Here is the post that will shed light on how to recover deleted emails in Thunderbird. So if you have recently deleted an important eMail and accidentally emptied the Trash, you may still be able to recover it. Just don’t compact your folders, yet!

Before you start, close Thunderbird and best perform a backup. At least make a manual backup of the files you are going to work with!

Open your Thunderbird profile folder. Generally this folder can be found under C:\Documents and Settings\YOUR USER NAME\Application Data\Thunderbird\Profiles.

By default, the Application Data folder is hidden. To make it visible go to C:\Documents and Settings\YOUR USER NAME\ and click Tools > Folder Options and open the View tab. Scroll down to Hidden files and folders and check Show hidden files and folders. Click OK to save and you should be able to see the Application Data folder.

You should know under which account and to which folder the deleted eMail was originally delivered. Otherwise you will have to apply trial and error and search through different accounts and folders.

Let’s say we’re looking for an eMail that was delivered to the Inbox, subsequently deleted and emptied from the Trash. The traces of this eMail should still be found in the Inbox folder.

Go ahead and open the folder for the respective eMail account, then launch the Inbox file without the .msf file extension in a text editor, such as Notepad.

If you’re unsure, click on one of the files and expand the file details in the bottom left of the folder. For the correct file type it should just say “file”, rather than “MSF-file”.

Opening files can take a few seconds or a few minutes, depending on how many eMails have survived termination in that folder. Make sure the text editor you choose can handle large file sizes. Some of my files were up to 300MB!

For my example, I picked an eMail I received from Stumble Upon this morning. I had deleted it and before attempting to restore the eMail I also emptied the Trash for this account.

When I looked into the Inbox file I indeed found that eMail along with all details and contents in my Inbox text file.

To recover the eMail and make it reappear in its original folder, change the X-Mozilla-Status to 0. In the example pictured below it says “X-Mozilla-Status: 0009″. The result should say “X-Mozilla-Status: 0″.

Save the file, close it and launch your Thunderbird client.

Lo and behold, my test eMail magically reappeared in my inbox.

Now to everyone who have been getting rid of secret or compromising eMails simply by deleting them, there is no need to suffer from a nervous breakdown now.

There is a way to remove those eMails forever. Simply compact your folders. My previous post on How To Terminally Deleted eMails In Thunderbird by Compacting Folders thoroughly explains the steps you need to take.

Did I save your day? Your feedback is appreciated, please use the comments!

Did you like the post? Please do share your thoughts in the comments section!

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Well, I am not getting into the criminal underbelly, but just jabbering about a long existing software that makes it possible to recover deleted files from a memory card used on digital cameras. PC Inspector Smart Recovery (v4.5) is a free, Windows only software that does one job (actually two… as we shall see) and does it well.

Primary job: PC Inspector Smart Recovery is a freeware data recovery program from CONVAR for Flash Card/USB Flash Drive, Smart Media, SONY Memory Stick, IBM Micro Drive, Multimedia Card, Secure Digital Card or any other data carrier for digital cameras.

Secondary job: While it goes about its first job, it also offers a way to check the memory type for any errors.

I call PC Inspector Smart Recovery a ‘doomsday’ software. This one and others of its ilk help us to recover from our errors or those committed by our digital devices. If you think that the chances of losing some precious photo or video among the thousands we shoot with our digital cameras is one in thousands then give this software a miss. Otherwise, let’s give it a rip…

The download size of PC Inspector Smart Recovery is fairly compact at 6.1MB. The software is compatible with Windows XP (not tested for Vista).

These are the formats and digital camera types supported by PC Inspector Smart Recovery:

JPG, AMR, TIF, BMP, GIF, AVI, MOV, WAV, DSS, MP4, Canon (.crw) , Fuji (.raf) , RICOH (.raw), Olympus E-XX (.orf), Olympus C5050 (.orf), Nokia (3gp), Kodak (.dcr), Minolta (.mrw), Nikon D1H/D1X (.nef), Nikon D2H/D2X (.nef), Nikon E5000/E5700 (.nef), Konica Minolta, Sigma – Foveon (.x3f).

