Windows 10 - Unmountable_Boot_Volume = How to recover

[NooBFrank]

While upgrading to Windows 10 my buddies laptop got caught in an update problem.

Now it BSOD with Unmountable_Boot_Volume error.
It tries for hours to auto repair - and fails.

So I am ready to punt and reinstall Windows. (BTW - Windows tech chat tells me that the Nov update was huge and they implied that it messed up a few more PC's than just this one)

Okay - but the problem now is that the partition table on the laptop is messed up. I boot into Linux and try to mount and it fails. I go into gparted and it says it has messed up GPT table.

So using the Hiren's boot CD - I can see the boot table etc. But how do I fix or update the table?

Based on what I see - it looks like it is all there. I click F2 and save it - reboot into Linux and get the same lockout.

I am open here. I have a handful of Linux distros and thumb drives and am willing to try almost any LOW RISK idea you've got.

Thanks in advance for your help!
WAN

 

[drtweak]

Unmountable boot Volume usually can be fixed with just a Check Disk. If you have any XP, Vista, Win7, 8 ,8.1, 10 install disk, boot form the disk, select Repair Windows, and then at the command prompt you have to find what drive letters are your drives so I would just do like

C: Hit enter
Dir Hit enter

and then so on for D E F Etc and then when you find the drive that has like Program Files, Windows, users folders you want to do a

Chkdsk x: /F where x is the drive letter.

I don't think linux disk have windows chkdsk on them. If you don't have the disk you can download them from MS or if you have working Vista+ machine you can make a rescue disk and boot off of that.

 

[NooBFrank]

Thanks drtweak.
Chkdsk didn't find any problems or errors. No bad sectors - nothing.

I just need to recover some pictures and data off of the drive and then I can wipe it. Is there any way to write some sort of partition table to it that can make that happen? Of course - that would probably solve the problem with Win10 too!

Any ideas or thoughts are appreciated.

 

[drtweak]

First off you did a check disk on the System Reserved drive (only 100MB) The C drive is most than likely the D: drive in this case. Told ya you got to look for the drive letter that has the program files and windows folder etc in it.

 

[NooBFrank]

Sorry - I checked every drive from a to z now.

I think the drive I am looking for is d:

And it looks corrupted. I guess I was hoping for an easy to use utility that rebuilds the MBR or UEFI or whatever it is called today. Or maybe a Linux tool that doesn't even care if the table is right but lets me copy and paste the files I am looking for to an external drive?

 

[bahooo]

If u do it, probably u have to format the drive so I will lost ur files. In this time, u have to use any recovery application before format or change the drive type. Otherwise u can use CONVERT X: /fs:ntfs command. Try it will see if it works.

 

[NooBFrank]

Well - thanks everyone for trying. I was on a chat with Microsoft Tech Support last night explaining the entire crusade.
Short version = working windows 7 laptop turns into a simple glowing screen that does nothing and eventually fails with Unmountable_Boot error simply by trying to upgrade to the FREE Windows 10...

Anyway - Tech support tells me no worries. Install Win 10 with the NEW install tool and all of your files will be in the magical windows.old file. I even quizzically ask: Are you sure that will happen even if the partition is not recognizable at this point? Sure - no problem, she replies...

Okay - so WRONG... I now have Win 10 on the laptop and all of the old data is NOT there and there is NO windows.old folder at all.

Bright side ? = I am hoping now at this point that simple recovery tools will be able to restore some/most of the data now that the hard drive has a recognizable boot table. I plan to use an external drive / usb cable to view the drive on my working PC and try to recover files without writing to the troubled drive etc. Any tips - feel free to post. I won't have time to do all that for a few days but I will post back the results for the learning.

Thanks,
Frank

 

[drtweak]

If you have over written and installed windows on that drive and partition good luck. you may not be able to get it all back. And it was most likely the D: Drive and you should have tired to run a chkdsk on it as it could have fixed the issue to begin with.