How to recover lost data?

Lounge
1

My computer got messed up with avast and spybot because of a virus and I couldn’t get it started again, so I tried to do this How to recover from a corrupted registry that prevents Windows XP from starting but it still isn’t running right. I have a lot of files missing. How do I get my computer back to normal before I kept on getting the message “WINDOWS XP COULD NOT START BECAUSE THE FOLLOWING FILE IS MISSING OR CORRUPT” ever time I restarted the computer?

When I try to defrag it, I can’t. My computer still shows it 38% full.

2

My biggest computer trick is “Esc+Alt+Del”, then run out of the room & deny having touched the computer.

If that doesn’t work or the hospital IT crew can’t fix the problem (for some reason those guys don’t love me much :roll_eyes:) then I buy a new laptop :smiley:

Yeah… You probably shouldn’t listen to any IT related advice I tell you… You’d get more help from the little mute paperclip dude…

3

You could probably try using one of those boot-from-CD-and-run-in-memory thingimajiggies. A whatsit called… a Knoppix Linux distro.

That will at least allow you to see the hard drive and copy across any critical files and documents onto a flash drive for safe keeping. Then you can worry about reinstalling Windows or whatever must be done to resurrect the machine.

Musk

4

Download Recuva…
Recuva - Undelete, Unerase, File and Disk Recovery - Free Download

Try to get your files with back with that program. Backup ur data, on different partition, external hdd or whatever.

Then reinstall windows. You must do that. After a virus messed up the OS too much, it will most times stay kinda corrupted…

5

Go to this website: Computer Tech Support Forum - Windows - Linux - Mac - Computing.Net

Sign up for a free account and post in their forum exactly what problem you are having and on what system. Be precise as you possibly can. Most likely they will have you download a couple of programs that can be run before windows. It will save the data to a logfile and then you will need to post that logfile back to the site. From there they will give you specific instructions on how to remove the virus and recover data.

I did it twice before I got the mac. Never been back since. It worked perfectly at the time.

6

So you can’t get the computer to start right?
Run it in safe mode. When you start the computer just keep mashing F8 (F12 on some computers) until a menu comes up with the option to start it in Safe Mode. That will allow you to access the files on the computer. I’d suggest transferring the files you can to an external harddrive and then rebooting your computer. I hear windows 7 is decent :slight_smile:.

I also suggest downloading a program called Hijack This. It scans your registry files for corrupt or virus/trojan/malicious registry files, such as spyware that starts when you turn on the computer. It does however bring registry files to your attention that may NOT be harmful (and actually some of them are required for your computer to run properly) so I suggest that you keep the internet open while you use it and before deleting a registry file, type the name into google and see what it is. I’ve successfully removed spyware countless times from my own and friends’ computers using this program. Highly reccommend it to everyone.

7

Yeah Hijack this is what I used and I posted the entire log to computing net. They took me step by step of everything that needed to go and/or stay. Presto! In just about an hour everything was working again, then got a Mac and never turn it on anymore.

8

thanks everybody, i spent the whole weekend trying to figure it out, but alas, i freaking hate computers, so i deleted everything and clean install.

9

You mean you hate PC’s! Macs don’t have that problem :wink:

10

good u fixed it the easy way i some times dislike them 2 from the frustration i get out of them but then cant live without i hop u didn’t lose any important data

11

ill suggest Hirens BootCD it has a mini xp and lots of other handy tools

12

lol ill just pretend that i didn’t read that

13

Hello, ok this my field :slight_smile:

First off bolting the door after the horse has bolted in never the best way, be prepared and always expect that you will have such issue not if.

First thing is make a clone of good working install, once a month is good, if you have skills partition hard drive so user data and OS applications are on different partition this can keep clone size smaller as only need to clone OS installed programs partition, also means you can restore OS patition and not overwrite user data.

There are a number of cloning apps out there

Ghost - pay
Clonezilla - free
Reflect - free and paid - win only but will clone live system
plus more

Make sure you backup your data regular.

Install anti virus, malware and firewall

Recommend
Anti virus

AVG free
Kaspersky - good and have free online scanner

Malware
Malwarebytes - malware
spywareblaster - prevention

There are number of others but start with these and as always prevention is better.

Firewall
Online-Amor

Also get or create a Bart-PE disk which is a live win boot disk, you can create your own or find one on of the bittorent share sites.

There are also a number of linux based rescue disks as well that can used for windows.

Another very good app is spinritewhich is disk recover, refurbishment app. Have recovered many a failing disk to point where data can be retrieved. Also keeps disk in health state.

If you get system that fails to boot this often related to missing or corrupt files such as ntoskrn.exe that can be copied over from an install disk or working system using Bart-PE disk or via rescue console of install disk.

If you don’t have an install disk, common, then download a win rescue disk or create your own.Good if you have an manufacture version of windows.

You can download win rescue disks for vista and win 7 here

Always back up, back up and back up a bit more.

Avoid downloading any security, AV software unless you have done your research on it to check it is genuine as there are many fake ones out there.

Paranoia is good when it comes to the Internet.

Use firefox browser

If all this fails install Linux, recommend Kubuntu for newbies. I support windows but use linux :slight_smile:

14

BubbleCatcher AVG free is an option but had really bad results from it ill go for Vipre or Kaspersky, malwarebytes is great cant be without and ill also recommend ccleaner and virtualization is a must a small and powerful 1 is Sandboxie i allways run or open anything new that i don’t trust in it and Virustotal.com is really handy 2 :wink:

15

AVG is best free but would always recommend Kaspersky, truth is there are loads of apps, just to many to list, prevention is the best cure.

If you are really paranoid then install virtualbox then your version of windows, then before you install anything try it in your VB install or just use the VB install to browse web, if it becomes infected then just revert to last know snap shot.

As always, back up and be paranoid.

16

believe it or not, i had most of those. i have avast as anti virus. i like it the best. thanks for the great tips.