Help pulling data and preferences from a dead computer

February 21, 2006 6:48 PM

I just had a motherboard fry on my laptop - harddrive is fine - I am trying to figure out how to get my bookmarks off the old drive?

and other relevant preferences, passwords, configurations...

suggestions?

thanks in advance.


note - the drive is fine - im all connected up. Oh while we are on the subject - does anyone have ez instructions for converting the old 2 gig max .pst file for outlook to the new big daddy (10 gig) i think?

posted by specialk420 to Technology (8 answers total)

Something like this, might be the best way to go
posted by edgeways at 6:52 PM on February 21, 2006

Response by poster: actually i am hooked up to the drive via a network - adding the drive to my backup workstation. i am more curious where firefox hides bookmarks that have not been exported.

thanks. thats a cool little tool - need one of those.
posted by specialk420 at 6:59 PM on February 21, 2006

oh, ok. Sorry.

Assuming your win xp, go somewhere like

C:\Documents and Settings\e\Application Data\Mozilla\Firefox\Profiles\

(Subsiture c:\ for whatever drive it is, and \e\ for whatever system profile you where using.
Once you get to that point you might have to try one or two folders, but it is in that neighborhood, (usually).

Hope that helps
posted by edgeways at 7:27 PM on February 21, 2006

of course I just assumed you where on firefox too, if not just stop at /application Data/ that might have what you need, unless it is IE, which (I think) stores all it's own data in the program files directory (haven't used IE in a long time tho).
posted by edgeways at 7:30 PM on February 21, 2006

Response by poster: thanks for the help so far. any other recommendations from disaster recovery specialists? im sure this thread will be of use to others.
posted by specialk420 at 7:59 PM on February 21, 2006

Bookmarks, email, game saves, and your My Documents folders are the really critical ones. Dig through your Program Files directory to see if there's any data saved there. Programs aren't supposed to do that, but some of them still do. License keys are also often put there.

Hang onto the drive for at least a few months. Don't erase/reuse it until you're really sure you've gotten everything you need. Drives are cheap, relatively speaking... lost data is very, very expensive.
posted by Malor at 8:55 PM on February 21, 2006

Best answer: Do a search for bookmarks.* and you'll find any firefox bookmark files. Occasionally firefox will create a new profile, and a search will find all instances. The C:\Documents and Settings\UserID\favorites folder will have any IE faves. While you're in C:\Documents and Settings\UserID\, check the desktop and My documents folders. Also check the root of c: in case any documents landed there. Outlook Express saves email in a sub-, sub-, sub-folder - search for files named Outlook to locate it and save the *.idx files. There may be more files needed to back up OE email.

On the new drive, develop good habits for where to save data, so you can back up easily. I have a c:\download folder that is handy, and I keep my data in the c:\Theora folder, not where MSoft wants it. Way easier to back up.
posted by theora55 at 9:25 AM on February 22, 2006

Response by poster: thanks man
posted by specialk420 at 10:02 PM on February 22, 2006