Installation is a no-brainer. And so is the use – in five simple steps.

1. Connect your memory card through your computer’s memory card reader or connect the digital camera/mobile phone with the provided data cable.
2. Start PC Inspector Smart Recovery. Select the drive letter (Select Device) used by the memory device from the first dropdown.
3. Select the file type (Select Format Type) that is to be recovered from the second dropdown. The Enhanced Options is for JPG format only. The default Automatic setting recognizes the format on its own. The With Thumbnails option assumes that your picture format includes thumbnails; the Without Thumbnails option assumes that your picture format does not include thumbnails.
4. Select the destination folder (Select where the images are to be recovered). Create a specific folder as opposed tp recovering them to an area like the desktop because the sheer number of images might create a mess.
5. Click on Start and the software indicates the progress through the progress bar.

   

Change the search mode…

The Settings menu lets you change the way the recovery is done. The Fast Mode is the default mode. The Intensive Mode scans more thoroughly and takes longer to complete. The recoverable file size can be limited optionally.

Check Media found under Menu – Function is a way to check the memory device for errors. Once started, the progress is reported by the software under the Media Check section. Any read errors like a ‘Not Available’ alert could indicate problems in the memory device, the card reader or the driver.

So has it helped me avert my doomsdays?

On my 4GB memory card with a sample of 160 pictures, I recovered all but six. Yes, the process was slow – about 160 minutes for an intensive scan. But the success ratio was great so I guess I can live with the slow speeds. Getting the lost pictures back at no cost is a definite deal maker for me.

There are a few others which fall under the broad category of file recovery software. Check these out. They might save your day –

3 Remarkable File Recovery Tools
Recover Lost Computer Files with Undelete Plus
How To securely Retrieve and Delete PC files

So, what do you do when you unintentionally lose your Kodak moments (minus the teeth gnashing of course)? How do you recover deleted picture files from a memory card? Do you have your toolkit of ‘doomsday’ software?

Did you like the post? Please do share your thoughts in the comments section!

New on MakeUseOf ? Get cheat sheets and cool PDF guides @ www.makeuseof.com/makeuseof-downloads/

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• Restore Deleted Files Easily With Recuva (12)

I’ve got just the mate for you to help you recover from your loss. Welcome to the Data Game! 

Let’s meet contestant number one!

Recuva

Yo peeps! This is Recuva representin’ Piriform. I know ya seen me around. You know my homies – CCleaner for your optimizing needs and Defraggler regulating yo fragments in yo disk! Check this out…I Recuva da files from your bin, ain’t no sin, that’s just the world we’s livin’ in. Bringin’ back yo files in style, that’s how I profile, now ya go on and make yo boss smile! Check it!

Fo’ real, I work on all Windows boxes, MP3 players, memory cards and I can work on bringing back more than one file at a time. Beat that!

And now for contestant number two!

FreeUndelete

Dude, I’m like free and I undelete. Simple is like, how I am. No frills, just focused on the zen of recovery, y’know. Like, when I need to bring back a file that got some bad karma, I just say, “Whoa, stop! Reflect for a moment. To move is to erase.”

I don’t really think about it or clutter my mind with icons and pop-ups. I’m just, like, free, y’know. I’ll catch the wave on your 2000, XP or Vista, I’ll ride where I’m needed, bro! But I don’t do the corporate sell-out. You can only use me for yourself. I’m all about the interpersonal, bro. And I like to play the bongos naked.

Last but not least, let’s give a big Data Game welcome to contestant number three!

ADRC Data Recovery Software Tools

Good evening, I am ADRC Data Recovery Software Tools, but you may call me ADRC. On the surface, I’m a simple program with functionality and ease of use always in mind. I’m thinking of you. But deep down I’m very well rounded, somewhat complex even. One could say that I’m the Renaissance Man of free data recovery.

