How to Recover Deleted Files on a Macintosh

Recover deleted files on your Macintosh computer.

Temporarily deleted files on your Macintosh computer are stored in the Trash bin, located on your Finder's screen dock. While these files won't show up in your system's folders, they will continue to take up space on your hard drive until they are permanently deleted. As long as the Trash bin has not been emptied, the files can be recovered back to your computer. Files previously stored in the Trash bin but no longer there require the use of a data recovery program to restore the files to your hard drive.

Instructions

1. Click the "Trash" icon located on your screen's dock to open the Trash window.

2. Click the file you wish to recover from the Trash bin and drag it to the desktop to remove it. Alternatively, right-click the file and select "Put Back" from the pop-up menu or click the file once to highlight it and click "Edit" and "Put Back" from the top of the screen.

3. Hold the "Shift" key while clicking the files in the Trash bin to highlight multiple files and drag the highlighted area to the desktop.

4. Click the "Finder" icon on your screen's dock and drag the files on your desktop to a specific folder.

Tips & Warnings

• Although data recovery applications are available to restore previously deleted information on your hard drive, it is important to avoid using your Macintosh computer until you plan to use the data recovery application. Each time an application is opened or a new file is saved, the space that contains deleted information is written over, which decreases the likelihood of successfully restoring your deleted files.

References

• Apple: Mac OS 10.4 Help: Removing Files From Your Computer
• "Mac OS X The Leopard Edition: The Missing Manual"; David Pogue; 2007