by Satanus 11 Replies latest jw friends
Due to a series of blunders, i munched the data on my hard disk, AND my backup. Gonna try and recover the stuff. Help on which is/are the best programs for this is appreciated. Easyrecovery was hot, a few yrs ago, but maybe some new and better ones have come on the scene. Thanks so much.
S
You don't say if you are using Windows or Mac OS or what version... or what you meant by "munched" data.....
Just today I was reading a computer magazine and they recommend a free program called FreeUndelete.
http://www.officerecovery.com/freeundelete/
A couple of things.. FIRST: quit using the computer that has the data you want to recover. Every time you use it you risk the computer overwriting the data. The data may still be there, it is just that those particular sectors of the hard drive have been flagged by the MFT (Master File Table..think of it as a table of contents for a book) as available to use for new data. This software looks for those flags and then sees where the actual data is stored (all over your hard drive). It then reassembles the data into new files...and you can see what was recoverable and what was not.
Second you will need to download the undelete software to another computer (for reasons above). You can then transfer the software to a USB jump drive. Then remove the USB drive with the undelete software from the second computer and plug it into the computer with the hard drive you want to recover data. Run the program from the USB drive and follow the instructions.
Third... BACKUP the data to yet another external hard drive (or web based storage service). I lost 10 years of Money data because my hard drive and my floppy (3.5 in) disk...both of them...were garbage.... after that I quit balancing my checkbook. I do my budget in Excel.
...the magazine that I got this from also has a Help Desk for subscribers that I have found to be very reliable...so if the publishers are recommending this software I would trust it. Haven't had need for it yet, but glad it is there. Hope this is helpful.
Snakes ()
Thanks, snakes. I use windows. There were some 'errors', which chkdisk suposedly fixed. After that, icons started going south. I put in a cd w rescue type programs. One of them is a clone program. Cloned the hard disk to the backup disk. That's how i munched both of em. Smart, eh?
S
I've had pretty good success with Active Undelete as well as Spinrite.
W
Try using GetDataBack from runtime.
You will have to save the results to a HD other than the one you are trying to recover files from.
The nice thing is that you can try out GetDataBack before paying for it to see if the files can be recovered.
To actually restore the files though you will have to purchase a license.
Make sure you use the version compatible with the file system used on the disk.
Thanks, guys. I'll check out those 2.
S
For Windows, this is free file recoery utility I carry on my Bat-Utility belt:
This is a more full featured (not-free) recovery tool I own and have been happy with, for Mac:
http://www.prosofteng.com/products/data_rescue.php
They also have a windows version (which I have not yet tried, but if it is as good as the Mac version, it is worth the price:
http://www.prosofteng.com/products/data_rescue_pc.php
~Q
Is it Windows that is corrupt or your data? Running chkdsk only helps to restore a corrupt Windows install. Is it possible that your personal data is intact but Windows™ is just too screwed up to see it?
I have rescued personal data from non functioning Windows machine by using Knoppix Live OS (Linux dist)
Download free copy from another computer and burn disk. Set in bios that CD drive boots before hard disk. When it boots to a desktop you can see your personal files. Knoppix has a built in burner application. You can drag and drop all your personal files,pics etc to the burner and save them there. It can't burn over programs.
Q
The second one you mentioned sounds interesting. Running from a cd is a good thing.
Poztate
The message i got from a program is that the hardrive is reporting a bigger size than it really is. Actually, i'm not sure how i screwed it up. I flipped a breaker when i was doing some work on the house. That might have done something. Also, i have been trying to fix the installer for months. One solution said to rename a couple of dll files. It could have been that. Chkdisk seems to be more of a pain in the a$$ than a help.
Does knoppix work on windows ntfs, as well?
S
Here is a good link to explain how to use Knoppix for file recovery.
Burning files will only work if you have dual drives installed since one drive is needed to keep Knoppix running
If you don't have dual drives you can also drag and drop onto a USB Thumb Drive after you set permissions to do so.
The first link explains in detail how to use Knoppix. The second link is to a download site.
