Undelete files to 2nd USB Drive?

Using TestDisk to undelete files
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Author
Quarterback
Posts: 1
Joined: 26 Apr 2013, 14:48
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Undelete files to 2nd USB Drive?

#1 Post by Quarterback »

How do I recover files to a second USB drive?

I booted laptop from first 2GB USB with TestDisk, with an empty 8GB USB drive in the second USB slot. Found files to recover from hard drive, selected all, but on the destination screen I can only see how to store the undeleted files on the first 2GB drive.

Lots of files to recover so I want every single byte of space available on that 8GB.

How do I select the second USB drive as destination?

Thanks!

User avatar
Fiona
Posts: 2835
Joined: 18 Feb 2012, 17:19
Location: Ludwigsburg/Stuttgart - Germany

Re: Undelete files to 2nd USB Drive?

#2 Post by Fiona »

I booted laptop from first 2GB USB with TestDisk, with an empty 8GB USB drive in the second USB slot.
If you Boot from an USB thumb, do you have another OS?
Because file system must be supported.
If you'd like to copy files to another disk using testdisk, you must list your files, mark them and mark that 2 dots on the upper side of the screen and press enter to confirm.
So you'll get one directoy up.
Just repeat it until you get to your disk selection.
Select another disk as your dstination.
You also can navigtae into any folder, where you want to recover your data to.
Easily check your folder and use the right arrow key on your keyboard to enter your folder.
If you list your files, at the bottom of the screen you'll find all the commands.

Fiona

gokul
Posts: 4
Joined: 16 May 2013, 14:10

Re: Undelete files to 2nd USB Drive?

#3 Post by gokul »

So to select the destination drive, we have to go to the first drive selection screen in TestDisk ?

I selected /dev/sdb from the directory tree and pressed "C" for copy.
It said copying but after it said "Copy successful" there was nothing in the /dev/sdb which should have been my other drive.

I am running TestDisk from a SystemRescueCD - the bad disk is on one USB port and the destination drive is on another USB port.
TestDrive can see the files on the bad drive correctly.

I would like the correct instructions to copy the files out to the other hard drive.

THanks

gokul
Posts: 4
Joined: 16 May 2013, 14:10

Re: Undelete files to 2nd USB Drive?

#4 Post by gokul »

Hi,

I am trying to do the same but after copy nothing is there on the destination drive.
I have the bad drive connected to one USB port and a good drive to another USB port.

After I select the files I press "C" to copy and it seems to work.

I select the destination drive by going to the directory and selecting /dev/sdb which is the good drive but this seems to not work.

I am using SystemRescueCD and run TestDisk from there.

Should I go back to the disk selection menu in TestDisk to select the destination drive ? If I do "Q" to go back all the way will TestDisk forget the files I selected to copy ???

How to use the copy function is not clear.
Thanks

User avatar
Fiona
Posts: 2835
Joined: 18 Feb 2012, 17:19
Location: Ludwigsburg/Stuttgart - Germany

Re: Undelete files to 2nd USB Drive?

#5 Post by Fiona »

The file system where you'd like to copy files to (your destination partition or disk) must be supoorted by your OS.
Does your SystemRescueCD support the file system of your destination disk/folder?

Fiona

gokul
Posts: 4
Joined: 16 May 2013, 14:10

Re: Undelete files to 2nd USB Drive?

#6 Post by gokul »

SystemRescueCD is a CD based Linux. I don't understand what you mean by "supported by your OS".

The second USB drive is recognized by TestDisk as well as Linux (it shows as /dev/sdb).

When I select /dev/sdb as the destination TestDisk Copy seems to work but there is nothing in the drive after the copy is over.

What are the clear step by step instructions to copy files from damaged disk to a good disk using TestDisk?

I am now trying to install ubuntu on a pc and run testdisk from there - may be then it will copy to the PC's harddrive ?

gokul
Posts: 4
Joined: 16 May 2013, 14:10

Re: Undelete files to 2nd USB Drive?

#7 Post by gokul »

I have now installed debian on the laptop.
I installed testdisk also.

Testdisk sees the bad hard drive (connected via USB). This shows as /dev/sdb/
I am able to list files from this bad drive and able to select the files.

I select the /home/downloads directory on the laptop hardrive as the destination. (this is /dev/sda)
It says "Copying, please wait"

I get the message "copying complete" BUT there is nothing in the destination directory. Why is this ?

Why does testdisk say copying and then copy complete but nothing is copied ??

Do I have to do a "mount" of the /dev/sda ?
Can someone who has done this successfully give me some help ?

Thanks

Lito
Posts: 83
Joined: 08 Sep 2012, 06:58

Re: Undelete files to 2nd USB Drive?

#8 Post by Lito »

This is all rather confusing.
If you booted the machine from an Operating System in a USB pen/thumb/card
in theory there is nothing to recover from there.
Most likely the files you are trying to recover will be in /dev/sda
that is the internal HDD in your PC or laptop.

If we assume the 2GB USB pen/thumb/card is /dev/sdb

then you should copy your files to /dev/sdc, your 8GB USB pen/thumb/card.

If you installed Ubuntu or Debian in your laptop HDD (/dev/sda), might be you
made things worse.

In any case, verify which drive is where with

fdisk -l

(l for list)

Once you know the position of all drives, labels, identifiers and so forth

try running Testdisk or PhotoRec as root.

PhotoRec folders will appear as locked and belonging to root.
You can change that with

chown

(change owner command)

so any user can access the folders.

Best of luck

oldman
Posts: 1
Joined: 19 Dec 2014, 18:37

Re: Undelete files to 2nd USB Drive?

#9 Post by oldman »

having the same problem here.
and its not unreconiced by my os. (linux)
everytime i copy the files they go to /dev directory
not to the usb. i have been trying every sdb,sdb1,sdc,sdc1,
and the files still goes to /dev directory.


booting from usb to scan the laptopp sdd. and copy files to a external usb/ssd/hdd whatever.

usb on fat format. (readable by most of electronics)

succeded to find lots of files big tumbs up for that. but it is a shame it's so difficult to copy to external.

everybody watch out for the wd my passport HDD!!!

p.s. i love this software photorec/testdisk

Best regards / Timo

europanorama
Posts: 75
Joined: 18 Dec 2014, 10:44

Re: Undelete files to 2nd USB Drive?

#10 Post by europanorama »

We need a clear copy and save-instruction. step by step. main problem is finding the right destination.
one must go back with left arrow. but sometime that is locked and only quit will open it. Will this delete the copy-operation? navigating to the destination is not easy to understand.

Locked