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How to recover My Documents files using a System Restore Point

How to recover My Documents files using a System Restore Point

This process can come in handy if you use offline folders. The problem I ran into was that the previous host was removed without all the clients being able to sync. Thus, I was left with orphaned Offline Files that were pointing to the old host. The best way to retrieve these files is to take the following steps.

*Offline files must have been in use for this to work.

    1. Open up My Computer, right-click on the C drive and select Properties.
    2. Select the Previous Versions tab and then select the date you want to restore from and click on Open.

    1. In the Windows Explorer window double-click the Windows folder and then double-click the CSC.

    1. You will get the following Network Error. Use this information to complete the next step.

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    1. Leave the error message on your screen and open a CMD prompt window as an administrator.
    2. Use the ROBOCOPY command with the following switches to copy the data from the CSC folder into the temp1 folder.  Example: ROBOCOPY \LOCALHOSTC$@GMT-2015.12.15-16.43.54WindowsCSC /copyall /e /zb /copyall C:temp1

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  1. Once the copy has finished you need to take ownership of the contents of the temp1. Right-click the temp1 folder and select Properties and then select the Security tab.
  2. Click Advanced and then Change Permissions.
  3. Select the Owner tab and then select the user from the list that you want to be given access.
  4. Ensure you check the box that says “Replace all child…” and click Apply.
  5. Once you’ve taken ownership of the temp1 folder drill down into it to retrieve your missing files. You’ll see the name of the old host server and in this folder you’ll find the My Documents folder which will contain the missing offline files.

Beringer Associates, a Microsoft Gold Certified Partner, is always here to provide expert knowledge in topics like these. Please contact us with any questions you may have.


theProfessor

theProfessor

Rob is the CTO of Beringer Technology Group, and focuses his efforts on software development, cloud engineering, team mentoring and strategic technical direction. Rob has worked with Beringer since 2005, and has influenced every department from Development, Security, Implementation, Support and Sales. Rob graduated with his MBA from Rowan University in 2012, earned his Bachelors of Computer Science in 1997, and is current with several Microsoft technical certifications. Rob is very active, and loves to mountain bike, weight train, cook and hike with his dog pack.