How do I find a specific file in a different drive?

[seaniez]

I just wiped my SSD and reinstalled Windows 10 on it and configured it as my boot drive. The SSD is fine but the installation went a bit wonky for my second drive because I forgot to unplug the SATA cable on it, and now I have 4 copies of Windows 10 installed on my secondary drive. But that complicates things because there was one important text document I had in a file on my desktop that I forgot to back up and I have no idea how I can manage to find it on the second drive. I tried looking for it in the search bar for the drive and that took forever to load, only to present me with some system folders.

 

[Yamitime]

Its location on the other drive would be Users/your name/ desktop

 

[seaniez]

Its location on the other drive would be Users/your name/ desktop

But when I go under users for all of the windows copies it is either empty or contains a folder called Public containing a bunch of empty folders. That is a result of all the incomplete installations

 

[Yamitime]

Is there a folder called Windows.old on your operating system drive. If not you have formatted and lost all info from previous install.

 

[indsup]

This pc/drive name or letter/user name/ documents/, unless you had it under a different folder than the default documents folder. Once you find the drive you can use the search and find the file.

 

[seaniez]

Is there a folder called Windows.old on your operating system drive. If not you have formatted and lost all info from previous install.

there are 3 windows.old files. Windows.old, Windows.old.000, Windows.old.001. And I noticed a large decrease in the amount of taken space so I assume that the file I was looking for is now gone or severely corrupted.

 

[Yamitime]

If you look in windows old you will find your old setting and desktop stuff . Just open each folder windows.old/users / yourname/desktop/

 

[seaniez]

In all of the Windows.old folders the only file under windows.old is "Public" and there is nothing else left. I don't quite remember if I tried to format the disk but due to the absence of so many folders, I think I may have done an incomplete format. Then I definitely remember the Windows install process looping over and there were likely incomplete installs in each loop.

 

[Yamitime]

click into public and see if theres a folder for desktop

 

[seaniez]

Even though I formatted it, would it be possible to go back to a restore point and try to get it that way?

 

[indsup]

If you formatted the drive it's gone. You may be able to get some of it back if you use very specific software but that is only a maybe. I'm afraid that you will not be able to get that file back no matter how you go about it.

 

[seaniez]

Ok, well that's pretty unfortunate. I guess I can live without it and make a new one but that would take a very long time. But thanks everyone for your help I really appreciate it!