My girlfriend uses an old laptop of mine for work. She turned it on last night, and it just keeps looping from the "start windows normally / Safe mode etc. because it didn't shut down correctly screen" to a BSOD that doesn't even stay on the screen long enough to make out any of the writing. then back to the "start windows normally screen". This happens no matter which boot option I choose.

To read the blue screen in the end, I had to use my DSLR in sport mode to take continuous pictures of the laptop in the hope that I could capture the screen. On the third attempt, I was succesful. The error is "UNMOUNTABLE_BOOT_VOLUME"

Recovery console will only get through at most 30% of a chkdsk /r.

Testdisk doesn't recognise the disk as a whole???? but does recognise one of the partitions????

I have manged to get fixmbr (long shot) to work.

The drive is 100GB partitioned in three. C:\ is O/S Data etc. D:\ is Backup and E:\ is recovery. I have taken the disk out and connected it to my desktop with a USB to 2.5" adaptor, and I can see the files on drive partition D:\ and E:\, but the C:\ drive (where all the NON-BACKEDUP data is - bless her) is reporting to be in the RAW file format with 0 bytes of data.

I am guessing that the Master File Table is corrupt. Does anyone have any suggestions on how I could recover the data!!!!!!!!

Any help really appreciated

Many thanks

SS

1.never start a suspect disk in windows.
2. checkdisk is great a making a small problem worse.
3.a failing hardisk always gets worse faster than you expect/imagine
if you need the info back send it to a pro in your area (are you in the USA?) If you are OK about loosing the data google "hard disk recovery software" and try them all until they either work for you (10% chance) or that you really loose the data.
good luck.

Try booting to DOS and access partition using NTFS dos pro without running chkdsk and after mounting the drive copy all data from there .

do as stated by rameez.

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Thanks for all the replies.

I am based in the UK. I have tried Ontrack Easy Recovery Professional with suprisingly good results. It seems to have recovered all the data that I really didn't want to lose......

It is suprising that you are down on chkdsk. I have used this in the past, and it has got a machine working again. But, I am a novice when it comes to hard disk recovery.

So, using NTFS Dos Pro, will this access USB connected hard drives, or do I need to pu the disk back in the laptop, boot with a dos disk, and then run NTFS Dos Pro from a floppy? I am guessing that I can't run this from a recovery console as this is not actually just Dos.

Many thanks

SS

chkdsk takes a damaged drive, and makes it worse. If your drive is fine, you might have better results.

I understand. If you suspect physical damage on the drive, then chkdsk is going to move data from a good block to a possible bad block.

Cheers

SS

The case is not so simple....
The chkdsk responsible for FS integrity.
But not cares about the data, it cares only for structure.
Additionally, if the drive have bad sectors, easily can corrupt the rutine, and make malfunction inside the chkdsk.

This is good for repairing an unclosed, and less inconsistent fs only.


Regards,
Janos

thanks for the explanation. I think I understand a bit better now.

Cheers

SS