how to recover data from a maxtor external drive? when i plug it in it is asking me to format but it has data?

Question

it is a maxtor II external drive, i'm using the USB interface vs. de firewire, it had lots of data i unplugged then when i pluggen back in, it tell me that the drive is not formated. scary!!! what to do next? is there any software that will recover the data?

Answer 1

Sounds like the FAT or MFTB is corrupted. the best software out there for doing that is not free unfortunatly. It's called Ontrack drive recovery.

(assuming windows XP or better) If you can still see the drive in my computer right click on it and select PROPERTIES. On the box that comes up click the TOOLS tab and then click the CHECK NOW button. mark both check boxes in the CHECK DISKS OPTIONS and then click START. It will scan for long. If it works after that (ie. you can access your data) goto CONTROL PANEL (switch to classic view), Open ADMINSTRATIVE TOOLS and click on EVENT VIEWER and then APPLICATION. Look for an EVENT with the SOURCE as CHKDSK with a date and time close to when the scan finished to find out what went wrong.

Always safely remove the removable device by right clicking on the icon next to the time (green arrow pointing left with something below it) and selecting SAFELY REMOVE HARDWARE, click on the DEVICE and select STOP, if another window comes up click the entry with the DRIVE letter in and click OK . If stuff is still being accessed or copied to the disk it will report that the drive can't be stopped, i that case wait till it is finished or restart the pc.

Hope that helps.

From previous experience if the drive works after check disk and it gives a similar problem a few times down the line then you should replace the drive, especially if it gets hot.

Answer 2

There are several data recovery programs out there. I'd suggest looking on a website like download.com for a trial version to see if any work for you. It won't recover the data but it should tell you if you can. And then you can purchase the full version. Also, some computer stores will offer data recovery. They will only be able to do it through software. There is also companies like Ontrak that specialize in data recovery. They would actually take apart the hard drive if needed to recover the data. But they are very expensive and usually only used by businesses.

Answer 3

use the Recover My Files 30 day trial. Just google it for the site

Answer 4

When you look in MY COMPUTER does the external drive appear as a drive?Start---My computer---Local disk (D:?)