Reading Hard Drive to recover data

C

Chrisalis

New Member
I am trying to recover data from a laptop hard drive I have removed from a clients Vista based laptop. The system board appears to be bad, but the hard disk appears to be ok. I am using a SATA to USB adapter to look at the hardrive using another computer (running Windows 7) .
There is an icon with a lock on a couple of the directories. One being the Documents and Settings directory. I can't see files in the directory. I have taken ownership of the directory and I see a subdirectory with my name , as if a subdirectory was created because my computer took ownership , but I don't see other files.
How do I recover the data ?
Thanks
 

My Computer

System One

Welcome
From reading your post, it appears that you are trying to recover the stuff that is on the HD, documents, pics etc.
I think you may want to start with this software. Download and look around. Your stuff may be able to be viewed.
I think going into doucments and settings will lead to a dead end.
Documents and Settings in Vista and Windows 7 - 4sysops
 

My Computer

System One

  • Manufacturer/Model
    Dell XPS420
    Memory
    6 gig
    Graphics card(s)
    ATI Radeon HD3650 256 MB
    Sound Card
    Intergrated 7.1 Channel Audio
    Monitor(s) Displays
    Dell SP2009W 20 inch Flat Panel w Webcam
    Hard Drives
    640 gb
    Cooling
    Fan
    Mouse
    Dell USB 4 button optical
    Keyboard
    Dell USB
    Other Info
    DSL provided by ATT
Last edited:

My Computer

System One

  • Manufacturer/Model
    Lenovo Thinkpad T400
    CPU
    Intel Mobile Core 2 Duo P8700 @ 2.53GHz
    Motherboard
    LENOVO 64734VM
    Memory
    2.00GB Single-Channel DDR3 @ 531MHz
    Graphics card(s)
    Intel Mobile Intel 4 Series Express Chipset Family
    Sound Card
    Conexant 20561 SmartAudio HD
    Monitor(s) Displays
    15 inch
    Screen Resolution
    1280 x 800
    Hard Drives
    1x 180GB Intel 530 series SSD 1 x 120GB Hitachi 5400rmp 1 x 650GB Western Digital Elements 5400rpm 1x 1Tb Western Digital Elements 5400rpm
    Internet Speed
    Medium for New Zealand
    Other Info
    Weakest part of my computer is the graphics chipset. Only ever used a laptop. Also use USB Freeview TV Card Lenovo Docking Station External Speakers Other bits a pieces as needed
Both of these replies were interesting and helpful. After taking ownership of the directories, I could see the files and copy them. The biggest problem was that there was no obvious user directory. The users data was in a user directory called "test". I suppose the user didn't understand how to set up the accounts.
 

My Computer

System One

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