Recover Permanently Deleted Files on Windows: What Actually Works

Can Permanently Deleted Files Be Recovered

Yes. In many cases, permanently deleted files can still be recovered if they haven’t been overwritten by new data or if a backup is available.

Deleted data recovery is usually more successful when:

• The files were deleted recently.
• The drive is an HDD instead of an SSD with TRIM enabled.
• The storage device has not been heavily used after deletion.
• Backups or shadow copies are available.

However, data recovery may become impossible if the deleted sectors are overwritten or if SSD TRIM has already erased the data blocks.What Happens When Files Are Permanently Deleted?

When you permanently delete a file in Windows:

• The file entry is removed from the file system index.
• The sectors that were occupied by the file are marked as available for new data.
• The actual data remains temporarily on the disk before overwriting.
• The system may overwrite these sectors (in part or in whole) later with new data.

This is why recovery is sometimes possible, especially if the disk has not been reused heavily.

When Permanent File Recovery Is Possible

Permanently deleted files are more likely to be recovered in the following situations:

• The deletion happened recently.
• The storage drive has not been heavily used after deletion.
• The file was stored on an HDD (hard disk drive).
• No new files have overwritten the original data blocks.
• Backup or shadow copy is available.

In these cases, data recovery software may still be able to reconstruct the deleted files to make them recoverable.

When Permanent File Recovery Is Not Possible

In the following cases, permanently deleted files cannot be recovered at all:

• The deleted data has been overwritten by new files.
• The drive uses SSD with TRIM enabled and garbage collection has already cleared the blocks.
• Secure erase or full format has been performed on the drive.
• The storage device is physically damaged.

That is to say, once data is overwritten or permanently cleared at the hardware level, file recovery is no longer feasible.

Why Deleted Files on an SSD Are Harder to Recover

Data recovery on SSDs is significantly more difficult than on HDDs. This is mainly due to a feature called TRIM.

When a file is deleted on an SSD:

• The system marks the data blocks as no longer needed.
• The SSD firmware actively clears those blocks in the background.
• This process improves performance but reduces recovery chances.

Because of this, permanently deleted files on SSDs are often unrecoverable shortly after deletion.

What to Do Immediately After Permanent Deletion

To maximize the chances of data recovery, it is important to act quickly. You should:

• Stop using the drive immediately.
• Avoid saving news files on that drive.
• Do not download and install data recovery software onto the affected drive.
• Disconnect external storage if possible.
• Start file recovery as soon as possible.

The less the drive is used, the higher the chance of successful recovery.

Best Approaches to Recover Permanently Deleted Files

There are several common methods to recover permanently deleted files on Windows.

Option 1. Check File History or Backup

If File History or Windows Backup has been enabled before the deletion, previous versions of files may still be available for restoration.

See these two guides to get your permanently deleted files back:

• How to restore permanently deleted files with File History?
• Back up and restore with Windows Backup

Option 2. Use Windows File Recovery

Microsoft provides a command-line tool that can scan storage devices for deleted files, especially useful for recently deleted data. It is called Windows File Recovery.

Here is the tutorial: How to Use Windows File Recovery Tool.

Option 3. Use Data Recovery Software

If no backup is available, data recovery software can scan the disk at a deeper level and attempt to recover deleted files from unallocated space.

Professional data recovery software may help scan unallocated sectors and reconstruct deleted files before they are overwritten.

Try MiniTool Power Data Recovery to recover permanently deleted videos, photos, documents, and other files on Windows.

Here is a guide on how to recover permanently deleted videos using this file recovery tool:

1. Download and install this software on your Windows PC.

MiniTool Power Data Recovery FreeClick to Download100%Clean & Safe

2. Launch the software. Then, find the drive you want to recover data from and scan it.

3. When the scanning ends, it’s time to find the desired files and preview them. Just do it.

If you want to recover certain types of files, go to Type to find them. Here, I want to restore some permanently deleted MP4 videos, so I go to Type > Audio & Video > mp4 to find them.

Double-click the target video to preview it. This helps to confirm whether it is the file you want to recover.

4. Select the video files and click Save. Then select a suitable location to save them.

With the free edition of this file recovery tool, you can recover 1GB of files. However, this is enough to check if data recovery is possible. If you want to recover more files, you need to upgrade to an advanced edition.

Can Permanently Deleted Files Be Recovered from SSDs

Sometimes, but the success rate is usually lower than on traditional hard drives (HDD).

Most SSDs use a feature called TRIM, which automatically clears deleted data blocks in the background to improve performance. Once TRIM and garbage collection complete the cleanup process, the deleted files may no longer be recoverable.

SSD data recovery may still be possible in the following cases:

• The file deletion happened recently.
• The SSD has not processed TRIM yet.
• The SSD has not been heavily used after deletion.
• The files were deleted from an external SSD or an unsupported file system.

To improve data recovery chances, stop using the SSD immediately. Then, try the data recovery methods in this article to recover data.

How to Complete an SSD Data Recovery on Windows? Full Guide

Many people are finding methods for SSD data recovery, but most failed to find one. This post introduces the best solution without data loss.

Read More

Recover Permanently Deleted Files FAQs

Final Words

It is always possible to recover permanently deleted files on Windows, especially when the deleted data has not been overwritten. The key is to stop using the affected drive immediately and start data recovery as soon as possible.

Whether you use File History, Windows Backup, Windows File Recovery, or professional data recovery software, acting quickly can significantly improve the success rate. If you are unsure whether the deleted files are still recoverable, you can first use a free recovery tool to scan the drive and check the recovery results before taking further action.

If you still have questions about permanently deleted file recovery or cannot find the files you need, feel free to leave your questions in the comments section below for discussion. You can also contact us via email at [email protected] for further assistance.