Hardware Secrets
Home | Camera | Case | CE | Cooling | CPU | Input | Memory | Mobile | Motherboard | Networking | Power | Storage | Video | Other
Content
Articles
First Look
Gabriel's Blog
News
Reviews
Tutorials
Main Menu
About Us
Awarded Products
Compare Prices
Datasheets
Dictionary
Download
Drivers
Forums
Links
Manufacturer Finder
Newsletter
On The Web
RSS Feed
Test Your Skills
Twitter
Newsletter
Subscribe today!
Search




Recommended
PC Disaster and Recovery
PC Disaster and Recovery, by Kate J. Chase (Sybex), starting at $7.58
Home » Storage
Recovering Hard Disks Erased by the CIH Virus
Author: Gabriel Torres
Type: Tutorials Last Updated: October 16, 2004
Page: 1 of 1
$ Check REAL-TIME pricing for Upper Room Books Enter by the Gate Jesus 7 Guidelines When Making Hard Choices Flora Slosson Wuellner ISBN BD2DGL $.
Buy.com: $8.30

The CIH (a.k.a. Chernobyl or Spacefiller) is one of the most fierces virus available. On its activation date (April 26th) it tries to erase your computer's BIOS and also your hard disk.

To recover your hard disk, you will need to use a data recovery software. From all softwares we tested, the best one is the Fix-cih, which is free and can be downloaded at http://www.grc.com/files/fix-cih.exe. This software is small and really efficient. You will need to create a bootable floppy and copy this program to it, and then boot the infected computer from this floppy. Format this floppy from a computer without virus (of course) and using at least Windows 98 (if you format it using DOS or Windows 95, it won't recognize FAT32 partitions and you probably won't be able to recover your hard disk). Run the software and wait. It can take a couple of hours recovering your data, specially with you have a large hard disk.

After recovering the hard disk, you will need to run an antivirus software to remove the virus, that will still be stored on your hard disk. We recommend you to download and run cleancih, which can be downloaded from http://www.pspl.com/download/cleancih.exe. This is a 20 KB DOS software, so you can copy it to your bootable floppy and run it after booting from a floppy. Don't try to boot your from your hard disk, because it is infected and you won't be able to remove the virus.

To boot your PC from a floppy disk, you need to enter setup (pressing Del key during the memory count that occurs when you turn your PC on) and change the Boot Order (or Boot Sequence) option to "Floppy", "A:, C:" or similar.

Notice that probably your motherboard will be "dead", since the CIH virus tries to erase its BIOS. If that is your case, read our tutorial on how to recover motherboards "killed" by the CIH virus.

 
Print Version | Send to Friend | | Bookmark Article | Comments (0)

Related Content
  • Testing Your Computer Security
  • Recovering Dead Motherboards Killed by the CIH Virus
  • BIOS Backup
  • How to Enable Processor-Based Security
  • Transforming your Radeon 9800 Pro into a Radeon 9800 XT

  • Recommended Deal.
    Barracuda 7200.11 1.5TB 3.5 Hard DriveSeagate Technology ST31500341AS


    CTIStore: $134.00 CircuitCity: $119.99
    Directron: $117.99 CDW: $116.99

    RSSLatest News
    Spire Announces CoolNess Laptop Cooler
    November 6, 2009 - 3:07 PM PST
    Mushkin Launches Memories with Copper-made Heatsink
    November 5, 2009 - 3:49 PM PST
    Super Talent Launches USB 3.0 Flash Memories
    November 5, 2009 - 3:47 PM PST
    VIA Announces Nano 3000 Processor Series
    November 5, 2009 - 3:42 PM PST
    Sapphire Announces Vapor-X HD 5870 and HD 5750 Video Cards
    November 5, 2009 - 3:38 PM PST
    Gelid Unveils Tranquillo CPU Cooler
    November 5, 2009 - 3:36 PM PST
    Noctua Intros NH-D14 Premium CPU Cooler
    November 3, 2009 - 8:14 PM PST
    Transcend Unveils DDR3-1333 Memory Kits
    November 3, 2009 - 7:57 PM PST
    EVGA Launches GeForce GTX 275 CO-OP PhysX Edition
    November 3, 2009 - 7:51 PM PST
    Akasa Launches Freedom Xone Mid-tower Case
    November 2, 2009 - 6:05 PM PST
    .:: More News ::.

    RSSLatest Content
    SilverStone Grandia GD04 Case Review
    Can We Trust the 80 Plus Certification?
    NZXT Gamma Case Review
    Patriot Box Office Media Player Review
    ASUS U-75HA 750 W Power Supply Review
    MSI P55-GD80 Motherboard
    Thermaltake Element V Case Review
    Nokia 7705 Twist Cell Phone Review
    Cooler Master Hyper TX3 CPU Cooler Review
    Some Pictures from Our Office
    Antec Two Hundred Case Review
    Corsair TX950W Power Supply Review
    XFX Radeon HD 5770 Video Card Review
    XFX Radeon HD 5750 Video Card Review
    Scythe Big Shuriken CPU Cooler Review

    Our Most Popular Articles
    Maximum CPU Temperature
    1,070,865 views
    How to Find Out Your Motherboard Manufacturer and Model
    695,268 views
    nVidia Chips Comparison Table
    671,465 views
    Connecting Two PCs Using a USB-USB Cable
    585,858 views
    How To Correctly Apply Thermal Grease
    555,989 views
    AMD ATI Chips Comparison Table
    554,137 views
    ATI Radeon X1300 Pro Review
    485,820 views
    ATI Radeon X1600 XT Review
    474,869 views
    How To Perform a BIOS Upgrade
    389,414 views
    Sempron vs. Athlon XP
    336,579 views

    Latest Threads in Our Forums
    help deciding cpu's here
    by shadixmax
    Is it a vga problem or motherboard has shocked?
    by ftomsuk
    Patriot Box Office Media Player Review
    by cchjde
    Is it possible LCD Monitor leaked by itself ?
    by delta32
    Suddenly death syndrome and pendrives
    by Desert Fox
    better cpu cooler?
    by sam_wade07
    Video Transfer camcorder to PC
    by fjs559
    Spire Announces CoolNess Laptop Cooler
    by Hardware Secrets Team
    Can We Trust the 80 Plus Certification?
    by Merman
    SilverStone Grandia GD04 Case Review
    by Olle P
    .:: Visit Our Forums ::.


    © 2004-9, Hardware Secrets, LLC. All rights reserved.
    Advertising | Legal Information | Privacy Policy
    All times are Pacific Standard Time (PST, GMT -08:00)