Stellar Phoenix Windows Data Recovery

Master File Table (or MFT) is a crucial system meta-data file of NTFS file system which stores information, such as file name, permissions, contents etc. of all the files present on the NTFS volume. It is basically a database table which acts like a base or staring point for the whole NTFS volume. Its structure further helps to minimize disk fragmentation and thus, helps in optimizing the performance of the system. MFT records may get corrupt due to several reasons, such as virus attack, operating system problems, any damage caused to the file system etc. If the file system index or MFT is damaged, MBR  (Master Boot Record) is unable to locate the files on the NTFS volume required to boot the system. As a consequence, the system becomes unbootable and thus, you may get into a severe data loss situation. To overcome the problem. You need to go for file recovery through a reliable third-party utility.

For instance, when you try to access a file present on the NTFS volume of your Windows 2000-based computer, you may come across the following error message:

“<drive>:\<folder> is not accessible
The file or directory is corrupt and non-readable.The file or directory is corrupt and non-readable. The file or directory \<folder> is corrupt and unreadable.
Please Run the Chkdsk utility.”

Cause:

The above error is caused by the following reasons-
The file or folder being accessed is corrupt.
The MFT component of the NTFS volume is damaged.

Due to above reasons, you may not be able to access your corrupt NTFS volume or other volumes present on your system hard disk .In such situations, you may use a backup to perform deleted file recovery of your lost data. If you do not have your backup updated, you should follow the below given steps.

Resolution:

Try the below mentioned procedure to resolve the issue:
Go to ‘Start’ and select ‘Run’.
Then type the following command
chkdsk /f <drive>:

Here, <drive> is the letter of the damaged NTFS volume.

Running ‘Chkdsk’ command line utility with ‘/f’ switch is not recommended as it may lead to data loss. To recover your lost or inaccessible data in such situations, you should first format the system hard disk and then use an efficient Windows file recovery software.

These software can recover deleted files, documents, pictures, emails, databases etc. from corrupt FAT, NTFS, and exFAT based partitions. They include features to safely clone or create an image of your system hard disk.

Stellar Phoenix Windows Data Recovery is a competent utility that recovers all kinds of Windows files in any instance of data loss. It can perform recovery of more than 185 file types. It is compatible with Windows 7, Vista, Server 2003, XP, 2000, and NT4(SP6).

If some important files have been deleted accidentally by you, you find yourself in a major problem. Such situation can be seen anytime and by anyone. Normally, when any file gets deleted by mistake, it signals a huge problem for you.  You lose significant data. But don’t get upset. There is no need to lose hope. Today, it is easy to recover deleted files even if these files have been deleted permanently from the Recycle bin. File recovery software have made it possible to recover files. These tools perform file recovery quite well.

One major misconception is that when a file is deleted from your computer, it is gone forever. But, actually this is not true. When a file gets deleted, it is still on your system. When deletion operation is performed on a file, operating system marks the space occupied by the deleted file as free space. Those files become inaccessible for you via the Operating system, but the data of the file remains intact on the drive.

If you are a Windows user, then you the advantage of searching for the deleted files in the Recycle bin. Recover the deleted file(s) from the Recycle bin by simply locating the Recycle Bin and using the ‘Restore’ option to restore the selected file. Though the Recycle Bin plays a key role in recovering deleted items, a bitter truth about the Recycle bin is that it does not save every deleted file. If the files are too huge, or the space allocated to the recycle bin is less than the deleted file, then the file is not saved, but deleted permanently.

If you have used the shift+delete command to delete the file, then those deleted files are still recoverable. As discussed above, the data saved in those files is intact, if you have recently deleted it. But there are times, when the operating system requires space for other files. If such a situation has been encountered, then the data may have been overwritten. If you do not overwrite the file, then the deleted file and all its data can be recovered. And this can be done using a third-party file recovery software. A number of tools are available that are used to perform file recovery. All the data of the file is easily recovered using any of these software.

