window 10 recovery file software download lost or deleted files. Note: If you've recently updated and are having problems finding files, see lost files after the upgrade to Windows 10. If you can't find a file on your computer or you accidently modified or deleted a file, you can restore it from a backup (if you're using Windows backup) or you can try to restore it from a previous version . Previous versions are copies of files and folders that Windows automatically saves as part of a restore point. Previous versions are sometimes referred to as shadow copies . To restore a file from a backup, make sure the media or drive that your backup is saved on is available, and then follow these steps: To restore files from a backup. Open by selecting the button , selecting Control Panel , selecting System and Maintenance , and then selecting Backup and Restore . Select Restore my files , and then follow the steps in the wizard. Restore deleted files and folders or restore a file or folder to a previous state. To restore a deleted file or folder. Open Computer by selecting the Start button , and then selecting Computer . Navigate to the folder that used to contain the file or folder, right-click it, and then select Restore previous versions. If the folder was the top level of a drive, for example C:\, right-click the drive, and then select Restore previous versions . You'll see a list of available previous versions of the file or folder. The list will include files saved on a backup (if you are using Windows Backup to back up your files) as well as restore points, if both types are available. Note: To restore a previous version of a file or folder that's included in a library, right-click the file or folder in the location where it's saved, rather than in the library. For example, to restore a previous version of a picture that's included in the Pictures library but is stored in the My Pictures folder, right-click the My Pictures folder, and then select Restore previous versions. Some previous versions of files. Double-click a previous version of the folder that contains the file or folder you want to restore. (For example, if a file was deleted today, choose a version of the folder from yesterday, which should contain the file.) Drag the file or folder that you want to restore to another location, such as your desktop or another folder. The version of the file or folder is saved to the location that you selected. Tip: If you don't remember the exact file or folder name or its location, you can search for it by typing part of the name in the search box in the Documents library. To restore a file or folder to a previous state. Right-click the file or folder, and then select Restore previous versions . You'll see a list of available previous versions of the file or folder. The list will include files saved on a backup (if you're using Windows Backup to back up your files) as well as restore points, if both types are available. The Previous Versions tab , showing some previous versions of files. Before restoring a previous version of a file or folder, select the previous version, and then click Open to view it to make sure it's the version you want. Note: You can't open or previous versions of files that were created by Windows Backup, but you can restore them. To restore a previous version, select the previous version, and then select Restore . Warning: The file or folder replaces the current version on your computer, and the replacement can't be undone. Note: If the Restore button is unavailable, you can't restore a previous version of the file or folder to its original location. You might be able to open it or save it to a different location. Create a recovery drive. It's a good idea to create a recovery drive. That way, if your PC ever experiences a major issue such as hardware failure, you'll be able to use the recovery drive to reinstall Windows 10. Windows updates to improve security and PC performance periodically so it is recommended to recreate the recovery drive annually. Personal files and any applications that did not come with your PC will not be backed up. You'll need a USB drive that's at least 16 gigabytes. Warning: Use an empty USB drive because this process will erase any data that's already stored on the drive. To create a recovery drive in Windows 10: In the search box next to the Start button, search for Create a recovery drive and then select it. You might be asked to enter an admin password or confirm your . When the tool opens, make sure Back up system files to the recovery drive is selected and then select Next. Connect a USB drive to your PC, select it, and then select Next. Select Create. Many files need to be copied to the recovery drive, so this might take a while. If you ever need to use the recovery drive to reinstall Windows 10 on your PC, see Recovery options in Windows 10 for further instructions. It's a good idea to back up your files frequently because the recovery drive isn't a system image. It doesn't contain your personal files, settings, or programs. Need options for