How to Find Pictures on an Old Hard Drive in Windows 10/8/7

Unable to Find Pictures on Old Hard Drive in Windows 10/11

"I sold my old computer this morning but kept the hard drive, which contains many pictures, including memories from college, wedding photos, and honeymoon trip pictures. When I connected the old hard drive to my new computer, it appeared empty! Is there any way to retrieve photos from the old hard drive?"

An old hard drive, USB flash drive, or memory card that's been sitting around unused for too long might not work when you try to fire it up again. Here's what to do if you run into issues.

• ❌ Unable to access the hard drive - Drive is not accessible, Access is denied.
• ? The file system of the hard drive partition displays as RAW.
• ? You need to format the disk in drive.

These issues are related to hard drive problems, especially those that are too old and no longer functioning correctly. Whatever the reason may be, when you encounter such issues, chances are that your data is already lost, which is why your hard drive not showing files even though they still exist.

On this page, you can learn two methods to find all pictures on an old hard drive, including JPG, JPEG, PNG, TIFF, BMP, and PDF files. One method is using the Command Prompt if the images are hidden or missing; the other is by using a recovery tool software if the pictures have been deleted or the drive has been formatted. Choose the appropriate method for accessing files from an old hard drive on Windows 11/10/8/7 based on your needs.

Method 2: How to Directly Transfer Photos from an Old Computer Hard Drive If you have access to the old computer's hard drive and it's still functioning, you can directly copy the pictures to your new computer without using data recovery software. Follow these steps: ### Step 1: Boot the Old Computer Turn on the old computer or connect the hard drive to a working computer if it has been removed. ### Step 2: Connect the Hard Drive Plug the old hard drive into one of the SATA ports on the motherboard (if it's a desktop) or connect it externally via USB using a hard drive enclosure or adapter. ### Step 3: Access the Old Drive In File Explorer (Windows) or Finder (Mac), locate the connected hard drive, which will usually be displayed as another drive letter or volume. ### Step 4: Locate and Copy Photos Navigate to the folders where your photos were stored, such as "Pictures," "My Pictures," or user-specific folders. Select the photos you want to transfer, press `Ctrl+C` (Windows) or `Cmd+C` (Mac) to copy them. ### Step 5: Paste Photos onto the New Computer Switch to your new computer and open File Explorer or Finder. Navigate to the desired location for your photos, like the "Pictures" folder, and press `Ctrl+V` (Windows) or `Cmd+V` (Mac) to paste the files. ### Step 6: Verify the Transfer Check the transferred photos to ensure they're complete and undamaged. By directly transferring the files, you avoid the risk of overwriting any potentially lost data that might be recoverable through software.

If the command prompt method doesn't work for you and you've lost your pictures due to accidental deletion, formatting, virus attack, RAW partition, or lost partition, don't worry. You can easily locate all images on your hard drive and fully recover them with the help of the Data Recovery Wizard tool.

This photo recovery software enables you to easily recover lost photos from your hard drive, Recycle Bin, external hard drive, USB flash drive, thumb drive, SD card, or other storage devices. This photo recovery tool can not only restore lost photos but also retrieve other files like documents, emails, audio, and video files, etc.

The following video tutorial will help you use the Data Recovery Wizard tool to restore deleted photos:

• 00:00 Reasons for Lost Images
• 01:11 Recommended Image Recovery Software
• 01:54 How to Recover Lost Images

Now, you can continue with the written tutorial below and learn how to use the Data Recovery Wizard tool to get pictures off an old computer hard drive:

Step one: Choose a location and start scanning.

Hover over the SD card, camera, or hard drive partition from which you deleted or lost the photos, then click “Scan.”

Step 2: Choose the photos you want to restore

When the scan is finished, select “Photos” on the left. If you're looking for a lost photo, click “Deleted” at the top of the list. You can then search for photos by device, type, and date.

Step 3: Recover Lost Photos

Preview them, then click “Recover” and choose another location to save the photos you want.

We invite you to join us on this journey of exploration, and to share your insights and perspectives with us.

Method 2: Search for Pictures on Your Old Hard Drive Using Command Prompt

As mentioned above, the Command Prompt can help you find all the existing pictures on your hard drive, including hidden images. But if your photos have been deleted or formatted, CMD won't be of any help, and you will need to use a professional data recovery tool to get back your lost files via Method 1.

Step 1: Press Windows + R to open the Run box.

Step 2: Type cmd in the empty field, and press Enter.

3. In the black Command Prompt window, type the command g: dir /s *.jpg |more and press Enter. (Assuming the old hard drive is identified as drive G:)

This will show all folders on drive G: that contain a JPG file. If your image files are in another format, like PNG, change the command to g: dir /s *.png |more.

Step 4: Once you've located the folder, copy its path and paste it into Windows Explorer. This is the path where you can find your lost pictures in that particular format.

How to Find Pictures on an Old Hard Drive: Frequently Asked Questions

Here's more information on how to locate your pictures on an old hard drive:

How do I transfer photos from an old hard drive?

If your computer isn't working but you want to retrieve data from an old hard drive, it's easier to remove the old hard drive from the computer and connect it to a healthy PC. This way, you can easily copy files off the old hard drive to a new external drive.

2. How can I find all the pictures on an old hard drive?

When you notice that some photos are missing, you can use photo recovery software to find all pictures on the old hard drive. Before that, make sure to check the Recycle Bin and show hidden files on Windows 10. If you don't know how to choose a good data recovery tool, we recommend using Data Recovery Wizard.

3. What Is the Best Photo Recovery Software?

Here are some recommended image recovery software options:

1. Tool: Data Recovery Wizard 2. Stellar Data Recovery 3. Recover My Files 4. Recuva 5. Disk Drill 6. PhotoRec 7. Remo Recover 8. R-Studio 9. Acronis Revive 10. Puran File Recovery