Boot Sector and Backup Bad

How to use TestDisk to recover lost partition
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KDMcMullan
Posts: 11
Joined: 18 Oct 2016, 20:06

Boot Sector and Backup Bad

#1 Post by KDMcMullan »

I have a drive, which has become inaccessible in Windows.

The disk was one large partition. TestDisk suspects an NTFS partition, but reports that my boot sector is bad, that the backup boot sector cannot be read, and that they are not identical.

Rebuild is unable to find a FAT32 or FAT32 LBA table.

The drive still contains files (photorec was able to recover several hundred in just a few minutes - I haven't yet let it run for the full 23 hours it thought it might need).

I think that the only TestDisk option I've not tried Is Write TestDisk MBR code to first sector. Can you explain this option, please? Is it the correct action at this point?

Many thanks.

rebs
Posts: 1
Joined: 03 Nov 2016, 21:39

Re: Boot Sector and Backup Bad

#2 Post by rebs »

Hi, I think I have the same problem. Have you found a solution? Thanks!!

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cgrenier
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Re: Boot Sector and Backup Bad

#3 Post by cgrenier »

TestDisk MBR rewrite the code in the MBR sector, do not use it in your case.
RebuildBS may failed if the partition table type is wrong. You can force it to NTFS and try Boot, RebuildBS, List. If yu see your files, choose Write, confirm, Quit

KDMcMullan
Posts: 11
Joined: 18 Oct 2016, 20:06

Re: Boot Sector and Backup Bad

#4 Post by KDMcMullan »

I've tried Boot/Rebuild/List for both NTFS and FAT32 (I can't imagine the drive would be any other type).

Can I assume that the partition table is just lost? Is photorec my only route?

Thanks.

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