Tutorial: How to Recover old PowerPoint Files in Windows 10, 11

Can I recover a previous version of a PowerPoint file?

How to recover old PowerPoint files [2 options]

Here in this section, you’ll get two options on how to recover old PowerPoint files.

Option 1. Check version history in Microsoft PowerPoint

You can view older versions of your presentations in Microsoft PowerPoint and switch between them. Here’s how to recover an old version of a PowerPoint file if you unintentionally deleted something significant and it was overwritten in PowerPoint.

Step 1. Open the PowerPoint file, and click File in the menu bar.

Step 2. In the left pane, click Info.

Step 3. Click Version History on the right.

Step 4. Microsoft PowerPoint sorts previous iterations of the document. Click Open version beneath the version you want to return to in order to load an earlier version of the presentation.

Step 5. By doing this, an older version of your PowerPoint file will be displayed in a read-only file. Click the Restore button located directly beneath the ribbon menu To return to the previous version.

Option 2. Recover overwritten versions of PowerPoint files using the File History

Another option is to recover previous versions of PowerPoint files using File History. Before you use this method, make sure you’ve enabled the File History feature before the file is overwritten.

Step 1. Go to Control Panel > System and Security > File History. Here you’ll see if you have this feature turned on. If yes, keep going. If not, you are not able to recover previous versions of PowerPoint files using this method.

Step 2. Go to the location where you save the PowerPoint file, right-click it and choose Restore Previous Versions. Then the file’s Properties dialog box appears. Choose the version you want to recover and then click Restore.

Note: The Documents, Music, Pictures, Videos, and Desktop folders on your computer are the only ones that File History backs up copies of. You can include other files or folders that you want to have backed up in one of these folders. Additionally, you must decide where to save the backup.

How to recover deleted PowerPoint files in Windows 10, 11 [3 options]

If you have deleted your important old PowerPoint files, here’s how to recover deleted PowerPoint files.

Option 1. Restore deleted PowerPoint files from the Recycle Bin

Most Microsoft users are familiar with the Recycle Bin. This aids in keeping deleted files around for 30 days or however long the administrator has allowed. If the user does not empty the bin during this time, it is simple to recover deleted PowerPoint files in Windows 10, 11.

Step 1. Double click Recycle Bin on your desktop to open it.

Step 2. Locate the PowerPoint file you have deleted. Right-click it, and click Restore. Then your file will come back to the location where it was before being deleted.

Option 2. Recover deleted PowerPoint files from a Windows backup

The second option to recover deleted PowerPoint files is to use the Windows built-in utility Backup and Restore. Of course, you need to have this feature enabled in order to use it, just like File History. While both File History and Backup and Restore enable users to backup files, there are some significant differences between the two utilities.

All of the data files in your libraries, on your desktop, and in the standard Windows folders will be backed up by Backup and Restore. It also creates a system image that you can use to restore Windows if something goes wrong with your system. In stark contrast to Backup and Restore, File History’s main function is to enable you to back up individual files rather than creating a full system image.

Step 1. Input Control Panel in the Windows search bar, and start it.

Step 2. Click System and Security and then Backup and Restore (Windows 7).

Step 3. Here you’ll see if you have this function enabled. If you do, click Select another backup to restore files from. If you don’t, jump to the next option.

Step 4. Select the backup and then click Next.

Step 5. Search for your PowerPoint files by using the Browse for files or Browse for folders option.

Step 6. Choose a location to save the backup, select your excel file and click Restore to recover it.

Option 3. Retrieve deleted PowerPoint files via professional data recovery software [recommended]

The final option to retrieve permanently deleted PowerPoint files in Windows 10, 11 is using professional data recovery software, such as MyRecover.

Easy-to-operate. It allows you to recover lost/deleted files from Windows within 3 easy steps.

All-inclusive. It applies to various file loss scenarios in Windows, including recovering files from formatted drives, corrupted partitions, after system crashes, virus attacks, etc.

High-speed. It recovers lost files at high speed. High recovery rate. It recovers your files with a high recovery rate, even if it was permanently deleted.

Widely-compatible. It supports NTFS, FAT32, exFAT, and ReFS in Windows 11/10/8/7 & Windows Server.

Comprehensive. It can recover lost/deleted texts, pictures, videos, audios, emails, compressed files, etc., in original format.

Download, install and launch MyRecover on your computer.  

Step 1. Select the partition used to store the deleted PowerPoint files. Hover the mouse over the drive and click Scan to scan.

Step 2. Then the scanning process will start automatically. You don’t need to wait for the process to complete if you find the PowerPoint files you want to recover.

Step 3. Choose the PowerPoint files that you want to recover. Click Recover xx files and choose a destination path to save the restored PowerPoint files.

How to recover unsaved PowerPoint files after an unexpected crash

If you were going through an unexpected crash and lost your PowerPoint file without saving it, you can follow the steps below to recover unsaved PowerPoint files.

Step 1. Start PowerPoint > come to the Welcome page > click Recover unsaved presentations.

Step 2. Come to the Document Recovery screen, all recoverable PPT files will be listed. Choose the one you want to restore.

Bonus tips: How to prevent PowerPoint files from being accidental lost again

If you have the AutoRecover function enabled in PowerPoint, it helps you automatically keep the files for the duration of the time period you specify, allowing you to recover deleted or unsaved files. But keep in mind that neither this nor it always succeeds.

Step 1. Start PowerPoint > click File > Info > Options.

Step 2. Click Save > toggle the option Keep the last AutoRecovered version if I close without saving. And shorten the AutoSave interval to 10, 5, etc., according to your preferences.

The Bottom Line

When creating a PowerPoint file on your computer, many things could go wrong. For example, you can accidentally delete your PowerPoint file, overwrite the PowerPoint file, close your PowerPoint file without saving it, etc. After reading this post, you'll find it is not difficult to learn how to recover old PowerPoint files anymore.