I’m facing a problem with one of our MySQL databases that suddenly started showing errors when accessing certain tables. The database was working normally before, but after an unexpected server issue, some tables are now inaccessible and a few queries are failing.

The database contains important application records, so dropping the affected tables and restoring an older backup would mean losing some recent information. I do have copies of several database files, including the files associated with the affected tables, but I’m not sure how to determine which ones are still usable.

I’ve seen MySQL errors such as “Table is marked as crashed” and incorrect key file errors mentioned in recovery discussions. From what I understand, these can be related to corruption in MyISAM indexes or other database structures. Has anyone dealt with a similar situation and successfully recovered the tables without rebuilding the entire database?

While looking for a solution, I came across the SysInfo MySQL Database Recovery Tool. It supports both MyISAM and InnoDB databases and can work with common MySQL files such as .MYD, .MYI, .FRM, .IBD, and ibdata files. It also appears to recover database objects such as tables, keys, views, triggers, and other structural information.

One feature I particularly like is the preview option. Before saving anything, I’d want to verify whether the required tables and records are actually readable. The software can display recovered database objects in a tree structure, which seems useful when dealing with a large database.

I’m considering using dedicated MySQL Database Recovery software rather than experimenting directly with the damaged database. Has anyone here tried the SysInfo tool on a corrupted MySQL database?

If you have experience recovering MyISAM or InnoDB tables after corruption, what approach worked for you? I’d also appreciate advice on whether it’s better to save the recovered data as a new database or export it as an SQL script first.