Stellar Phoenix File Recovery Plus is a comprehensive tool used to perform file recovery. It recovers data of the deleted file without changing the main structure. It recovers the files irrespective of the reason for file deletion. This software works for all versions of Windows operating system, such as Windows 7, Vista, XP, Server 2003, and 2000.

Every day we create many files in our computer, modify them, rename them, transfer them to the USB drive and even delete. However, some files carry extremely important personal, financial or business critical information and we want them to be stored securely. Although we take many measures to store important files safely, still there are instances of file loss and we need efficient file recovery techniques to recover them back.

The loss of your valuable files can be caused due to any accidental deletion, virus attack, formatting of the media and many such reasons. Listed below are some of the most general ones, which we used to encounter almost every day:

Deletion or corruption of files due Virus/Malware intrusion
Deletion of important files accidentally/intentionally
Crashing of the operating system
Deletion of system files causing inaccessibility of files/folders
Sudden system shut-down causing corruption to the file system of the computer
Any other application malfunction/contradiction

In any case of data loss, including the above ones, there is a high risk of loosing valuable files permanently. However, the seemingly lost or deleted files never get permanently lost until they are being overwritten. Hence, if care should be taken to avoid overwriting of these lost files and any efficient file recovery software be used, all your lost, deleted or formatted data can be definitely recovered back.

In order to avoid overwriting of the files, you must avoid performing disk defragfment or system restore on the media, on which the file was stored. You must take serious measures not to run any anti-virus software or moving of data in the media.

File recovery software have been developed with many efficient algorithms to scan your storage media and retrieve your lost, deleted or even formatted files back within no time. These applications are absolutely risk-free and never damage the original media and hence, your data in the media is never altered. Moreover, with rich graphical user interface and detailed instructions for each step of operation, these file recovery utilities are very easy to operate.

Stellar Phoenix Windows Data Recovery is an efficient as yet reliable utility to recover your lost, deleted, inaccessible or formatted files under any instance of file loss. The software supports a long range of file types and is capable of recovering your files irrespective of the hardware or software limitations. With easy to understand functionalities, this read-only utility gives an ease of use even to the users without much technical knowledge.

Having installed MS Outlook on my 2007 on my Windows XP based computer, I felt I had securely upgraded my system to a stable, economical and decently upgraded combination. To complete the picture, I had installed Symantec Norton Antivirus to protect my system from virus threat and malware attack. With this combination working for a good 2 months, one fine day, I decided to clean my system of unuseable files, and useless folders. Having worked strenuously for good four hours, I was quite satisfied with my work, and decided to complete the task after a few days again. Little did I realize then that I, in my endeavor to improve performance of my system, have sabotaged it myself.  Had I known it, I would have taken a backup to ensure efficient file recovery.

But tragedies happen when you least expect them , and when you feel you have done something that deserved accolades. Next day, when I tried to access my mail account through Office Outlook, to access some important emails, I found the following message staring at me:

The file drive:\path\file name.pst could not be found.

where, drive:\path\file name.pst is the PST file storage location.
I had no option but to click ‘OK’. Then it showed me ‘Create/Open Personal Folders File’ dialog box. Undeterred by this message, I ventured on my tryst for a pst file recovery method.

With no backup available, I knew recovery was not an easy task to accomplish. But then, it wasn’t tough either, as I immediately understood that due to the deletion that I had carried out the previous day, the pst file had been deleted too. And since the Recycle Bin had been overloaded, the file had bypassed the same. But, I searched the internet, and read relevant posts avidly to find out the best possible solution to my problem. As I had presumed, file recovery software were available in the market to recover any kind of deleted file, irrespective of its file format, doc, zip, xls, or any other.

