The Emergency Undelete feature available in Undelete 2009 makes this easier than you would think. Here are the steps to do this:

Step 1
Stop all activity on the system that you want to recover files from. If the system is connected to any network resources, disconnect it now. Shut down any programs running in the background as well.

Step 2
From another computer, either purchase Undelete or contact your favorite reseller. Emergency Undelete is included when you buy Undelete.

Step 3
If you purchased a CD-ROM of Undelete go to Step 4.

If you purchased an electronic copy of Undelete, download it now to a system or disk drive other than the one you are trying to recover files from, since you should avoid any disk activity on the disk drive you want to recover files from. Copy the downloaded file for Emergency Undelete onto a floppy disk or CD.

Step 4
Run the Undelete installation program on a disk drive or system other than the one you are trying to recover files from, since you should avoid writing anything to the disk drive you want to recover files from.

Step 5
Launch and follow the instructions for Emergency Undelete (EmergencyUnd.exe) to recover your files. It is best to recover the deleted files to a different disk drive than the one you are trying to recover data from. This eliminates any risk of writing the recovered files into the free space areas that are being read during the recovery process. If only one volume is available, and your data is critical, it may be advisable to purchase another disk drive for the recovery operation.

Step 6
Enter the name of the file you want to undelete in the Name: field of the Emergency Undelete display. You can use wildcard characters (such as *.doc or *.*) if you don't recall the name of the file. Note that on FAT volumes, deleted files with short names (8.3 format) will have the first character of the filename replaced by a tilde (~). For example, a file named test.txt, when deleted, will be renamed to ~est.txt and will be displayed that way in the Emergency Undelete windows.

Step 7
Enter the letter of the drive you want to search in the Location: field of the Undelete display. Use the Browse button to see the drives and folders on your computer. You can optionally enter a directory folder name (such as D:\My Documents). When done click Search. This starts the search for deleted files.

Step 8
Once the search is complete, highlight the name of the file (or files) you want to undelete. Click Undelete Files.... This causes a new dialog box to be displayed.

Step 9
Enter the drive letter and directory folder name of the location where you want the undeleted file to be written in the Path: field. You can use the Browse button to navigate to the desired location. If you have more than one disk volume, be sure to specify a volume other than the one where the file was originally located. This prevents the new, recovered file from overwriting portions of the old, deleted file.

Step 10
Click OK. The file(s) you have selected will be recovered if possible, and written to the location you have specified.

If you need further information, take a look at the Readme.txt and the Emergency Undelete help.

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