Help! Deleted Documents by Mistake

[Rachel]

I was cleaning my documents folder and deleted a document
by mistake. Then I emptied my recycle bin. Is there any
way to get the document back?

 

[Jay Freedman]

Hi, Rachel,

The answer is "probably not". If you had "Always make backup copy" checked
in the Tools > Options > Save dialog, look for a file named something like
"Backup of xyz.wbk" in the same folder as the document. If you have a
separate backup of your hard drive, or even just the documents folder, look
there. Otherwise... you've learned the hard way why you should do both of
those things.

 

[martinique]

There are (used to be, anyway) disk utilities - Norton was one - that could
sometimes recover deleted files from a hard disk: deleting a file removes
only the file header, marking the disk segments as free for re-use without
actually clearing the segments themselves. Success depends on how much work
has been done on your hard disk since the deletion.

 

[Reg Hamilton]

Rachel,

Download the program from www.RecoverMyFiles.com and give it a try. I will
be surprised if you cant get it back.

Good Luck

 

[Jay Freedman]

That presumes the deleted file is worth at least $70 (the cost of the key
that lets you save the file, not just look at it). Some documents are worth
that, most are not.

 

[Reg Hamilton]

To save the $70 you could always use the free preview feature in
www.RecoverMyFiles.com to re-type the document (unless an hour or so of your
time is worth more than the $70 that is).