Hi, you need not reformat to try PhotoRec. You can try recovery on your HDD as it is.
Edit: It can be used to recover files even on an accidentally formatted drive. In the Guide I did it to prove that. That does not mean you have to necessarily reformat before trying it.:)
Last edited by jumanji; 26 Apr 2014 at 11:44. Reason: Atleast one typo corrected.
Oh, I understand now.
Note: Western Digital (Drive G) was only detected after it was plugged out from the USB Port. Once the name appeared in PhotoRec, I quickly plugged it in again. I also plugged in Samsung (Drive H), where a folder named "Recovery" was created.
Followed your instructions..
Photorec skipped "Recovery (3) Second Window" & jumped to "Recovery (4) Third Window" (Refer to attachment)
I'm not sure what file types are in the ext. hdd, so I used the default setting: "All file types selected".
Followed your instructions...
Photorec skipped the "Recovery (10) Ninth Window" & jumped to "Recovery (11): Tenth Window".
I couldn't find H: drive, instead it shows the directory where photorec-win is installed: Directory C:/Users/User/Download/testdisk 6.14 (Refer to attachment)
My question is: How to change the directory to Drive H? If you can't change it, then where should I click from the list in Directory C:/Users/User/Download/testdisk 6.14?
I have to go through my own guide and refresh myselffor I do not rather could not retain anything in my memory that has served for 67 years. :) . So give me sometime and I shall comeback tomorrow hopefully refreshed.
In the meanwhile, I shall only make two comments from my memory..
1. You should connect both your problem drive from which you want to recover data and the destination drive to which you want to copy before running PhotoRec. PhotoRec should then show you three drives which you should be able to recognise by their capacity. 1. Your system drive 2. The problem drive and 3. the destination drive. And you should select the problem drive from which you want to recover and proceed as stated in my guide.
Note: If at this stage PhotoRec does not show the problem drive then you are out of luck.( Not totally. It may be Windows that comes in the way and we may have to run PhotoRec from DOS. Let us see as we proceed.) So run PhotoRec and post a screenshot with all the drives or whatever drives that are shown. We shall proceed from there. So be prepared for an online interactive workout tomorrow beginning 1000hrs IST - may be your time then will be 1230 past noon.
2. If and once the files are shown: How to get on to the destination drive? Please give a reading to my post here My external hard drive suddenly became unllocated: The same copying procedure applies to PhotoRec.
You can play with PhotoRec any number of times and in whatsoever way you like to try and grasp its working. There is absolutely no way you can mess up anything. So go ahead and experiment without fear or favour.
CAUTION: The same does not apply to TestDisk. So do not try TestDisk. Wrong clicks in TestDisk can make matters worse.
Last edited by jumanji; 27 Apr 2014 at 09:00.
Evening, jumanji.
Sorry for the late reply. I usually turn on the PC at around 8 pm, and just read your reply.
Here's a screen shot, as requested:
Maybe we should use Team Viewer?
No, I do not use Team viewer. Conservative. :)
OK your screenshots look good.
Now I shall switch on to my Guide.
Go as per the third Window in that Guide. That is move on to File Opt using the arrows and then Enter.
Fourth Window: Select all and whatever file types you want.
Proceed upto Seventh Window Search [Enter]
Eighth Window Other[Enter]
Ninth Window Whole [Enter]
In the tenth Window you have to select the destination. OK when you come here you have to reach your destination drive by using up/down Left/right arrow keys. Just play around and find where each key takes you. Sooner you will find out how to reach your destination.
Once you reach and highlight your destination press C to copy . The instructions in the Windows should guide you what next to do.
If you get stuck up anywhere post the screenshot at that point.
The screenshot shows the last step.
At the end of the process, it shows 0 files recovered?
Take it easy. I would think the drive is simply unreadable.
If WD Datalifeguard Diagnostics cannot repair the bad sectors and pass the extended run test, only RMA is the solution.
I doubt whether even professional data recovery will be successful.
You may yet try whether a Live Linux can see and read the drive - just to satisfy yourself that you have done all that you can.
Emergency Kit - save your files from a dead OS by whs - Mint Mate
Peppermint3 - Create Live CD/DVD/USB To Use For Emergency Backup by Golden - Peppermint
Lucid Puppy way to recover files from a non-bootable computer by one jumanji - Lucid Puppy
( In your case it will be your problem drive recovery.)
jumanji, I've never tried it, but I've been told that Partition Wizard has a file recovery. This is your area of expertise,not mine, but I was wondering if you could image the drive, then mount the image and recover anything. Maybe using the bootable free Macrium.
Partition Wizard can only deal with two types of problems that occur in the first sector of any HDD viz., a corrupted MBR code ( Rebuild MBR) and corrupted partition table ( scans , finds the partition start sector and rewrites the partition table to the first sector and presto the drive becomes accessible.). If the hard disk is full of bad sectors, Partition Wizard will show the drive as Bad Disk. From what I have learnt from the innumerable cases that came here, if PW shows an HDD as a bad disk that is the end of the disk.
The OP just to experiment can run Minitools Partition Wizard. I am sure it will show the WD HDD as a Bad Disk.
As far as cloning the drive on the first sign of any problem and trying data recovery on the cloned disk, I do not have any personal experience or indulgence and hence not qualified to advise that procedure. And I have not come across any case here or elsewhere where people had cloned and successfully recovered. So I couldn't learn about it also.
Now knowing fully well that PhotoRec can recover data even from an accidentally formatted drive ( which I had personally experimented) the OP can try to format his WD HDD with the HP USB Disk Storage Format Tool ( to be run as administrator) and then try data recovery. HP USB Disk Storage Format Tool Free Download
If the HP Tool does not recognise the drive or having recognised the drive fails to format the drive then again we come to a dead end.
Peppermint: doesn't detect the drive
HP USB Disk Storage Format: Unable to format the drive because it's write-protected.
Device Manager: Asks to initialise the drive.
Since it was write-protected, I tried:
DISKPART > list disk
DISKPART > select disk 1
DISKPART > attributes disk clear readonly
Diskpart failed to clear disk attributes.
&
HKEY_LOCAL_MACHINE\SYSTEM\CurrentControlSet\Control.
Created a new key, StorageDevicePolicies
Created a new dword WriteProtect
Set the value to 0
This method also didn't work.
Unrelated question:
My laptop was pre-installed with Starter or Home Basic (can't remember which one).
When I upgraded the laptop, the OS is "64-bit" and had two folders, Program Files x86 and Program Files.
Years later, when I checked the installation disk (came with the upgrade), it is "32-bit".
???
Last edited by sueling; 04 May 2014 at 03:27.
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