How to Recover Deleted Files & Images From an Emptied Recycle Bin

Items emptied from the Recycle Bin may be recovered with various third-party software.

Microsoft Windows operating systems store deleted filed in the recycle bin until they are permanently deleted by the user. Although Windows does not offer users a way to recover permanently deleted files, several third-party applications do.

Instructions

1. Download a third-party recovery program by conducting a search at Cnet Download's software database (see Resources for link). Several popular options exist, including Virtual Lab, File Restoration and Pandora Recovery.

2. Follow the on-screen instructions to install and open the selected software program. Be sure to close other applications so that the installation is not interrupted by those applications.

3. Select the drive and file name to be recovered. Depending on the program selected, files may be recovered by searching for files with the same extension. For example, Microsoft Word documents end in the ".doc" or ".docx" format. If the file name cannot be located, attempt to find the file by searching by file extension.

4. Save the recovered file on your hard drive.

References

• PCWorld: Downloads: Restoration

Resources

• Cnet Download.com: File Recovery Software