Recover Deleted Files - Comments Page 1

Do these tools work for documents that are opened in temp folders? The most common problem I've run into is opening an email attachment (such as a Word document)and editing it, and saving it, only to realize that it wasn't in the "My Documents" folder, but a temp file that goes away when the email program is closed. Do these software programs help in such instances?

EDITOR'S NOTE: If you try the recovery right away, there's a good chance it will work.

I know what you'll say, but I have to ask. I was using a duplicate file finder software and something else to help me pare down a full hard drive. Next thing I knew, I was missing all the games that came with Windows XP and Word, Excel Powerpoint, Frontpage etc. Gone... Word, and Frontpage did not come with my Dell, they gave me Word Perfect and it made me so mad I broke the CD, I never wanted to be even tempted to go back to it. I have the codes for those files but I couldn't reload from the homemade disc, it would not take the code. So, my question is ( and it has been over a year now) is it possible to recover these? I bought a undelete software but nothing popped up. Or, I just didn't know how to use it. I managed to salvage my favorite game due to saved old games but nothing else. I purchased the ONE group and it is OK but every now and then when I want to email something or convert to a pdf file. I realize that nor having .doc files is a problem. Some files will just not open. Do I have to buy them again and if so, is there a way to buy the older (cheaper) versions? I was fine with 2003 version.

EDITOR'S NOTE: After that much time, recovery seems unlikely. But you CAN get good free Office software. See http://www.askbobrankin.com/free_office_software.html

Call me crazy...I've loved AOL since joining the computer world in 1996 (thanks to a pop-up, I've only been paying $149.00 a year since 1997)but about a year ago I started getting a message that AOL was unable to initialize, and if this message kept coming up, I would have to reinstall my AOL software.

Under the old AOL ISP, I had about a thousand recipes saved to "my computer" within the AOL mail system, but on the AOL I access from the internet, the "saved to my computer" mail doesn't even exist.

How can I find the "saved to my computer" mail files without reinstalling AOL and letting their software overrun my computer again?

EDITOR'S NOTE: Unless you can find the AOL "cabinet" folder (or whatever it's called) and decipher the contents, your only choice seems to be re-install the AOL software, then pull out the stuff you want from the "saved to my computer" area, then remove AOL again.

Is there a way that I can recover permanently deleted emails from my AOL account???

EDITOR'S NOTE: I think not, since the emails are stored on the AOL server, not your PC.

Hi Bob, I was wondering if there is a way to recover deleted emails from a .mbox file extension which is MAC mail. i have deleted some emails completly from my mac mail and wanna know if there is away to recover these emails?

EDITOR'S NOTE: Sounds like deleted some contents of a mailbox file, and not the whole file. I would guess you're out of luck...

How do I get to emails that I saved in folders on my computer. I lost my email service due to a change in the provider's operation. I cannot get back into my email, but I know that all those folders are saved somewhere on my computer. I just don't know where. In case it makes a difference, the email service was through msn. Thanks for your help.

EDITOR'S NOTE: You should still be able to open your email program and view your emails. You won't be able to send or receive if it's still configured for MSN, but that won't stop you from seeing your old emails. If you used a web-based email service with MSN, it's doubtful that the messages were stored on your computer.

I was copying and pasting a file folder from a camera flash drive onto my hard drive when I got an error (didn't really read it). However, half of the files were deleted from the flash card, though my hard drive desitnation held some (about 60 more than what remained on the flash drive). What happened? Can I recover these?

EDITOR'S NOTE: Without knowing the error message, it's hard to say. I'd try one of the file restoration utilities.

I accidentally hit dont save on 8 hours worth of work. any way to recover it? XP Pro, Word 2003

hi i was wondering if there is a way to get items that have been emptied from a recycle bin back?

Help! I was working in Frontpage and on a website that is "live" tied to our network. I accidentally overwrote the main page with one I did not want to use for that. Can I recover the original? System restore? Any other way? It was just yesterday and I have not shut down the PC as of yet.

EDITOR'S NOTE: I would check with the hosting company to see if you have any backups on the server.

Hi! I deleted our MSN chat back up folder and just realized that there is something in it that I need. It's not in the recycle folder. I don't want to install any recovery software either. Is there any way to find it somewhere hidden in the computer?

