Missing partition

[bissli]

dell xps 8500
16gb ram
2 x 500 gb sata drives - raid 0
i7-2600 processor

hi, i recently had to reinstall windows 7 due to a bad stick of ram during windows update. it sucked, but dell replaced the faulty stick of ram but none the less i had to totally reinstall windows 7.

when i reinstalled windows 7, it gave me two partition options, i installed the OS on the smaller partition (under 20gb) which became "local disk C" and the other larger partition became "local disk D" i was using as my storage. because i foolishly installed the OS on the smaller drive, windows was constantly running out of disk space.

this became a big problem so i tried to merge the two partitions using a demo of partition magic...i attempted to select the button to merge the local disk C and local disk D but it wouldnt even let me select the option and gave me a message that said it was unable to merge the drives. so i quickly uninstalled the program and went on using my computer for about 3 more days ( i never shut down my desktop computer). anyways the next time i rebooted the computer the "local disk D" was gone from the my computer window. i am unable to access any of my data on that drive.

i can't system restore because the restore file links to the D drive. i'm dead in the water. looking for help.

when i tried to use the windows install disk to maybe repair, the windows disk says i need to free up at least 800mb free and i only have 400 mb free on that drive.

i know i can wipe and reinstall, worst case scenerio. basically i just want to get the data from local disk D back.
thanks for the help

 

[inzone]

You can go into disk management and see if the D drive is there. Right click on computer and select manage and then select disk management and then you will see al the drives connected to your computer. You may even be able to merge the drives in there.

 

[dodger46]

EaseUs Partition Master would have done the trick, but we'll come to that if you can rescue your partitions. Try downloading and running this
http://download.cnet.com/Easeus-Partition-Recovery/3000-2248_4-75279786.html
Post the results, and if successful I'll talk you through expanding C into D.

 

[bissli]

thanks for the responses!

i downloaded Easeus and ran the complete scan option. it found several small "lost" partitions that were only a few mb each. also i can see the 918 GB partition but it says its status is "deleted". it won't let me proceed because it wants me to select a "lost" partition.

i can double click on the D drive partition and view the files, just won't give me the option to continue with recovery of them....

 

[dodger46]

Frustrating. But as long as you don't write new data to the drive there's always a possibilty the files can be recovered. Not an area I've been hugely succcessful in, but one piece of software crops up frequently in recommendations, that's Recuva.

http://download.cnet.com/Recuva/3000-2242_4-10753287.html

I use their Smart Defrag software, and know to watch out for extra downloads that they try to slip in, decline them as the less you write to the disk the better your chance of getting your files back. Good luck!

 

[bissli]

i tried easus but looks like i'll need to purchase the full version to actually restore the files on the missing partition.

the demo will not do it =/ wish i knew for sure if it will work before spending money on it.

 

[dodger46]

Disappointing. I've not been in the situation were I need to recover files, so no experience there. I thought the Easeus Partition/Data Recovery Free downloads would cope with anything! In fact when you scrutinise the 'Bought' versions you don't seem to get an awful lot more for the money.
http://www.easeus.com/partition-recovery/
And Recuva? it has a good rep., might be worth a try...
Perhaps enter your details here to aid your decision!
http://data-recovery-software.findthebest.com/

 

[Lu Xingcheng]

hi;
I have same problems after reinstalled win 7 64 bit, but I use top ten software from cnet editor reviews, don't scan any data from all lost partiiton within 2 hours
, download small file recovery software from http://www.lost-partition-recovery.com ,it scan 300 gb disk, within 20 minutes , find 3 lost partition , and then recover important 2 gb data with 30 minutes

dell xps 8500
16gb ram
2 x 500 gb sata drives - raid 0
i7-2600 processor

hi, i recently had to reinstall windows 7 due to a bad stick of ram during windows update. it sucked, but dell replaced the faulty stick of ram but none the less i had to totally reinstall windows 7.

when i reinstalled windows 7, it gave me two partition options, i installed the OS on the smaller partition (under 20gb) which became "local disk C" and the other larger partition became "local disk D" i was using as my storage. because i foolishly installed the OS on the smaller drive, windows was constantly running out of disk space.

this became a big problem so i tried to merge the two partitions using a demo of partition magic...i attempted to select the button to merge the local disk C and local disk D but it wouldnt even let me select the option and gave me a message that said it was unable to merge the drives. so i quickly uninstalled the program and went on using my computer for about 3 more days ( i never shut down my desktop computer). anyways the next time i rebooted the computer the "local disk D" was gone from the my computer window. i am unable to access any of my data on that drive.

i can't system restore because the restore file links to the D drive. i'm dead in the water. looking for help.

when i tried to use the windows install disk to maybe repair, the windows disk says i need to free up at least 800mb free and i only have 400 mb free on that drive.

i know i can wipe and reinstall, worst case scenerio. basically i just want to get the data from local disk D back.
thanks for the help