(Fixed) My Documents Folder Missing in Windows 7, 8, 10, 11

Help! My Documents Folder is Missing in Windows 7 

"Please help, I just found My Documents folder is missing in my username folder, and I haven’t deleted anything, I don’t know why it disappeared. Now, I have to restore the folder to its default location and tell me how, please, thanks a lot."

Yes, many users encounter the My Documents folder missing problem. The above user case can be one of the most popular situations, besides this, you may still find files in documents folder disappeared or the My document icon missing from desktop.  No matter what situation you encounter, this article will help you restore My Documents back to normal.

Why did My Documents disappear?

As mentioned above, the "My Documents folder missing Windows 7, 8, 10, 11" issue is very controversial, so the reasons are different. 

• For entire Document folders, it may get lost or misplaced for seemingly no reason.
• For files in Documents folder disappeared, it can be accidental deletion of files in the Document folder or the C: drive, or you factory reset or reinstall Windows 10, etc. 
• For the Document icon, it's likely to be a mistaken deletion. 

Anyway, this article helps you fix my documents folder missing or recover it easily. 

How to Fix My Document is Gone in Windows 7, 8, 10, 11

Generally, My Documents locates in C:\Users\USERNAME\Documents, please replace USERNAME with your current user name to find your corresponding location. If you cannot find the My Documents or Documents folder in Windows Explorer, you have to create a new one. There are 2 methods in the following.

Way 1: Create My Document folder via Registry 

1. Go Start and input regedt32 in the search box to run Registry Editor utility. Locate the path:

HKEY_CURRENT_USER\Software\Microsoft\Windows\CurrentVersion\Explorer\User Shell Folders

2. Then, verify the name and data value of the Documents folder, it should be: Personal, and %USERPROFILE%\Documents.  If not, change them to the right value.

Note: You could do the same to other sibling folders to fix User folders missing in Windows OS.

Way 2: Create My Document folder via CMD

1. Click on Start, and type cmd, then select it and Run as administrator.

2. Input the following command and click Enter to excute it.

attrib +r -s -h %USERPROFILE%\Documents /S /D

After recreating a new Document folder, reboot your computer, then it will back to desktop immediately.

How to Fix Files Missing from My Documents Folder

If you mistakenly delete files in My Documents or Documents folder, the first place is to check if it is in Recycle Bin. In general, Microsoft will send the deleted files to it before permanently deleted unless it's too large. Besides, you still can restore to previous version if create a file backup with File History .

Way 1: Restore Missing Files from Recycle Bin

1. Open the Recycle Bin on your Desktop. 

2. Select the files you want to restore. Right-click it, then click Restore to send them back to the Documents folder. 

Note: This method is applicable for the My Document folder missing instead of individual files in it. 

Way 4: Restore Missing Files to a Previous Version with File History 

File History is a built-in file backup software, which helps you backup all the user folders, in Windows 10, you can even backup specified folders is supported, and allows you to restore files to a previous point if something bad happens. 

1. Open the Documents folder. Click Home, then History.

2. Select the data you want to restore, then click the green restore button.

How to Put My Documents Folder on Desktop 

Sometimes, you can’t see My Documents on your desktop may because you just deleted the My Documents folder shortcut. Since the My Documents or Documents folder is still in Windows Explorer. If you are in such situation, try the create a shortcut for My Documents with the following methods.

Way 1: Get My Documents Folder Back via Windows Explorer 

Open Windows Explorer, right-click My Documents -> Send To -> Desktop (create shortcut) or Create shortcut, then you will find My Documents will show up. It also applies to Windows 10 and 11.

Way 2: Create a Missing My Document icon on Desktop 

Open Windows Explorer, right-click the My Documents folder, and click Copy. Then, go to the desktop, and then click Paste. Select Yes when you are asked to create a Desktop item that points to the My Documents folder instead.

Cannot Open my Documents folder in Windows PCs

Sometimes, you might just cannot open Documents folder in Windows 7/8/10/11 when you double-click the My Documents icon. These error messages you might receive:

• Windows cannot access the specified device, path, or file. You may not have the appropriate permission to access the item.

• The share name was not found. Be sure you typed it correctly.

• The location you requested is not allowed as a target. Please choose a new location.

This problem is caused when My Documents folder has been redirected to a network share that has become unavailable. There is the solution to work it out:

1. Right-click the Documents icon and choose Properties.

2. Choose the Sharing section, then change the Documents folder location from the network share to a local folder, then click OK.

Backup My Documents Folder to Avoid Any Data Loss 

The My Documents folder missing in Windows 7, 8, 10, and 11 is followed by data loss, thus if you don't want to lose any of the files or folders in it, it's suggested to backup My Documents folder and create a scheduled backup to keep a copy of your Document folder and all the changes made in it. And then you can restore the My Documents folder back to the desktop if it's missing in the future. 

AOMEI Backupper Standard is one of the best free backup software for Windows PCs, no matter what you want to backup, such as, files or folders, partitions, system, disk or directly creating a cloud backup. And you can enjoy the following advantages to make your data safe.

It supports daily, weekly, and monthly schedule backup, and more precisely, you can set the backup day, time, and intervals to make it run automatically. 

By default, it will backup only changed files with incremental backup in a scheduled task, thereby creating multiple versions but using less backup time and disk space. 

Besides, it will compress or split the backup image to a smaller one automatically. 

And you can backup My Documents folder to different locations, such as external drive, USB drive, network location, NAS, etc. 

 To get started, please download free backup software -  AOMEI Backupper Standard to have a try!  Windows XP, Vista, 7, 8, 8.1, 10 and 11 are supported. For server users, try AOMEI Backupper Server! 

1. First of all, open the freeware after installing it. Choose "Backup" and "File Backup" subsequently.

2. Type a new task name to distinguish it from other backups. Click “Add Folder” to select My Documents folder. And then, select a path below to store the backup image. You can backup to external hard drive, USB, network drive, NAS, etc. 

3. Click “Schedule Backup” > "Enable Schedule Backup" and select "Daily", "Weekly", "Monthly", "Event trigger", "USB plug in".  The last two options are only available on the professional version. And click "Start Backup" to backup My Documents folder and changed files automatically. 

You may feel good at the beginning, but in the long run, your backup disk may be fulfilled. To resolve this problem completely, you can choose to delete backup files using By quantity, By time,  By daily/weekly/monthly cleanup method. You need to upgrade to the professional or other advanced editions to enjoy it. 

Summary 

No matter what is your situation of My Documents folder missing in Windows 7, 8, 10, 11, you can restore files or this folder with above methods. To avoid any data loss due to My Documents folder missing, it's suggested to create backup it with free backup software - AOMEI Backupper Standard.

It not only allows you to create a duplicate copy, but also keep the changes on a regular basis. Its advanced edition still allows you to manage backup disk space in a professional way. Thus, you don't need to worry about it will get lost. To protect unlimited computers within your company, you can pick AOMEI Backupper Technician.