8 Proven Methods to Recover Deleted OneDrive Files

OneDrive refers to a file hosting service operated by Microsoft. As a rare place to keep your data saved online and free up the storage space of your devices, OneDrive is also one source of data loss due to improper operations or other unexpected situations. That means OneDrive is not 100% safe. Thus, it is necessary to go through this page to know how to recover deleted files from OneDrive.

Are Files Deleted in OneDrive Deleted Everywhere?

When removing a file on OneDrive by mistake or feeling regretful to delete a OneDrive file, you may wonder: will the deleted file in OneDrive disappear everywhere? Or can the deleted OneDrive file be recovered somehow?

Luckily enough, still it might remain somewhere after deletion. While its specific location will vary, which depends on how long you have deleted the file and which type of subscription plan you have chosen for OneDrive. Anyway, the good news is that there is always a good chance to restore deleted files on OneDrive.

Most Assured Tool to Recover Permanently Deleted Files from OneDrive

Provided that you have synchronized the OneDrive files to your computer, mostly with Windows system, Cisdem Data Recovery for Mac or Windows will be the most reliable and quickest way to retrieve OneDrive files if they are found to be purged incautiously.

Designed with optimal computer algorithm and high recovery rate, Cisdem Data Recovery gains a greater popularity over other competitors. This versatile tool is capable of handling various data loss cases like deletion, missing partition, unintentional formatting, system crash, power surge, human error, etc. Its users can restore permanently deleted files from OneDrive easily with no need of specialized knowledge on data recovery, also it can repair corrupted videos that you cannot open after a recovery.

Why is Cisdem Data Recovery the best software for OneDrive file recovery?

• Recover files directly back to cloud services including OneDrive.
• Repair damaged or unplayable video files (mp4, mov, avi, m4v, etc.)
• Support the retrieval of 200+ file types, like images, videos, audios, documents, emails, applications, etc.
• Both quick scan and deep scan used to find most files.
• Support the automatic detection and repair for corrupted images/documents
• Preview files before recovery to select the wanted ones only.
• Quick access to specific folders: Photos, Trash, Desktop, Documents, Downloads.
• Traceable scan results to avoid repeat scanning.
• Filter recoverable OneDrive files with keyword, file size, data created and date modified.
• Compatible with both Mac and Windows computer.

Now let’s see the step-by-step guide on how to restore a permanently deleted OneDrive file.

1. Download Cisdem Data Recovery.

Free Download   Free Download

2. Install and launch it on your computer.
3. Scan a partition.
   Go for Disk Data Recovery mode. All storage volumes / partitions connected with your computer will be displayed on the right panel. Select the exact one where you stored the deleted OneDrive file. And click “Search for lost files” to start.
4. Find the OneDrive file.
   Once scanning process done, the software will list all scanned files based on different file categories. Use filter tools or search bar to specify the deleted OneDrive file you want to restore. You can preview it to make sure it’s what you really need.
5. Recover the OneDrive file.
   Pick out the desired OneDrive file from all the recoverable items. Finally, click “Recover” to retrieve it back to your computer or directly to OneDrive.

OneDrive Recover Deleted Files in 7 Ways

In addition to the dedicated tool --- Cisdem Data Recovery, OneDrive is potential to restore its deleted files in another 7 ways using its built-in recovery features. Actually these 7 solutions are not guaranteed to be definitely practicable but still worth a shot. Read on to learn them in details.

Solution 1: OneDrive Recycle Bin

OneDrive has its own Recycle Bin like the computer in Windows operating system. If OneDrive files were removed not long ago, one direct way is to check its Recycle Bin. As below are the tutorial.

1. Navigate to https://onedrive.live.com/. Sign in with your OneDrive account if it’s your first time entering into OneDrive online.
2. Click a hamburger icon at the upper-left corner > choose “Recycle Bin” from the menu list.
3. Find the deleted files you wish to recover > click on the checkbox on the left of their file names > hit “Restore” option to revert the deleted OneDrive files back to their original location.

If planning to retrieve all the deleted files available, you can also choose “Restore all items” after opening the Recycle Bin.