creating a recovery drive? To download Windows 10 installation media, see Recovery options in Windows 10. Windows 10 Recovery Tools Guide and Free Download | 2021. You may want to download or create recovery tools in Windows 10 (32 Bit and 64 Bit) to fix system errors and restore PC to a normal state. But which recovery tool should you use? How? Here are all the all the info you need to know. By Delia / Last Updated May 17, 2021. What Recovery Tools Are Available in Windows 10? Your isn’t impregnable - it can easily go wrong or even crash for various reasons. That's why you need recovery tool to fix problems and repair your computer. But specifically, what recovery tools are available in windows 10? In addition to the installation disk provided by manufacturer, you’ve probably heard about recovery drive, repair disk, and installation media. To explain these Windows 10 recovery tools better, here’s the official definition: You can use a recovery drive to reset it or troubleshoot problems. If you back up system files to this drive, you’ll also be able to reinstall Windows. A system repair disc can be used to boot your computer. It also contains Windows system recovery tools that can you recover Windows from a serious error or restore your computer from a system image. You can use installation media (a USB flash drive or DVD) to install a new copy of Windows, perform a clean installation, or reinstall Windows 10. All these recovery tools seem to help you recover a faulty Windows 10 computer even when it fails to boot. But which one should you choose to solve your problem exactly? Which Windows 10 Recovery Tool Should You Choose? Windows 10 Recovery drive and Repair disc are functionally similar. They both include Windows 10 recovery options like System Restore, System Image Recovery, Startup Repair, Command Prompt, etc. But, a recovery drive also includes system files to reinstall Windows 10, while Repair disc doesn't. And the required media to create them are also different. As for Installation Media , you need to download the MediaCreationTool from , then create USB with corresponding copy of Windows 10, or save the ISO file, burn it into /DVD. It’s usually used to upgrade a PC from Windows 7/Windows 8.1 to Windows 10, or reinstall Windows 10 on a PC you’ve already activated Windows 10. In summary, make sure whether you want to reinstall or troubleshoot Windows 10 before picking recovery tools, and then take a look at which device you have that can be used as recovery media. Thus you should have a conclusion. How to Create and Use Windows 10 Recovery Tool? [with Free Download] After deciding which Windows 10 recovery tool to create, the remaining question is how to create and use them. You can click following anchor text to jump to the one you want. Tool 1. How to create and use Windows 10 recovery USB? Caution: ☛ To create a Windows 10 recovery tool in USB, you need a USB drive that's at least 16 gigabytes. ☛ The data stored on USB drive will be erased in the process, so it’s better to use an empty USB. Otherwise you can backup the USB drive first. How to create a Windows 10 recovery USB: 1. Connect your USB, search for “recovery drive” on the taskbar and launch it. 2. Tick Backup system files to the recovery drive and click Next . 3. Wait for a while, and select the detected USB drive. Then click Next . 4. Then click Create and wait for it to complete. After finishing, eject the USB. Here's a video to show you how to create a Windows 10 recovery tool using USB: How to use a Windows 10 recovery USB: 1. When your PC breaks down and fail to boot Windows, insert the USB and restart the computer. If it can’t boot into the recovery environment, then press the required key to enter BIOS and select the recovery USB as the first boot option. 2. Choose the keyboard layout and choose Troubleshoot . Here are 2 options: Recover from a USB and Advanced options . Choosing the former will lead to Windows 10 reinstallation, and the latter will lead you to normal recovery options. Tool 2. How to create and use Windows 10 repair CD/DVD?

Caution: ☛ The system repair disc must be the same architecture (32-bit or 64-bit) as the installed OS. To check the architecture of your system, go to “Control Panel” > “System” > “System ”. How to create a Windows 10 repair disc: 1. Insert the CD or DVD. Search for “Backup and Restore” on the taskbar and launch it. 2. Select Go to Backup and Restore (Windows 7) then click Create a system repair disc . 3. Select the inserted disc and click Create disc . Wait for a few minutes till it finishes. How to use a Windows 10 repair disc: 1. Insert the CD or DVD and power up your computer. If it can’t boot from the disc, then enter BIOS with the required key, and select the disc as the first boot option. 2. Choose keyboard layout and select Troubleshoot . Then you could access the Windows 10 recovery option you want. Tool 3. How to create and use Windows 10 installation media?

