So I needed something to recover lost files on my computer. So I peruse the internet. Hey, here's something that might work. Recuva. It's by the same company that makes Ccleaner that I use all the time. And it's free. Can't beat free. Too bad it's not free. So do I pay $33? Hey, I'm getting tired so time to fork out a few bucks.
Now first I have to mention that over the years, when I got a new computer, I would copy all my personal files from the old computer to the new one. So I've got files that go back a few years.
So I crank up Recuva. It starts chugging away and after a few minutes it comes back with, "It will take 12 hours to complete recovery of files". It's 1AM so I hang it up until 1PM the next day.
So I check the computer the next day. The program says it has found 3 million+ files and will take 24 more hours to finish. WHAT?! THE?! F***?! Later that day I check and the time has dropped considerably and the file count has gone up considerably. That night it finally finished with a file count of over 6 million.
So where did all these files come from? Well, when I copied my old files from an old hard drive to a new one, it brought along ALL the old deleted files that hadn't been over written yet. I had files that went back to 1979 that were still recoverable. Now most of the files, ~60%, were not recoverable, but the file names still existed. And I did recover some of the really old files just to see if I could open them, I couldn't.
But I did find good copies of my Outlook pst file and bak file. So once I get Outlook back I should be able to restore all my email. ... (He says with confidence. HA!)
So Bill, your menu file could still be there. And if you want to spend $33 you might be able to get it back.
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13 comments:
Over siz million files? I think you need to do some serious housecleaning in there. Get things wiped off the hard drive or however they do those things. Surely you don't need them all and it would free up so much space for new stuff.
Good luck.
River - That's just it, it is free space because they are deleted files. It's a 2TB hard drive that barely has anything on it.
Sue - I think luck has left the building.
I've tried everything to recover my recipe files except spend money on recovery software. I'm not that desperate, yet, but I'm glad you're getting back to some semblance of normal on your PC.
Sounds like money well spent!
Glad to hear you're getting back in business.
I use one called free undelete. Or just undelete. Probably the same thing. I've found that these programs are ony good if you use them in a specific folder or drive.
Ugh!
Looks like your screen time will be spent going through files rather than scrolling the internet for quite some time.
Sorry, dude.
It will be another pool day for me.
I learned a lot in my battles with my computer. Over time, I no longer cry. I just curse a little, or a lot.
Bill - When I say 6 million files, it seems the computer keeps copies of not deleted files also. Like my pst file. There were 10 plus copies of that file. 9 were unrecoverable and one good one.
Deb - It does seem like it, so far.
Kathy - I think I'm getting ready to leave all the old stuff behind and do a wipe which would get rid of all the deleted files that are hanging around. What's slowing me down is not wanting to lose all the family pictures that I never look at. I should move them off the computer to a USB drive.
Mark - That's how Recuva works. You can recover "one" file for free. Recuva's "regular" price is $60 but it's "on sale" for $33. The $60 price may have made me think twice about buying it.
John - Yep, almost all my time on the computer is recovery mode time.
Susan - With me being a retired telephone repairman, I like fixing things. It's just that it a nuisance to fix the thing you use everyday to access the world. Now that I have it about 60% fixed I may decide that it's fixed enough. FYI, Claudia is having more gut problems. I think she's filling back up.
Fascinating saga. Can't wait to hear the next episode!
Wow - 79 - what kind of computer were you using back then??
Cloudia - This could be the never ending story.
Lady - My first real computer was a Gateway 2000. I think it had a 386 processor. A major upgrade from the 286's that were the norm for the time.
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