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Can .doc files be extracted from dos

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by akstephr 3 views

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I have a Win98 SE PC that has partition errors on the hard drive according to Fix-it Utilities 5, that cannot be fixed. The user hasn't backed up her files in months and is freaking. I can get the machine to boot to a command prompt, but that's it. I am not familiar with dos - is it possible to find files with a .doc or .xls extention & if so how do I do it, and then, how do I get it to a floppy?

13 replies

by thechas

Yes, it is possible to find and copy files from DOS.
I am not aware of any "global" command to search out files by extension.

Some basic DOS commands:

Change drive (drive letter): (hit enter)
d:

Change folder CD (new path) hit enter
cd my_docu~
should take you to My Documents.
DOS uses 8 characters for ALL file and folder names.

List files or folders dir (press enter)
dir
list one page of files
dir /p
list just file names spread across the screen in columns
dir /w

list just .DOC files
dir *.doc

Copy a file:
copy (file name)(path and file name)
copy letter.doc a:\letter.doc

Copy a group of documents:
copy *.doc a:\*.*

That said, I find it much easier to install the drive in a working PC and use Windows Explorer to copy files. I then burn them to a CD.
I use a "hot-swap" tray. But, you can use any free IDE connector. Just be sure that all drives connected to the IDE cable have their jumpers set properly.

As a side note: While I generally prefer V-Com System Suite, I have found that Norton System Works can do a better job at file and drive recovery.

Chas

by akstephr

Thank you, thank you, thank you!!!! Also, as an FYI, I had tried to slave it to another machine with the jumpers set correctly, and both machines I tried it in refused to boot, so I was left with the DOS prompt option. I was able to recover 95% of her data, so life is good, and she is making backups now. Thanks again.

by 1stladytech

You can use the dir command globally to find *.doc or *.xls files using the /s switch. At the dos prompt type
dir *.doc /s /p
that will give you a listing, one page at a time, of all doc files on the computer. You can then keep track of where the files are in order to move them. If all files are less than 1.4 meg, you can copy them to floppies by using the copy command. An easier way than trying to copy them to floppies would be to put the drive in a different computer and then move the files that you want to a good hdd. Alternately, you could replace the hdd in this computer, reload the op sys and then cable the old hdd in as a slave and retrive files that way. Much faster and less confusing.

Vickie

by otl

Answer # 2 is one way, however if you have an extra PC use dir/s C:\ >> a:\temp.txt this would allow you to view temp.txt on any PC and search for doc's. For long sub-directory names use first 6 characters and ~1 to access them in DOS mode, then copy files to a floppy.

by cactus pete

All the above answers are correct - but I'll add:

If the machine is a laptop, Cables To Go makes an adapter for a 2.5 inch drive [the one in the laptop] to your normal PC IDE cable. I just used this myself, and it was fine.

I really suggest answer #1. Put the drive in another computer and copy what you can.

by mm_it

You can try all of the suggestions but I think your documents can not fit on just one or 2 diskettes. Use LAPLINK to transfer your files from one unit to the other. You'll just need a startup disk with LL3 (the program) and the LAPLINK cable which can be attached to printer port. It may not list all your document files but you can browse it with ease as the interface is user-friendly.

by lmnogoldfish

The suggestions above will work, but it won't solve your issue with the documents fitting on floppies and laplink costs $
xcopy *.doc a: /s /c will just about do it, but if you have a dos boot disk around, you can use the dos version of 'backup', which is on every version of DOS after 2.x. Make a directory and copy all the dos files to it, then boot on the boot disk, change to c: and the directory. Then go:
BACKUP d:[path][filename] d:[/S][/M][/A][/F:(size)] [/P][/D:date] [/T:time] [/L:[path]filename]
The /A will span floppies, so you'd type in something like backup *.doc a:*.doc /S /A
the corollary is restore when you want to put them back ...
Type in restore /? and you'll see the ways to do it. If you leave things out, both commands will still work.
Like
restore a: c:
In backup, the /S means search for sub directories, and the /A includes span disks. When you restore, the command is smarter because it remembers what was stored in the backup.
If the Win 98 was an upgrade from Win 3.1x the commands might be on the disk somewhere or you can boot to a DOS floppy, just be ready to put the dos disk back in everytime is says: can't find command.com ...
A trick is to move to the command directory first if it still exists and then it won't have trouble finding the files.

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