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dotnetgeek posted this
Being a geek, I typically get phone calls when people have computer problems. Almost all non-closet geeks know this. This has led to one of my favorite T-shirts.
I have been asked to fix a lot of, IMHO, simple problems. Usually people just do not know that a particular solution is available.
Recently I was asked to get information off of a computer that was not able to boot up. This is a common occurrence; A computer fails to function normally and the owner wants the data off of it.
The simplest solution to this problem is to back up your data. This does not mean that you need to go out and buy some expensive external hard drive that backs up all of your data nightly (though not a bad option). When I say backup your data, I mean just have it in more than one place. Copy it to a second computer, burn a disk, copy it to a thumb drive or external hard drive, sign up for an online storage account. Just don’t have a simple point of failure.
Now on to practical solutions that you can do. Lets assume that you have a computer that you cannot get to turn on and you need some files off of it.
You will need the following items:
The first thing to do is to remove the hard drive that you want to get the data off of. Please make sure the computer is off and unplugged before proceeding. Before touching the hard drive.
For most desktop computers you will need to remove a side panel (often there are quick release screws or a button(s) you can press). The hard drive will be about 4” x 1” x 5.75” and have two wires going into it (power and data, more on these later). In the computer world this size of a drive is referred to as a 3.5” hard drive.
For laptop computers, turn it upside down. The symbol for the hard drive looks like several disks stacked on top of each other. Often you will need to remove a few screws to get the cover off. Inside this compartment will be a silver box (the hard drive). On side of the hard drive will be pressed onto the hard drive connectors. You will need to pull the hard drive back away from the connectors BEFORE pulling the hard drive away from the compartment. This size of hard drive is referred to as a 2.5” hard drive.
Now that you have access the the hard drive it is time to examine what kind of data connection it is using. There are two options IDE and SATA. For the purposes of this post, IDE has pins and SATA has two L-shaped connections.
Now to retrieve the data off of the hard drive. There are two popular options are an adapter and an external enclosure (fancy word for a case). The adapter option is best if you only need to get the data off of the drive then replace it back in the computer. The adapter should not be used as a long term solution as they provide no protection for the drive. If you want to use the drive as an external hard drive you can purchase an enclosure for it. This will allow you to use the hard drive just like an external hard drive.
When purchasing one of these options please make sure that the device matches both the hard drive type (2.5” or 3.5”) and that it supports your type of hard drive connection type (IDE or SATA).
Plug the hard drive into another computer using the adapter. The computer should acknowledge it in the same way it would acknowledge any external hard drive. You can now copy the information of the drive.
Most of the time the information that you want to copy off of the computer will have been stored in a user’s personal folders (My Documents, My Pictures, My Music, etc.)
For Windows XP computers you can find these folders by opening the “Documents and Settings” folder or the “Users” folder on Windows Vista/7. Within this folder will be a folder for every user on the computer. Open the user’s folder that you care about. You will see the personal folders in there.
Often times when trying to open up the user’s folder you will get an access denied message because you are trying to open a personal directory for a different user that does not have access. To gain access to these folders you need to give your user access to them.
Please note these steps may very slightly on different computers. I apologize if they do not match your computer exactly.
Right click on the folder that you want to gain access to and select “Properties.”
Click on the “Security” tab at the top of the properties window that appears.
Click on the “Advanced” button near the bottom.
In the “Permissions” tab, click on the “Add” button.
Type in “Everyone”, and click the “Check Names” button. Everyone should then appear underlined. If it doesn’t check your spelling and try again. Click OK.
You will then have a pop-up asking you to select permissions to apply. Check “Full Control” under Allow and click “OK.”
Check the box that says “Replace permissions entries on all child objects with entries shown here that apply to child objects” and click “OK” (Child objects here, means files and folders).
There will be a warning dialog the pops up asking if you are sure, click “Yes” and be patient while it works. This may take a few minutes. When it is done you should have access to all of the user’s files.
Here is hoping this information helps someone.
Disclaimer:These instructions are provided as-is. If you do not feel comfortable working on your computer please take it to a licensed professional.
dotnetgeek posted this
