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Hi guys!
I just reinstalled windows10, finding all of my encrypted files cannot be opened.
But i saved all the old windows user files.
Is it possible to recover the files?
Thank you!
Locked Question. This question was migrated from the Microsoft Support Community. You can vote on whether it's helpful, but you can't add comments or replies or follow the question.
Answer accepted by question author
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Hi Jim,
My name is Igor, it's a pleasure for me to help others and I'll do all my best to help you.
Do you have NTUSER.DAT file saved? If yes, please use Advanced EFS Recovery tool and point it to this file. Often this tool can extract encryption key from user's registry.
window 10
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I am not sure if you can restore the certificate with the backed-up user folder. No worries, since this is an open forum, maybe someone else in the community has an idea or solution regarding with this issue.
Hi Dyari,
Thank you for replying.
Unfortunately, I did'nt backup the EFS certificate. But I've backuped the old user floder. Is there any possibility to find the certificate there?
Thank you again :)
Hi JimZhou1,
I'm Dyari. Thanks for reaching out. I will be happy to assist you in this regard.
Have you encrypted the folder with "Encrypt contents to secure data"? Have you backed up the EFS certificate before wiping out the Windows?
Refer to How to Back Up Your File Encryption Certificate and Key in the non-Microsoft link below:
https://smallbusiness.chron.com/encrypt-decrypt...
If you have lost it as well, unfortunately, there is no Microsoft native tool to recover the encrypted data except restoring from a backup if you created one.
Otherwise, you should use a third-party recovery tool like Recuva, it may recover your data but there is no guaranty for that as the data was encrypted.
Please let me know if you need further assistance.
Same thread:
https://answers.microsoft.com/en-us/windows/for...
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