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js-coder
Asked: 2012-05-05 12:29:55 +0800 CST

I accidently removed /usr. Is there a way to recover it?

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I accidently removed my entire /usr directory thanks to RVM. I can still use the terminal prompt with Ctrl+Alt+F6, but I don't have any sudo (I guess it's because of the missing /usr).

Is there any way to recover my files?, I didn't reboot yet. If not how can I make sudo and the other things work again without completly reinstalling the OS? I'm runnig Ubuntu 12.04.

data-recovery

2 Answers

  1. Best Answer

    If you have backups => Yes

    If you haven't made backups, start making them while you remember why it is important.

    I think the easiest solution is to make a copy of your home directory and /etc onto an external disk, then detach the external disk and do a reinstall of the system. If you have enough storage space on an external disk:

    • start a liveCD
    • copy all files to external disk or at least /home and /etc
    • reïnstall
    • copy the files from your backup to the new install
    • compare the config files in /etc with the ones in your backup
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  2. Easiest method: backup your own files from a live cd and re-install. It is also the most efficient and less time consuming.

    Difficult methods:

    • you can install a Ubuntu system on another system and copy the files from that system over to your machine.

    • Use a data recovery tool like R-Studio for Linux to recover it.

      R-Studio for Linux recovers files:

      • Deleted from the computer and emptied from the Trash
      • Corrupted due to a virus, power failure or sudden shutdown
      • From disks that have been Re-formatted to the same file system or a different file system
      • Damaged and have bad sectors-R-Studio for Linux creates an image of the entire disk and recovers it from there to prevent further physical damage to the disk
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