Recovering files with filenames

So I thought I was deleting 3 files, but I apparently didn't have them selected and I deleted the whole folder and all the subfolders. The recycle bin isn't nearly big enough to hold everything I deleted, so I only got about 1/10 of it back the way it was. I tried a couple "un-delete" programs to recover the files to a different drive, which worked, but the filenames and directory structure are gone and the files were simply given a sequential number starting with the first file in the folder (alphabetical order). I've been careful not to write anything new to the drive, but I've yet to find an app that can restore the files with their original filenames.

Anyone have any experience with this?

WinXP Pro SP2

NOPE sorry. Cant you just do System Restore

im useless sorry. good luck

Are these system files?

Which undelete progs have you tried already?

No, they're not system files. It's a different physical drive that stores most of my porn until I can sort it. Problem is I've fallen way behind and the directory I deleted was pretty huge.

I used Norton Un-erase first which would have worked great except that I only had 5% of the drive allocated to file protection, and I deleted something like 50 gigs.

Here's what I've tried: Most (maybe even all) of these can "see" and recover the files, but none of them recognize the filename or the original file location.

Advanced File Recovery
Pandora Recovery
PC Inspector File Recovery
RaidLabs File Uneraser
Recuva
Restoration

Smart Undelete? It has a trial period. Not sure if in Trial mode it has full functionality.

OnTrack Data Recovery Suite is pretty nifty when it comes to recovering things fully, especially if you havent re-written over it.

Thanks, but still no luck.

Smart Undelete does the same thing as the other programs, it will find/recover the files, but the filenames are gone and it can't identify the original file location.

OnTrack looked promising, but it didn't even identify the disks correctly. It only saw Disk2 as a single drive (E: ), when it actually has two partitions E: & F:, and the one I need to recover the files from doesn't even show up in the drive list

That sucks, I once recovered an entire 8gb compact flash card with OnTrack and everything was intact. Ill see what other recovery apps I have laying around and let you know if I find any suitable.

Have you checked this one@ http://www.derescue.com/view-data.html

edit: heres a technical tutorial of what happens upon file delete, apparantly the filenames are kept elsewhere:
http://www.geekgirls.com/windows_recycle_bin.htm

and heres a website that reviews recovery apps.. pointing out the best ones: http://recovery-review.com/

Same as before, the files are there, but not the original filenames or location. I'm starting to think it was the norton protection that's causing the problem. I think Norton tried to protect them from deletion but since the recycle bin wasn't big enough, they went into the recycle bin, but were immediately flushed out by the other files that were still being deleted. It seems as though they may have been moved into a folder called NPROTECT when they got flushed out of the recycle bin, and that's when they lost their filenames and original location

I guess I should contact Symantec. Maybe there's a file somewhere that keeps track of filenames in NProtect like the MBR and MFT does for Fat32 and NTFS.

Well, the phone call to Symantec went about like I expected

*Hold for 40 minutes
*Some foreign guy that I can barely understand answers
*Asks for name/phone/email/product info and gives me a Case ID #
*Asks me the nature of the problem (at this point I have a very clear image of him reading prompts from his computer screen)
*Asks me if I'm at the computer and have internet acces.... I cut him off mid-sentence and tell him I'm NOT going to give him remote access.
*He puts me on hold.
*Asks me to open the UnErase Wizard (duh, I did that 1 minute after I realized I deleted them 3 days ago and I already recovered the 4 gigs that were in there)
*Asks if I had any other UnErase products installed.
*Tells me that unfortunately, I can't recover the rest of the files.


I should have known I was going to be talking to someone that knows less about how computers work than I do

The funniest part is when they come on and have a seriously thick accent. Then they say "hello my name is Steve, how may I assist you today".

So everything is still on the drive and in good condition, except the filenames. Anyone know if rebuilding/restoring the MFT (Master File Table) will get the original filenames back?

Quote:

Originally posted by brownell

Well, the phone call to Symantec went about like I expected

*Hold for 40 minutes
*Some foreign guy that I can barely understand answers
*Asks for name/phone/email/product info and gives me a Case ID #
*Asks me the nature of the problem (at this point I have a very clear image of him reading prompts from his computer screen)
*Asks me if I'm at the computer and have internet acces.... I cut him off mid-sentence and tell him I'm NOT going to give him remote access.
*He puts me on hold.
*Asks me to open the UnErase Wizard (duh, I did that 1 minute after I realized I deleted them 3 days ago and I already recovered the 4 gigs that were in there)
*Asks if I had any other UnErase products installed.
*Tells me that unfortunately, I can't recover the rest of the files.


I should have known I was going to be talking to someone that knows less about how computers work than I do

What's wrong with you? You wouldn't give a strange foreign man who doesn't know shit about computers next to turning one on and off remote access to your computer?

Actually, I disabled/removed all the remote desktop services right after I built this thing about a year ago. I guess I'm just a bit paranoid that way.

I'm pretty sure I haven't actually lost any of my files, I just have a scrambled mess of 37k files with sequential filenames in one bigass folder, and I need to know if there's any way to re-associate them with their original filenames.

My next step is to contact a company that specializes in data recovery. On-Track offers free phone consultation, I'll probably call them first and see if I can actually talk to someone that knows what a MFT is.

Let us know what the rate is. Last time I used them was over 6 years ago and they were quite expensive then.

I just spoke with a tech at On-Track.

$69 for an "in lab" scan and a detailed list of everything that can be recovered from the drive, and "6" more to actually recover the files (I assume that "6" = 600)

After I described my situation in detail, he said that even in their lab, they wouldn't be able to recover the original filenames, which means they would have produced exactly the same results as the freeware utility I used to recover them last week.

I guess I'm SOL, so if anyone needs me, I'll be right here renaming all 31,290 files manually

600+ is about what we were charged to recover a drive ~6 years ago.