I've got a setup with two internal drives: a 512GB one that runs my system and a 2TB drive for games and media, plus a 1TB external drive. While trying to recover deleted files from the external drive using PhotoRec, I mistakenly directed the recovery to the 2TB drive, which has plenty of space. However, things took a turn for the worse when my main 512GB drive suddenly filled up completely, and I couldn't open anything. I restarted my system, but now I can't locate any of the files that are taking up the space. I've searched through the drive and sorted files by size, but nothing seems to be over 1GB. Is it possible that PhotoRec ended up recovering files onto my main 512GB drive instead? And how can I fix this issue since my main drive is now at 100% capacity without any visible large files?
2 Answers
It sounds like PhotoRec might have defaulted to saving the recovered files on your main 512GB drive instead of the 2TB one. This often happens if the destination path isn't set correctly. Check your home directory for hidden recovery directories that PhotoRec might have created. You can use the command `ls -a` to see hidden files in your home directory, specifically looking for something like 'recup_dir.*'. Once you find them, you can delete the unnecessary recovery folders to free up space.
Here's what you can do:
1. Check your home directory with `ls -a` for any 'recup_dir.*' folders.
2. Use commands `sudo du -h --max-depth=1 /` and `du -h --max-depth=1 /home/youruser` to find which folders are taking up the most space.
3. Delete the unwanted recovery folders once you find them.
This should help you get back some storage on your main drive!
Agreed, it’s likely that PhotoRec dumped files into the system drive since the proper path wasn't set. Don't worry; you can locate those hidden files. Besides using `ls -a`, try the `find` command to dig out large files. You can run `find / -type f -size +1G` to find files larger than 1GB. This can be a bit slower, but it should give you an idea of where your space is going. Don't forget to check for those hidden recovery folders too!
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