Hello,

I have a hdd recognized by OS but files and folders names with rare characters. TestDisk recognizes the partition but can't access to files correctly, how you can view in image.

Where do you think is wrong and how I can fix it?

I'm not promising to fix this, but more details from you will help you to get good suggestions from people here...

What happened to put the disk into this state? Please explain what happened / changed since the disk was accessible normally.

Obviously that isn't a valid FAT, and that's why it is being decoded as rubbish on your screen. Was the disk FAT-formatted when it was accessible normally?

You say this disk is from an external enclosure. What was the make and model of the enclosure?

Have you removed the disk from that enclosure or made any other changes, before trying TestDisk?

How big is the disk drive in GB? Is it a 250GB?

Thanks Vulcan and you are right, I'll try to put all possible information.

The disk has 2 partitions: 1 NTFS + 1 FAT32, and I don't remember size of each one but OS shows FAT32 partition as 232GB.
External disk is a WD My Book Essential 1130, with 1 TB.

Before I got this error, I didn't anything special operation with disk (format partitions, open enclosure.....) and I never removed the disk from this original enclosure

Normally, I access to this disk from Linux or Windows but I never had problems for this reason.

without the USB connector that comes with it, no way
get it back inside and run you scan again (via USB) and see if this does work and reads

good luck

_________________
Kuwait Data Recovery - UNIX GTC
The only reason for time is so that everything doesn't happen at once. By: Albert Einstein

einstein9, I don´t understand your reply very well, I have external disk connected to laptop by via usb, inside his original enclosure.

Sorry, i thought you took it outside the enclosure,

was it NTFS? (before the damage)
Password Protected?
Has 2 partitions: VCD & DATA?

_________________
Kuwait Data Recovery - UNIX GTC
The only reason for time is so that everything doesn't happen at once. By: Albert Einstein

This looks like FS corruption.

Can caused by many things, including physical problem of the drive.
I have seen one WD wich "corrupts" the data without any kind of error reporting!
(simply wrote in FF and reads back different pattern)

Another "typical" problem can cause this, the common WD PCB failures like instability...

More deep diagnose needed to judge the correct restoration way.

First i suggest to get the drive out from the enclosure and check with MHDD.

Janos

einstein9: When I bought the hdd, he was 1 partition ntfs, after I created a new FAT32 partition to store iso files. In NTFS I had all kind of files.

N.C.: I will try with MHDD, but do you think is necessary get the drive out from the enclosure?

Thanks!

MHDD works only with IDE/SATA connected drives.
Better question is, it is necessary to test with MHDD?
The answer is: maybe.
well, if your data is not critically important, you can start with any scanner software like getdataback or similar, _BUT_ if you see _ANY_ strange things, like unreadable sector, or drive disappearing, or someting unusual, you should stop immediately to protect your data.
This point is necessary to remove from enclosure, but more likely i would suggest professional help instead...

Janos

Hola!
I would mount the external drive in windows on a different pc and run Dmde.
Check the partitions and file names. Are they still corrupt? What options would Dmde give you for repairs if any?
Try recovering one or two single files to another drive. What are the results?

If you can obtain another 1tb drive without a caddy, mount it directly in a pc and attempt to clone the external drive. It must be in the caddy! Through the usb port this might take a couple of days. Then you can attempt repairs on the clone.
Good luck!

i can recommend something for you based on your info here:

1- Run for example: R-Studio on it and wait like 10min and see the results with the USB enclosure
2- Run it again with the hdd directly attached for the same time 10min.

Compare both results, if the same
then Continue with the SCAN directly attached (to save your time)

BTW, if your partition is FAT32 then NP, its only the FS got damaged

post the results here

good luck

_________________
Kuwait Data Recovery - UNIX GTC
The only reason for time is so that everything doesn't happen at once. By: Albert Einstein

I am recovering the necessary files with R-Studio with disk connected to usb because I only have laptops availables (I only want recovery few files)

I also tested with DMDE and it recognized partitions/files, but I finally decided recovery with R-Studio.

Thanks to all.