My mother purchased an all-in-one running Windows 8 a couple of months ago. Recently, the OS became corrupt. I am currently trying to recover her files from the hard drive before I reset the operating system. My plan of attack was to remove the hard drive from the computer, connect it to my Windows 7 machine, and copy files through Windows Explorer - a process I have carried out many times with various other Windows 7 volumes. The trouble is, I cannot find the folder containing her documents on the hard disk. My computers all run Windows 7, so I am not familiar with the Windows 8 file system. Does anyone know the path? She logs in to the machine with a local account, not a Microsoft account.
Accessing Windows 8 user files after moving hard drive to separate computer
- Thread starter lifescout
- Start date
Solution
nukemaster
Titan
- Nov 23, 2004
- 19,626
- 6
- 74,965
Well, the Users folder is nowhere to be seen. I guess that explains why the OS is corrupt. All I knew previously was that the computer entered an infinite loop of Startup Repair attempts. Unfortunately, that probably means her files are history. Luckily, most of her files were actually on an external hard drive. Anyway, thanks for your help!
nukemaster
Titan
- Nov 23, 2004
- 19,626
- 6
- 74,965
You may be able to try some recovery software like recuva to see if you can get any files off the system. Something is not right for sure. I would make sure it is not a hard drive issue before using the same drive again.
I tried Recuva, however after four hours of deep-searching, it didn't find anything. I used "C:\Users\*" as my search key. So, I reset it using the built-in Windows 8 tools. It seems to be running fine at the moment, but just in case this happens again, my mom is now only using her external drive for her files.
nukemaster
Titan
- Nov 23, 2004
- 19,626
- 6
- 74,965
It is highly recommended to have at least 2 copies(for me it is one internal and upto 2 more external[1 for files I can always get again and 2 for pictures and other files that require an extra layer of protection]) of all important files at least this reduces the risk of drive failure causing file loss.
TRENDING THREADS
-
-
Question Microsoft Defender found Trojans on my PC- Started by Tommy Sawyer
- Replies: 4
-
Question Can I just upgrade my graphics card or should I be upgrading my processor as well for UE5?- Started by Tolstoy1990
- Replies: 7
-
-
-
Discussion What's your favourite video game you've been playing?- Started by amdfangirl
- Replies: 3K
Latest posts
-
-
-
-
Question Microsoft Defender found Trojans on my PC
- Latest: ohio_buckeye
-
Facebook
Twitter
Instagram