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From: darrylo@hpsrlc.UUCP
Newsgroups: comp.sys.ibm.pc
Subject: Re: UNFORMATTING formated PC floppies
Message-ID: <3320015@hpsrlc.HP.COM>
Date: Tue, 19-May-87 11:23:09 EDT
Article-I.D.: hpsrlc.3320015
Posted: Tue May 19 11:23:09 1987
Date-Received: Thu, 21-May-87 05:47:40 EDT
References: <4327@nsc.nsc.com>
Organization: Network Measurements Div - Santa Rosa, CA
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In: / comp.sys.ibm.pc / luis@grinch.UUCP (luis) / 11:00 pm  May 17, 1987 /

>In article <3156@ecsvax.UUCP> phco@ecsvax.UUCP (John Miller) writes:
>>You're out of luck.  Files that have been deleted can frequently be
>>restored by programs such as Norton's Utilities or PC-Tools, but formatting
>>destroys all data on a disk.
>
>I have to dis-agree with you John.  I have used Mace Utilities, and it
>can recover a formatted diskette (hard or soft).  I am not exactly sure
>how it does it, but I have heard (don't know if true) that when you format
>a disk, that you are only wiping the fat table, and re-writing the sector
>ID's...  Anyway, all I know is that Mace Utilities does have an UN-FORMAT
>feature.. Just thought you might like to know...  If for some reason or 
>another the info above is out of date, or incorrect, I am sorry.. but, that 
>is what they advertize.  I have Mace, but have not had the need to use 
>Un-Format.

If you FORMAT a FLOPPY disk, your data is GONE.  WIPED OUT.  ZORCHED.  I
have heard that it is possible, in theory, to actually recover data from a disk that has been formatted (erased), but it would require a specially-built
drive with special signal-processing hardware/software.

For all practical purposes, data on a formatted FLOPPY disk cannot be
recovered.  The data has been sent to the great bit bucket in the sky.

HARD DISKS, on the other hand, only have their FAT tables rewritten if a
format is done.  A true "low-level" format, which destroys data, is NOT done,
permitting the use of programs like Mace Utilities' UN-FORMAT (which only
works, I believe, if certain precautions are taken).

Create a floppy disk with some sample data (data that you don't mind
losing).  Then use FORMAT.COM to format it.  You'll find that the data
CANNOT be recovered (each sector of the disk will be filled with 0E5H,
or somesuch).  If the unformat command does say that the "unformat" was
successful on a floppy disk, then BEWARE!  It probably only restored the
directory; the data in the "files" will be TRASH.

>
>** I am not an employee, just a very happen user of their software. **

     I don't have the Mace Utilities, but I too have heard good things
about it.

>
>-------------------------------------------------------------------------------
>Luis Chanu                             "Live every day as if it were your last,
>UUCP: ihnp4!sun!aeras!grinch!luis         because one day you will be right."
>UUCP: lll-crg!vecpyr!wjvax!grinch!luis                             -Benny Hill
>              Disk-Claimer: That's not your disk, that's my disk.
>-------------------------------------------------------------------------------
>----------

     -- Darryl Okahata
        ucbvax!ucbcad!ames!hplabs!hpcea!hpsrla!darrylo		<== best path
	hplabs!hpcea!hpsrla!darrylo				<== alternative
	CompuServe: 75206,3074

Disclaimer: the above is the author's personal opinion and is not the
opinion or policy of his employer or of the little green men that
have been following him all day.