A reliable user-friendly software that supports recovery of pst file format, besides other formats is Stellar Phoenix Windows Data Recovery. With support for more than 185 different file formats, and ability recover data from NTFS, FAT and exFAT file systems, the tool can also be used to clone or image a hard drive. This file recovery software is compatible with Windows 7, Vista, 2003, XP and 2000.

Files are the most important part of the working of a computer system. All the work that is done by a user is done in these files. That is why, loss of one of them could mean a lot of problems for us. But, irrespective of the improvement in technology, it has been impossible to remove all kinds of problems. Faulty hardware, bad sectors on the hard disk, bugs in the software, or in the operating system can jeopardize the working and at times, the accessibility of the file. Not just that, in grim situations, it can also hard delete the file. Yes, it may even delete the file in such a manner that the file is not sent to ‘Recycle Bin’, but removed completely. In such situations, file recovery is a must, especially if your file is irreplaceable.

Consider, while working on your Windows 2000, you receive an error message:

‘Word cannot complete the save due to a file permission error.’

An error message doesn’t just alarm the users, at times, it also deletes a particular file as well.

Since it occurs while you were trying to save a small bit of information that you had just entered, you allowed it to close your file (also, because you have no other option!). After this, you restarted the application and tried to open the file. But to your horror, the file seems to have been lost.

You may try to check the Recycle Bin. But chances are that you will not get the file. If you were accessing the file over the network, then there is no point checking the Recycle Bin. To handle this situation, you will first of all need to install the Service Release of Microsoft Office 2000. This is a Windows 2000 bug, and installing the stated service release helps avert it. But what about the file that has already been deleted. This installation doesn’t bring the deleted file back. So, how to perform file recovery? What should a user do?

The only logical solution to this problem is to recover the file using a file recovery software. These are specialized tools that have the ability to recover files that have been hard deleted from the system.

One such software is Stellar Phoenix Windows Data Recovery. Supporting NTFS, FAT and exFat file systems, and all versions of Windows operating system, this tool is completely read-only. Imbibed with detailed user manual, and a simple user-friendly interface, this file recovery software supports more than 185 different file formats.

Using ’shift+delete’ to delete the unwanted files from our system without sending them to the Recycle Bin is one practice that should have got few fans than it actually has. This key combination has put numerous users into jeopardy as they almost always find themselves in a soup once they delete important files as well, thereby disabling all chances of file recovery. However, there is always a way-out and the deleted files can also be recovered. These deleted files can be recovered using a third-party file recovery software provided no file has been created after the file deletion.

Consider a scenario in which you are working with your team on a project for your client. In this project, you have the responsibility of collating all the important files and compile them so as to make the project presentable. While you were doing so, you tried to remove the unwanted files by pressing the shift-delete keys. During this task, you also deleted few important files as well, which you realized later. Now, you are in a distress as there is no backup of these files as well.

Yes, you may have lost the critical files but do not lose hope as these deleted files could be recovered while taking some precautions. To know about these, and also, how these files are not permanently deleted…Read on…

When you permanently delete a file, it is not actually deleted per se. In reality, only the pointers that point to the file database are deleted, and the file actually stays there only. After the deletion, the operating system is informed that new space is available for new files. This space is taken by the new files that you create after the deletion.

So, you should ensure not to create new files so that the deleted files can be recovered. An efficient file recovery software is able to recover such deleted files. These read-only file recovery tools have rich user interface and recover deleted files without damaging the existing data.

The best software to perform file recovery is Stellar Phoenix File Recovery Plus, which recovers all kinds of deleted or formatted data from NTFS, FAT, or exFAT file systems. With the capability of recovering more than 200 distinct file types from several storage devices such as hard drives, external hard drives, memory cards, iPods, etc, this file recovery software is also capable of restoring deleted emails from Outlook Express and MS Outlook. In addition, this software is compatible with Windows 7, Vista, Server 2003, XP, and 2000.

