Question Linux Mint 19.3 deleted drivers. How to recover deleted data?

[privacymonalisa]

Hi, I had Windows 7 partitioned with four drivers but decided to replace it with Linux Mint 19.3. I made a mistake errasing all the data as I assumed the new OS will only format driver C and leave the other drivers intact. I am now le ft with Linux with no access to all my data with no backup. The question I have is whether I could recover any of my data (400 to 600 GB) with a data recovery software.

 

[USAFRet]

Drives or partitions, not "drivers"

So you had Windows installed, and then installed Linux over top of it?

Unless you took great pains to isolate the partitions (you didn't), all that data is gone gone gone.

no backup

That was your first mistake.

 

[privacymonalisa]

Thanks for your reply. I had Windows 7 with four drives (C, D, E and F). I then decided to get rid of Windows OS and replace it with Linux Mint 19.3. During the installation, I went for a clean installation and erased all data. I mistakenly assumed my data on drives D, E and F would remain intact. Some data recovery software suggest that I might still be able to recover some data but I am not sure how. I just don’t want to do anything that makes it harder to recover the formatted data.

Any suggestions or tips would be greatly appreciated as I badly need to recover my lost data.

 

[USAFRet]

1. You will NOT, repeat NOT, be able to recover 100% of your old Win 7 data. It was literally overwritten by the Linux installation. It no longer exists
2. I strongly suggest you clone this drive to some other storage device, and try any possible 'data recovery' on that. First rule of data recovery - Do not continue messing with the only copy.
3. If this old Windows data is valuable enough, send it to a data recovery company. This will cost actual money.

Situations like this are why we so strongly push the concept of backups around here.
A proper backup routine, and we wouldn't be having this conversation.

 

[USAFRet]

Was this on a spinning HDD or an SSD?

 

[privacymonalisa]

No sure. Too scared to turn the laptop on as I might make a bad situation worse and reduce my very limited (if any) chance of data recovery. The laptop is an old one (HP Pavilion g series = Intel i3 – I think 2th Gen - Windows 7) so I guess it must have come with an HDD disk.

 

[USAFRet]

No sure. Too scared to turn the laptop on as I might make a bad situation worse and reduce my very limited (if any) chance of data recovery. The laptop is an old one (HP Pavilion g series = Intel i3 – I think 2th Gen - Windows 7) so I guess it must have come with an HDD disk.

Again, 2 opttions:

1. Clone that drive to something else, and attempt data recovery on the clone.
2. Send it off to a data recovery company.

In neither case will you get back "100%" of what used to be there.

 

[privacymonalisa]

Hi, Thanks so much for your help. I cannot afford the cost of any data recovery. I 'll need to figure out how to clone the drive, thanks for your suggestion.

was hoping to be able to use a data recovery software myself and try my luck. I don't urgently need access to the data, however, I do need to recover as much data as I can. I know the gravity of the situation and the damage I have caused. My IT knowledge is limited to my online search and trial and error. Knowing the complexity of the issue, I wanted to know what steps to avoid to limit any further damage and how to go about recovering any data (if any).

 

[USAFRet]

For the potential cloning...

Another totally blank drive.
HDDSuperClone - http://www.hddsuperclone.com/sitev1/hddsuperclone

 

[privacymonalisa]

Hi,

Thanks so much for taking the time reading through my not-so-clear notes and thanks for your help so far. I’d like to add a few points below as it may clarify things a bit and also help me decide the best course of action going forward.

My laptop:

- HP Pavilion g series = Intel i3 = Toshiba HDD drive (750GB) was made in 2011

- Previous OS: Windows 7 Pro 64-bit partitioned with four drives (C, D, E and F)

- The new or current operating system was installed mid-January 2022: Linux Mint 19.3 Cinnamon 64-bit installed with "Erase disk and install Linux Mint":

748GB Block Device dev/mint-vg/root = Filesystem 748 GB Ext4 – Free 730GB

Device: dev/sda1

Partitioning: Master Boot Record

Volumes Partition 1 767MB Ext4 = Extended Partition 2 749GB = Partition 5 749GB LUKS = 749GB LVM2 PV



What I am going to do:

I have already taken the HDD disk or drive out. I’m in the process of purchasing two USB to SATA converter cables and a SATA HD/SSD drive to back up my current data. I also need a cloning software that does a sector by sector clone. I also need a data recovery software. And most importantly, I’ll need a lot of time and patience!



- I include links to other forums where I have been offered tips and advice on the matter:

https://www.ifixit.com/Answers/View...eted+drives+-+how+to+recover+drive+partitions



https://forums.majorgeeks.com/threa...d-drivers-how-to-recover-deleted-data.324579/



https://www.techrepublic.com/forums...-deleted-drivers-how-to-recover-deleted-data/



https://forums.tomsguide.com/thread...d-drivers-how-to-recover-deleted-data.504119/



I also came across a thread on another website with similar issue: https://unix.stackexchange.com/ques...r-selecting-erase-disk-and-install-linux-mint


I totally understand the complexity of the issue. Considering my limited IT knowledge, I am fully aware that my chance of success is very low. I also know the status of my finance and that I cannot afford the cost of someone else doing the job with me. No need to say that there is no guarantee they would be able to recover all my data and the privacy and data security risk of entrusting my data with someone else.

I would be eternally grateful if you could offer further advice.

Many thanks,
Privacy concerned Mona Lisa!