Hello, I'm new to the entire bitcoin scene. So yesterday I sent some funds to my receiving address listed in my bitcoin knots wallet while it was in the process of syncing.
Is there a specific reason you are using knots?
Knots is a core fork which does update its codebase from core regularly, and adds additional features core doesn't have included yet.
As a newcomer you should stick to core (
https://bitcoin.org/en/wallets/desktop/windows/bitcoincore/). Especially since you probably won't need these additional features.
And if you don't intend to specifically contribute to the network health with a full node (which stores the whole blockchain), you also might consider using a lightweight wallet (e.g.
electrum).
These do not store the whole blockchain and query an online service to retrieve your balance. Both wallets do store the private keys locally.
IF you erased the hard drive you used to install bitcoin knots the first time, immediately stop using it, and find a suitable recovery software, and hope you're able to recover the wallet.dat file.
Yea I already checked to see if I could use system recovery, but I didn't have any states available to recover to. So I guess I'm screwed?
Does this mean you have formatted your hard drive?
Windows' in-built system recovery won't help you there. Do as mocacinno suggested and use a recovery software to get your
deleted files back.
Mind explaining what happened to your first hard drive (where you initially tried to install knots) ? Is it a HDD or SSD ?