Wanted: Python module allowing direct access to raw sectors ofharddrives (MFT, boot sector, etc.) in MS Windows

[sam]

The following site contains my routines to access information from the
Microsoft SCSIPASSTHROUGH layer under windows. These routines allow you
to access the storage devices mounted under windows using SCSI
commands. The dll that I provide will work with Python 2.3

http://starship.python.net/crew/samschul/

Sam Schulenburg

Claudio Grondi wrote:
> Thank you Jeff very much for your quick reply.
> It saved me really much time of digging in the wrong direction.
>
> <jepler at unpythonic.net> wrote in
> news:<mailman.1864.1128983425.509.python-list at python.org>...
> >> I took the advice from this web page:
> >> http://support.microsoft.com/kb/q100027/
> Ok, I had found this page myself during Googling, but I have missed just
> to try to use the described way of addressing physical devices with file
> opening in Python.
> It works as expected with harddrives so you are right that you are getting
> the MBR with the proposed code.
>
> After some not always happy end adventures with Python
> scripting I am impressed by the power of the concept behind
> the language once again.
>
> Claudio
>
> >>(I don't know how this extends to floppies, and the 9x family of OSes
> isn't
> >>listed in "applies to", so this may not help your case)
> >>Here, I open "physical drive 0" and see that the magic number indicates a
> valid
> >>boot record. I believe it is the MBR.
> >>>>> f = open('\\\\.\\PhysicalDrive0', 'rb')
> >>>>> f.read(512)[-2:]
> >>'U\xaa' # that is, hex 55 AA
> >>I don't know much about low-level filesystem or partition details--I got
> the
> >>tidbit about the 55 AA magic number from
> >>http://www-uxsup.csx.cam.ac.uk/pub/doc/suse/sles9/adminguide-sles9/ch08.ht
> ml
> >>Jeff
> >><jepler at unpythonic.net> schrieb im Newsbeitrag
> news:mailman.1864.1128983425.509.python-list at python.org...