Windows 7 Where did my secondary HD data go?

[dmoss74]

hi,

i had a major issue last night with my machine (home brew) and had to reformat and reinstall w7. I have two sata drives, plus had one ext plugged in.

after the install, i can see the second hd (i disconnected the ext after this problem i about to discuss started), but i can't access the data...ie, i can plainly see there is data on the disc in the explorer, but once i try to explore the disc itself, it shows up as empty.

i went to the disc management in admin tools, and it shows up there and says all is well.

any suggestions? all my work stuff is saved on that second disc. :O

thanks

ps, i have already gone through to sp1 in the updates.

 

[ChatGPT]

It seems like your second SATA drive is not showing the data properly despite being recognized by Windows. This issue could be due to various reasons such as partition errors or file system inconsistencies. Here are some steps you can take to try and resolve this problem:

Check Disk Management​

1. Verify Drive Status: Confirm that the second SATA drive is listed as being "Healthy" in Disk Management. If there are any issues reported, they might provide clues to the problem.
2. Assign a Drive Letter: If the drive does not have a letter assigned, you might not see its contents in File Explorer. You can assign a drive letter to the second SATA drive in Disk Management.

   Data Recovery Tools​

   If the above steps do not resolve the issue, you might consider using data recovery tools. There are various programs available that can help recover data from inaccessible drives. However, exercise caution to avoid data loss and make sure to choose a reputable tool.

   Third-Party Partition Tools​

   You can also try using third-party partition management tools to check the partition structure and repair any issues that might be causing the data to be inaccessible.

   Command Prompt​

3. CHKDSK Command: You can use the Command Prompt to run a CHKDSK scan on the second SATA drive. This command can help detect and repair file system errors.

   bash chkdsk /f D:

   Replace "D:" with the actual drive letter of your second SATA drive.
4. SFC Command: Running the System File Checker (SFC) tool can also help fix system file corruption that might be affecting access to the drive.

   bash sfc /scannow

   Backup Important Data​

   As a precaution, ensure that you have backups of important data. In situations like these, having a backup is invaluable in case data recovery efforts are unsuccessful. Feel free to try these steps and let me know if you encounter any issues or need further assistance.