How to undelete a file, or several files


How to undelete a file, or several files

The process of recovering files which were accidentally deleted is called "undelete". This only applies if there was no catastrophic damage and you need only a few files recovered. For a catastrophic damage or if many files are lost, refer to unformat.
Check the Recycle Bin before you rush to recover data with a data recovery software.

Important safety notice

Stop using the drive immediately once you realize you have deleted the wrong file. Never install any software to the drive containing deleted files. If you need to undelete a file from a drive containing Windows installation, you should install ReclaiMe on a different drive (possibly onto an USB stick).

Recovering deleted files with ReclaiMe

  1. If you plan to recover many large files, make sure you have enough free space on another drive or on a network to hold all the recovered data. Never put the recovered files onto the same drive you are recovering files from.
  2. Download, install, and run ReclaiMe data recovery software.
  3. Identify the drive containing the deleted files in the device list (need help identifying your drive?).
  4. Double click the drive in the device list to start the recovery.
  5. The files are displayed as soon as they are discovered.
  6. Consider using the search feature of ReclaiMe to locate the desired files.
  7. Select the files or folders you want to recover.
  8. Click Save button on the toolbar.
Undelete a file

Recovery time

In most cases you do not have to wait before the scan completes. All the data needed for undelete is typically collected within the first five minutes of the analysis. Once the folder tree appears, start browsing for a file you need right away.

More info

For more technical information, please refer to file deletion technical reference.