Solution 2: OneDrive Second-stage Recycle Bin

OneDrive Recycle Bin has been automatically emptied after 30 or 93 days or manually cleared? Just head for the Second-stage Recycle Bin on OneDrive. Bear in mind that this Recycle Bin is only available for business users, not for free OneDrive accounts. Here’s how to recover files deleted from OneDrive Recycle Bin.

1. Go to OneDrive Recycle Bin by following the steps covered in Solution 1.
2. A hint message is showed at the bottom, which contains a link with anchor text “Second-stage recycle bin”.
3. Click the anchor text to go inside this bin > select out the lost files you desire > click “Restore”. Then the deleted files will be back to OneDrive.

Solution 3: Computer’s Recycle Bin / Trash

If the deleted files fail to be found in the OneDrive Recycle Bin of 2 levels, proceed to check the local Recycle Bin on your Windows computer or the Trash on your Mac. Supposing you deleted an online-only file from OneDrive, skip over this part and explore other solutions. This one will work only if the OneDrive files were synced to your computer beforehand. 

Here I’ll take Windows Recycle Bin for example and show you how to restore OneDrive files from it. As for Mac Trash, steps are quite similar.

1. Open Recycle Bin on the desktop.
2. Scroll down to locate the file removed from OneDrive.
3. Right-click on it > select Restore option. The file will then go back to its original location on your computer.

Solution 4: OneDrive Search Everything Box

At times your missing files are actually not deleted on OneDrive. They are just put into the wrong folders because of improper organization, thus being invisible to you. In this condition, OneDrive Search feature can come to the rescue for digging out your lost file from numerous files or folders. See below for the instructions.

1. Enter the OneDrive Live page on your browser and log in to your account.
2. Hit the Search everything box at the top > type the name of your lost file into it > press Enter to see if your missing file is in the results.

Solution 5: Local OneDrive Folder

Check local OneDrive folder is also a possible way for OneDrive to restore deleted files not in Recycle Bin. What is local OneDrive folder? Microsoft OneDrive automatically copies all online files to a special folder (called OneDrive) on your Windows computer in a real-time manner. So that your files might be still saved in this local folder even though erased from the cloud server. Let’s see how to access this folder.

1. Click the Windows icon on the bottom menu bar.
2. Right-click OneDrive > choose “More” option > select “Open file location”.
3. After opening the local OneDrive folder, glance over the files to check whether the ones you are looking for are present.

Solution 6: Restore Individual Files with Version History

Version History is one useful recovery feature on OneDrive, which regularly records the changes you have made to your files. It enables OneDrive users to retrieve files to a previous date and withdraw some unwanted changes. Follow the steps below to make use of OneDrive Version History.

1. Go for OneDrive online page.
2. Select out the file for which you want to restore a previous version > click the vertical three-dot icon beside the file > choose “Version history”.
3. You’ll go to a new page displaying all versions of the selected file. Confirm the specific version you need > hit “Restore” to recover it to its original location. You can also choose to click “Download” to save this file version to a different location.

Solution 7: Restore Entire OneDrive to a Previous Version

Providing you suffered a severe data loss on OneDrive due to file corruption or ransomware attack, the wisest choice is doing a complete recovery from your OneDrive account. Here “Restore your OneDrive” feature can be of great help to restore all your OneDrive contents to a previous version. It can even possibly recover permanently deleted files from OneDrive internal backups. One major limitation is that this solution requires you to be a Microsoft 365 subscriber. This is the guide.

1. Sign into OneDrive Live through your browser.
2. Click the gear icon at the upper-right corner > choose “Options”.
3. On the next screen, hit the hamburger icon > select “Restore your OneDrive” option from the drop-down menu.
4. Click “Verify your identity” button to get a code in your email box > enter the asked code into the text box > hit “Verify” to confirm.
5. Click the box under “Select a date” to choose a specific time to which you’d like to restore your OneDrive account. There are 4 options: yesterday, one week ago, three weeks ago, and custom date and time.
6. Once you’ve selected the date, click the “Restore” button.
7. Hit the “Restore” once again to confirm the restoration. After the recovery process done, all of your OneDrive files and folders will be rolled back to the selected date and time.

Final Words

Wondering how to retrieve deleted files on OneDrive? Just read this post to look into nearly all recovery features built in OneDrive. Of course, if you are seeking a 100% working way to get back your OneDrive data, Cisdem Data Recovery for Mac or Windows must be the top priority.