EFS: file decrypt problem

[Andrei STROE]

Hello Guys

I've got a scenario like that:
a workstation with XP Pro SP1 and 2 NTFS Partitions (c-win,d-other files)
need to reinstall Windows, due to a vorrupted ntdlr file, so I save all my
documents to partition D and compress the folders, but by mistake instead of
click on compress I did it on encrypt and i found that after I reinstalled
Windows. "Of couse" I do not have any backup of the certificate. Is there
any way in wich I could recover the files. I manage so far to take ownership
of the files but I can not add any recovery agents to the files.


Thank you very much!

 

[Mike Brannigan [MSFT]]

Hello Guys

I've got a scenario like that:
a workstation with XP Pro SP1 and 2 NTFS Partitions (c-win,d-other files)
need to reinstall Windows, due to a vorrupted ntdlr file, so I save all my
documents to partition D and compress the folders, but by mistake instead of
click on compress I did it on encrypt and i found that after I reinstalled
Windows. "Of couse" I do not have any backup of the certificate. Is there
any way in wich I could recover the files. I manage so far to take ownership
of the files but I can not add any recovery agents to the files.

If you completely reformatted your C partition and you did not export either
the original encrypters or the recovery agents (if you set one up) keys and
certificates then you will not be able to recover the files.
(Did you have a complete backup of the C drive prior to reinstallation ?)

--
Regards,

Mike
--
Mike Brannigan [Microsoft]

This posting is provided "AS IS" with no warranties, and confers no
rights

Please note I cannot respond to e-mailed questions, please use these
newsgroups

 

[Antoine Blanche]

Hello Guys

I've got a scenario like that:
a workstation with XP Pro SP1 and 2 NTFS Partitions (c-win,d-other files)
need to reinstall Windows, due to a vorrupted ntdlr file, so I save all my
documents to partition D and compress the folders, but by mistake instead
of click on compress I did it on encrypt and i found that after I
reinstalled Windows. "Of couse" I do not have any backup of the
certificate. Is there any way in wich I could recover the files. I manage
so far to take ownership of the files but I can not add any recovery
agents to the files.


Thank you very much!

Without the certificates, they're gone forever. I was stung by this
initially and lost part of a short story I was writing (thankfully not
too much of it). I hadn't realising the encrypted data was so tied to
the current OS installation and would be irretrievable upon a
reinstall of WindowsXP Pro.

It's a ridiculous situation really: that a hand-holding OS like Windows
doesn't warn you of the consequences whenever you encrypt a file. When
you generate GPG (the free alternative to PGP) keys to sign or encrypt
data, you are warned that you must back up your 'keyring' to external
media, just to protect yourself from irretrievable loss of data.
WindowsXP does nothing like this, and as a result, you'll find squillions
of posts on Usenet from people distraught at losing anything from a few
files to an entire partition. Merely because they checked a box so
easily without realising the consequences.

 

[it-wise]

Reading up on how the encryption works in XP before using it wouldn't hurt.

 

[Antoine Blanche]

Reading up on how the encryption works in XP before using it wouldn't
hurt.

That's not the point. Windows by it's very nature is supposed to be a
user-friendly, point and driven Operating System. People tend not to
read up on every action they perform because (i) the metaphorical nature
of the GUI makes things easy and (supposedly) obvious and (ii) Windows
should warn you about risky actions; certainly when 'hiding' so much is
part of its fundamental philosophy.

Now, there is another Operating System out there that people tend to read
up on before doing things simply because it doesn't hold your hand. Yet
its file encryption and signing utilities DO warn you about loss of data
when keys are generated.

So why doesn't Windows produce the same kind of warning?

Point: It shouldn't be *THAT* easy to do something so risky.

If you disagree, then let's remove all warning dialogs which read: "Do you
really want to delete this file," and so forth. They are quite mild,
more easily resolvable problems (with undelete utilities) than the
recurrent disaster that so often ensues EFS encryption. (Trawl Usenet if
you don't believe that point.)

Even the Windows help topic "To encrypt offline files" doesn't warn you to
export certificates, nor does its 'Related topics' link to such knowledge.
At best, it's utterly irresponsible.

And don't top-post.

 

[Jupiter Jones [MVP]]

Andrei;
The data is most likely gone:
http://www3.telus.net/dandemar/Encrypt.htm

 

[tyler]

When you say you saved all your documents, does this
include your profile under "Documents and Settings"? If it
doesn't then I agree with the rest of the responses to
you, but if you did then somebody just gave me the
following solution, which does allow you to recover.

http://www.beginningtoseethelight.org/efsrecovery/

 

[Guest]

I am also into a similar problem

I just bought a new Notebook, took a back up of all my files on the old note book and restored at a different location in the new notebook. Once the restore was completed, i deleted all the files from the old notebook

Now the problem is that my encrypted files do not open in the new computer. Pleas suggest solution.

 

[Jupiter Jones [MVP]]

If you saved the proper files, this may help:
http://www3.telus.net/dandemar/Encrypt.htm

--
Jupiter Jones [MVP]

http://www3.telus.net/dandemar/

I am also into a similar problem.

I just bought a new Notebook, took a back up of all my files on the

old note book and restored at a different location in the new
notebook. Once the restore was completed, i deleted all the files from
the old notebook.

Now the problem is that my encrypted files do not open in the new

computer. Pleas suggest solution.

 

[Guest]

Is there a way, I could copy the files back to the old computer and retrive ? If yes, what should be the chronology of actions ?

Please advise ..

----- Jupiter Jones [MVP] wrote: ----

If you saved the proper files, this may help
http://www3.telus.net/dandemar/Encrypt.ht

--
Jupiter Jones [MVP

http://www3.telus.net/dandemar

I am also into a similar problem

old note book and restored at a different location in the ne
notebook. Once the restore was completed, i deleted all the files fro
the old notebookcomputer. Pleas suggest solution

 

[Jupiter Jones [MVP]]

Click the link I gave.
Second link on #3

--
Jupiter Jones [MVP]

http://www3.telus.net/dandemar/

Is there a way, I could copy the files back to the old computer and

retrive ? If yes, what should be the chronology of actions ?/

Please advise ...

----- Jupiter Jones [MVP] wrote: -----

If you saved the proper files, this may help:
http://www3.telus.net/dandemar/Encrypt.htm

--
Jupiter Jones [MVP]

http://www3.telus.net/dandemar/

I am also into a similar problem.

on the
old note book and restored at a different location in the new
notebook. Once the restore was completed, i deleted all the files from
the old notebook. the new
computer. Pleas suggest solution.