The motherboard requires a significant amount of time to boot up.
The motherboard requires a significant amount of time to boot up.
DISKPART is a robust yet potentially damaging utility. Performing a clean operation might erase the partition map. Unless you've kept your storage largely untouched since then, there remains a possibility your files are still intact. This explains why we need to emphasize backing up before making any changes like altering boot loaders, converting formats, or running incorrect commands with DISKPART. If you possess another HDD, you might safely extract the Windows drive that's in RAW state or simply disconnect it (the more interaction, the greater the risk of overwriting and loss). Transfer Windows to a blank secondary disk. Then download and install TestDisk. Numerous recovery programs claim to be free, but they often impose restrictions—such as limited scanning capabilities or costs for data transfer. Reconnect the RAW drive, but avoid attempting to boot from it. Start your system from the newly installed Windows drive. Using TestDisk, you might successfully retrieve your files onto another storage device. Never apply a recovery tool to the same drive you're trying to restore; doing so risks overwriting the original data. If you manage to save the information to a different disk, you can later format the RAW drive again. Windows reinstallation may be necessary. Cloning the recovered partition onto the RAW drive could work, but if that fails, you'll likely need to reinstall Windows and then transfer your data back to the damaged drive. Once restored, you can re-upload your files. If recovery proves impossible, a recent backup should provide a solution.
It could be, I haven't tried that method before. The only option is to attempt it. You'll still need a secondary HDD (not the damaged one) to restore the data if it succeeds and finds anything. It's best to take your time, proceed carefully, and familiarize yourself with the tools—Hiren's, TestDisk, etc.—so you're comfortable. Since you might only have one chance, it's important to maximize your chances of a successful recovery. There are other Linux recovery options available that could work better if you use a Linux live CD/USB (like porteus or similar), but I'm not sure how well you know Linux. https://www.cleverfiles.com/howto/raw-dr...overy.html provides details on using TestDisk for RAW partition recovery.
TestDisk includes a downloadable CD/USB for live use, created via Hiren's boot media.
I’m comfortable with Hiren’s guide and Linux, though I’m using a Windows setup because NTFS works better there. I attempted DiskGenius, which only saved recovery data in memory, but it reported the whole partition as zeroed out. It mentioned only a few bytes were affected, which doesn’t align with the fact that the recovery partition should be intact and occupy more than 7 bytes. I’m uncertain how TestDisk will handle this situation since it didn’t locate anything, but this seems like my final attempt. I’ll try again tonight.