|
Author
|
Topic: Big problem...
|
|
|
anuj
Sarge
Member # 3067
Rate Member
|
posted 03-05-2004 03:13 AM
    
there used to be the dos unformat utility.look up norton's site and then k*cough*z*cough*a? ~A -------------------- 
why the hell not, eh? :-D
Posts: 38 | From: bay area, ca, us | Registered: Feb 2004 | IP: Logged
|
|
AcidWarp
Sarge
Member # 997
Member Rated:
|
posted 03-05-2004 03:51 AM
Off hand I'd say good luck.  But it is possible to do. It's even possible to do it from a low level format, but not many repair shops keep an MRI machine in the back room. As for software to do it, Anuj gave you more info than I could. But it might not be recoverable if that file space on the disk was overwritten after the format. A quick format just wipes the file allocation table and tree structure, but if you over-write the sector with the info on it. . . One place I always check out when I'm completely stumped is http://computing.net Really good site for this kind of thing. -------------------- “I have noticed even people who claim everything is predestined, and that we can do nothing to change it, look before they cross the road.” “Intelligence is the ability to adapt to change.” --Dr. Stephen Hawking.
Posts: 4363 | From: Waterloo, Ontario | Registered: Nov 1999 | IP: Logged
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
TheKiller
Sarge
Member # 890
Member Rated:
|
posted 03-05-2004 07:10 PM
I have tried this program: http://www.pcinspector.de/file_recovery/UK/welcome.htm it has found tons of files, but not the file I want. A big problem I didn't mention is I have already installed Windows98 on the partition. I'll keep on trying though. -------------------- 
Talk is cheap, so is my signature.
Posts: 1723 | From: Gibsons, BC, Canada | Registered: Oct 1999 | IP: Logged
|
|
Cacophonous
Sarge
Member # 19
Member Rated:
|
posted 03-05-2004 07:35 PM
Killer - Did you get the email(s)? With Get Data Back and with many similar programs you would want to hook that drive as a slave to another drive that has the OS on it. Also when you restore you have to restore to a different drive/partition than the one you are scanning. It should work... -------------------- ...
Posts: 5571 | From: Yes | Registered: Jun 1999 | IP: Logged
|
|
AcidWarp
Sarge
Member # 997
Member Rated:
|
posted 03-05-2004 07:49 PM
God, it depends on the kind of format you do.If the drive that the RCMP officer was recovering files off of had been low level formatted several times then the chances of finding recoverable data are very small. I think that's why, ultimately the HD Low Level Format option was removed from BIOS Setup options. It was too easily accessible. -------------------- “I have noticed even people who claim everything is predestined, and that we can do nothing to change it, look before they cross the road.” “Intelligence is the ability to adapt to change.” --Dr. Stephen Hawking.
Posts: 4363 | From: Waterloo, Ontario | Registered: Nov 1999 | IP: Logged
|
|
|
|
|
|
AcidWarp
Sarge
Member # 997
Member Rated:
|
posted 03-06-2004 04:04 AM
I was sorta getting at that WillyT, I think I said "low lever formatted several times" Although, I'm just back from the pub and a little out of sorts.I know for a fact that after a certain number of passes (I think under ten) of a low level format, you'd almost need something akin to an MRI imager to read the previous states of the HD sectors, and then some fairly sophisticated software to convert that image info back into usable data. And even then it has it's limits. -------------------- “I have noticed even people who claim everything is predestined, and that we can do nothing to change it, look before they cross the road.” “Intelligence is the ability to adapt to change.” --Dr. Stephen Hawking.
Posts: 4363 | From: Waterloo, Ontario | Registered: Nov 1999 | IP: Logged
|
|
|
|
Cacophonous
Sarge
Member # 19
Member Rated:
|
posted 03-06-2004 11:29 AM
Killer - There is a crack for the fat version in there. It may be zipped as well. Let me know if you have a problem with it. If you scan the drive with it uncracked you can save the results. Then if you crack it later won't have to re-scan the drive. As I mentioned I used that software (the NTFS version) twice with great sucess. Once situation a virus wiped all data off a primary 60 GB boot drive and I recovered it all 100% for a client. The other situation I'm not sure how it happened but this client had a slave 80 GB drive partitioned into 2 - 40 GB partitions filled with data. They formated their primary drive that had the OS installed and re-installed Windows. After that the 80 GB split drive registered as 1 40 GB partition in windows explorer/my computer but in disk management it still showed as 1 80 GB drive. Using that software I recovered the other 40 GB of data for them.
Good luck...
-------------------- ...
Posts: 5571 | From: Yes | Registered: Jun 1999 | IP: Logged
|
|
|
|
|
|
TheKiller
Sarge
Member # 890
Member Rated:
|
posted 03-07-2004 02:35 AM
I used the hard drive in my computer, it was a slave. I saved the data on my hard drive.I found the 13 meg file...but it's all gimbled, I think her file was very fragmented. I used a hex editor and there's device driver inf file information, and a lot of extra crap inside the saved file. If all goes well, she might be able to reconstruct her database from what her friend has and that report files that she's been saving. I thank you all for this valiant effort! --------------------
Talk is cheap, so is my signature.
Posts: 1723 | From: Gibsons, BC, Canada | Registered: Oct 1999 | IP: Logged
|
|
|
|
|
|
UBBFriend: Email this page to someone!
