/ I tried using data recovery software and at some point, the files/folders to be recovered seem recurring on the page; ie the last few names could be just repeating themselves. I am not even sure if the recovered data can be opened subsequently since some shows a pair of speakers when I tried to review. Finally, under the recovered folders, all of them seem not even worth 1mb, shows 0mb. Please enlighten. Thanks

I tried using data recovery software and at some point, the files/folders to be recovered seem recurring on the page; ie the last few names could be just repeating themselves. I am not even sure if the recovered data can be opened subsequently since some shows a pair of speakers when I tried to review. Finally, under the recovered folders, all of them seem not even worth 1mb, shows 0mb. Please enlighten. Thanks

Celeste Stewart Data Recovery Programs

I’m not sure which data recovery software you used so I’ll use ParetoLogic Data Recovery software as an example. Other programs should have similarities so hopefully my examples will translate if you’re using a different data recovery program.

Data Recovery comes in both a free demo version as well as a commercial, full-featured version. A “Professional” edition is also available with added features. When using the demo version of the software, you can scan your media (hard drive, USB flash drives, removable storage devices, CD-RWs, attached digital cameras, etc.) and see if the data is potentially recoverable (though you must buy the commercial product to perform the recovery). Once the scan is complete, you’ll see a list of found files that are most likely recoverable. Just as in Windows Explorer, you’ll see the file name, file size, and other details.

Data Recovery Previews

If you hover your mouse over a specific file, a small preview box appears, showing you even more details including snippets of the text or a preview of the image of the recoverable file. This is where I believe you may have seen an icon with the pair of speakers displayed. I suspect that indicates that the file in question is a sound file of some sort.

Zero Bytes in Data Recovery Previews

Now, why are your files showing up with 0 bytes? I just ran a partial scan of my own computer using Data Recovery Pro so that I could look at the data preview of my files so I could better describe the process to you. Once the scanner ran for a few seconds, I went ahead and cancelled the scan because I knew I’d be able to preview some images. Indeed, the scanner listed a number of recoverable files as expected, providing me with details, file sizes, and previews.

However, it also listed numerous files without this information - and 0 bytes. When previewing the 0 bytes files, no thumbnail preview was available. Instead, a message said, “This file may be recoverable however there is no preview available.” In this case, I believe that the Data Recovery software remembered the files from an earlier scan but hadn’t yet reached them during the current, interrupted scan. Had I allowed the scanner to complete the process, the details would have eventually filled in. The 0 bytes display could also mean that the file name was discovered, but the data is no longer recoverable. That is, new data has come along and overwritten the old data.

Repeating Information in Data Recovery Results

Data Recovery groups recoverable files into categories such as: Images, Documents, Text Files, and so on. Within the categories, the files alphabetized. You can change the way they are sorted by clicking on the category title. You may notice some files repeat. For example, my scan shows three copies of “Auto Recovery Save of Document 2.” Upon closer inspection, each one has a different date. Had I needed to recovery this data, I would likely want the most current version, though an earlier version may be preferred in some instances. Similarly, I have numerous temporary Internet files of the same name, all with different dates.

Here’s what I would do, I would re-scan the system, making sure to let the process complete. Data recovery isn’t an all or nothing solution, so once the scan is made, you can pick and choose the files you want to recover. You can also pick entire folders or partitions. Hopefully, the data that you need is fully recoverable.