Tutorial: Why Has My File Suddenly Disappeared from the Folder?

Why Has My File Suddenly Disappeared from the Folder?

User Case:

"Hi everyone. Recently, I have been working with a lot of files for my work. I'm sure I saved them all in the same folder. But today I suddenly found out that some files were missing. Does anyone know why? I'd be grateful if you could tell me how to get them back."

Nowadays, maintaining data integrity is very crucial to us. But it's not uncommon to lose files for some unknown reasons, which can often be frustrating and anxious, especially in an emergency.

No worry. This article will explore some common reasons why our files disappeared from the folder and provide several effective methods to recover lost documents.

What Causes Files to Disappear from Folders

In actuality, files frequently vanish from your computer without your knowledge. And many people have been frustrated by the unexpected loss of essential files. What makes our files suddenly disappear? This article lists the following 4 primary factors:

Human Error - Most cases of files missing from a computer are caused by human errors, such as accidentally pressing the delete key, unintentional formatting, or emptying the Recycle Bin. These improper actions often result in being unable to locate the corresponding files in their original location.

Software Bug - It is another common reason why our files suddenly disappeared from the folder. For example, unsaved content will be lost if the software fails. In addition, some software creates temporary files while it is running, but unexpected errors might also prevent these files from being stored.

File Systems Corruption - Hardware failures, operating system errors, or sudden power outages may all lead to file system crashes, which have a severe impact on file structure and integrity. As a result, some files may disappear.

Viruses Attack - Viruses and malware both pose a significant threat to our data integrity. Some viruses are designed to delete files or corrupt them, causing them to miss from their original location.

How to Recover Files Missing from the Folder

After identifying the specific reasons behind file loss, it becomes crucial to learn how to deal with it. Here are 3 ways to recover lost files, and you are allowed to choose the one that best suits your needs.

Restore Deleted Files via Recycle Bin

In our daily work, it’s easy to lose files by accidentally pressing the delete button or selecting the wrong item. When this happens, the deleted files are often temporarily stored in the Recycle Bin. If you haven't permanently deleted it or cleaned up the Recycle Bin, the best approach is to restore them directly from the Recycle Bin. You can easily recover your files by the following steps:

Step 1, check the Recycle Bin first. Often, accidentally deleted files can be found here.

Step 2, search the file that you require within the search bar in Recycle Bin.

Step 3, right-click on the desired file and select Restore to return it to its original location.

Recover Missing Files Using Backup and Restore

If your files have been permanently deleted or the Recycle Bin has been emptied, attempting to recover them through Backup and Restore is a good option. This method also works on the files being lost due to system failure or accidental overwrite. However, before proceeding, you have to ensure that the backup function was enabled beforehand. The specific recovery steps are as follows:

Step 1, go to the Control Panel, and select System and Security > Backup and Restore in turn.

Step 2, click Restore my files.

Step 3, click Browse for files to choose the file you want to recover, and then click Next.

Step 4, specify the saving path for your recovered file, and click Restore.

Retrieve Lost Documents with Data Recovery Software

In fact, not everyone enables data backups. So, what should we do to recover files in such a situation?

Apart from the above two methods, using a recovery software to retrieve files disappearing from folders is also a common and practical approach. This not only simplifies the recovery process but also allows multiple files to be located and restored in a short period of time.

I would like to introduce you to a great tool—AOMEI FastRecovery. It is a user-friendly yet powerful data recovery expert, designed to assist users in quickly locating and recovering deleted, corrupted, and lost files, even when the cause of the loss is unknown. Furthermore, AOMEI FastRecovery is capable of retrieving data from an extensive range of storage devices, including PC, hard drives, SD cards, and USB drives, while offering broad support for a wide array of file formats. 

• User-Friendly Interface

The clean and straightforward interface guides users to effortlessly recover what they want, step-by-step.

• Preview-Supported Recovery

Users are allowed to verify the content of files before recovering, ensuring that they are restoring the right documents.

• Fast and Efficient Performance

With its high performance, users are able to recover lost files within the shortest time.

Let's use AOMEI FastRecovery to recover the files suddenly disappeared from folder.

Step 1, download and install AOMEI FastRecovery, and then choose the exact partition or disk where your files are located.

Step 2, Scan your disk to find the deleted files. It offers two modes, "Quick Scan" and "Deep Scan", which are designed to find lost files comprehensively.

Step 3, upon scanning completion, missing files will be displayed. Kindly choose the one you want to restore, and then click Recover. You are able to preview it before recovery.

Step 4, specify a path for your recovered files. Simply bide your time till the procedure is complete.

Summary

In this post, we've covered a number of typical causes for why your files suddenly disappeared from the folder and provided three workarounds. The AOMEI FastRecovery tool mentioned in the article offers reliable data recovery, ensuring that your files remain safe and accessible. To maximize your recovery experience, think about using AOMEI if the previous two approaches don't work for you in recovering lost documents.