Member Avatar for voni86

Oki this is a weird one...

My Sony VAIO NS140's dvd was screwy so I told the computer to shut down and then proceeded to take it out to look at it...anyway, apparently it wasn't properly shut down and it didn't like that.

After rebooting, Vista took me to a temporary log on and said that mine was inaccessible or something...So I rebooted, held f10 and attempted repairs...

After finishing the recovery / repairs, Windows stopped booting and I was left at the boot screen where you have a blinking underscore (where the computer checks the booting devices).

I took the laptop to a store (I'm in Nepal so it's cheap and worth it) and they found the hdd to be empty (don't ask how, I have no idea)...

So I freaked and took the HDD out and plugged it into my desktop, and after doing some odd check disk / recovery, win XP found all my files (minus about 30-40 gb). The problem is that inside my old Vista user, I can't find any of my files...so that even though the HDD says that only 64 of 250 GB are free, I can only access about 55 GB of files...namely anything in my user folder has disappeared.

So I'm guessing that the problem is one of permissions from the old inaccessible vista installation, and I was wondering if anyone can help me recover my files...

Sorry for the weird confusing mail...

Voni

  • 3 Contributors
  • 5 Replies
  • 139 Views
  • 1 Day Discussion Span
  • Latest Post Latest Post by voni86

Dani AI

Generated

A concise diagnosis and next steps based on the thread: reports a Vista HDD that shows used space but the Vista user folder is effectively inaccessible. and offered basic access checks (already attempted by ), so the next actions should avoid repeating those and focus on safe recovery, ownership/ACLs, and encrypted-data issues.

Make a full image before further changes. Create a sector-level backup to a separate disk so any later operations (ownership changes, repairs or file carving) can be reversed if power or hardware fails. Reliable free tools: GNU ddrescue or Clonezilla. For frequent power cuts, perform imaging on a machine with a UPS or stable power.

If the data really exists on the NTFS volume but is hidden by ownership/ACLs, regain access from a Vista/7/10 environment or Windows RE (XP may lack the needed tools). From an elevated prompt run:

takeown /F "D:\Users\Voni" /R /D Y
icacls "D:\Users\Voni" /grant Administrators:F /T

These commands take ownership and grant Administrators full control; documentation at takeown and icacls.

If ACL changes are undesirable, a Linux live USB can mount NTFS and copy files while ignoring Windows ACLs (it will not decrypt EFS). Example mount (from a Live USB):

sudo mount -t ntfs-3g /dev/sdb1 /mnt/oldhdd -o ro
cp -a /mnt/oldhdd/Users/Voni /path/to/backup

If files are missing at the filesystem level, run TestDisk or PhotoRec to scan the partition/table. Finally, if files were EFS-encrypted on Vista, the original user certificate/private key is required for decryption (see Microsoft EFS overview).

Recommended Answers

All 5 Replies

Member Avatar for kenny1989

I am pretty sure that you can see your files in xp as long as you are on a admin account. It should just ask you if you want to continue and then just click continue and it will take a while but you should be able to see your files.
Also see if you are hiding any hidden files/ operating system files ( to be safe don't mess around with the files).
I'm no expext and this is just my 2 cents.

Member Avatar for voni86

I am pretty sure that you can see your files in xp as long as you are on a admin account. It should just ask you if you want to continue and then just click continue and it will take a while but you should be able to see your files.
Also see if you are hiding any hidden files/ operating system files ( to be safe don't mess around with the files).
I'm no expext and this is just my 2 cents.

I'm not sure what you mean about the 'want to continue'....I'm on an admin account of xp but im guessing the problem was the permission and security settings of the Vista installation on the now external HDD...I can't see the files...

Member Avatar for kenny1989

You can see vista partitions in XP, i did this using a university computer when my laptop crashed. It should come up with a dialog box saying something like these files are protected and viewing them will make them viewable forever more.
P.S. You haven't said whether or not you have made hidden/ system files viewable.

Member Avatar for jlm699

I am pretty sure that you can see your files in xp as long as you are on a admin account.

Yeah, without the operating system actually running to protect the files there's nothing that can stop you from viewing them. To enable hidden/system files/folders go to an explorer window -> Tools -> Folder Options... -> View Tab -> Hidden files and folders -- select 'Show hidden files and folders' ... also it may help to un-check the entry 'Hide protected operating system files (Recommended)'

Just remember that after your done you should probably undo those changes so that you don't run the risk of messing up your XP install.

Member Avatar for voni86

Yeah, without the operating system actually running to protect the files there's nothing that can stop you from viewing them. To enable hidden/system files/folders go to an explorer window -> Tools -> Folder Options... -> View Tab -> Hidden files and folders -- select 'Show hidden files and folders' ... also it may help to un-check the entry 'Hide protected operating system files (Recommended)'

Just remember that after your done you should probably undo those changes so that you don't run the risk of messing up your XP install.

Thanks for all the help, but no luck so far...I had already enabled the hidden files etc (but not the operating system files - which i did now with no change)...and still it shows none of the files but somehow says the bulk is there...and doing disk repair shows no errors and everything is in a good and doesnt need to be defraged...

I think that I probably can get them if I do 'disk recovery'...but that takes a long long time and in Nepal we have frequent power cuts so it keeps messing up...grr....

Thanks anyway...If you have any other ideas please fire away...

Voni

Be a part of the DaniWeb community

We're a friendly, industry-focused community of developers, IT pros, digital marketers, and technology enthusiasts meeting, networking, learning, and sharing knowledge.