Caution: ☛ The download depends on your internet connection. ☛ To create an installation media, you should prepare a blank USB flash drive with at least 8 GB, or a blank DVD (and DVD burner). If you USB or DVD isn’t blank, the data stored on it will be erased. Then please make a backup in advance to avoid data loss. ☛ If you're told the disc image file is too large when burning a DVD from the ISO file, please use dual layer (DL) DVD media. ☛ You’ll need your 25-character product key to activate Windows. Learn how to find Windows 10 product key. How to create Windows 10 installation media: 1. Go to the download page of MediaCreationTool, click Download tool now . It will help you create Windows 10 ISO file. 2. Launch this tool, Accept the terms and choose Create installation media for another PC and click Next . 3. Select the Language, Edition and Architecture of the PC you want to repair install. If it’s the computer you are using, tick Use the recommended options for this PC , otherwise please uncheck it and choose accordingly. Then click Next to continue. To check the architecture (32-bit or 64-bit) of a computer, go to “Control Panel” > “System” and find the “System type”. 4. Choose USB flash drive or ISO file here . If you want to create an installation DVD, choose ISO file as well. Then click Next to download Windows 10. 5. If you choose ISO files in the last step, once it’s finished, you can locate the file directly, or choose Open DVD burner to create the installation DVD. Optionally, you can double-click the Windows disc image to mount it directly, then launch setup file to perform a repair install. But this way the installation media can only be used inside Windows, and on the same computer. If your computer fails to boot, it can’t help. How to repair install Windows 10 with installation media: 1. Mount the ISO file directly or insert the created media to boot another computer. Take the first case as an example, you could choose Not right now and click Next . Booting a computer with installation USB or DVD will lead you to the Windows 10 installation process. 2. Accept the terms and confirm the information in Ready to install page. If it’s alright, click Install to get started. Otherwise you could click Change what to keep to change the settings. Tool 4. Alternative to create Windows 10 recovery media or boot option easily. Windows 10 recovery tool, as the name suggests, is used to recover Windows 10 and make the computer work normally again. Usually you can perform System Restore or System Image Recovery after entering recovery environment, the whole process isn’t very simple, though. It may take much time to do all the preparations but fail for a small mistake, like unable to create Window 10 recovery drive, unable to create system image backup, Windows cannot find system image on this computer, etc. If you want to avoid these situations, and take a simpler approach to repair or restore system, you could free download Windows 10 recovery tool below to have a try. AOMEI Backupper Standard, this backup & restore freeware works on all Windows OS. You could use it to back up Windows 10 regularly, and restore it to any earlier time point when needed. If your computer breaks down and couldn’t boot into Windows, there are also integrated features to create Windows 10 recovery media or a startup recovery option . Compared with other Windows 10 recovery tools, it’s easier to operate and more likely to succeed. Here I’ll show you the basic operation.

Tips: ☛ Just as you need to pre-create a system image to perform Windows System Image Recovery, using bootable media created by this software also requires you to do System Backup with it in advance. The process is quite simple and you can add a schedule to automatically back up Windows 10 on regular basis. ☛ If the computer is no longer bootable, you can create the recovery media and system image on another working Windows PC, and use them to boot the faulty one. To restore a system image created on different hardware, you could tick Universal Restore (available in Professional and higher editions) to make the computer bootable. How to create a removable Windows 10 recovery media: 1. Go to Tools tab and choose Create Bootable Media . 2. Choose Windows PE and the created media will be able to boot from legacy/MBR and UEFI/GPT. Click Next to continue. 3. Choose the recovery media you want to create, CD/DVD or USB. You can also save the Windows 10 recovery tool as ISO file. Click Next and wait for the creation to finish. Note: You can also create a self-booting Windows 10 recovery option without any media. Just select “Tools” > “Recovery Environment” > “Enable the boot option of AOMEI Backupper recovery environment” > “OK”. Then this option will appear automatically from next boot, and continue booting Windows after a few seconds if you do nothing. This recovery tool doesn’t require any device, but can only take effect on the same computer. How to restore system with the Windows 10 recovery media: 1. Connect the bootable CD/DVD/USB, or choose the enabled recovery environment to enter Windows PE. Wait for AOMEI Backupper popping up. 2. Select Restore and choose Select Task or Select Image File to locate the system image. If it’s on a removable device, connect it first. 