All files gone from profiles after 98 -> XP Home upgrade

[Rich Bouchard]

I upgrades from Windows 98 to XP Home. After doing so,
*all* of the files in *all* of my 98 Profiles
(C:\Windows\Profiles\xxx\...) are gone. The complete
directory structure is intact; I can see each
Profile's "My Documents" folder and all the sub folders,
but all of the files are gone.

This is (obviously) disasterous -- is there a way to get
these back?

 

[Rick \Nutcase\ Rogers]

Hi Rich,

Check under the new user profiles in:
C:\Documents and Settings\<username>

Otherwise, if you used the option to backup the existing system when you
upgraded, then you may need to uninstall WinXP, backup those files properly
to removable media (do not use the Win98 backup program), then redo the
upgrade and place those files back. There is however, no guarantee that
restoring the Win98 system from the previously created backup will restore
the files, but there is a chance that it will. It's better than no chance at
all.

Lesson: Never upgrade anything without first backing up what's important to
you.

--
Best of Luck,

Rick Rogers aka "Nutcase" MS-MVP - Win9x
Windows isn't rocket science! That's my other hobby!

Associate Expert - WinXP - Expert Zone

 

[Rich Bouchard]

Thanks for the response.

The files aren't under C:\Document and Settings\<>

The system was upgraded because the system wasn't able to
boot into Windows any longer (even in safe made) with a
kernel crash that MS Support couldn't resolve and they
suggested I do the XP upgrade to get past that crash
condition.

I don't understand what could have deleted all of the
*files* and left all of the *directories* intact.

If these are really lost, i.e. if following the suggested
path to resolve a Windows crash has eliminated my user
data in its entirety, this will be "bad"

The upgrade didn't present me an option to backup the 98
installation (but of course I had to run the upgrade
direct from CD since the 98 system would no longer boot
into windows...)

 

[Rick \Nutcase\ Rogers]

Hi Rich,

The upgrade didn't present me an option to backup the 98
installation (but of course I had to run the upgrade
direct from CD since the 98 system would no longer boot
into windows...)

For all intents and purposes then, the files are gone. The drive space they
occupied has likely been overwritten during the installation. Recovery at
this point would require expensive forensic restoration tools by a trained
professional (and it ain't gonna be cheap).

The files may actually have been lost in the previously corrupted system,
it's hard to tell. You can try a freeware "undelete" utility to see if any
remnants are on the system, this one works quite well:
http://hccweb1.bai.ne.jp/~hcj58401/

--
Best of Luck,

Rick Rogers aka "Nutcase" MS-MVP - Win9x
Windows isn't rocket science! That's my other hobby!

Associate Expert - WinXP - Expert Zone