Forensic Computer Tools

PhotoRec proved to be a huge help.
Some one whiped thier hard drive, but as all should know it's difficult to really erase everything off your hard drive; so I used PhotoRec a free open source tool used to recover lost files. It will recover picture files, web files, word proccessing documents and more.

• Give it a look http://www.cgsecurity.org/wiki/PhotoRec

USB device not recognized

Problem: I have had some trouble with my XP sp3 PC. My mouse and printer still function; however, the mass storage devices, like my 500GB External HDD and my flash drives, bring up the error "USB Device not Recognized. One of the USB devices attached to this computer has malfunctioned, and Windows does not recognize it."

Reserach:
I searched some support articles through Microsoft's support website, only to find that all their solutions didn't function.

This article,however, provides a great deal of options.
http://www.ntcompatible.com/Desperately_need_help_---_USB_Devices_Not_Recognized_t32356.html

Hypothesis: I have al;ready tried to update drives, scan for updates in hardware, reboot my computer, and change power settings on my USB Root Hubs.

I am going to now attempt unplugging all the USB drives and then turning off the computer and then unplugging the cable from the wall.

Yes, it worked...All is well!

Did you Forget your Windows Admin password?

Use Ubuntu.
This link is has a great tutorial for how to reset the password as well as a link on how to get Ubuntu.
Ubuntu is will save you.
Source: http://www.psychocats.net/ubuntucat/how-to-reset-a-windows-xp-password-with-ubuntu/comment-page-1/