Sooner or later, each one of us will accidentally delete a file. Sometimes the recovery process is simple. Other times the process used to recover hard drive files can be extremely technical. In these few words, I am going to take you from the simple to the complex.
Simple Solution
Some deleted files can be recovered from the Windows trash bin. The process here is simple. Double left click on the Windows Recycle Bin. This opens a window into the recycle folder. The displayed content includes every deleted file that has not been permanently deleted by an empting of the trash bin. If the deleted file is displayed in the list, merely right click on the filename. This displays a list of options. Select Restore. When the confirmation dialog box is displayed, select the option to continue. The deleted file will be restored to its original location on your hard drive.
Using Software to Recover Hard Drive Files
Unfortunately, the simple solution often fails. Once the Recycle Bin has been emptied, it cannot be used to recover a deleted file. We must turn to special software.
Pay Attention: Cease using the hard drive that contains the deleted or damaged file. Every call to the hard drive increases the risk that the file will be permanently lost. Programs designed to recover hard drive files can only succeed if the space occupied by the deleted file has not been overwritten by new data.
Unless you are using a file-shredder software package, Windows never actually deletes the contents of a file. It merely reassigns the space by informing the system that the file is no longer active. With the right software, you can reset the file name and restore the file space to active use by the original file.
Now it would be senseless to waste what little space remains in trying to explain how you use any particular file recovery software. Thus I will finish this out by pointing to one particular free file retrieval tool.
Recuva by Piriform: http://www.piriform.com/recuva/builds. This free file recovery program is easy to use and easy to install. The download is small. Remembering that any use of the hard drive increases the risk of failure, it is critical that you download and utilize the portable version of Recuva (rcsetup139.zip). The software is wizard driven, meaning that the menu makes operation simple.
File retrieval software is not limited to the recovery of deleted files. In many cases it can recover data from virus infections, system crashes, and even what appears to be a fatal hard drive failure.