How to rebuild the partition table? To see disk from previous install

[dictum9]

I lost the operating system boot disk due to HW failure. I replaced the disk and reinstalled Windows 7.

The data disk had an encrypted VeraCrypt "volume".

The VeraCrypt container was installed on a separate disk but now the new boot disk does not see it. The disk in in RAW format, it is missing its partition table.

How do I rebuild the partition table? I tried various tool such as Partition Wizard Pro, it scanned it but could not actually rebuld it - the tables are wiped clean. Partititon Wizard support says they cannot recover the partition, it's missing. At one point, I ran diskpart and ran the "clean" command. The data is still there however, but Win7 does not see the disk. It does see it in BIOS however.

 

[jumanji]

I am just trying to educate myself about veraCrypt.

With the VeraCrypt Volume Creation Wizard, did you create an encrypted file container (the first option) or encrypted a non-system partition/drive as a whole (the second option) ?

I would think that if you had used the first option where the veracrypt container is just a file and the original bootsector just contained the partition table, it may be possible to restore the partition table, even after you had run diskpart clean. ( I just do not understand why at all you did a diskpart clean)

If it is the second option you had used where you have to mount the drive/partition, which implies - according to my limited understanding - there is a bootloader in sector 0 apart from the partition table, the diskpart clean would have wiped the bootloader and you won't be able to mount the drive even if you are able to write the partition table. ( I just do not understand why at all you did a diskpart clean. ) ( You may perhaps see the drive and access the encrypted data but veracrypt won't mount it to decrypt). In this case you may perhaps be better off to discuss the issue in veracrypt forum.

On a more valid note, have you explored the possibility of using the veracrypt rescue CD? ( I still do not know in what situations the rescue CD would help but as a veracrypt user you must have known it) Again veracrypt forum can help you, provided you had created the Rescue CD immediately after installing and setting up veracrypt)

 

[dictum9]

I have been trying to use both VeraCrypt recover CD, it has been decrypting for 16 hours now but won't save anything to disk, i.e. when I check the files are still encrypted.

 

[dictum9]

this is a bit similar to

https://sourceforge.net/p/veracrypt/discussion/technical/thread/1b6f2b90/mine:

 

[jumanji]

1 .The link you provided did not work. Error 404 " not able to process the request" - and that hasn't helped.

2. You did not answer the crucial question whether you used the first option or the second option to encrypt - and that hasn't helped.