Data is indeed precious, be it a rare snap, document, video of any function or any audio clip. However, we realize the importance of the data once we face any situation of data loss. Many data can never be recreated and hence, we must take extreme care to regularly back them up prior to such instance of harsh data loss or inaccessibility. In life, every single experience counts and because of such an data loss experience, I came to know about an advanced technology, file recovery and tools like file recovery software.

How I witnessed data loss:

My child hood close friend was getting married and I was equally happy for him. Both Me and my wife joined the couple in the country side marriage house 4days prior to the occasion. We had planned many small functions in those days, before the original marriage ceremony. It was once in a life time experience for my friend and he gave his video cam to shoot the personal moments, so that those moments can be lived again some day. I agreed on his emotional appeal and started shooting every single moment of the occasions. I used to shoot and transfer them back to my laptop the same night. The days went past very quickly and it was the night before the marriage. I was transferring the videos from the memory card to the laptop and my wife just pulled out the device suddenly, following which, the laptop restarted and showed a dark screen. The same thing happened, each time I tried to boot it. My wife was annoyed, as I was not able to give her enough time. I too decided to look into it the next day.

After the marriage, when I tried to boot the laptop, it won’t. All my knowledge failed, both me and my wife were worried that it contained the videos of my friend’s marriage. Luckily it didn’t have the takes of the marriage day, however, it carries the videos of some of the most cherished days. We tried to repair with the Microsoft Windows XP installation disc. Without enough knowledge on the same, we end up formatting the drive and realized that all the data in it had been lost for ever.

File recovery did it for us:

My friend came to know about this and he told us about the file recovery technique. We searched for the same and lastly with much discussion, purchased one, that is Stellar Phoenix Windows Data Recovery. It is a product of Stellar Information Systems Ltd, a trusted name in the field of data recovery. With the software we were able to recover all the lost data. The file recovery software is capable of recovering all the lost, deleted, formatted and inaccessible data from any Windows based partition, irrespective of the data loss instance.

No matter how cautious a person is with his/her computer system, these devices still give problem to their users. Despite the best attempts, they catch virus infection, and crash, or may even stop responding while giving you a blank screen to gaze at. Likewise, a computer system installed with Windows Vista operating system hangs at the time of start up, while giving a black screen. Though startup problems are not uncommon with any operating systems, the user is left in a critical state, with a high probability of losing all the files and, needless to say, data. Due to this, a user finds all his/her files inaccessible, and he has to opt for file recovery methods to get them back.

While Windows Vista allows the users to solve the problem, and to undelete files, a user may find additional problems while trying to make amends by following the understated methods:

•    On trying to restart the system, when a user presses the F8 button, before Vista loads, and then select the Safe Mode Option for loading, the same black screen appears and the system hangs.
•    On trying to restore your Vista computer, when you start the Windows Recovery Environment, i.e., WinRE, it stops responding.
•    While trying to repair the computer with the help of Windows Vista installation disk, the system stops responding.

Owing to this, it becomes almost impossible to access your files, and chances of file loss are very high.  It is not possible to access any information or data saved on your Windows Vista hard drive.

This problem is caused by the corruption of file system in the $Txf directory. Windows Vista has this technology, called as the  TxF technology, which facilitates file operations to be carried out in transactions on NTFS formatted file system volume. That is why, due to the file system corruption in the $Txf directory, there is a deadlock condition between the Autocheck and the Transactional NTFS (TxF) processes.

In such situations the only option available to the user is clean installation of the system, which clearly means all the data that was saved in the computer gets deleted. After installing the operating system, one can undelete files using the backup which was saved on any external storage media.

Stellar Phoenix Windows Data Recovery is a reliable file recovery software that recovers all types of lost files from FAT16, FAT32, VFAT, exFAT, NTFS and NTFS5 file system partitions. This efficient tool comes equipped with simple and self-descriptive user interface and is compatible with all versions of Windows.

