Published 2021-05-25 by TechNet New England
Accidentally deleting a file is stressful but usually recoverable if you act quickly. Here is where to look depending on your platform. ## Windows: Recycle Bin 1. Double-click the **Recycle Bin** on the Desktop. 2. Find the deleted file. 3. Right-click it and select **Restore**. 4. The file returns to its original location. Files stay in the Recycle Bin until you empty it or until the bin reaches its size limit (older files are removed first). If you emptied the Recycle Bin, the file may be recoverable with a professional data recovery tool, but success is not guaranteed. Contact IT before attempting third-party recovery. ## Mac: Trash 1. Click the **Trash** icon in the Dock. 2. Find the deleted file. 3. Right-click it and select **Put Back**. 4. The file returns to its original location. If you emptied the Trash, check Time Machine (if configured): 1. Open the folder where the file was located. 2. Open **Time Machine** from the menu bar. 3. Navigate back in time to when the file existed. 4. Select the file and click **Restore**. ## OneDrive (Microsoft 365) 1. Go to [onedrive.live.com](https://onedrive.live.com). 2. Click **Recycle bin** in the left sidebar. 3. Find the file and click **Restore**. OneDrive retains deleted files for 93 days for work accounts and 30 days for personal accounts. ## Google Drive 1. Go to [drive.google.com](https://drive.google.com). 2. Click **Trash** in the left sidebar. 3. Right-click the file and select **Restore**. Google Drive retains deleted files in Trash for 30 days before permanent deletion. ## SharePoint 1. Go to the SharePoint site where the file was stored. 2. Click **Recycle bin** in the left sidebar. 3. Select the file and click **Restore**. SharePoint has a two-stage recycle bin. If the file is not in the first-stage bin, ask your IT provider to check the second-stage (site collection) recycle bin. ## Previous Versions (Windows) Windows keeps previous versions of files if File History or System Protection is enabled: 1. Right-click the folder where the file was. 2. Select **Properties > Previous Versions**. 3. Browse the available versions by date. 4. Select the version from before the file was deleted. 5. Click **Restore** to bring back the entire folder to that state, or **Open** to copy specific files. ## Email Attachments If the deleted file was originally received as an email attachment, search your email for the original message. The attachment may still be there. ## When to Contact IT Contact your IT provider if: The file was on a network drive or server (they may have server-level backups). The Recycle Bin and Trash have been emptied. The file was in a shared location managed by your organization. The file is critical and you need professional recovery assistance. **Important:** The sooner you act, the better the chance of recovery. Once deleted data is overwritten by new data, it becomes unrecoverable.