When you undelete with me, I give you so much more than your lost files back. I bring to the table the ability to back up a disk image and restore it. I can copy files from your hard disk with bad sectors, perform disk cloning, as well as backup, edit and restore your boot parameters. Really, is there anything I can’t do? That’s a rhetorical question, my dear.

There you have it, contestant One, Two and Three. So which one will win the Data Game? Well, that’s up to you, our lucky Data Batchelor or Batchlorette!  Tell me, which one will it be? Or do you have a special someone else in mind?

Did you like the post? Please do share your thoughts in the comments section!

New on MakeUseOf ? Get cheat sheets and cool PDF guides @ www.makeuseof.com/makeuseof-downloads/

• How to Recover Deleted Pictures from a Digicam Memory Card (4)
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The interface of Recuva is similar to CCleaner, it is simple to use (even a computer moron could use it) and after testing it, it seems to be very effective in restoring deleted files. So I figured it deserved its own write-up on MakeUseOf.

So let’s get the short product description first of all from the Recuva homepage:

Recuva (pronounced “recover”) is a freeware Windows utility to restore files that have been accidentally deleted from your computer. This includes files emptied from the Recycle bin as well as images and other files that have been deleted by user error from digital camera memory cards or MP3 players. It will even bring back files that have been deleted by bugs, crashes and viruses!

But as with any deleted file that you want to bring back, the older it is, the harder it will be to bring back. Plus if you are able to bring it back, the older it is, the more corrupted the file will be. So if you want to bring a deleted file back, you need to do it as fast as possible. The more you delay, the less chance there is of recovering it.

After using Recuva for a couple of days, I have ended up being very impressed with it. It is very fast with finding recoverable files and when you click on what you want brought back, it restores the file and sends it back to your hard drive within seconds.

So here’s how the program works.

1. After opening the program, select the drive where the file was deleted then click the “scan” button.

2. Recuva then starts sweeping the specified hard drive looking for files that are able to be restored.

3. You then get a list of all the files that Recuva was able to find.  As you can see, some of the files are unidentifiable with just scrambled file names but a lot of other files have their original names intact (more on that later). What I really liked about Recuva is that it has a colour-coded system where you can see right away the status of each file and whether or not it is in any condition to be downloaded successfully or not.

Red means the file is basically screwed and you can forget it. Yellow means the file is in very bad condition but you can still download it and take your chances with it – some of it might be salvageable. Green means that the file is in excellent condition and you can get it back no problem.

4. If there are too many files returned to manage or you are looking for a particular file, you can filter the files. Just specify a file type or a file name in the “filename or path” field or drop down the menu to specify a file type.   So for example, by typing in “googleupdate”, I was able to find three particular files.

5. Now say I want to want to recover those 3 files? I just need to tick them and click the “recover” button. Recuva will ask me to specify where on the computer they should go and when I have told it, the files will start downloading. In fact, they are put back on the computer so fast that I didn’t even have time to make a screenshot!

That’s basically all there is to it. Just remember to untick those files in Recuva before you close the program because Recuva remembers those files next time and will keep on downloading them over and over again! So untick them once you have recovered them and you’ll be fine.

Do you use Recuva? If so, what have been your experiences with it? What percentage of files have you managed to recover using this app? Is there any particular file format in your opinion that recovers better than all the others?

Did you like the post? Please do share your thoughts in the comments section!

New on MakeUseOf ? Get cheat sheets and cool PDF guides @ www.makeuseof.com/makeuseof-downloads/

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Recently my Linux hard disk crashed on me and it was then that I discovered that there was a limited choice of data recovery tools that I could use on my Linux system. In my desperate attempt to revive my hard disk (and the data on it), I came across these two great pieces of software TestDisk and PhotoRec that single-handedly saved my hard disk.

TestDisk – Recover Lost Partitions

TestDisk is a partition recovery software that can recover any lost partition or make a non-booting disk bootable again. It can be really handy when your hard disk has crashed due to faulty software, viruses or any accidental removal of the partition.

It doesn’t matter whether you are using Windows, Linux, Mac or any other UNIX system because TestDisk is able to recover them all.

