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Question

Copying files while in System Restore

Feb 25, 2016 12:07PM PST

I am trying to backup files on a drive that has crashed and is no longer visible in MY Computer. So I rebooted & went into System Restore, then typed notepad at a command line. Within the window I selected the bad drive letter. The system can see my folders and my files so I clicked Copy, then clicked Paste & pointed at an external hard drive. The busy symbol now shows. It was a lot of data.

But I don't see any file names appearing in the external hard drive letter. Is it not copying? Is it stuck trying to read files? Or is it just busy copying and will display them when done?

The sy

Discussion is locked

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Answer
Re: copying
Feb 25, 2016 12:19PM PST

System Restore? Sounds strange.
Notepad? Sounds even stranger. That's a text editor, not a file copier.

I'd try the command prompt (copy or xcopy commands with wildcards) or Explorer if this doesn't work out.

Kees

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Also...
Feb 25, 2016 12:36PM PST

there's always Linux to get them out.
Dafydd.

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Answer
The files may not show till the view is refreshed.
Feb 25, 2016 12:34PM PST

While an uncommon way to get at the files, the list won't update like File Explorer.

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Answer
Hmmm
Feb 26, 2016 5:25AM PST

I'm not too sure why you didn't just get a SATA-to-USB cable and hook it up that way.

Could be that the drive or files are corrupted; they should be moved over almost immediately.

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Answer
It worked
Feb 26, 2016 7:58AM PST

The files appear to have copied successfully to my external hard drive but I have not attempted to open one of those files yet to see if they are corrupted.

I tried the USB to SATA cable for the bad hard drive first but the drive letter would not appear. I can see all the files and folders when I look at it from the File/Open menu within Notepad.

I don't understand why this is.

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Sorry but it's the view.
Feb 26, 2016 8:23AM PST

File, Open opens the view but will not autoupdate like File Explorer.

That's it.