3. Choose Restore this system backup , confirm the operation and Start Restore . Remember to tick Universal Restore if the system image is created on dissimilar hardware. Conclusion. You could create Windows 10 recovery tools like recovery USB, repair disk, installation media to fix system problems. But if you find the process too complicated, or Windows 10 recovery tool not working, you can also use AOMEI Backupper to create bootable media or startup recovery option. In addition to system recovery, AOMEI Backupper is also a complete backup & clone program offering your computer continuous data protection. Even if you want to the hard drive and avoid reinstallation from scratch, it could help you migrate Windows 10 from HDD to SSD. How to Use Microsoft’s “Windows File Recovery” on Windows 10. Microsoft’s Windows File Recovery is an official tool for recovering deleted files from hard disks, SD cards, USB drives, and other storage media. Here’s an in-depth, step-by-step guide on using this command-line utility. What You Need to Know. Microsoft’s Windows File Recovery tool doesn’t have a graphical interface—it’s only a command-line utility. We’ll show you how to use it, but it’s a more hands-on process than you might expect from an official Microsoft utility available in Windows 10’s Store. This tool requires you’ve installed Windows 10’s May 2020 Update or a newer version of Windows 10. It doesn’t run on older versions of Windows. Whether Microsoft’s tool can actually find and recover a file you’ve deleted depends on the drive. Deleted files aren’t removed from hard drives immediately, but they often are removed from solid-state drives immediately. If you’ve written a lot of data to a device like an SD card since you’ve deleted the file, it’s likely that the file’s data may have been overwritten. Even if you manage to recover a file, you may only get some of the file’s data—the file may be corrupted. You can only get whatever data is still on the drive. There are no guarantees here, and that’s why backups are so important. The utility also has multiple modes intended for different situations and file systems. We’ll explain which you should use and how to use them. How to Install Windows File Recovery. To get started, install the Windows File Recovery tool from the to get started. You can open the Store and search for “Windows File Recovery” or just click that link to open the Store. Once it’s installed, open your Start menu and search for “File Recovery.” Launch the “Windows File Recovery” shortcut once and click “Yes” to the UAC prompt. You’ll see a Command Prompt window with Administrator access. This is where you’ll run the File Recovery commands. You can use other command-line environments like the Windows Terminal and PowerShell, but be sure to launch them with Administrator access. (In the Start menu, right-click the one you want to use and select “Run as Administrator.”) How to Recover Deleted Files on Windows 10. To use this tool, you will run the winfr command, specifying the drive you want to search for the deleted file, the destination you want to save it to, and the various switches that control what the tool searches for and how it searches. You must save the deleted file to a different drive. Here’s the basic : After running the command, the tool will automatically create a directory named “Recovery_[date and time]” on the destination drive you specify. Which Mode Should You Use? Before you continue, you should determine the “mode” you want to scan for the deleted file. There are three modes, Default, Segment, and Signature. Default is the fastest mode, while Segment is similar but slower and more thorough. Signature mode can search for files by type—it supports ASF, JPEG, MP3, MPEG, PDF, PNG, and ZIP files. (Searching for “ZIP” files will also find Office documents stored in formats like DOCX, XLSX, and PPTX.) You’ll need to know what file system the drive you’ll be scanning is formatted with. To find this, open File Explorer, right-click the drive under This PC, and select “Properties.” You’ll see the file system displayed on the “General” tab. Here’s when you should use the different modes: Are you trying to find a file you recently deleted on a drive formatted with NTFS, which is the default Windows 10 file system? Use Default mode. If you’re scanning an NTFS drive in another situation—for example, if you deleted the file a while ago, you formatted the drive, or you’re dealing with a corrupt drive—try Segment mode first and then try Signature mode afterward. Are you trying to find a file stored on a FAT, exFAT, or ReFS drive? Use Signature mode. The Default and Segment modes only work on NTFS file systems. If you’re in doubt, just start with Default mode. You can then try Segment and then Signature if Default mode doesn’t work. How to Recover a File in Default Mode. To use the default mode, you use /n followed by a search path: To search for a file named document.docx, you’d use /n document.docx . You can also specify a full path to the file, such as /n \Users\Bob\Documents\document.docx To search for all files that were in the Documents folder if your username is Bob, you’d use /n \Users\Bob\Documents . To search with a wildcard, use a *. For example /n \Users\Bob\Documents\*.docx will find all DOCX files there were in the Documents folder. Let’s put that all together now. To search for all DOCX files on drive C: and copy them to drive D:, you’d run the following command: You will have to type “y” to continue. As we mentioned above, you’ll find the recovered files in a directory named “Recovery_[date and time]” on the destination drive you specified in the command line. To find all files with a word in their name, use wildcards. So, to find all documents with “project” anywhere in their name, you’d run: You can specify multiple searches with multiple /n switches. So, to find all Word, Excel, and PowerPoint files, you’d run the following: To search for a specific file named important_document.pdf that was in the \Users\Bob\Documents folder on drive C:—and then save it to drive D: —you’d use: How to Recover a File in Segment Mode. Segment mode works almost exactly like Default mode. To use segment mode, which examines file record segments, you use /r in addition to /n . In other words, you can construct Segment mode recovery commands in the same way you construct Default mode commands—just add the /r . For example, to recover all deleted MP3 files from your C: drive and save them to your D: drive, you’d run: So, if a Default mode search doesn’t find what you’re looking for, add the /r and try again. How to Recover a File in Signature Mode. Signature mode works a bit differently. It examines file types, so it can only find deleted files of certain file types. To use Signature mode, you use /x to specify Signature mode and /y: to list the file type groups you’d like to search for. Here’s a list of supported file types and the groups they’re sorted into, taken from Microsoft’s documentation: ASF : wma, wmv, asf JPEG : jpg, jpeg, jpe, jif, jfif, jfi MP3 : mp3 MPEG : mpeg, mp4, mpg, m4a, m4v, m4b, m4r, mov, 3gp, qt PDF : pdf PNG : png ZIP : zip, docx, xlsx, pptx, odt, ods, odp, odg, odi, odf, odc, odm, ott, otg, otp, ots, otc, oti, otf, oth. Note that the “ZIP” group includes ZIP files in addition to Microsoft Office and OpenDocument documents. You can pull up this list at any time by running the following command: Let’s say you want to search drive E: for images in JPEG format and save them to drive D:. You’d run the following command: You can specify multiple file groups by separating them with a space. So, if you want to find JPEG files, PDFs, and Word documents, you’d run: More Help With winfr. More information is available on Microsoft’s official winfr documentation page. You’ll find a detailed list of all winfr ‘s command-line options on that page, too. For a refresher on the basics, just run winfr or winfr /? . There are also additional advanced options you can see by running winfr /! . Recover lost files on Windows 10. If you can’t locate a lost file from your backup, then you can use Windows File Recovery, which is a command line app available from the Microsoft Store. Use this app to try to recover lost files that have been deleted from your local storage device (including internal drives, external drives, and USB devices) and can’t be restored from the Recycle Bin. Recovery on cloud storage and network file shares is not supported. Note This app requires Windows 10 build 19041 or later (See which version of Windows 10 you have). Important: If you want to increase your chances of recovering a file, minimize or avoid using your computer. In the Windows file system, the space used by a deleted file is marked as free space, which means the file data can still exist and be recovered. But any use of your computer can create files, which may over-write this free space at any time. Windows File Recovery - Winter 2020 release. If necessary, download and launch the app from Microsoft Store. Press the Windows key, enter Windows File Recovery in the search box, and then select Windows File Recovery . When you are prompted to allow the app to make changes to your device, select Yes . In the Command Prompt window, enter the command in the following format: winfr source-drive: destination-drive: [/mode] [/switches] There are 2 basic modes you can use to recover files: Regular and Extensive. Regular mode examples. Recover your Documents folder from your C: drive to the recovery folder on an E: drive. Don’t forget the backslash (\) at the end of the folder. Winfr C: E: /regular /n \Users\\Documents\ Recover PDF and Word files from your C: drive to the recovery folder on an E: drive. Winfr C: E: /regular /n *.pdf /n *.docx. Extensive mode examples. Recover any file with the string "invoice" in the filename by using wildcard characters. Winfr E: C: /extensive /n *invoice* Recover jpeg and png photos from your Pictures folder to the recovery folder on an E: drive. Winfr C: E: /extensive /n \Users\\Pictures\*.JPEG /n\Users\\Pictures\*.PNG. The source and destination drives must be different. When recovering from the operating system drive (often C: ), use the /n switches to specify the user files or folder. Microsoft automatically creates a recovery folder for you called, Recovery_ on the destination drive. When you are prompted for confirmation to continue, enter Y to start the recovery operation. Depending on the size of your source drive, this may take a while. To stop the recovery process, press Ctrl + C . The following information can help you decide which file system you have and which mode to use. File systems. File system. SD cards, flash or USB drives (< 4GB) Computers (HDD, SSD), external hard drives, flash or USB drives (> 4GB) There are several file systems supported by Windows that vary depending on the storage device or operating system. Recovering files from non- NTFS file systems is only supported by extensive mode. To see which file system you have, right click a drive in File Explorer and select Properties . Deciding which mode to use. Use the following table to help you decide which mode to use. If you are not sure, start with Regular mode. Deleted a while ago. After formatting a disk. A corrupted disk. General syntax. The following table summarizes what each advanced switch is used for. Parameter / switch. Description. Supported mode(s) Specifies the storage device where the files were lost. Must be different from the destination-drive. Specifies the storage device and folder on which to put the recovered files. Must be different from the source-drive. Regular mode, the standard recovery option for non-corrupted NTFS drives. Extensive mode, a thorough recovery option suitable for all file systems. Scans for a specific file by using a file name, file path, file type, or wildcards. For example: File name: /n myfile.docx. File path: /n /users//Documents/ Wildcard: /n myfile.* Summary of syntax and switches for general users. Summary of syntax and switches for advanced users. Advanced syntax. The following table summarizes what each advanced switch is used for. Description. Supported modes. NTFS mode, a fast recovery option for healthy NTFS drives using the master file table. Segment mode, recovery option for NTFS drives using file record segments. Signature mode, recovery option for all file system types using file headers. Recover specific extension groups, comma separated. Signature mode extension groups and supported file types. Saves a log file of the recovery operation in a different location than the default location on the recovery drive (for example, D:\logfile). Overrides user prompts, which is useful in a script file. Recovers undeleted files, for example, from the Recycle Bin. Recovers system files. Specifies whether to always (a), never (n), orkeep both always(b) when choosing whether to overwrite a file. The default action is to prompt to overwrite. Recovers files without primary data streams. To keep your results manageable and focus on user files, some file types are filtered by default, but this switch removes that filter. For a complete list of these file types, see the information after this table. Specifies which file types are filtered. For a complete list of these file types, see the information after this table. Specifies the number of sectors on the source device. To find sector information, use fsutil. Specifies the cluster size (allocation unit) on the source device. File extension filter list. The following file types are filtered from results by default. Use the /e switch to disable this filter or the /e: filter to specify file types not to filter. _, adm, admx, appx, appx, ascx, asm, aspx, aux, ax, bin, browser, c, cab, cat cdf-ms, catalogItem, cdxm, cmake, cmd, coffee, config, cp, cpp, cs, cshtm, css, cur, dat, dll, et, evtx, exe, fon, gpd, h, hbakedcurve, htm, htm, ico, id, ildl, ilpdb, iltoc, iltocpdb, in, inf, inf_loc, ini, js, json, lib, lnk, log, man, manifest, map, metadata, mf, mof, msc, msi, mui, mui, mum, mun, nls, npmignore, nupkg, nuspec, obj, p7s, p7x, pak, pckdep, pdb, pf, pkgdef, plist, pnf, pp, pri, props, ps1, ps1xm, psd1, psm1, py, resjson, resw, resx, rl, rs, sha512, snippet, sq, , t4, targets, th, tlb, tmSnippet, toc, ts, tt, ttf, vb, vbhtm, vbs, vsdir, vsix, vsixlangpack, vsixmanifest, vstdir, vstemplate, vstman, winmd, xam, xbf, xm, xrm-ms, xs, xsd, ym. Can you give some tips to help me use the correct syntax? Always use drive letters in the source and destination path, don’t forget the colon (:) after the drive letter, and make sure there is a space between the source and destination. When you specify just a folder name, such as /n \Myfolder\, add a backslash (\) at the end of it. If a file or folder name has spaces, surround it with quotes. For example: winfr C: E: /regular /n "\Users\\Documents\Quarterly Statement.docx" What does mean in the command examples? In the File Explorer address bar, enter C:\users to see a list of potential users on your computer. There may be several users on your computer, including