Recover data from Samsung Galaxy Tab after factory reset?

[Throckmorton]

I have a Galaxy Tab 7" 2.0 that was "reset". Is there a way to recover photos and other data from the "empty" sectors, or back up the entire internal flash memory for future data recovery?

Normally when you connect it to a PC with USB you can access certain files but not the actual file system, much less the raw sectors.

 

[vshah]

does it show up as a hard drive in my computer when you plug it in? if so you can try running recuva on it
http://www.piriform.com/recuva

 

[Throckmorton]

No, it doesn't show up as a drive. That would make it really easy. I think all devices should have a target disk mode like Macs.

Surely there must be an app with a small footprint that you can install and backup the drive image to an SD card. Clockwork Recovery Mod doesn't copy empty sectors.

 

[vshah]

could give this a shot:https://play.google.com/store/apps/details?id=fahrbot.apps.undelete&hl=en

there are a couple others as well - unfortunately all of these require root so you might be out of luck.

 

[Throckmorton]

This one just seems to scan for deleted files on the SD card, which is useless because it's so easy to do that with a card reader anyway.

Clockwork Recovery Mod doesn't read empty sectors apparently. If you Google, all you find is threads where people say to use Recuva etc... which doesn't work because an Android device doesn't appear to Windows like a drive. I think it has to be an Android program. But I can't find one that says it scans empty space or can copy empty space to an image file.

 

[Throckmorton]

NM

 

[vshah]

hmm, that one mentioned internal storage as well. although if it was just reset, it's probably not rooted so it's a moot point.

 

[Throckmorton]

hmm, that one mentioned internal storage as well. although if it was just reset, it's probably not rooted so it's a moot point.

Well I would root it myself. That doesn't cause much writing to the internal memory right?

 

[vshah]

Well I would root it myself. That doesn't cause much writing to the internal memory right?

true, should only write a couple mb, basically the superuser apk and the su binary.

 

[Throckmorton]

I found something that might be even better. You can boot from the external SD card http://forum.xda-developers.com/showthread.php?t=1866675


But the method involves copying the external boot.img to the internal flash and vice versa, in order to switch between them. I have no idea why. I'm not sure if this is necessary if you don't want to boot from the internal flash at all. But how big is the boot.img?

If the internal flash can remain relatively untouched, this means at least you can use the tablet without messing up existing data. The OP of that thread says he's working on a way to mount the internal flash, so that would allow recovery or backup in the future.

 

[Throckmorton]

I also found this. Could it really be this easy to dump a partition to an image file?
http://android.stackexchange.com/questions/32202/android-system-partition-image-on-pc-or-sdcard

0 down vote
Here's how to get a system dump from Android:
Prepare Your PC

1. Ensure that your computer has the most recent version of the Java Development Kit installed. If it doesn't, download and install the most recent JDK from Oracle's Java SE Downloads page.
2. Navigate to the Download the Android SDK page on the Android Developers website in a Web browser and download the installer package to your computer. Double-click the downloaded file and follow the installation prompts.
3. Navigate in Windows Explorer to the location where you installed the SDK. By default, this is C:\Program Files\Android\android-sdk.
4. Double-click the SDK Manager to launch it. In the left pane file tree, check the box next to "Android SDK Platform-tools." Click "Install Packages." A confirmation window appears. Click the radio button next to "Accept All." Click "Install." A progress bar appears.

Prepare Your Phone

1. Press your phone's menu button from the Home screen. Tap "Settings." The Settings menu appears.
2. Tap "Applications." In the Application Settings menu, tap "Development."
3. Check the box next to "USB Debugging" in the Development menu.

Get a System Dump

1. Press "R" and the Windows key simultaneously on your PC keyboard to bring up the Run box. Type "cmd."
2. Type the following into the command window:
   cd C:\Program Files\Android\android-sdk\platform-tools
3. Type "adb.exe shell."
4. Type su dd if=/dev/block/stl6 of=/sdcard/factoryfs.rfs at the ABD shell prompt. Replace "/sdcard/factoryfs.rfs" with the location to copy the file to if you don't want it on the phone's SD Card.

 

[Throckmorton]

Does the su command require that the tablet be rooted?

 

[MontoyaP]

Try to use Paragon Partition Manager and a connection between the device and your PC.

This software is able to see damaged partitions, different type of files etc. You can move the files from a partition to another one etc. Good luck!

 

[gorcorps]

This one just seems to scan for deleted files on the SD card, which is useless because it's so easy to do that with a card reader anyway.

Clockwork Recovery Mod doesn't read empty sectors apparently. If you Google, all you find is threads where people say to use Recuva etc... which doesn't work because an Android device doesn't appear to Windows like a drive. I think it has to be an Android program. But I can't find one that says it scans empty space or can copy empty space to an image file.

Lots of android devices show up as a usb drive. It's up to the device manufacturer which connection methods they want to use/support. Just because your particular rom on your particular device isn't read like a drive doesn't mean all android products are set up the same way.

 

[Throckmorton]

Lots of android devices show up as a usb drive. It's up to the device manufacturer which connection methods they want to use/support. Just because your particular rom on your particular device isn't read like a drive doesn't mean all android products are set up the same way.

So you plug the device in to a PC and it shows up as all the fat32 plus ext4 partitions that Windows can't read? Why would they bother to enable that feature? Users would accidentally format the ext4 partitions when Windows pops up asking to.

 

[Throckmorton]

Apparently ClockworkMod recovery installs into a small existing recovery partition. And apparently it can dump your "ROM" to SD card. But can it dump the DATA partition?

 

[Throckmorton]

Why is there is there so much conflicting information on Android forums? I find some posts saying that ClockworkMod Recovery requires the tablet to be rooted, and then I find posts instructing you how to root your tablet USING ClockworkMod Recovery.

It can't be both.

 

[Throckmorton]

Any input on TWRP instead of ClockworkMod Recovery? Someone on the Phandroid forum says CWM only copies used portions of the partition. Will TWRP copy empty sectors?

 

[AmanMo]

Have you had any success with the data recovery, I have the exact same problem and cant recover the data due to windows not recognizing the GT-6200 as a mass storage drive.

 

[sweenish]

No one uses the cloud backups? And if they don't, they don't implement a backup scheme of their own?

I've seen too many threads that shouldn't be issues at all.

 

[Raduque]

Why is there is there so much conflicting information on Android forums? I find some posts saying that ClockworkMod Recovery requires the tablet to be rooted, and then I find posts instructing you how to root your tablet USING ClockworkMod Recovery.

It can't be both.

It's kind of confusing because you need root to install CWM, but some devices can only get a temp root that can be used to install CWM, and once you do that, CWM can install a permanent root.

As for TWRP copying empty sectors, I don't think so. Space is generally at a premium on a mobile devices and AFAIK the recoveries skip "empty" sectors so you don't end up with a massive archive backup.

The best people to ask though would be TeamWin.

 

[JeffMD]

Guys android devices havnt shown up as actual hard drives in ages. The mass storage protocol was abolished for MTP . No file recovery tools will function over mtp. Factory reset is factory reset, intended to be a secure delete. Your photos are gone, dude.