Expert: Clint - 3/31/2012

Question
QUESTION: Hi Clint i have a usb memory stick that is saying F drive when i insert it in to the laptop, but i don't have a F drive, i think.
What it wants me to do is format the stick, but i have data on there that i need.
Is there any way i can get it of the stick before formatting or ant other option?

ANSWER: Hello Peter,

When using external drive media the media must be mounted to access the file system.  When drives are mounted,  they receive an available (unused) drive letter. In your case, F: is the next  available  letter, and therefore used to mount the file system for reading and writing.

If the data on the stick is using the FAT32 or NTFS file system then Windows can read it.  If the memory stick is using a proprietary file system, as found in some cameras, mp3 players, game consoles, and so on, then Windows does not natively sport the file system and displays the error message of which you speak.

You may be able to use a file recovery utility to extract the data or make a binary image of it.   If you can provide any information on the computer our device that was used to write the data to the card in question,  I can give you more information.   Is it a memory stick as cell phones use,  or is it a USB flash drive?  The term is used quite loosely so I prefer to to be definite about these things.

If the data is intact,  is there a way for you to transfer the data using another method? Cable, wi-fi, Dropbox,  card reader, printer?

---------- FOLLOW-UP ----------

QUESTION: Hi Clint it is a USB flash drive.

I have had data on there for about 4-5 months then all of a sudden it asks to be formatted.

I am not a 100% sure if the data is intact.
How would i go about transferring the data and what do i need?

Kind Regards
Peter

Answer
Peter,

You may have the best luck with a good partition recovery utility.  The ones I have liked in the past are: Ontrack EasyRecovery (version 6.0), Active Partition Recovery (which is available standalone and as part of the Active Boot Disk LiveCD), and EASEUS Data Recovery Wizard.  

You may benefit from using a live CD so Windows does not interfere with the recovery.  If you are a Linux fan, the Knoppix distribution boots from CD and executes in RAM only--the F.B.I. uses it for forensic evidence gathering because it does not write to any drive unless specifically instructed to. It prefers to write to network locations and optical media.

I hope I did not give you too many options to choose from, but one (or two) of these will definitely fit the bill.

Clint