Re: Is it possible to decrypt EFS files without backup certificate
One thing I want to inform here about Recovery agent. You cannot use them unless you have backup certificate. That is the only best way to get your data decrypted. I have to migrate my server and the data also. The certificate was in the drive and using Recovery Agent I was able to get all the data back. It is safe to use EFS, but if you loose the certificate then it becomes more complicated for you to get your files back.
Re: Is it possible to decrypt EFS files without backup certificate
There are already people above told that it is not possible to recover EFS data without a recovery certificate. Whatever tool you try or software you go for, there are very less chances. I am working on multiple servers where on failed to work properly due to hardware failure. All servers have EFS. I failed to get the data out of it. Luckily that was not so important. Later on I start keeping the backup of certificate in different place so that if something happen it would be easier to replace. I can provide the method of export certificate. For that run mmc.exe. In the file menu click on Add/Remove Snap-in > Add. Then click on Certificates > Add. Later on go to Console Root and then open the Certificate folder. You can find a Personal Folder in that you can locate Certificates. On the right side right click and choose Export.