Stepwise Guide: How to Restore Deleted Folder on Windows and Mac

Need to restore deleted folder

Most of the users may have encountered the same situation as the case is shown. When you accidentally deleted some folder and then found the content is quite important at the moment, you would spare no effort to seek ways to recover the deleted folder. Usually, individuals could retrieve them from Recycle Bin. However, if you empty the Recycle Bin regularly or you delete your folder with the keyboard shortcut “Shift + Delete”, then you’d better try the following ways to restore deleted folder.

How to restore deleted folder on Windows

If you are a Windows user, then you could try the following 4 useful methods how to restore deleted folder on Windows 11, 10, 8, 7.  

Solution 1. Restore Deleted files from Windows Backup

Windows Backup is a good way to recover deleted folder. However, it has to mention that Windows Backup can only be used to create backups in C Drive. Therefore, remind or check whether the folder is in the C Drive before.

Note: If you are not satisfied with the limitation of the Windows Backup, then AOMEI Backupper could give your huge comfort and convenience.

Step 1. Press the Start button, and select “Control Panel” > “System and Security”.

Step 2. After the next window pops up, click ”Restore my files”.

Step 3. Please select “Browse for folders” and choose the permanent folder you want to retrieve.

Step 4. After that, you can save your recovered folders in your original location or in your destination place as your preference.

Solution 2. Recover deleted folder via File History

Setting up a drive for File History is required if you want to recover permanently deleted folders using this solution. This feature first appeared in Windows 8. It can save file copies in the Documents, Music, Pictures, and Videos folders in addition to the folders.

Step 1. Click “File History” first, then click “Restore your files with File History”.

Step 2. Click “Restore personal files”.

Step 3. Browse all the contents or input the file name of this folder, then you can locate your needed folders.

Step 4. There are 2 options in this part:

Option1. You can restore your recovered folders to the original location by clicking the Recycle icon.

Option 2. If you want to change your destination location, you can right-click on the recycle image first, and click “Restore to”, then select a new location to save your recovered folders. 

Solution 3. Restore deleted folder to the previous version of folder

File History is only available for Windows 8 later. Therefore, to recover folders on Windows 7, we mainly take advantage of “Restore previous versions”.

Step 1. On the desktop, click on “My Computer” and then locate the folder that stores the deleted folder before. Right-click and then choose “Restore previous versions”.

Step 2. There will be a “Properties” window that pops up. And then you’ll find the accidentally deleted folder. Click on “Restore” and then the deleted files will be back.

Solution 4.  Retrieve your deleted folder without backup

Now, are you successfully restoring your deleted folder on Windows 10, 8, 7 via the ways above? If you didn’t back up your PC or the ways are not working for you, why not choose a professional and efficient software for data recovery, for example, MyRecover, which could help you recover your deleted folder with the least effort and massive effectiveness.

★Tips:

 With AOMEI Data Recovery, you could restore your deleted folder with a few clicks after the installation.

 It works for multiple Windows versions, such as Windows 7/8/10/11 and Windows Server.  

You could recover deleted photos, music, Word document, Excel, videos, web pages and so on by using the fabulous app.

The user-friendly interface and easy operation would guarantee you a great experience.

Step 1. Download and install MyRecover on your Windows computer and choose the partition where the deleted folder was stored before. Hover the mouse over the drive and click Scan to scan.

Step 2. The scanning process will start with a quick scan and then a deep scan to find more missing files. You could perform data recovery during the scanning and you don't need to stop the scan.

Step 3. Tick the deleted folder and click the button "Recover files" to save the recovered folder. 

How to restore deleted folder on Mac

After knowing how to restore a deleted folder and files on Windows 11, 10, 8, 7, now let’s learn the ways how to achieve the goal on Mac.

Solution 1. Get back deleted folder from Trash Bin

As a matter of fact, Mac does not immediately erase your deleted folder, in turn, they will be saved in Trash Bin for 30 days. If you didn’t empty the Trash Bin, then you could cover them from it.

Step 1. Locate the Trash Bin and find your folder. Navigate to the Dock at the bottom of your screen, and click the “Trash Bin” icon.

Step 2. Locate the deleted folder. Right-click on it and then choose “Put Back”. After that, the folder will be saved in the original location.

Solution 2. Retrieve deleted folder in Time Machine

You can recover deleted data on Mac from a recent backup if you have enabled Time Machine backup, even if the Trash Bin has been emptied. If no backup was previously created, this method is useless.

Step 1. On your Mac, open Time Machine on the desktop.

Step 2. You can find the specific documents you want to restore using the onscreen up and down arrows to locate them. Then you can preview it by pressing Space Bar.

Step 3. Finally, click the "Restore" button, and then the deleted file will be returned to its original location. 

Solution 3. Use Terminal to restore deleted folder

Another excellent option is using Terminal, which allows you to recover deleted documents without the software.

To restore deleted files on Mac via Terminal, follow these steps:

Step 1. Navigate to "Finder" > "Applications" > "Utilities" and  double-click "Terminal".

Step 2. Type command cd.Trash and press the "Return" key on your Mac (xxx means the name of the deleted documents).

Step 3. Input "mv xxx../" and hit "Return".

Step 4. Type "Quit" in the Terminal to exit the Terminal window. 

Then, you can bring back lost data and open it easily.

Bonus tip: How to recover the folder from iPhone?

Apart from the computer or Mac, the Phone is being increasingly significant for people, which is also frequently used to store files. However, what if you accidentally delete some folder or files on our iPhone and you didn’t backup before, what can you do to recover them?

Under the circumstance, we could utilize a professional recovery tool, AOMEI Data Recovery for iOS.

★Highlights of AOMEI Data Recovery for iOS:

 With it, you are able to restore notes, photos, videos, calendars and so on.

 You are allowed to preview the files before the recovery.

 It is almost compatible with all models of iPhone. The operation is quite easy. Even if you are new to computers, it can be performed very well.

Download it and you can enjoy it.

FAQs:

☞ Why is my deleted folder not in Recycle Bin on Windows 10?

As we mentioned before, if you used Shift + Delete to delete the folders, then the files would be permanently deleted and it seems not possible to recover the folder or file from Recycle Bin.

☞ How do I recover a folder I deleted in Outlook?

Recovering a deleted folder is available if it is still in your Deleted Items folder. You could locate it in Deleted Items folder and then change it to another location in the folder list.

☞ Can I recover permanently deleted files from my Computer?

It is totally possible to recover permanently deleted files from your computer. If you didn’t find it on your Recycle Bin, then the ways above are useful to you. Of course, if you are seeking the most efficient and easiest way, AOMEI Data Recovery suits you very well.

Final words

In this guide, we introduce 4 solutions to help you restore deleted folder on Windows 11, 10, 8, 7 as well as illustrate 3 ways how to recover deleted folder on Mac. Moreover, if you lost your folder or files on your iPhone or iPad, you could use AOMEI Data Recovery for iOS to help you get them back.