Re: Best File Recovery Software? Last update 10/05
Update:<br /><br />This is what happened:<br /><br />I was setting up lan shared folders and had put the "Shared Documents" folder in "My Network Places". Then changed my mind and went to delete it, but I was not on the Network Places window, I was on My Computer (oops). I see that the delete is taking a while, not the 1 second that deleting a shortcut takes. I suddenly realize my mistake and click on the Cancel button. OOps. Big mistake.<br /><br />The result is that ALL the permissions were removed from all directories and files in Shared Documents. That makes the folder and everything in it "Not Accessable" and lists the directory as being "Empty Folder". I do not realize it is a permissions issue at this time. <br /><br />After a while of screwing around trying to find my folders, I decide to do a System Restore. Nope, Shared Docs is not back.<br /><br />So believing the data was deleted, I get the recovery software. It was a good thing too. File Scavenger found all the files and copied them to a new drive I installed for this purpose.<br /><br />I also take the time to do a Backup of the entire Shared Docs directory to new hard drive using the Backup Utility. The backup utility runs awhile, so i believe it found everything. <br /><br />As a test, I do a restore from the backup and it runs a while and ends OK. But the data is still showing as not available and as an empty folder.<br /><br />I also notice that most of the entries in All Programs are gone. Including the System Utilities. I find the utility execute in the windows directory and run it to undo the affect of the restore utility. No good, the System Restore says the PC cannot be restored because no ativity has taken place. Nice, very nice. So now the Restore Utilty has made things so the System Restore won't work and now the whole situation just got worse.
<br /><br />Eventually I start browsing the recovered files on the new drive created by File Scavenger and see that my Start Programs file is still intact, and different than the one I now have on the C drive. A little poking around the help files and I realize that this may be a permissions issue. (Also note that the C drive is still the same percent full as before this whole mess started, so the system thinks the data is still taking up space, even though it tells me the Shared Documents folder is empty. We are talking about 60 gigs of data. hint hint.)<br /><br />So with a quick education on permissions, I jump into the C drive and set Simple File Sharing OFF and start inspecting permissions under the Security tab. Turns out there are NO permissions on the Shared Documents folder. So nothing has access. Hence my inability to see it. I do a global permissions change to allow "Everyone" to have "Full Control" over the folder and set it so children folders inherit the parent folder permissions. Things start looking better.<br /><br />But... my start programs is still messed up. Seems the Restore Utility (not system restore) has really buggered up the data. So I copy my file from the recovered data on the new drive and suddenly my programs are all back. I decide to copy the entire "All Users" folder on the new drive recovered using the File Scavenger program to the All Users folder in Shared Documents on the C drive. This worked. Everything is back, and the machine is working as it was. It did take 4 or 5 tries because there were a few security software files that did not take permissions from their parent directory and had to be addressed one on one. This was a pain, because copying All Users takes 35 minutes on my PC and it doesent find these problem files until the very end. Go figure
<br /><br />I probably have about 20 hours work into recovering this PC. But its back. And I'm going to start burning all new backups of the data files I want to keep. Then take a restore point. I also have to set the permissions back to the proper levels for "Everyone" because right now "Everyone" has full control. Not too good with kids around.<br /><br />BTW, I ended up putting Shared Documents in My Network Places last night anyway..... Remember what started this whole mess?