you, the administrator, and the default account. When you see in a file path, it is a placeholder for the current username on your computer. Why am I getting this message: "Source and Destination cannot refer to the same physical partition?" The source and destination drive or partition path should not be the same. If you only have one drive, use a USB or external hard drive as your destination path. Don’t create a partition after losing data, because this reduces the chance of a successful recovery. Why does the recovery operation take so long? ​Depending on the size of the disk, it may take some time to recover the file, especially if you are using Extensive mode. Why are additional files recovered from my operating system drive? Behind the scenes, Windows is constantly creating and deleting files. By default, Windows File Recovery filters out these files, but some slip through. To prevent this, use the /n as per examples in this article. What is the $Recycle.Bin folder? For NTFS and segment modes, you may also see lost files recovered from the Recycle Bin (files either in the recycle bin or that were permanently deleted) with the name $files.xxx and stored in a folder called $RECYCLE.BIN. What happens if the destination drive is full? If you see the following message: "Destination disk is full, please free up space before resuming: (R)esume, (S)kip file, or (A)bort," free up drive space on the destination drive, and then choose one of the options. I was not able to recover the file, now what? If you used Regular mode, try again in extensive mode if the file type is supported. It's possible that the free space was overwritten, especially on a solid-state drive (SSD). If you need help, contact your administrator. Windows File Recovery - Summer 2020 release. If necessary, download and launch the app from Microsoft Store. Press the Windows key, enter Windows File Recovery in the search box, and then select Windows File Recovery. When you are prompted to allow the app to make changes to your device, select Yes . In the Command Prompt window, enter the command in the following format: winfr source-drive: destination-drive: [/switches] The source and destination drives must be different. When recovering from the operating system drive (often C: ), use the /n and /y: switches to specify the user files or folder. Microsoft automatically creates a recovery folder for you called Recovery_ on the destination drive. There are three modes you can use to recover files: Default, Segment, and Signature. Default mode examples. Recover a specific file from your C: drive to the recovery folder on an E: drive. winfr C: E: /n \Users\\Documents\QuarterlyStatement.docx. Recover jpeg and png photos from your Pictures folder to the recovery folder on an E: drive. winfr C: E: /n \Users\\Pictures\*.JPEG /n \Users\\Pictures\*.PNG. Recover your Documents folder from your C: drive to the recovery folder on an E: drive. winfr C: E: /n \Users\\Documents\ Don’t forget the backslash (\) at the end of the folder. Segment mode examples (/r) Recover PDF and Word files from your C: drive to the recovery folder on an E: drive. winfr C: E: /r /n *.pdf /n *.docx. Recover any file with the string "invoice" in the filename by using wildcard characters. winfr C: E: /r /n *invoice* Signature mode examples (/x) When using signature mode, it's helpful to first see the supported extension groups and corresponding file types. winfr /# Recover JPEG (jpg, jpeg, jpe, jif, jfif, jfi) and PNG photos from your C: drive to the recovery folder on an E: drive. winfr C: E: /x /y:JPEG,PNG. Recover ZIP files (zip, docx, xlsx, ptpx, and so on) from your C: drive to the recovery folder on an E: drive. winfr C: E:\RecoveryTest /x /y:ZIP. When you are prompted for confirmation to continue, enter Y to start the recovery operation. Depending on the size of your source drive, this may take a while. To stop the recovery process, press Ctrl+C . The following information can help you decide which file system you have and which mode to use. File systems. There are several file systems supported by Windows that vary depending on the storage device or operating system. Recovering files from non- NTFS file systems is only supported in signature mode. To see which file system you have, right click a drive in File Explorer and select Properties . File system. SD cards, flash or USB drives (< 4GB) Windows Server and Windows Pro for Workstations. Computers (HDD, SSD), external hard drives, flash or USB drives (> 4GB) Deciding which mode to use. Use the following table to help you decide which mode to use. If you're not sure, start with the default mode. File system. Circumstances. Recommended mode. Deleted a while ago. Segment, followed by Signature. After formatting a disk. Segment, followed by Signature. A corrupted disk. Segment, followed by Signature. Recovery file type is supported (see following table) Signature mode extension groups and file types. The following table summarizes the extension groups and the supported file types for each group when you use the /y: