Fdisk MBR » Fdisk MBR

Deleted Files Recovery

gf — Fri, 06 Aug 2010 17:20:23 +0000

With each computer constantly changing, it can become hard to stay up to date on all of the latest technology. A common problem that several people have is losing files as they transfer from computer to computer, or when they purchase a new computer. If you buy a new brand of computer it can be quite difficult to learn the process of moving files to the recycle bin, clearing them, etc. However, one of the worst things that can happen is when you delete a file and you later realize that you actually really need that file. There are a few different things that you can do to get these files back into your possession and working again.

One of the first things that you need to do is make sure that you look through all of your files. People often times save things in different folders than they might have meant to. It is fairly easy to accidentally drag a document into the wrong folder. You will want to take some time and look through all of the different folders on your computer. This may take some time, but it could save you a lot of money because you may not have to purchase deleted files recovery software. However, if you discover that you have not saved the file in a wrong folder, and you indeed deleted it permanently, you will need to look at other options.

There is a variety of different software options available that can help you recover deleted files. You can purchase these online or at electronic stores. You will want to be sure that you research the software before you buy it. There is different recovery software available for various makes and models of computers. You will want to be sure that the software you buy will work properly with your computer. The only way that you can be sure that it will work, is by doing your research and learning about the various types of software available for you to purchase.

If you choose not to purchase software to help with deleted files recovery, you can also hire a computer specialist. These individuals are trained to understand the computer system in a much greater depth than the average person. They can usually discover where the file is, and how to retrieve it. They are usually available for hire in most local communities.

The Fdisk MBR website has additional information that you might find useful.

Recover Files

gf — Sat, 26 Jun 2010 18:12:23 +0000

Computers are becoming more and more important every day in our rapidly growing technological world. It seems like computers are used for everything now a days, from business to recreation. The information that we keep on our hard drives is becoming invaluable and the loss of it can be devastating. For this reason people are often taking steps to prevent the loss of their important files. When these protective measures fail they may be forced to recover files that were lost. Recovering files is not easy, it is a process that can be time consuming and difficult, even for a professional.

Data can be lost in many different ways but may include deleting files by accident, a hard drive crash, formatting a hard drive, and many others. All of these processes can lead to the loss of important files that were once considered safe on your computer.

There are many different services that are available for people looking to recover lost files. The most simple and easy to find are programs that can be downloaded onto your computer. These programs promise to resurrect files of all types, even files that were put into the recycle bin and deleted. It is important to shop around when looking to buy these programs. It would be a good idea to read any reviews on the programs to see what other users had to say about their experiences with the program and the company.

A second option for recovering files would be local computer repair shops. These shops often have people that specialize in data recovery. This option will probably cost more money but can be much more effective, especially if the files have already been deleted. Before choosing a shop to do the file recovery, the customer should call around for pricing and services offered. If not that, they should check online and see what kind of shops are in their area so that they can find the best deals.

The last and best option to recover files is never loosing them in the first place. Prevention can go a long way and save a lot of money in the process. Portable hard drives can be set up as back up disks with many if not all of the important files. These backup disks ensure that you will have an extra copy of any files that you may have lost either by accident or unknowingly. These hard drives have a cost of around $100 dollars but can save a lot of head ache and money in the long run.

The Fdisk MBR website has additional information that you might find useful.

Free Partition Software

gf — Sun, 04 Apr 2010 04:57:06 +0000

There are several good Open Source free partition software programs available. One of the best that I frequently

GParted

use is GParted. GParted is a popular Linux utility that is very similar to Partition Magic. You can find this utility bundled with several other valuable computer maintenance utilities on Linux Live CDs which can be booted on start-up. When you use a Live CD to boot your computer you are operating the computer from the CD and not the hard drive. This gives you the ability to perform any operation on the hard drive. You could partition the hard drive or even re-size the current partitions and also create new ones without destroying the contents of the drive. Some of the bundled utilities will allow you to correct MBR and partition tables and also recover deleted or lost file files.

I use GParted to setup hard drives with extended partitions that I use for storing data, files, and backup images. This allows me to quickly recover from a failed, corrupted, or infected hard drive quickly. When I first install the operating system and get it configured with all my need applications, service packs, and security patches I create a backup image and store it on my second partition. Now when Windows decides to go south, either form a virus or other corruption, I can use the image to restore my primary partition where just the Windows operating system resides. My data, files, and backups are safely stored on the extended partition. Viruses usual target operating systems and not data or files. By having the image on a second partition you can quickly and easily restore your computer in a few minutes. This saves huge amounts of time when you have no other recourse but reinstall the operating system.

The Fdisk MBR website has additional information that you might find useful.

