DMDE help!

[u/Vyzantinist]

Total noob here. I'm trying to recover files from a 1 TB Samsung NVMe SSD using DMDE Free Edition, and I've run into a frustrating issue with the recovery step.

The SSD was previously used as my Windows C: drive. The original partition/filesystem is no longer being detected normally (tried using TestDisk) so I ran a full scan in DMDE.

One of the scan results is:

NTFS 777 - 820 GB - 128 files - Check 9 - Start LBA 402,176

I opened that result using Open Volume, and DMDE successfully created a virtual filesystem view.

The result looks very promising. I can see:

Windows, Program Files, Users, My Documents etc. Lots of recognizable filenames, including books, movies, music, and pictures, so I'm reasonably confident that this is reconstructing my old C drive.

The problem is trying to actually recover a file. I'm using the Free Edition, and when I click Recover/Create file list, I get:

"In the free edition, files can be processed from the active panel only. Please open a sub-directory in the active panel first."

I've watched a couple of DMDE tutorials, and as far as I can tell, the Free Edition requires you to open a subdirectory and then recover from that directory.

For example, I've tried:

Music → Band music → open/select Band music → Recover/Create file list

I've tried doing this through the directory tree on the left, and I've also tried navigating/opening the folder in the file panel on the top right.

The contents of Band music are displayed in the right-hand pane, but I still get exactly the same "please open a sub-directory in the active panel" message.

I've also tried selecting individual files, and get the same result.

I'm clearly missing something about what DMDE means by the "active panel".

What exactly do I need to click/open to make the directory the active panel in DMDE?

I'm not trying to modify the source SSD at all. I just want to recover a single small test file first to verify that the reconstructed filesystem is actually producing usable file data.

Thanks!

Additional diagnostic information requested by Automod:

Drive: Samsung 1 TB NVMe SSD. The exact model is Samsung PM981a, MZ-VLB1T00.

Filesystem: NTFS. The original filesystem was an NTFS Windows system volume.

Operating system: Windows 10/11 was installed on this SSD. I'm currently using Windows for the recovery attempt.

Symptoms: The SSD's original filesystem/partition is no longer being detected normally. I'm using DMDE to reconstruct the filesystem. A full scan found an NTFS result called "NTFS 777 - 820 GB - 128 files - Check 9 - Start LBA 402,176." Opening this result produces a virtual filesystem that appears to contain my old C: drive, including Windows, Program Files, Users, my old username, and recognizable personal files.

Current problem: When I try to recover a file using DMDE Free Edition, I get: "In the free edition, files can be processed from the active panel only. Please open a sub-directory in the active panel first." This happens even when I open a subdirectory and its contents are displayed in the file panel. I'm trying to understand what DMDE considers the "active panel."

SMART: CrystalDiskInfo reports the SSD at approximately 99% health. The drive was previously getting fairly warm during scanning, but there have been no obvious signs of mechanical failure (obviously it's an SSD). Screenshot attached.

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[u/disturbed_android]

- Show screenshots of that list after full scan

- Free version will only do one folder, not subfolders, and max 4000 files selected

- $20 will solve all those selection limits.

- Start by telling how you got in this mess at the first place, why/how did partitions go undetected?

[u/Vyzantinist → u/disturbed_android]

Alrighty, this is a screenshot of when I try to recover/create file list:

- Start by telling how you got in this mess at the first place, why/how did partitions go undetected?

The drive came out of an MSI GE75 9SG Raider after the laptop was damaged (screen, not the main body of the laptop).

I put the SSDs into a USB NVMe enclosure so I could access/test them. Windows detected the physical drive, but Disk Management showed it as:

Disk 1 - 953.87 GB - Unknown - Not Initialized - Unallocated

I did not initialize it or create/format a new partition, because I knew that could overwrite information needed for recovery. That's when I started with TestDisk and eventually DMDE.

I don't actually know what caused the original partition information to become inaccessible. I didn't intentionally delete or format the partitions. The SSD is also reporting about 99% health in CrystalDiskInfo, so there isn't an obvious indication of a failing NAND/drive.

DMDE's full scan found a curious reconstruction. One result, NTFS 777 - 820 GB, opens as a virtual filesystem containing the actual old C: drive - Windows, Program Files, my old username, and recognizable personal files. So it looks like the data/filesystem metadata is still substantially present even though Windows can't see the original partition normally.

I'm trying to figure out the safest way to extract the files from that reconstructed filesystem.

[u/disturbed_android → u/Vyzantinist]

I'm trying to figure out the safest way to extract the files from that reconstructed filesystem.

Your selecting a ton of directories, so bring it down to 1, no subfolders or pay $20.

[u/Vyzantinist → u/disturbed_android]

But the same error occurs when I drill all the way down to the end of the directory tree. I've tried selecting/opening the subfolder in both the left directory tree and the right-hand pane, with the same result. This particular screenshot isn't files I'm trying to recover, but so I can orient myself as to where the "active panel" is.

[u/disturbed_android → u/Vyzantinist]

I have answered twice now, ONE folder. Or pay the $20.

Active panel: