Need to recover files from Linux hard drive that was initialized in Windows

[kingtech]

I will begin by announcing that I really know very little about Linux, not having dealt with it previously. That being said, a hard drive that has important files on it was given to me to back up without having been told it was Linux. I piggy backed it into a Windows PC and initialized the hard drive. When it showed there were no files to access I then realized this must be a Linux based hard drive. I attempted to access files with both Linux Reader and Linux Recovery but they both act as though the hard drive has no files on it. And no I did not format the drive, I only intialized it.

Is there any way to retrieve files from this hard drive being initialized in Windows? I do have a Linux machine that I could piggy back it into but I have never messed with this machine before, or Linux for that matter, so wouldn't know where to begin. This is a time sensitive matter and I have reached the end of my rope here so any help will be greatly appreciated!

Kevin

[oz]

Hello and welcome to the forums!

You should be able to boot a Linux liveCD such as Parted Magic and access the files easily enough.

[kingtech]

Thank you. Does it matter whether I use Parted Magic with the hard drive connected to a Windows machine or Linux machine?

[oz]

If you boot with a liveCD neither hard drive will be mounted unless you choose to mount it from within the liveCD environment.

[rcgreen]

I remember back in the day when initialize was a synonym for
format. I wonder what they are playing at. My guess is that
initializing creates a new MBR. If this is the case, your old MBR,
with its partition table, was erased. If my guess is right, you might
have the best results with a program like testdisk

TestDisk - CGSecurity

[kingtech]

I'm using Parted Magic as we speak, but I cannot mount the hard drive. When I open Mount Devices the only devices that come up are the 2 CD drives in this machine. I have the hard drive in question connected via IDE and it is the only hard drive in the machine. If I open Smart Control it does show the hard drive info though...

If you boot with a liveCD neither hard drive will be mounted unless you choose to mount it from within the liveCD environment.

[oz]

If there is no partition table, as rcgreen suggests might be the case, TestDisk may be able to recover it for you. The TestDisk application can be found on the Parted Magic disk that you are using.

[kingtech]

Ok found it, and it found the hard drive. I'm now where it asks partition table type...is this going to try creating the type you choose, or is it asking what type the partitions are currently? Sorry for the walkthrough but I want to be very careful with this.

[oz]

Check this wiki page for step-by-step instructions on partition recovery using TestDisk:

TestDisk Step By Step - CGSecurity

Additional instructions can be found at the bottom of the TestDisk webpage:

TestDisk - CGSecurity

[kingtech]

Ughh...it isn't finding any partitions. Just ends up with a blank list with the options A: add partition, L: load backup, Enter: to continue.