of-success assessment. Because the SSD is not detected as a physical disk, Recoverit and other ordinary recovery scans are not appropriate now. Repeated power cycling or chip removal by a non-specialist is not a substitute for a supported recovery method.