I always said ChkDsk is a crap tool which sometimes do more damage than it fixes...

Well, it happen to me atm. Some crap program started ChkDsk automatically and it "fixed" my hard disk...

Result: I lost gigabytes of emails (from 1998 to now)

Thus: I need a good and advanced disk editor. Something like the PCTOOLS or NORTON DISK EDITOR from the old days (DOS).

A disk editor where I can search the entire HDD for a certain string and which the editor then links to the proper chain of sectors so I can manually retrieve the data.

Or an editor which at least shows me in a nice way the chain of sectors when I select a certain sector.

for free if possible...

PS: I don't need an average disk editor which simply shows the contents, as I already have that.

I don't have time atm to google.

I will be in your dept forever...

30secs of googling came up with this:

http://3d2f.com/programs/25-635-diskinternals-ntf...ery-download.shtml

not sure if that's what you need...

many thanks,

unfortunatly none of those (I looked at the related links too) are the thing I'm looking for. Those tools are all wizard like stuff which don't let you control anything, at least not much they are just fancy undelete tools). They all recover data (automatically) based upon the directory structures, etc.

I need a real disk editor which reads and interprets sectors on a partition, including showing which sectors belong to what files, which sectors are in use, etc.

Maybe:
http://www.acronis.com/homecomputing/products/diskeditor/

But that's part of a suite and not free...will look further...

Edit: found that same program as standalone
License: Shareware - Time Limit, free to try, $44.99 to buy (maybe you can fix within time limit):
http://www.acronis-disk-editor-6-0.com-download.net/

Edit2: Free one - Disk Investigator

Sunshine,

Thankies. DiskEditor just let you edit some values of the partition table etc. Not what I'm looking for. DiskInvestigator is more like it, although it is very limited in what it can do, and development has halted long time ago. But it is the kind of tool I need, but still more advanced....

I'm currently using some other (not very user friendly) tools, very slow, but hopefully they will do.

If anyone knows a good Disk Editor (like the old PCTOOLS disk editor), please share it

http://www.runtime.org/gdb.htm

I know many people swear by that, but I'm not sure if it's what you want. And it's not free, either (but can be "acquired").

quote:

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Originally posted by CookieRevised
Sunshine,

Thankies. DiskEditor just let you edit some values of the partition table etc. Not what I'm looking for. DiskInvestigator is more like it, although it is very limited in what it can do, and development has halted long time ago. But it is the kind of tool I need, but still more advanced....

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quote:

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Originally posted by Vilkku
http://www.runtime.org/gdb.htm

I know many people swear by that, but I'm not sure if it's what you want. And it's not free, either (but can be "acquired").

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i found this program that might interest you...
http://www.handyfiletool.com/index.html
hope that program helps solve your problem. (:

Ok, in the mean time I've tried douzens of programs and nothing is what I'm looking for...

Does there no hexadecimal disk editor exists which simply allows me to scroll thru sectors and shows me what files those sectors belongs too???

Does nobody know PCTOOLS' disk editor from the old days?

quote:

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Emergency PC Fix and Rescue Tools

When your computer won't boot and you're unsure of the trouble, Fix-It tools help you solve the problem. Included is Recovery Commander, a utility to fix and restore your PC when it won't boot. The Fix-It Utilities CD is bootable and can also help you save data and restore corrupted computer files. Use Fix-It Utilities to get your PC up and running again.
-----------------------------------------------------------
Retrieve Trashed Files

Whether you've accidentally deleted a file or you've been zapped by a virus, Fix-It Utilities can help. FileUndeleter allows you to search for and rescue accidentally deleted files. The Deleted Files Bin stores deleted files, even after they've been emptied out of the Recycle Bin.
----------------------------------------------------
Recovery Commander™
Quickly restore your non-booting system back to normal! Recovery Commander provides enhanced tracking and recovery features. Recovery Commander is fully integrated with Fix-It Utilities.

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sorry no, it doesn't...

This is just one of the gazillion useless programs which do nothing more than automatically scanning for file entries in the file table. That is completely useless for me.

I need a disk editor, NOT a recovery/unformat/undelete/whatever tool. There is nothing wrong with the hard disk. I just need to grab data from the hard disk taking in account used (or rather, not-used) sectors.

Any of these look good?

HxD (freeware)

Roadkil's Sector Editor 1.4 (freeware)
"Allows displaying, editing, printing and searching of disks by invidual sectors. The information can be displayed and edited in both ASCII or hexadecimal. Sectors can be copied and exported to files."

OmniXray 5.0
"Picking up where the famous Norton Disk Edit left off"

WinHex
"An advanced tool for everyday and emergency use: inspect and edit all kinds of files, recover deleted files or lost data from hard drives ..."

Hexprobe

Hackman

FlexHex [alternate link]

Hex Workshop
"Sector edit partitions or physical disks; Copy sectors between disks and partitions; Save Sector Ranges to a file; Restore Sector Range from a file"