Gone but Not Forgotten: Recovering Deleted Files

Posted by Vic Laurie
January 5, 2006

The usual procedure for deleting a file in Windows contains the safety feature of first placing the deleted file in the Recycle Bin. If you change your mind and want the file back, it can then be restored. But what about permanently deleted files? If you bypass the Recycle Bin or empty it, the “deleted” files are, in fact, still there. They are just no longer visible in the file lists of Windows Explorer. What happens is that Windows alters the beginning letter of the name of the “deleted” file in the system’s file tracking entries so that it no longer shows up in lists kept by the operating system. Also, Windows designates the space where the file is kept as now being available for other files to use. As long as you do not write over this space with new files, it is easy to recover the file.

There are many commercial software applications that can find and restore a deleted file. Utility suites like Norton SystemWorks include an undelete program and there are a number of standalone programs like Ontrack’s EasyRecovery Lite. There are also a few freeware programs like Restoration, which can be downloaded at this link. Naturally, the “freebies” are less polished than the commercial programs.

File management

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