Frequently Asked Questions (FAQ)

Q. If I purchase a registration key how long will it take to be sent to me?

A. When you purchase on-line using our secure e-commerce provider, Share-IT, your registration key is provided immediately via a web page at the end of the purchase process - no waiting!  It is also sent by email.

If there is a delay in your credit card provider authorizing the transaction, your registration key is emailed as soon as authorization takes place (often within 20 minutes).

Q. I purchased the program but when I enter my registration key it says that it is invalid?

A. Make sure you enter both the username and registration key exactly as it is in the email that is sent to you by our on-line distributor. The best option is to cut and paste this information from the email itself.

If you try this and still have problems, please contact support@recovermyfiles.com.

Users upgrading from Version 2.13 or earlier will need a new registration key due to changes to the Security Algorithm in Version 2.14. If you are a registered user you should have received this new key by email in the last week of April 2003.  If this was not received please email support@recovermyfiles.com.

Q. How is Recover My Files different from other data recovery programs?

A. Recover My Files uses a recovery technique in which every storage location of your hard drive is searched. Recover My Files will bring back deleted files even though all Operating System reference to the files has been destroyed. Many other utilities rely on the existence of remaining Operating System pointers to the file data; however Recover My Files unique technology recognizes deleted files by their internal structure alone, maximizing identification and recovery.

Q. What file types will Recover My Files recover?

A. Recover My Files will find any type of "Deleted File" (defined below) and will find more than 50 types of "Lost Files", a listing of which is provided here (If you looking to recover a file that is not on this list contact support@recovermyfiles.com and we may be able to quickly add it for you).

Q. Can Recover My Files Recover File recover files from a CD?

A. Recover My Files will recognize a limited number of CD file formats. If you get a message stating "Recover My Files does not recognize the file system on Drive D:\" then it will not work. You need to search the Internet for a specialist CD recovery service.

Q. What is the difference between a "Deleted File" and a "Lost File"?

A. Recover My Files separates recovered files into "Deleted Files" and "Lost Files" in the results window:

"Deleted Files" are those that can be recovered because Microsoft Windows file reference information remains on you computer”s hard drive. This is the information used to find and recover the file and is the standard method by which data recovery programs work.

"Lost Files" are those for which there is no longer any Microsoft Windows file reference information remaining. It is Recover My Files alone that that is able to search the entire hard drive to find these files and extract them. Because the Microsoft Windows file reference information is no longer present the original name of the file is no longer available. Recover My Files renames Lost Files in the format "Recovered_[filetype]_1".

Q. How do I rename a "Lost File", e.g. "Recovered_[filetype]_1" back to its original name?

A. For "Lost Files" the original file name has been destroyed. However, if the files are Microsoft documents with file properties, such as “Author” and “Title”, it may help you to rename the files using the properties as the file name. If you have recovered a large number of Lost Files you may wish to try our automated Mass Renaming utility which is available here: www.recovermyfiles.com/downloads/massrenamer.zip.

To use the Mass Renaming utility simply run the program and then drag and drop the files you want to rename into the grid at the top of the program window. Select the properties you would like in the file name. Click "Test" to see the results of the renaming without finalizing the renaming process. Select "Rename" when you are happy with the new filenames.

Q. Can I run Recover My Files from CD?

A. Yes. When you install Recover My Files on you computer the file “RecoverMyFiles.exe” is written to your hard drive (the default installation folder is "C:\Program Files\RecoverMyFiles"). Copy this file, burn it onto a CD and execute this file from the CD.

If you would like to use our CD front end, shown here:

you will require the following five files to be written to your CD:

1. “RecoverMyFiles-Setup.exe”

This is the program setup file that is downloaded from our Web site or via this link: http://www.recovermyfiles.com/downloads/RecoverMyFiles-Setup.exe

2. “RecoverMyFiles-Help.chm”

When Recover My Files is installed on your computer via RecoverMyFiles-Setup.exe the file “RecoverMyFiles-Help.chm (the help file) is written to your computer (the default installation folder where this file should be located is "C:\Program Files\RecoverMyFiles");

3. “RecoverMyFiles.exe”

When Recover My Files is installed on your computer via RecoverMyFiles-Setup.exe the file “RecoverMyFiles.exe” (the program file) is written to your computer (the default installation folder where this file should be located is "C:\Program Files\RecoverMyFiles");

4. “Autorun.exe”

Autorun.exe is available for download from our website. See instructions below.

5. “Autorun.inf”

Autorun.inf is available for download from our website. See instructions below.

“Autorun.exe” and “Autorun.inf” are contained within the compressed file “Autorun.zip” which can be downloaded from our website using the following link: http://www.recovermyfiles.com/downloads/Autorun.zip. “Autorun.zip” is a compressed file, so to open it you will need to use a program such as WinZip (available free here).

If you have correctly written these 5 files to a CD, when you insert the CD in your computer the screen shown above should automatically open and all the buttons should perform their appropriate functions.

Please note that if you use the CD on a computer on which Recover My Files has not previously been registered you will need to enter in your registration key information to unlock the save feature of the program (it is not possible to register the version on the CD itself as the “Save” command is performed by modification of the Microsoft Windows registry of the computer on which the program is run).

If you have copied Recover My Files onto CD and want to use our DVD cover, you can download it here.

Q. The Recover My Files search takes a long time. How do I speed up the search?

A You can speed up the search by reducing the number of file types that Recover My Files is searching for. This can be done in the initial wizard screens or by selecting the “Options” button during the search process. You can also preview the recovered files as the search takes place. If you have located the file you wish to retrieve, simply stop the search, select the file (by placing a tick in the box) and save the file.

Q. The preview windows said that certain files could not be displayed. Can I still recover them?

There are a number of reasons why a recovered file may not preview. It is still possible that the file may be recovered. Save the recovered file and then view its contents.

Q. Is it always possible to recover files emptied from the Windows Recycle Bin?

A. Not always. When you empty a file from the Windows Recycle Bin the contents of the file remains on your hard drive. However, the Windows Operating System (e.g. Windows 98) no longer recognizes that it should preserve this deleted information. If a new file is saved to the same area of the hard disk it will overwrite the deleted material permanently erasing it. Hence the recomendation that to limit the use of your computer (or at least the hard drive from which the file needs to be recovered).

Q. What are the best settings to recover files from a formatted hard drive?

A. If you have lost important files due to the format of your hard drive the best option is to recover files is to conduct a full sector search. We recommend the following settings found under the “OPTIONS” button (these settings are selected automatically by clicking on the "Format Recover" button in the first wizard screen):

Q. I recover lots of graphics and HTML files that I have never even seen before. Where do they all come from?

A. You are probably looking at files written to you computer during the normal process of surfing the Web. A Windows computer use an "Internet Cache", which saves Web page files to your hard drive to speed up Web access. By examining the recovered graphics and HTML pages you can work out what a user has been up to on your computer - even if they have deleted the evidence!

Q. Where do I save my recovered files?

A. You must save the recovered files to another hard drive or storage media. This is so that the recovered files do not overwrite other important data on the hard drive being search (see the question above). You may use:

• floppy disks;

• USB disks;

removable drives (Jaz^® , Zip^® etc.); or

• You can save your files to a network drive, as long as the network drive is mapped to the computer on which you are running Recover My Files with a drive letter (e.g. Where the network drive is drive "G:\").

It is not recommended to save recovered files to writeable CD-ROM .