Fdisk USB

gf — Tue, 24 Nov 2009 05:39:59 +0000

Fdisk USB (Fdisk Boot)

The fdisk USB utility can be run from a USB flash drive. To do this you will need to create a bootable USB flash drive. This can be accomplished using the HP flash drive tool that you can find on the Internet using a Google search: HP bootable flash drive tool. Once you have created a bootable flash drive you can install DOS and the DOS utilities along with fdisk. This bootable flash drive makes a great technician tool to be able to retrieve NTFS files on Windows XP drives.

Fdisk NTFS (Fdisk Utility)

You can add free utilities to your bootable DOS flash drive, such as, Active NTFS Reader for DOS, for reading NTFS files from DOS and retrieving important data from non-functioning Windows operating systems. I also have a YouTube videos that goes into this subject in more depth.

Fdisk CD

You can also create a bootable DOS CD to use fdisk again on a non-function Windows operating system. Nero and some other CD burning programs allow you to create bootable CDs using DOS startup files. This provides you another nice tool for accessing a computer that will not boot.

How to Fdisk

Fdisk can be a little challenging when you first attempt using it. It does not have a friendly user interface. I have also created an Fdisk DOS tutorial YouTube Video that you might find helpful.

GParted Partitioning Utility

Gparted is a free Open Source utility that you might find helpful. GParted has a friendly user interface and operates very quickly for creating partitions and even resizing partitions without destroying your data. I also have a GParted tutorial video you might find helpful.

Fdisk MBR

The Fdisk MBR website has many other articles on this subject you might find helpful along with Fdisk USB.

Partitioning Hard Drives

gf — Thu, 05 Nov 2009 18:23:38 +0000

Partitioning hard drives will help protect important data by placing the data in a logical drive outside the operating system drive. Creating more than one partition on a hard drive is important to safeguard data. Windows has a tendency to slow down from drive fragmentation, registry problems, spyware, and viruses. Continued maintenance is needed to keep Windows functioning. Windows is also a target for viruses and by having your important data outside the operating system you can quickly replace the operating system and not destroy your data. I have a lab of 35 computers and perform a system restore daily using imaging software. My students keep their files and data in a backup partition so when I am restoring the operating system their files and data are safe in a separate partition. There are several partitioning utilities that can be used. Fdisk for DOS, Disk Management for Windows XP, and my favorite GParted which runs from a Linux LiveCD.

GParted

The GParted free Open Source partition utility is fast and easy to use for partitioning hard drives.

The Fdisk MBR website has some additional articles on this subject you might find useful.

I have several YouTube videos and additional resources that take you step by step that you might find helpful at ComputerRepairTrainingPlus.

GParted Partition Utility

gf — Mon, 26 Oct 2009 03:45:38 +0000

GParted partition utility is a free Open Source Linux utility that can be run from a LiveCD, such as, Insert. This utility can quickly create Windows FAT32 and NTFS hard drive partitions. GParted can even resize partitions without destroying the data on the partition. This make it very useful for creating a second or third partition on a Windows installed drive. I like to run GParted from the Insert LiveCD because you can boot the computer from the CD and still have full access to the hard drive. This is a valuable utility that I use often.

LiveCDs

LiveCds are CDs that can be used to startup a non-functioning computer to retrieve files and data that might not otherwise be accessible. You can also use the LiveCD to troubleshoot, edit files, and scan and remove virus infections. LiveCDs can be very important computer technician tools.

Fdisk MBR

The Fdisk MBR website has additional articles on this subject that you might find useful.

I also have a YouTube video that takes you step by step through its easy operation.

Linux Fdisk

gf — Sat, 26 Sep 2009 22:09:59 +0000

Linux uses one partition for its root file system and it also needs a dedicated swap partition for its swap file. Since Linux Fdisk is more complex than DOS Fdisk it can be very challenging to use. Also older Computer hardware BIOS can only accesses the first 1024 cylinders of the disk, which can limit your partitions to 8GB. You can also make DOS partitions with the DOS Fdisk utility or Linux partitions with the Linux Fdisk.

Partitioning

When I setup partitions for either a Linux or Windows operating systems I use GParted. GParted, Partition Magic clone, is a free Open Source utility that works well on any computer system. You can also run it, which I prefer, from a LiveCD, such as, INSERT. INSERT, from Inside Security, is a free LiveCD based on Knoppix. Knoppix is another LiveCD that has many useful computer maintenance tools. INSERT also has many other free and valuable tools, such as, Partimage, which is a clone of North Ghost. If you want some addition information on GParted you should check out the my YouTube video GParted.

Fdisk MBR

The Fdisk MBR website has additional articles on this subject you might find useful.

FIXMBR

gf — Thu, 24 Sep 2009 02:02:05 +0000

The FIXMBR command no longer uses DOS and the fdisk utility is no longer available in Windows XP. However, there is this new FIXMBR command function that can be used in the Recovery Console where you can also find other important maintenance tools. You can start the Recovery Console from an original Windows XP install CD or you can also install it to the hard drive so that you can access it during startup. To install it to the hard drive type the following at the command prompt: X:\i386\winnt32.exe /cmdcons (X is the letter of the CDROM drive where the Windows XP install disk is.) When you startup the Recovery Console you will need the administrator’s password access the drive.

There are several familiar DOS commands that can be listed by typing HELP at the prompt, such as, attrib, del, more, delete, mkdir, dir, format, cd, help, chdir, rd, chkdsk, cls, exit, rename, copy, md, and rmdir. These commands can be used to repair and modify all files and folders on your hard drive. The Windows XP FIXMBR command and Recovery Console has proven to be a very helpful maintenance tool.

I also have a YouTube video on FIXMBR that you might want to checkout.

Fdisk MBR

The Fdisk MBR website has some additional articles you might find useful.

MBR

gf — Wed, 09 Sep 2009 04:30:12 +0000

An MBR (master boot record), or also referred to as the first partition sector, is a 512-byte boot sector that is the first sector (LBA Sector 0) of a partitioned hard drive. Consequently the master boot record becomes a target for boot-sector infecting viruses. In addition to the bootstrap code and a partition table the master boot record also contains a Windows signature. Fdisk has an undocumented parameter called /mbr that causes it to write the master boot record to the hard disk without altering the partition table information. Warning: Writing the master boot record to the hard disk in this manner can make certain hard disks partitioned with multi-boot utilities unusable. This first sector of the hard disk is called the master boot record (or sometimes the partition table or master boot block). This program is written to the disk by the fdisk /mbr command and is usually called the MBR. During normal operations, Fdisk writes this information to the disk only if there is no master boot record. During the installation of Microsoft MS-DOS, setup replaces the MBR on the hard disk with code to display a message MS-DOS.

Master Boot Code

Master Boot Code: The master boot record contains the small initial boot program that BIOS loads and executes to start the boot process. The MBR also contains the Master Partition Table. This small table contains the descriptions of the partitions that are contained on the hard disk. Due to the great importance of the information stored in the master boot record and if it were ever become damaged in some way the hard disk will no longer be accessible and serious data loss would result. Repairing the master boot record on your Windows XP system is accomplished using the fixmbr command, available in Recovery Console. This is necessary when the master boot record has become corrupt due to a virus or some other kind of damage. The MBR is created when you create the first partition on the hard disk which the most important data information on the disk.

Computer Startup

During the computer startup and when the hard drive is accessed the MBR points to the system partition’s starting location on the disk, and loads a copy of its Partition Boot Sector into memory. The MBR then transfers execution to executable code in the Partition Boot Sector. Special Note: Although there is a Master Boot Record on every hard disk, the executable code in the sector is used only if the disk is connected to an x86-based computer and the disk contains the system partition. The partition table is located in the master boot record on the disk.

Computer Boot Information

Master Boot Record has important computer boot information that contains all required information on how to boot the disk and load the operating system. MBR record is very important data for your computer and without this information, your computer will not be able to get to the starting point to load the operating system. The MBR is located in the Boot Sector of a hard drive. MBR is a hidden area on your hard drive that contains all information about disk partitions (sometimes also called volumes or logical drives).

Fdisk MBR

The Fdisk MBR website has additional articles that you might find useful.

Fdisk

gf — Wed, 09 Sep 2009 03:56:32 +0000

The Fdisk is one of the more common MS-DOS utilities. Fdisk allows the user to delete or create partitions on the hard drive. Fdisk has several formatting switches that can be used. FDISK 1/PRI:200 will create a 200MB DOS partition on the hard drive. FDISK 1/EXT:400 will create a 400MB meg extended DOS partition on the hard drive and FDISK 1/LOG:200 will create a 200MB logical drives on the hard drive. FDISK /Q prevents fdisk from booting the system automatically after exiting fdisk. FDISK /STATUS will show you the current status of your hard drive.

FDISK /ACTOK

FDISK /ACTOK will make Fdisk not check the disk integrity allowing the drives to be created faster. FDISK /FPRMT will not get the prompt for FAT32 support. Also this allows FDISK to be forced into using FAT32 on drives smaller than 540MB (by default FDISK will not use FAT32 on any drive smaller than 540MB). FDISK will not allow you to select or change cluster sizes, resize partitions, or move partitions. Fdisk can only display and work with one drive at a time. Fdisk is a utility used to partition fixed disk drives (hard drives). Fdisk is used to create, delete, and format partitions on hard disks that were formatted using the FAT32 and other FAT file systems required by earlier versions of Windows. You can use

FDISK /STATUS

FDISK /STATUS and not run the risk of accidentally pressing the wrong key (while using Fdisk interactively) and overwrite some of your sectors. Fdisk does not entirely destroy data; it merely removes the partition, leaving you with a large data chunk you cannot access. Fdisk is a utility, included in all versions of MS-DOS and Windows 95, 98, and ME for formatting (preparing) a hard drive to hold data and to logically partition the disk.

Fdisk MBR

The Fdisk MBR website has additional articles on this subject you might find useful.