Today people do all their work in files, or with files, irrespective of which computer they use, or which operating system they have. Every vital data is saved in files. Photographers, sitcom makers, and even film makers save all their important work in files. Infact, MS Outlook, Outlook Express, Exchange emails are saved in files. Such is the significance of files that they have become the epicenter of our lives. And that is why, loss or deletion of even one file can mean a major problem in the life of the person, or people who need it, or use it. Having realized this, people have started keeping backup of their crucial files. These backups help user in effective file recovery.

But accidents do happen, and mostly when least expected, despite all the precautions, and impact everybody greatly. At times, when we most need something, we find, we do not have access to it, and we have to face the consequences of its loss. The same is the case with backup. Absence of backup can spell disaster for a user. That is why, these situations call for a file recovery software. Other situations that need software to recover data include absence or corruption of backup file and the backup not being updated.

These software are sophisticated programs that run on a machine to extract all the data that was deleted, but has not been overwritten. The concept behind these software is that when the files are deleted, it is only their index entry that has been deleted and the area where they were saved still have the files intact. When we run these software, they recover the files from that location. Though this is the basic concept behind file recovery, not all software, have hundred percent performance. A tool which has been developed by expert programmers is far more effective than a software developed by other competent developers.

Stellar Phoenix Windows Data Recovery is a comprehensive tool that recovers files from NTFS, NTFS5, FAT16, FAT32, VFAT and exFAT file system volumes. This efficient file recovery software is compatible with Windows 7.0, Vista, XP, 2003 and 2000, and is capable of recovering more than 185 file formats.

In the Windows system, a paging file is a dynamic file that stores extra data from the RAM (Random Access Memory). It us used when some extra memory is needed to perform some urgent task. However, when this file gets damaged or goes missing then you may face some critical problems even while accessing your system. For such problems, there are few workarounds that can be used to restore normalcy failing which you should use a professional file recovery software to perform file recovery of the inaccessible data.

Think of a situation wherein you have started your Windows 2000 system. After starting the system, it passes the boot phase after which you provide your login credentials. The ‘Loading your personal settings’ dialog box is displayed, which is followed by ‘Saving your settings’ dialog box. However, to your surprise, the desktop does not get displayed. Rather the ‘Welcome to Windows’ logon screen is shown again.

In addition, if the paging file of the operating system is placed in the boot partition, then you may also receive the following error message before the ‘Welcome to Windows’ logon screen is displayed:

“[Limited Virtual Memory]
Your system has no paging file, or the paging file is too small.”

Cause:
There could be the following reasons for the given erroneous situation:
The Windows 2000 boot partition drive letter is not the same as the one that was assigned during the Windows 2000 setup.
The system/boot mirror has cracked because of some miscellaneous reasons, and then it tries to boot to the old shadow drive when it finds the original primary drive is unable to boot.

Resolution:
You can perform either of the following methods to resolve this situation. However, you should be careful as some of the methods involve modifying the system registries.
You should remove the cloned hard disk, if any, that is appended to the system. It is quite possible that this problem started happening after adding the cloned hard disks. Restart the system.
If your system is in a network, then access it using any other system and open Registry Editor and change the following registry entry:
HKEY_LOCAL_MACHINE\Software\Microsoft\Windows NT\Current Version\Winlogon\Userinit:Reg_SZ:C:\WINNT\system32\userinit.exe
To:
HKEY_LOCAL_MACHINE\Software\Microsoft\Windows NT\Current Version\Winlogon\Userinit:Reg_SZ:userinit.exe

If the system access is still unavailable even after using these methods, then you have the option of using a third-party file recovery software. These file recovery tools are based on highly sophisticated mechanisms that help in retrieving all the data without any loss.

One of the best file recovery tools in the data recovery field is Stellar Phoenix Windows Data Recovery that extracts lost or inaccessible files from Windows systems. Supporting various file systems like FAT, exFAT, and NTFS, this file recovery software is compatible with Windows 7, Vista, Server 2003, XP, and 2000.