EDITOR'S NOTE: I don't think you'll find it without recovery software.

Hi, I want to know if its possible to recover the files deleted from a Kingston pen/flash drive? What happens to the deleted files from a flash drive?

EDITOR'S NOTE: Nothing different than a regular hard drive. You can use a file recovery tool on a flash drive.

If you accidentally save over a file, is it possible to retrieve them? Would one do this through dos?

EDITOR'S NOTE: Most llikely not, since the file will probably be written to the same physical space on the disk.

i accidently used full system restore on my pc and all my files are gone but my applications are still working. wat can i do to recover the files because i didnt back up or anything.

EDITOR'S NOTE: I think the full restore formats the disk. If so, your files are truly gone.

I did system restore and my last restore point was a lot longer than I realized. I know that this mean I basically reformatted my entire hard drive but for some reason when I look at the disk space available it shows that my hard drive is way more full than I can remember it ever being. I lost a ton of music and backed-up dvds so I'm just not sure how this can be. The programs that I had installed on my computer were still there after this restore including some pretty weird obscure non-system ones and part of the virus that i was trying to nuke. I know XP tends to come with a load of extra crap that I've gotten stream lined down before but this seems ridiculous. Before restore I my hard drive usage was like 80gb outta 224gb. after restore it was 105gb.

I accidentally deleted my trash can (recycle bin) on my Windows XP desktop. How can I get it back?

EDITOR'S NOTE: I'm pretty sure you have to mess with the system registry to delete the Recycle Bin. It doesn't even have a Delete option when you right-click it. On the chance that it's just hidden, try searching your computer for "recycler" and if you find it, create a short cut to it on your desktop. Another option is to do a System Restore to yesterday (or the most recent restore point prior to the deletion). See http://askbobrankin.com/system_restore.html

Well - just like Mike - I accidentally deleted my trash can icon from my desktop - I have Windows Vista - the drop down menu did have a delete option and I think I probably hit that instead of hitting Empty Trash can - aaaaagh - it happened so fast!! I have Windows Vista and definitely wasn't messing around in the registry. So - I will try searching for "recycler" - I did a search for Trash Can and nothing came up - and then if that doesn't work I will try the System Restore but I'm not sure where to find that! I am just a silly 65 yr old lady who doesn't know as much about her computer as she should!

EDITOR'S NOTE: It's very odd if Vista lets people delete the Trash Can. Under XP, the System Restore is found by going to Start, then Help and Support.

Hey - guess what - I got my Trash Can back!! I didn't really delete it totally - I just deleted the icon off my desk top. I right clicked on my desktop - chose Personalization - over on the left I clicked Change Desktop Icons and guess what - there was a picture of the Trash Can Icon and there wasn't a check mark beside it! I checked it - hit Apply - Okay - and I got my Trash Can Icon back! Hooray! You don't know how proud I am of myself for figuring this out! LOL

Mike - I hope you can find as easy a fix - I know you have XP and I have Vista but I'll bet you can do the same thing!! Let me know if you are able to! :o)

By mistake I deleted from my xp registry the file HKLM\SOFTWARE\MICROSOFT\WINDOWS\CURRENT VERSION\SHELL SERVICE OBJECT DELAY LOAD. Can I just type it back in? And at what location? What is it used for? Was in the process of removing adware files.

EDITOR'S NOTE: You could try a reboot, and see if Windows replaces it for you. If not, I'd first try a System Restore. (See http://askbobrankin.com/system_restore.html) If that doesn't do it, try exporting the key from another computer, then import it on your computer (using REGEDIT).

Hi, thanks for all of the advice on your website. It's been quite useful to me lately. I have a little bit of a strange question: I have a USB storage device purchased from the Apple store on which I've stored lots of important files. Recently my computer hard drive crashed and nothing was recovered.

I've just discovered that before the computer crashed, I transferred a few important files by clicking on them and moving them to the internal (computer) hard drive.. Any chance that there is some trace of them left on the external hard drive (if I cut or dragged them out of it)?

EDITOR'S NOTE: It's quite possible. I suggest you try an undelete tool on the USB drive.