Retriving a deleted file out of the recycle bin.

[Gwizz]

I'm about finished with my SJ&E RR map except for testing.

So I deleted a packet of builders maps into the recycle bin.

Then I emptied the recycle bin.  Whoops.

Pulling up the finished map it wasn't the correct map.  It was missing about 30 hours of work.

I had dumped the finished map.  Well I heard it is possible to dig the map out of the hard drive.  Without doing anything to the computer I looked for a recovery program on the other computer.  Found a number of free ones.  Using a USB stick, The first program worked good but stopped me after it pulling out my map.  It said I had to pay for the program's success.  I dumped the program since it misled me.

Tried another program call Restoration.  It was slow and old; But it dug out over 152,000 files and parts of files.

I didn't know so much junk still occupied my hard drive.  The computer is only about 16 years old.  A teenager. 

Well looking at 152 file was going to take some time.

I did a speed search of these files, knowing there would be about 40 files together with about the same number name.  I put the scroll on fast forward and my eyes tried to keep up.  Luckily it only took about 15 minutes.  My file was near the top of the list.  I recovered it and started testing the map today.

That just goes to prove the saying, never give up.

[Old Codger]

That just goes to prove the saying, never give up.

...and never believe that if you delete something, even emptying the recycle bin, that the file is gone form the hard drive.  ;)

[Gwizz]

I had files that had been deleted for years that were still at 100%.  Since I now only use the computer for RT2, the computer just didn't over write most files.  But I did have pieces of a few files that must have been over-written.

Since this is your first post, Welcome aboard  :)

[Old Codger]

Since this is your first post, Welcome aboard  :)

Thank you!  ;D

Even after you delete files they are still on your hard drive until that sector is overwritten by newer files.

It is feasible that you could write data to a hard drive to the point that there is no free space left, but even then, some files can still be retrieved.

You could even format a hard drive and then go so far as to write 1's and 0's to the entire hard drive but the forensic software that law enforcement uses can still retrieve some files.

The only for sure way to get rid of all data on a hard drive is to destroy it, like with a sledge hammer.  ;)

[Gwizz]

I've read about programs that will completely clean a hard drive.

I've never tried one.  I normally replace a Hard drive. 

Another program copies over all deleted files with non-sense data.

And of course a drive can be formated.  So far I've only used the formating tool. 

I'm not sure but I think formatting only deletes all data from view,

with the drive telling the computer it can over-write all data that was formatted.

I bought some security cameras with night-vision and motion detectors. 

Now I need to find a program to run and record from the cameras to one of my old computers.

It might be wiser to just buy a kit.  But not as much fun.