Solved how to recover lost .mdb files?

first: i am not sure if this is the proper chapter for my question. if you know a better one, please inform me - thanks.

i lost 3 important .mdb files: microsoft office access database files.
after scanning all my hard drives there seems to be one that still has them.
because if i search with the search application 'everything' one of the results shows:
contacts.mdb > F:\$RECYCLE.BIN\S-1-5-21-93802578-1502995298-2439517820-1000\$RR9R7V2 >> 66,232 KB
But:
1. inside F: i cannot locate any file/folder as mentioned above
2. within 'everything' the right mouse context menu contains the option 'restore' but that doesn't do anything
3. the app recover my files (and a similar one) bring up the same 3 .mdb files but they contain 0 kb, so recovering recovers nothing.

as far as i remember no new data have been written on F: since i deleted those 3 .mdb files.

what can i still do to recover them?
thanks for helping

Have you tried any programs for "undeleting" the files? The sooner after deletion that you try it the better the chance of recovery. hxxp://www.easeus-deletedrecovery.com/ has a free download that will allow you to recover 1GB of files without charge.

@willywombat:
as mentioned under 3: i used 2 different recover/undelete applications, one of them being recover my files, which is a very advanced one. no result.

When you tried recovering F:\$RECYCLE.BIN\S-1-5-21-93802578-1502995298-2439517820-1000\$RR9R7V2, did you do it logged in as the original file owner?

@willywombat:
as i already stated in my original message: as far as i remember no new data have been written on F: since i deleted those 3 .mdb files.
and yes, i am the owner of the lost files.
i do understand some of the basics of data recovery, please read my specific situation/question.

You did not make it clear that you were the owner and were logged in as such when you tried to recover the files as it was not stated in your original post. I was trying to determine if it was a permissions issue, but as you do not seem to need my help, I won't try anymore and I wish you well in finding a solution.

@willywombat:
don't overreact, please! your third question made sense - but the first two had already been answered in my original request - therefore i was mildly critical.

@anyone:
i DO need help , indeed. so suggestions and relevant questions are more than welcome.

Try this....It worked when I deleted a file deliberately. The only difference is that my recycle bin had a second directory in it whos name ended in "-1001"

Open a command prompt and go to the directory "F:\$RECYCLE.BIN\S-1-5-21-93802578-1502995298-2439517820-1000" (if you do a "dir /ah" you should see your file listed.)
then opt to copy the file to say "c:\temp\contacts.mdb".

thanks for your continued help!
it had been a long time ago since i last ran a dos command prompt, but figured it out again, found the specific $recycle.bin but nothing there: 'file not found'
but...
just now i typed dir instead of dir /ah and now i see the files! continue to try to copy them - but forgot how to do that in a command prompt, will try to figure it out...
will report later...

@willywombat

FANTASTIC ! PROBLEM SOLVED !
all three files found, and copied from the $recycle.bin to a 'safe' directory. then loaded them into my access-based database application catraxx. all three worked smoothly! no info gone.

thanks for your great help. the start was a bit rough, but nice that you kept helping. with 100% succes! thanks again!

yet, still curious about the theoretical background (if i can understand it): how can an advanced data recovery program SEE the .mdb file but is not able to recover it, while a simple dos-command can simply make a copy?

And there SHOULD BE an important lesson here: DO A REGULAR BACKUP, PREFERABLY TO AN EXTERNAL DEVICE. This way, you will minimize the chances of losing important data.

WimYogya - you stated you used 2 different file recovery programs. What messages, if any did they display or log?

What happens when you delete a file, is that the file really isn't deleted. Instead the first character of the file name gets nulled out, making it invisible to the OS. Then you save a file, and it writes to the first available space. And if that space happens to be where your file was, then it's gone.

Here is a fairly good explanation:
Forensics: What happens when files are deleted? « Where is Your Data?

see also: What Really Happens When You Press The Delete Button |