Ctrl + Z Deleted My Files, Can I Recover Them?

Windows offers a variety of keyboard shortcuts, such as Ctrl + C, Ctrl + V, and Ctrl + Z, which can be incredibly useful for creating new files and transferring data. However, improper use of these shortcuts can sometimes lead to the accidental delete of important data or files.

Have you ever accidentally pressed Ctrl + Z while working on a new document or editing an existing one, causing your document or file content to disappear? If so, the following methods may help you recover files that were mistakenly deleted.

4 methods to recover Ctrl + Z deleted my files

When you press Ctrl + Z, most apps will let you undo the last thing you did. This is useful if you delete a file by accident or type something wrong and want to fix it quickly. However, if you press Ctrl + Z twice or more, or if you press this shortcut by accident, your files may also be deleted. Can Ctrl + Z restore deleted files? Of course, Ctrl + Z can delete files and undo delete files. If you want to get back a file that you accidentally deleted, you can use the Ctrl + Z shortcut.

We will now talk about four easy ways to get back folders and files that you deleted with Ctrl + Z. It is important to note, though, that if you find that the files have been removed, you should use recovery tools right away.

Solution 1. Recover Ctrl + Z deleted files with professional file recovery software

As of now, you can only get back Ctrl + Z deleted files and folders with the help of a professional file recovery tool. This is because you may have done something else after hitting Ctrl + Z, or the file may have been deleted for a long time and not been in the Recycle Bin.

AOMEI FastRecovery is the best program for getting back lost files. It can easily help you get back files that you deleted by mistake, get back files that were deleted forever, or get back files from a Recycle Bin that has been emptied. Not only can it get back data from computers, but also from USB flash drives, SD cards, Memory cards, SSDs, and other external storage devices. 

Step 1. Install and launch AOMEI FastRecovery. Choose the exact partition or disk where your data lost and click Scan.

Step 2. Then, the recovery tool start to scan and search. lt will execute the “Quickly Scan" first for finding your deleted data fast, and then execute the “Deep Scan" for searching other lost data.

Step 3. Once the scan is completed, all deleted files, recycle bins and other missing files will be displayed. Please select the file you would like to recover and then click "Recover".

Step 4. Then, select a folder path to save your recovered files.

Step 5. Wait patiently for this process of recovering ends.

Solution 2. Use Ctrl + Y to recover lost files

In addition to AOMEI FastRecovery, there are additional built-in methods that are included with Windows. On occasion, these techniques may expedite the process of retrieving files that were simply deleted. To reverse your most recent undo, use the corresponding shortcut to Ctrl + Z: Ctrl + Y.

However, this method is only effective if you have not performed any actions since the file was deleted, such as launching files or other paths repeatedly. To recover files that have been deleted by Ctrl + Z, select Ctrl + Y multiple times.

Solution 3. Undo Ctrl+Z Delete

In addition to utilizing shortcut keys, it is possible to retrieve accidentally deleted files by utilizing Undo delete. This method is comparable to the first method and is only effective if there are no other operations in progress.

To retrieve files that were deleted with Ctrl + Z, you must first right-click on the location where the files were deleted and then select the Undo Delete option to retrieve the files.

Solution 4. Restore Ctrl + Z deleted files from Recycle Bin

In the majority of instances, the Recycle Bin is the destination for deleted files on the computer. Directly restoring discarded files from the Recycle Bin is feasible. But if the Recycle Bin does not contain any files that you require or if you have deleted the file using Ctrl + Delete, you can employ the method to retrieve permanently deleted files.

Step 1. To access the Recycle Bin folder, double-click the Recycle Bin icon located on your desktop.

Step 2. Locate the files or folders that were inadvertently deleted and right-click on them to select "Restore." This will enable you to effortlessly recover the deleted folder by pressing "Ctrl + Z."

Final lines

The most straightforward method of recovering deleted files is to use Ctrl + Y or directly retrieve them with Undo delete if you have not conducted any other operations after deleting the file by pressing Ctrl + Z. In any case, we strongly urge you to utilize AOMEI FastRecovery to retrieve deleted files as soon as feasible.

The likelihood of effective data recovery can be enhanced by promptly restoring files following data deletion. The likelihood of successful recovery decreases as the interval lengthens, and the likelihood of deleted files being overwritten by new files increases. Additionally, this recovery software can be employed to retrieve files from formatted hard drives, recover files from system failures, and so forth.