Viewing External Hard Drive Files

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Bob C

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Had a Seagate external hard drive for years which I've always used to back up my computer but have never needed to access the contents until now.
1. How do I open the drive to view the files, and;
2. how do I recover a single file?

Can't find the manual, if there was one, anywhere.
Thank you.
 
Make sure the drive is connected.

Assuming you did NOT use a 'backup' program and used copy-paste or dragged-n-dropped individual files, then ...

Win7 ...
1. Start button / My Computer
2. Double click on the icon for your external hard drive. If you have only one internal hard drive, the external hard drive may be labeled drive D: E: or F: etc. It may also have the name of its manufacturer.
It is usual for internal DVD/CD drives to be allocated as D: drive.
3. Double click the file you wish to open.

If you used a 'backup' program, then you will need to use that program to 'recover' the data. Caution, this usually means everything you backed up on the drive, unless you 'intelligently' backed up individual data files.


:user:
 
Backed 2 or 3 pcs onto the drive by clicking on 'backup' and responding to the question 'where', always chose external hard drive. (Nothing intelligent about me, a complete illiterate as far as computers go.) So given my chosen backup method and the fact that I no longer have a desktop computer, just how do I begin to open the backups?

Edit: will be using a laptop.
 
ah, you are ... insert words not appropriate for viewing here.

"Backup", in your context, ment storing the contents of the drive, in it's entirety, to another drive. You will need that system, and hard drive, to then "restore" the whole contents back to the original drive.

I do not use any backup programs ... I just copy my valuable DATA to any other drive, whether it be an external, second internal or even in the cloud.

Depending on how valuable your data is, depends on how much you may be willing to pay a data-recovery company.

Sorry, I feel you have lost your data, I'd be happy to be proven wrong. Good luck!


:user:
 
"ah, you are..." is lost on me:blush:

In my stupidity, I thought when I bought the EHD, that it was like a huge memory stick which would copy everything I had on my computer when I clicked on 'backup' and that I could upload on to any other computer, any item I cared to select. What an absolute plonker I am!!! However, since I don't own a computer now no harm has been done because I only wanted to find a single 2 page relatively unimportant document. Thank you for taking the time to put me on the straight and narrow.;)
 
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