Recover Windows 10 deleted files with Windows File Recovery

Again and again it can happen that a file is accidentally deleted under Windows 10. Usually the file can be restored through the recycle bin. But what to do if you have emptied the recycle bin as well?

 

The official Microsoft Store offers a freeware application that allows us to recover all deleted files. "Windows File Recovery" is a command line based app that can recover permanently deleted files. The application can also recover files from an external hard drive or USB stick. With Windows File Recovery you can recover JPEG, PDF, PNG, MPEG, DOCX, MP3 & MP4, ZIP files and more.

However, the application only runs on the latest Windows version 2004 from May 2020 or higher. So if you have not yet updated your Windows, you cannot use the Windows file recovery application yet.

Go to Microsoft Store and search for "Windows File Recovery". Then download the application.

The tool is now installed on your system as winfr.exe. At the command prompt, the file can now be restored using the following commands:

Restore Microsoft Word DOCX file

To restore all Microsoft Office files, type the following code at the command prompt and press Enter on your keyboard

You can change the path to the directory where the file was located. You must also enter the exact file name or at least the file format.

  • winfr C:Z:/n\Users\(your username)\Documents\Filename.docx

The file will be restored to the recovery folder. In our example it is the Z drive. Select your drive.

Restore a photo in JPEG or PNG format

Here you only need to specify the file format instead of the full name, and the application will recover all deleted PNG or JPG files in the directory.

  • winfr C:Z:/n\Users\(your username)\Pictures\*JPEG
  • winfr C:Z:/n\Users\(your username)\Pictures\*PNG

The file(s) will be restored to the restore folder. In our example it is the Z drive. Select your drive.

Restore an entire folder

Enter the following command:

  • winfr C: Z: /n \Users\(your username)\Documents\New folder

You now know the file recovery option and how to see it in Windows.

 

About the Author

Manuel Solvemix Team small

Manuel has been involved with technology for more than 15 years, especially with mobile phones, smartphones and PC systems and shares his passion here in this blog. If he can help someone with a technical problem, he is especially happy about it.