Mislaid Files/folders

[poisondwarf]

I changed from XP to Windows 7 about a year ago, and have mislaid files and folders. Is there any way they can be retrieved?

[woofgang]

have you done a search on the computer? you can search by "file contains" if you can remember what they files were about.

[Buenchico]

The 'upgrade' from Windows XP to Windows 7 isn't really that; it's a 'clean' installation that reformats your hard drive in the process. That's why Microsoft tell users this:
"To upgrade your PC from Windows XP to Windows 7, you'll need to select the Custom option during Windows 7 installation. A custom installation doesn't preserve your programs, files, or settings".
http://windows.microsoft.com/en-GB/windows7/help/upgrading-from-windows-xp-to-windows-7#T1=tab01

So the chances of your old files and folders still existing are almost zero. Forensic science technicians (such as those employed by the police and security services) can sometimes recover files from a reformatted drive but I suspect that, after a year of your computer writing new files to the drive, even they would regard it as a hopeless task.

However if anything can find your files it will probably be Recuva. It's a freebie, so it might be worth giving it a go:
https://www.piriform.com/recuva/download/standard

[VHG]

I assume when you say you changed from XP to 7 you actually upgraded rather than bought a new PC.

Assuming you did an upgrade sometimes a new Windows install places the previous Windows install in a folder called "windows.old"

See if you have a folder called windows.old as it will contain all the personal files that were on your PC before the upgrade.

Search in Google for windows.old

More here

http://www.pcworld.com/article/228884/keep_win_old.html