: Never run vmfs-tools , fsck.vmfs , or third-party recovery software on the only copy of your data. Always work on a copy or a snapshot.
If metadata corruption is suspected, run:
⚠️ This is advanced. Only do this if you are certain of the original partition layout.
Find the UUID using: esxcli storage vmfs snapshot list
After recovering the datastore:
If only specific files (like a VMX or VMDK) are deleted but the datastore is otherwise healthy: