Computer died how to restore?

poliss · December 13, 2011, 06:19:50 PM

My hard disk died. New one, same make, same model ordered. All data on a Seagate external USB hard disk. Can I restore the data? I have no Windows XP Pro disks. The original hard disk was partitioned into a C: and D: drives.

Calnefoxile · December 13, 2011, 07:18:57 PM

Poliss,

You're going to be in a bit of trouble then, unless you've done System Recovery disks, which Windows normally asks you to do after you've installed it, then I'm afraid if you haven't got any XPPro Disks or access to them you're going to have to buy it from somewhere, or buy a copy of Windows7.

Or dare I say this borrow a copy from someone

regards

Neal.

Chinahand · December 13, 2011, 07:19:56 PM

Hi poliss,

Sorry to hear about your hard disc. As your old one was partitioned into C & D Drives am I correct in thinking that the 'C' Drive contained programme and the 'D' Drive contained data which is, in turn, backed up onto an external hard disc ? However, when you say "backed up" do you mean the data was simply copied across or was it transferred using a backup utility ? I'm a little concerned that you don't have the XP Pro Programme discs though as you will certainly need them to set up your new hard drive.

Once you get the XP Pro discs you should partition and format the new hard drive, as before, into C and D drives, load XP Pro onto Drive C and either copy your data to drive D or 'restore' it using the utility within XP Pro, depending on how it was backed up in the first place.

Let me know if you need more help.

longbridge · December 13, 2011, 07:58:25 PM

If all else fails you can always get someone to download an ISO copy of Linux Mint 11 or 12 for free and have trouble free computing for the rest of your life.

closest thing you can get to WinXP.

poliss · December 13, 2011, 10:03:33 PM

The computer was one that someone built. It was empty apart from XP Pro on the C: drive. Everything was backed up using the Seagate backup utility.
I'm not really worried about getting windows back, but I don't want to lose all my programs. My Yard Office inventory data is all on there. Do other programs work on Linux?

upnick · December 13, 2011, 10:23:27 PM

Hope you can get your yard office back Poliss as the guy there doesnt have any record of what youve kept as i asked him & it's all on your PC

cudders · December 13, 2011, 11:34:18 PM

If it's backed-up it is probably just zipped. nice n easy to get back.. a good idea to have C and D as you have done. Data is the stuff you really need to protect, programs are easy to replace. I don't bother with back-up utilites they are not needed.. Just copy the data files every week or month, what ever you prefer on your D AND off line disk.. USB is easiest for non-techy guys..

Cudders

Chinahand · December 14, 2011, 02:57:25 AM

Hi again poliss,

You haven't really answered the question as to whether your data was on the C or D Drive and which drive(s) you backed up onto the external hard drive. If you've backed up both drives onto the external hard drive using the Seagate utility then you should be able to restore everything, including XP Pro, using the same Seagate utility.

longbridge · December 14, 2011, 08:27:47 AM

Quote from: poliss on December 13, 2011, 10:03:33 PM
The computer was one that someone built. It was empty apart from XP Pro on the C: drive. Everything was backed up using the Seagate backup utility.
I'm not really worried about getting windows back, but I don't want to lose all my programs. My Yard Office inventory data is all on there. Do other programs work on Linux?

Yes Poliss I have a couple of Windows programs working in Linux, to do this you just download "Wine", Linux comes with many great programs including Libre Office which is compatible with Microsoft Office, it has everything that Office has.

It also comes with 3 video players, photo software plus Gimp which IMO is every bit as good as Photoshop, you can load Adobe Reader if you need it but it has its own PDF reader, a program for Scanning photos and documents, Music Player, CD/DVD Burner, works well with Google Earth plus lots more, you also have access to over 36,000 yes 36,000 free software programs which enables you to do as much as Windows and all for free.

Best of all there is no need to defragment the HDD, no need to use Anti Spyware or Anti Virus as the system operates different than Windows, the package comes with its own Firewall.

This all adds up to worry free computing the way it should be, I have tried various Linux Operating Systems and found the best to be Linux Mint, it is most like WinXP which I used to use 4 years ago, in that time I have had no virus, very few pop ups and used my computer to the max, sadly because it is all free people get it in their heads that it is no good, nothing could be further from the truth IMO it boots Windows into oblivion, all of this in a fast OS that takes up a mere 4 gig of HDD, quite the opposite to other bloated and slow operating systems.

Forgot to mention the OS also comes with the latest Firefox and Thunderbird Mail Client but you have access to many more browsers and email clients, model railway and amateur radio software

Should you need any further info please PM me.

poliss · December 14, 2011, 12:14:53 PM

It's mostly Windows on the C: drive. Seagate automatically backed up everything from both drives every week. I couldn't see anything in the BIOS that allowed a restore from a USB port. The options were floppy and CD as far as I could see.
The two programs I really want to keep are Paint Shop Pro 7 and Yard Office.

Chinahand · December 14, 2011, 12:43:57 PM

What type of files did the backup utility create ?
XP Pro Backup Utility creates ***.bkf files but I don't know what Seagate does.
If the files are ***.bkf type then XP Pro also has a Restore utility which will put everything back where it was.

However, it sounds as though your biggest problem is the lack of XP Pro Discs.

poliss · December 14, 2011, 01:17:55 PM

Not sure what type the saved files are. Documentation is not good. They looked like normal files, the same as you'd find on your PC.
Here's the user guide if you're interested. http://www.seagate.com/staticfiles/support/freeagent/fa_win_ug_en.pdf

Looking at the Seagate site I'm not even sure if the operating system was backed up. I wish I had created a mirror drive now.

Chinahand · December 14, 2011, 01:50:12 PM

Looks like bad news poliss. Judging by the Seagate handbook, unless you specifically set it to backup your Programme files it will have just backed up the 'My Documents' folder.

Have you got another PC that you can hook the Seagate up to and see exactly what's on it ?

poliss · December 14, 2011, 01:52:38 PM

Yes, but I'm waiting for my 'new' second hand hard drive to arrive before I look.

EddieA · December 17, 2011, 02:28:44 PM

Several months ago the Hard Drive failed on my 'second' computer and there were a few files that I hadn't backed up! Whilst they weren't vital they were a 'would be nice to have'.

I remembered reading somewhere that popping a defunct drive into a fridge overnight sometimes works so gave it a try and, to my surprise, managed to get it back to life for long enough to recover the files.

If anyone is going to try this make sure that the drive is sealed tightly inside a plastic bag (try to get as much air as possible out of the bag) whilst in the fridge and also watch out for condensation forming on it when you bring it out of the fridge.

This is probably a last resort but if there is no other way of recovering your data might be worth a try?