recovering a encrypted folder in winxp

[nikhilele]

my boss once encrypted a folder on a NTFS partition with winxp and then
forget password.
and after few months due to some problem he formated drive d which was
having winxp and the key or certificates i donot know what they are
called.

the ntfs partion is not distrub yet cause he want to recover that
folder we can seee the folder but cann't see its content as it is
encrypted

so it there any means to get that folder back

 

[iuyt344]

Not unless you backed up the certificate which is the first thing you should
do if you want to use the EFS filesystem.

This is the whole purpose of encrypting something, it shouldnt be
recoverable by anyone other than the person encrypting it,
the private key should be stored on a cd and then locked away in a safe.

That goes for ANY encryption, no matter what software.

PL.

 

[Carey Frisch [MVP]]

If you failed to make copies of your certificate (and no recovery agent certificates exist),
you won't be able to recover your encrypted files. No back door exists, nor is there any practical
way to hack these files. (If there were, it wouldn't be very good encryption.)

HOW TO: Remove File Encryption in Windows XP
http://support.microsoft.com/default.aspx?scid=kb;EN-US;308993

Without a backup of the original Encryption Certificate Key, encrypted files
are unrecoverable as they will stay encrypted forever. There is no recovery
method since the encryption algorithm is now completely different with a
reinstall of Windows XP.

See if the following articles help in any way:

HOW TO: Take Ownership of a File or Folder in Windows XP
http://support.microsoft.com/default.aspx?scid=kb;en-us;308421

Best Practices for the Encrypting File System
http://support.microsoft.com/default.aspx?scid=kb;en-us;223316

Encrypting File System in Windows XP
http://www.microsoft.com/technet/prodtechnol/winxppro/deploy/cryptfs.mspx

EFS Files Appear Corrupted When You Open Them
http://support.microsoft.com/default.aspx?scid=kb;en-us;329741


--
Carey Frisch
Microsoft MVP
Windows - Shell/User

Enjoy all the benefits of genuine Microsoft software:
http://www.microsoft.com/genuine/default.mspx

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:

| my boss once encrypted a folder on a NTFS partition with winxp and then
| forget password.
| and after few months due to some problem he formated drive d which was
| having winxp and the key or certificates i donot know what they are
| called.
|
| the ntfs partion is not distrub yet cause he want to recover that
| folder we can seee the folder but cann't see its content as it is
| encrypted
|
| so it there any means to get that folder back

 

[Bruce Chambers]

my boss once encrypted a folder on a NTFS partition with winxp and then
forget password.
and after few months due to some problem he formated drive d which was
having winxp and the key or certificates i donot know what they are
called.

the ntfs partion is not distrub yet cause he want to recover that
folder we can seee the folder but cann't see its content as it is
encrypted

so it there any means to get that folder back

Bad news, I'm afraid.

If the your encryption certificates and keys were not backed up
before the reinstallation, and the workstation isn't part of a domain
(whose Administrator might act as the designated recovery agent), those
files are gone, for all practical purposes. Encryption works well and
there is no "back door" or hack to access the files. (Wouldn't be much
point to EFS if it were easily by-passed.)


--

Bruce Chambers

Help us help you:



They that can give up essential liberty to obtain a little temporary
safety deserve neither liberty nor safety. -Benjamin Franklin

 

[Patrick Keenan]

my boss once encrypted a folder on a NTFS partition with winxp and then
forget password.
and after few months due to some problem he formated drive d which was
having winxp and the key or certificates i donot know what they are
called.

If you don't have the certificates, and Windows has been reinstalled,
consider the data gone.

the ntfs partion is not distrub yet cause he want to recover that
folder we can seee the folder but cann't see its content as it is
encrypted

Yes, that's the whole point.

so it there any means to get that folder back

The short answer is no. The longer answer is, not without the original
certificates. And given the scenario you describe, those are not
recoverable.

Certificates should always be backed up to something that isn't tied to the
system (i.e. not a hard disk in the system), and a verified safety copy
should be kept offsite.

Microsoft made it very easy to invoke encryption. I'm not sure they made
clear enough the need to keep the certificates backed up and safely stored.

-pk

 

[nikhilele]

so finally i must think of way how to recover those files

plz tell where those files are stored and under which name they are
stored

so i can use some hardisk recovery tools to restore that files