Recover Deleted Files

I deleted the file from my Word Processor.
How do I get that file back?

You thought you were done with a file, and then you realized that you need the file back. Or, maybe you accidentally deleted the wrong file.

How to recover deleted files from the Recycle Bin:

1. On the desktop, double-click Recycle Bin.
   
   
2. Right-click it, and then click Restore.
   
   
3. To restore all of the items, on the Edit menu, click Select All, and then on the File menu, click Restore.
   
   

How does the Recycle Bin work?

The Recycle Bin provides a safety net that allows you to recover deleted files or folders. When you delete files or folders from your hard disk, Windows places it in the Recycle Bin and the Recycle Bin icon changes from empty to full.

Items in the Recycle Bin remain there until you decide to permanently delete them from your computer. These items still take up hard disk space and can be undeleted or restored back to their original location.

Here is what Microsoft says about the ability to recover deleted files from the Recycle Bin:

"Deleting an item from the Recycle Bin permanently removes it from your computer. Items deleted from the Recycle Bin cannot be restored. You can also delete items by dragging them into the Recycle Bin. If you press SHIFT while dragging, the item is deleted from your computer without being stored in the Recycle Bin.

Restoring an item in the Recycle Bin returns that item to its original location.

To retrieve several items at once, hold down CTRL, and then click each item that you want to retrieve. When you have finished selecting the items that you want to retrieve, on the File menu, click Restore.

If you restore a file that was originally located in a deleted folder, the folder is recreated in its original location, and then the file is restored in that folder.

The following items are not stored in the Recycle Bin and cannot be restored:

• Items deleted from network locations.
  
  
• Items deleted from removable media (such as 3.5-inch disks).
  
  
• Items that are larger than the storage capacity of the Recycle Bin.
  
  

Here is the TRUTH about the ability to recover deleted files once they are gone from the Recycle Bin

"On common operating systems like Microsoft's Windows family, simply deleting a file, or even following that up by emptying the "recycle bin", doesn't necessarily make the information irretrievable.

Those commands generally delete a file's name from the directory, so it won't show up when the files are listed. But the information itself can live on until it is overwritten by new files. Even formatting a drive may not do it.

The only sure way to erase a hard drive is to "squeeze" it: writing over the old information with new data -- all zeros, for instance."
(Source: The Associated Press, Jan 2003. Click here to read the full article)

So, if you have not permanently erased your hard drive with a product like WhiteCanyon's WipeDrive, it is not hard to recover deleted files.

What if I Empied My Recycle Bin?

Then you will need software that is designed to recover deleted files. Recover My Files data recovery software will recover deleted files emptied from the Windows Recycle Bin, or lost due to the format of a hard drive, virus infection, unexpected system shutdown or software failure.