Don't worry if you accidentally deleted temp files, refer to these post to get the most effective tips to recover files from temp folder.
Have you used Microsoft apps like Word, Excel, PowerPoint, etc., and abruptly the system crashed or shut down? It happened all of a sudden, making no time for you to save your modified content.
To recover unsaved Excel files/PowerPoint files, etc., except for turning to the AutoSave feature, you could also try to recover files from temp folder, which won't be that helpful but worth trying.
Then what are temp files?
A temp file, aka a temporary file, is created by certain apps or the system to temporarily store the info of the apps or programs you use.
You could find some characteristics in the name of the temp files, which vary from the application.
Windows OS usually generates a temporary file with a ".tmp" extension, while some Microsoft apps, like Word, Excel, PowerPoint, etc., will create a temp file named with a "$" and "~" symbol.
Some apps don't delete temp files regularly, which may accelerate daily and occupies a large proportion of users' storage space. Some Microsoft Excel users will wonder where does Excel save temp files; actually, Excel also has a temp folder.
Then many users choose to delete them manually to free up some space. But some may have accidentally deleted their useful temp files and are seeking methods to recover deleted temp files.
Where do temporary files go? How can you access the temp files? At this time, you need to head over to the temporary file directory, where all temp files are stored.
The temp file path in Windows 10/8/7/Vista:
Using Windows XP, visit:
In this folder, you can find all the temp files created by Windows OS or specific utilities, which could be an option for users who have lost files in a short time.
How to recover files from AppData local temp directory? As mentioned above, perhaps users have deleted temp files by mistake; or users pin their hope on the temporary folder to see if their lost files are still there.
With this, there might be two possible circumstances: you need to recover deleted temp files, or you want to recover lost files from temp folder.
First of all, head over to the Recycle Bin. If you found deleted files not in Recycle Bin, or you have already emptied the Recycle Bin, then they might be permanently gone.
Also, methods like restoring previous versions of files could not help because this feature only stores copies of Libraries, Desktop, Contact, etc.
If you have lost files on the computer and learned that you could recover files from the temp folder, follow the instructions here.
As mentioned in the above parts, you could tap on Win+E to open This PC > input the directory in the path box > press Enter to access the temp folder.
But this method has a limited effect, only storing the temporary files for a short time, and the filename will be modified, and you cannot tell which one you need.
Given that, instead of trying hard to restore files from temp folder, you would better seek help from a professional Windows data recovery tool. With an advanced tool, the data recovery rate will be higher, and the data recovery process will be more straightforward.
MyRecover, embedded with advanced scanning algorithms and techs, scans the hard disk for deleted and missing files from HDD/SSD/USB, etc.; you could also use it to perform SD card recovery.
Now download the software to recover deleted and missing files easily.
Step 1. Install and run the software > hover the mouse over the affected drive/partition > click Scan.
Step 2. While scanning, you could input extensions in the search box or use filters to target your files faster.
Step 3. Select the files you need > click Recover x files to get your files back.
If you want to recover deleted temp files, you could also use this tool. Go to the temp folder > select temp files you need > click Recover x files.
In this way, you could recover files from temp folder. What's more, it can retrieve data from formatted hard drive.
Without a tool, it will be challenging to recover permanently deleted files. Here we suggest you utilize a Microsoft official free tool – Windows File Recovery.
It is a command-line application to recover lost or deleted files from healthy/corrupted/formatted hard drives. But please note that it uses commands and offers no graphical user interface, which will be a challenge for ordinary users.
Check for the Windows File Recovery user guide to learn the recovery modes and switches.
Step 1. Go to This PC > right-click on the C drive > click Properties and check the file system.
Step 2. Choose a recovery mode.
| File system | Scenarios | mode |
| NTFS | Deleted recently | Regular |
| NTFS | Deleted for a while | Extensive |
| NTFS | Formatted disk | Extensive |
| NTFS | corrupted disk | Extensive |
| FATandexFAT | Any | Extensive |
Step 3. Select switches to help you specify the scanning range.
| Switches | Meaning | Supported mode(s) |
| /n | Filter the scan range: scans for a specific file with its file name/path/type, etc. | All |
| /y: | Recovers specific extension groups. | Signature |
| /k | Recover system files. | NTFS Segment |
| /segment | Segment mode; recover files under NTFS drives using file recordsegments. | Segment |
| /signature | Signature mode; recover files under all file system types using file headers. | Signature |
| /u | Recovers undeleted files, for example, from the Recycle Bin. | NTFS Segment |
Step 4. Go to Microsoft Store > click Get > run the app.
Step 5. Input the command:
winfr source-drive: destination-drive: [/mode] [/switches]
For instance, input:
winfr C: D: /regular /n *.tmp
You can restore all .tmp files from the C drive to the D drive using this command. When encountering any errors, refer to the Windows File Recovery troubleshooting tutorial.
You could also restore temporary files using a reliable data recovery app if you find it too difficult. Check the following method.
Check out the methods to recover files from temp folder and restore lost standard files in the post. For a high success rate and convenience, it is recommended to rely on an efficient data rescue utility to restore temporary files.
If you still have more questions about temp files, here is the Q&A corner.
>It is safe to delete temp files. Temp files are ought to be deleted when the app is closed, but a bunch of temp files still won’t get deleted. And this will take up your storage space. If you want to manually delete any file, you will notice that open files cannot be deleted, which is set in default to protect the file in use. So, for various reasons, you could delete them manually. Or, just reboot your computer, some temp files would get deleted automatically.
Theoretically, it is harmless to delete all temp files. But for the sake of security, it is suggested to reboot your computer first before deleting them. Because some apps will store some data in the temp folder, which will be deleted automatically after a restart. If you only need to free up some disk space, using cleanup programs is recommended.