vdi is 0 kb but vmdk has data

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mknollse
Posts: 2
Joined: 18. Feb 2014, 17:43

vdi is 0 kb but vmdk has data

Post by mknollse »

Hi all!

An unwanted chkdsk "erase" my vdi file and make it 0 KB.
I've read the forum, I've searched solution everywhere but I've not found a way to recover it.

I've noticed that I have a vmdk with data...
I've tryed to make a new VM and as soon VB ask me about the disk I've selected an existing one. The machine seems to starts but hangs!
Have I some hope to get my files back?

plz, help me!
mpack
Site Moderator
Posts: 39134
Joined: 4. Sep 2008, 17:09
Primary OS: MS Windows 10
VBox Version: VirtualBox+Oracle ExtPack
Guest OSses: Mostly XP

Re: vdi is 0 kb but vmdk has data

Post by mpack »

It sounds like you have disk corruption problems with your host. I'm afraid there's no magic solution, you need to restore from a backup - after fixing the cause of the underlying corruption.

No doubt someone will recommend some kind of undelete software, however (a) they usually don't work with very big files, (b) if the filesystem is corrupted that don't work even with moderate size files. Basically, those tools don't fix corruption, they only fix user mistakes i.e. accidental deletion, and even that provided the undelete is applied immediately.

The vmdk may or may not have meaning. You haven't given us any data to base a judgement on. As a total guess I'd suspect that the VMDK was what you started with when you created the VM to begin with. This was then converted to VDI and then a VM was built around the VDI. You should check the datestamp on the VMDK, that'll tell you how old it is.
mknollse
Posts: 2
Joined: 18. Feb 2014, 17:43

Re: vdi is 0 kb but vmdk has data

Post by mknollse »

I've built a brand new VM and added the vmdk as a common disk. U r right. it's a pretty old "core" and clean installation.... ty anyway. :(
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