As you can see from the image above, TestDisk is run in the terminal (or DOS) mode. That doesn’t mean it is difficult to use. There is no command line to remember. All you need to do is to move your arrow keys and press Enter to select the right answer, just like how you answer an online survey.

Select the hard disk to scan for the lost partition :

Select the partition type :

Find the lost partition :

Write the data to the partition :

Most of the time when your hard disk has crashed, or fails to boot, it doesn’t mean that it is spoilt. It could just be due to a corrupted file or accidental removal of the boot record, which can be easily fixed with TestDisk.

I have successfully restored two 80GB hard disks that originally could not be booted up.

PhotoRec – Recover Lost and Deleted Files

PhotoRec works to recover lost files from any storage devices, including video, documents, pictures and archives from hard disks, memory cards, USB thumb drives and CD-ROM’s. It doesn’t care what filesystem you are using and it goes deep under to dig out any underlying data.

Even if your storage device is severely damaged or re-formatted, there is a great chance that you can retrieve your data, as long as it has not been overwritten.

Unlike other data recovery software, PhotoRec does not come with a nice user interface and it does not allows you to select which files to restore. By default, it will recover all the files that it can find, but you can configure it to search only for a particular file extension.

A point to note while using PhotoRec: you should never restore a file to its original location as it will overwrite the data and make the file unrecoverable. Instead, restore the files to a secondary hard disk or a separate partition.

Conclusion

I would strongly recommend TestDisk and PhotoRec as Linux data recovery tools. Although they are not as visually appealing, their solid support for multiple platforms and filesystems give them a great advantage over other data-recovery software, not to mention that they are free too.

If you are using Windows and want to retrieve lost files, other data recovery software (such as Restoration and Undelete Plus) would be useful as they have a better interface and give you more control over which files to restore. However, if you are on Linux, Mac or any other platform other than Windows, PhotoRec would be a great alternative.

Did you like the post? Please do share your thoughts in the comments section!

New on MakeUseOf ? Get cheat sheets and cool PDF guides @ www.makeuseof.com/makeuseof-downloads/

• Restore Deleted Files Easily With Recuva (12)
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Undelete Plus is a free file recovery utility that easily brings back those files that somehow got lost or ended up deleted by some random occurrence.

Undelete Plus is an extremely easy to use program. After you install it and open it up, Undelete Plus will automatically detect the hard drives on your computer. Select the drive that has the lost files on it, and click the Start Scan button.

My 80 GB harddrive was scanned in just a few minutes, but it returned over 4,000 files. When did I delete 4,000 files? This could get ugly really quickly.

Needle in a Haystack

My idea of fun is not sorting through over 4,000 files to find that one report due in a few hours that I accidentally deleted. The best feature of Undelete Plus, besides the whole undeleting part, is its ability to filter your deleted files. This makes the searching process much less painful.

You can filter files by type, folder and drive. This provides a great start, but even if I filter it down to images, I still have a couple hundred images to choose from. Undelete Plus allows you to also sort the files by filename, path, status, size, date created and date modified. After a quick filter and sort, you should be able to quickly find the file you want to restore.

I selected around 20 files and clicked the Start Undelete button to hopefully bring my files back from the dead. The process was surprisingly fast, as after only a few seconds, I had zombie files all over my desktop. All 20 of the files that were selected popped up on the desktop.

Conclusion

Undelete Plus performed as advertised. It was an easy to use program that quickly brought back my once lost files. However, I must say that my sample of 20 files is a very small one in the grand scheme of things and may not be fully representative.

Another alternative is Restoration which was written about by Mark, last September.

What does everyone out there use to get back those precious files that accidentally go the way of the dinosaur, and how has your success rate been on the file resurrection front?

Did you like the post? Please do share your thoughts in the comments section!

New on MakeUseOf ? Get cheat sheets and cool PDF guides @ www.makeuseof.com/makeuseof-downloads/

• How to Recover Deleted Pictures from a Digicam Memory Card (4)
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• How To Recover Deleted eMails in Thunderbird (9)