Geek Tested:

Where's My Data?!

Posted 07/20/09 at 07:30:00 AM by The Maximum PC Staff

Ask the Doctor Logo I recently reformatted my main OS drive. I had copied all of my essential documents to a 1TB Samsung drive. Now that my main OS drive is back in business, I find that the second drive appears to be unformatted. Any time I attempt to access the D: drive, I am prompted to format it. When I boot to my Windows CD, the D: drive appears as a 138GB unformatted partition, with the rest unallocated.

Please, please tell me I have not lost the ability to retrieve all my photos, music, spreadsheets, etc. If I reformat the drive, will I be able to recover the files, using a file recovery app such as Recuva?

—Dave Jarrett

Dave, that 138GB unformatted partition is a dead giveaway. That means your OS or motherboard supports only 28-bit Logic Block Addressing, instead of the modern 48-bit standard. Briefly, LBA specifies where on an ATA disk data is located; 28-bit LBA has room to address only 228 512-byte sectors, which gives a 137.4GB maximum size. 48-bit LBA support is included in versions of Windows after XP SP1; you should patch XP up to date if that’s what you’re using. If not, patches are available for Windows 2000, 98, etc. You should also download the most recent chipset drivers for your motherboard. Once you’ve done this, your partition should reappear.

SUBMIT YOUR QUESTION Are flames shooting out of the back of your rig? First, grab a fire extinguisher and douse the flames. Once the pyrotechnic display has fizzled, email the doctor at doctor@maximumpc.com for advice on how to solve your technological woes.

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Apply SP3
Submitted by imemmittsmith on Mon, 07/20/2009 - 5:28am

If he installed XP without applying SP1 or better, then he would not be able to see the drive correctly. Only until SP1 did we get 48-bit LBA support. All should be well after he applys the missing patches.

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Something doesn't add up
Submitted by pastorbob on Mon, 07/20/2009 - 4:19am

I am a little puzzled as to why he was able to access the 1 TB drive before reformatting the OS drive and now he can't. Is he using he same version of Windows before and after? I am assuming he has updated his newly formatted drives with all of the latest service packs and updates. Maybe not. Perhaps in the editing of this question/answer some vital details were left out. Or am I just missing something?

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Alternately
Submitted by Plutoxin on Mon, 07/20/2009 - 12:31am

You could go with booting a Linux LiveCD, mounting both drives and copying your data from the 1TB to your OS drive. Worked wonders for me when my old HDD was crapping out and I couldn't boot Windows on it. An Ubuntu or PCLinuxOS disc would be the best bet as they're both dead simple for someone with some Windows knowledge.

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