Any great computer hardware types around?

[Jamastiene]

I have a friend who needs some work done retrieving information from a computer that was deleted at one time. I know I have heard there are ways to get that information back, but I don't know how to do it. Anyone who knows how, please send me a PM or reply here as soon as you get a chance.

Thanks.

[BlueJazz]

1. If the info was deleted on the Hard Drive AND was written over...

...it's fairly hard to get the info back (not by ordinary means)..and expensive as hell.

If the info was Deleted and the computer has not been used much...than that's a different story...

[ChromeFoundry]

2. you could try an UnDelete utility...

Here is one that is free (I have no personal experience with the software)...
http://www.undelete-plus.com/download.html

[Why Syzygy]

3. Is it Windows?

Has he emptied the Recycle Bin? Lots of people just leave stuff in there.

You can google for "undelete", or use the suggestion above. I've just started using a program that makes sure none of my old files are recoverable.

[Duer 157099]

4. Google "GetDataBack" and "Handy Recovery"

I've used both of those programs with great success. It can be time consuming but it may also be really easy, it just depends on (as mentioned above) whether the data had been written over and how extensively.

My conclusion, after spending lots of time with data recovery, is that it's actually harder to get rid of data!

[paparush]

5. You got that right! Getting rid of data can be a pain.

I use Eraser. Right click on a file and select "Erase" from the context menu. Overwrites with 35 passes.

No, not 100%, guaranteed, fail safe, but pretty good.