switch. Extension group. jpg, jpeg, jpe, jif, jfif, jfi. mpeg, mp4, mpg, m4a, m4v, m4b, m4r, mov, 3gp, qt. zip, docx, xlsx, pptx, odt, ods, odp, odg, odi, odf, odc, odm, ott, otg, otp, ots, otc, oti, otf, oth. General syntax. The following table summarizes what each basic command line parameter and switch is used for. Parameter or switch. Description. Supported modes. Specifies the storage device where the files were lost. Must be different from the destination-drive. Specifies the storage device and folder on which to put the recovered files. Must be different from the source-drive. Uses segment mode, which examines File Record Segments (FRS). Scans for a specific file by using a file name, file path, or wildcards. For example: File name: /n myfile.docx. File path: /n /users//Documents/ Wildcard: /n myfile.* /n *.docx /n ** Uses signature mode, which examines file types and works on all file systems. Scans for files with specific file types. Separate multiple entries by using commas. For a list of extension groups and corresponding file types, see the table, "Signature mode extension groups and file types" in the section, "About modes and file systems". Shows signature mode extension groups and corresponding file types in each group. Shows a quick summary of syntax and switches for general users. Shows a quick summary of syntax and switches for advanced users. Advanced syntax. The following table summarizes what each advanced switch is used for. Description. Supported modes. Saves a log file of the recovery operation in a different location than the default location on the recovery drive (for example, D:\logfile). Overrides user prompts, which is useful in a script file. Recovers undeleted files, for example, from the Recycle Bin. Recovers system files. Specifies whether to always (a), never (n), orkeep both always(b) when choosing whether to overwrite a file. The default action is to prompt to overwrite. Recovers files without primary data streams. To keep your results manageable and focus on user files, some file types are filtered by default, but this switch removes that filter. For a complete list of these file types, see the information after this table. Specifies which file types are filtered. For a complete list of these file types, see the information after this table. Specifies the number of sectors on the source device. To find sector information, use fsutil. Specifies the cluster size (allocation unit) on the source device. First sector to scan on the source device. Can you give some tips to help me use correct syntax? Here are some suggestions: Always use drive letters in the source and destination path, don’t forget the colon (:) after the drive letter, and make sure there is a space between the source and destination. If a switch has a colon, such as /y:, don’t add a space between the colon and the rest of the value. When you specify just a folder name, such as /n \Myfolder\, add a backslash (\) at the end of it. If a file or folder name has spaces, surround it with quotes. For example: To stop the recovery process, press Ctrl+C . What does mean in the command examples? In the File Explorer address bar, enter C:\users to see a list of potential users on your computer. There may be several users on your computer, including you, the administrator, and the default account. When you see in a file path, it is a placeholder for the current username on your computer. Why am I getting this message: "Source and Destination cannot refer to the same physical partition?" The source and destination drive or partition path should not be the same. If you only have one drive, use a USB or external hard drive as your destination path. Don’t create a partition after losing data, because this reduces the chance of a successful recovery. Why does the recovery operation take so long? ​Depending on the size of the disk, it may take some time to recover the file, especially if you are using signature mode. Why are additional files recovered from my operating system drive? Behind the scenes, Windows is constantly creating and deleting files. By default, Windows File Recovery filters out these files, but some slip through. To prevent this, use the /n switch in default and segment modes and the /y: switch in signature mode. What is the $Recycle.Bin folder? For default and segment modes, you may also see lost files recovered from the Recycle Bin (files either in the recycle bin or that were permanently deleted) with the name $files.xxx and stored in a folder called $RECYCLE.BIN. What happens if the destination drive is full? If you see the following message: "Destination disk is full, please free up space before resuming: (R)esume, (S)kip file, or (A)bort", Free up drive space on the destination drive, and then choose one of the options. I was not able to recover the file, now what? If you used default or segment mode, try again in signature mode if the file type is supported. It's possible that the free space was over-written, especially on a solid state drive (SSD). If you need help, contact your administrator.