Where Do Deleted Files Go And How to Recover Them?

[Answered]Where do deleted files go in Windows 11/10/8/7?

Where do deleted files go? Normally, files you delete will be sent to the Recycle Bin. But the files in the recycle bin don't disappear from the computer, they still take up disk space. We can right-click the target file in the recycle bin and select Restore to recover it to its original path.

Where do delete files go after Recycle Bin? When you empty the Recycle Bin, deleted files are wiped from the hard drive. Also, the disk space occupied by the deleted files will be "freed". This means you can store new data in this location.

Is it possible to recover deleted files after emptying the Recycle Bin?

Yes, it is. Most users think that once you delete files, you lose them forever. In fact, deleted files can still be recovered.

Every time a file is emptied from the Recycle Bin, a copy of it is still stored on the hard drive although the user cannot find the file in its original path. It will not be emptied until a new file overwrites the path of the deleted file.

Therefore, when you need to recover deleted files, do not rewrite the hard drive, and please perform the recover process as soon as possible.

How to recover deleted files when empty Recycle Bin

Now that you have understood where do deleted files go, let's proceed to learn how to recover deleted files. There are 2 ways to recover deleted files, including File History and a professional data recovery expert. You can choose one according to your demand.

Option 1. Recover deleted files through File History

To recover files via File History, please make sure you have enabled the File History function from System and Security. If you haven’t, please skip to option 2.

First, open the “Control Panel” and click “System and Security”. Then, find “File History” in the list and click it. Next, click “Restore personal files”, where you can see the deleted files. Finally, find the target file and click the “Restore” button.

Note: File History is only available on Windows 8.0 and above operating systems.

Option 2. Recover deleted/lost files with data recovery software

As you can see, File History is not good for everyone. If you want to recover deleted files more easily and safely, AOMEI FastRecovery must be the better choice.

This is an all-in-one partition manager (compatible with Windows 11/10/8/7), its Recover Data function supports running quick scans and deep scans on storage devices to recover deleted or lost data, including Word, Excel, PPT, photos, videos, audios, mailboxes, compressed files, etc. Besides, it offers easy-to-follow operating steps, which are friendly to beginners.

Functions of AOMEI FastRecovery:
✔ Recover deleted or lost files from HDD, USB, SD card and various storage devices.
✔ Retrieve Word, Excel, PPT, photos, videos, audio, emails, zipped files, and over 200 other file types.
✔ Keep the original format of recovered files.
✔ Search for target Word files by typing the file name during the scan, or wait for automatic discovery with Quick Scan and Deep Scan.
✔ Supports NTFS, exFAT, FAT32 and ReFS file systems.
✔ Compatible with Windows Server and Windows 7, 8, 10, 11 64-bit and 32-bit.

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.

Conclusion

In this post, we not only answer where do deleted files go, but also provide two effective methods to help you recover lost/deleted files. If you want to recover files in a more flexible way, you should not miss AOMEI FastRecovery.