Recovering Data problem..

[basepointdesignz]

Hi,

I have just installed a new motherboard for my pc and I'm having problems with one of the harddrives..

Bought a new HD, which is SATA and this now works fine with a new copy of XP on it, but the IDE one which is only a few months old isn't readable from inside windows of the new one..

All it says is that the hardrive needs formatting, but i don't want to do this yet as i have files on it that i should have taken off it before..

I know that you need to install windows again because of the new motherboard but i thought I could still read from it and take files off it, from the other harddrive..

When i boot from the XP CD, and try to recover windows on the second (IDE) HD, all is says is Unpartitioned Space with 120BG spare, which is right but surely this should show a previous version of windows on it? I haven't formatted the drive yet cos i esc out of the format as i thought all my files would be overwritten, but the drive still shows up as Unpartitioned and i can't read from it..

Is there any way to recover data from it? The files on there are mega important...

Cheers,
Paul @ basepoint designz LTD..

basepointdesignzLTD

http://www.bpdesignz.com

 

[Freestone]

Probably a long shot, but did your IDE install of Windows also include a product called GoBack? If so, either it has to be installed in your new XP or removed from the old IDE drive.

If GoBack isn't the issue, then you'll probably have to resort to a data recovery program. Many users have reported good success with GetDataBack at

http://www.runtime.org

. There are other programs too. A freeware program I've used with very limited success is PC Inspector File Recovery at

http://www.pcinspector.de/file_recovery/uk/welcome.htm

I'm curious to know if your older IDE drive was NTFS formatted?

 

[basepointdesignz]

yes, originally the IDE HD was NTFS formatted, but i haven't formatted it since the new Motherboard, i got as far as attempting to recover windows on it but not actually formatting it. Before hand the drive read as normal with a windows XP partition on it, but now reads as Unpartitioned

Cheers,
Paul @ basepoint designz LTD..

basepointdesignzLTD

http://www.bpdesignz.com

 

[Freestone]

You certainly don't want to format it until you recover your data. You didn't mention GoBack, so I guess you'll have to go the data recovery route.

I asked if your drive was NTFS formatted because you are at least the sixth person (probably more) who has described the same exact scenario. Move an older NTFS formatted drive to a new XP installation and the drive appears as unformatted. The common theme has always been NTFS.

Did you open Disk Management to see how it views the drive?

 

[basepointdesignz]

I downloaded the data recovery stuff so will try that when i get a chance. not sure about goback to be honest, i explored the cd and it shows nothing..

thanks by the way, if the data recovery works then not only will i give you a star but i'll buy you a real one, haha

Cheers,
Paul @ basepoint designz LTD..

basepointdesignzLTD

http://www.bpdesignz.com

 

[MonkeyX]

you may try to use an external drive enclosure setup. They are usually fairly inexpensive (~$19 US) and hook up either via USB or firewire. All you do is place the HD inside and hook it up to the system. XP will recognize it in the same way it would a usb flash drive. They are also a good way of finding a use for the other old HDs you may have around.

 

[debonairOne]

I think the best advice given was to try GetDataBack (submitted by Freestone)... They have two versions, one for Fat and one for NTFS... It has saved my bacon countless of times... Works on drives that have been repartitioned and imaged as well, so a simple format shouldn't be anything to worry about... I've also used this utility on memory sticks that have went bad... It is well worth the money... I would suggest usting the trial version first... It is free and will show you what you can recover... Then if you see what you need, you can purchase the full version, enter in the registration key and recover your data...

debonairOne

I look in the mirror and what do I see...