Best Methods You Can Use to Recover Deleted Files From Google Drive

Accidentally deleting or otherwise losing files from your Google Drive account is a relatively common problem. Even though G Drive has several preventative measures in place (such as keeping files in the Trash folder for 30 days after deletion), mistakes and accidents can still happen.

The good news is that there are several ways you could recover deleted files from Google Drive – check out the top 7 below.

How to Recover Deleted Files From Google Drive

Whether you were deleting your files or somehow lost them from your account, there's usually an effective way to recover data from your Google Drive. Depending on the circumstances that led to data loss, you could try a few built-in options or go straight for a professional data recovery solution.

Recover Data From Google Drive With Trash Restore

One of the great things about cloud storage solutions is that their developers know that mistakes happen and users accidentally delete important files they'd like to have back sooner or later.

That's why Google Drive and similar services never permanently delete your files when you try to eliminate them. Instead, they send them to the Trash folder for a short period.

If you've just recently deleted a file, you could get it back in a few clicks.

Note: If it's been more than 30 days since you've moved a file to trach, it will be gone.

Here's how to perform a Google Drive trash recovery:

1. Log in to your Google Drive account;
2. Navigate to the Trash folder;

   

3. Right-click on the file/folder you want to restore;
4. Select Restore.

   

This will restore the file/folder to its original location. So, go back to the Google Drive homepage and locate your data.

Recover Google Drive Files Using the Admin Console

If you're managing Google Workspace services for your organization, you might be able to recover permanently deleted Google Drive files through the Admin Console. However, this mainly depends on your timing.

You will have 25 days after the files have been deleted from the Trash folder to recover data. If more time passes, it may be irrecoverable.

Here's how to restore permanently deleted files from Google Drive within 25 days with the Admin Console:

1. Sign in to your Google Admin Console;
2. Go to Directory > Users;

   

3. Hover your mouse over the user whose files you want to retrieve and select More;
4. Select Restore data.

   

Remember that you can only do this if you have Admin Console access. It's not a viable option if you have just a regular Google Drive account for personal use.

Recover Files From a Deleted Account by Transferring Ownership

Another excellent option if you're managing Google Workspace for your organization and a user deletes their entire account is transferring account ownership. Whether you've deleted a user account because they quit/got fired or accidentally/purposefully deleted it, you can restore permanently deleted files from that Google Drive account through the Admin Console.

1. In your Admin Console, go to Directory > Users > More options;
2. Select Recently deleted users;

   

3. Click on the recently deleted user, select Recover > Continue, and assign it to the organizational unit;
4. Go to Menu > Apps;

   

5. Select Google Workspace > Drive and Docs;
6. Scroll down to Transfer Ownership;

   

7. Put in the email addresses of the deleted user and the new account owner and select Transfer Files.

Again, this option is only available to the admins of Google Workspaces. Moreover, it's only available for up to 20 days after deleting an account. If more than 20 days pass, the account and the data that comes with it won't be transferable.

Recover Deleted Google Drives With Manage Versions

It's not always the entire file that gets deleted or lost from your Drive. Sometimes, it's the data within the file. It's a common occurrence with Google Docs – you accidentally overwrite all the existing data, either deleting it all or typing something over.

The good news is that you can easily restore a previous version of the file:

1. Sign in to your Google Drive and right-click on the file you need;
2. Select Manage Versions;

   

3. In the new popup, go over the available versions and select the one you need;
4. Click the More icon and select Download.

   

You'll be able to find the file in your Downloads folder. If needed, you can then upload it to Google Drive once again.

Perform G Drive Data Recovery From Backup

Another potential option if you're managing your organization's Google Workspace is using the Google Vault app. Technically, it is not designed to be a backup tool but rather an information governance and eDiscovery solution, but it could still be used to access archived data.

Here's how to recover Google Drive deleted files with the help of Vault:

1. Sign in to your Google Vault account, go to Matters, and select Pre-existing Matter;
2. Go to Search > Drive;

   

3. Fill in the required information and click Search;
4. Once the search is complete and you've found the needed files, click Export results.

   

You can then download all the data in a zip file. You'll be able to find it in your computer's Downloads folder.

Recover Data From Google Drive by Contacting Support

If all else fails, you could always try to restore permanently deleted files from Google Drive by contacting support. There's no guarantee that they can help you retrieve your files, but if anyone can do it – they can.

So, if you've tried all the aforementioned options and nothing seems to be working, here's how to recover permanently deleted files from Google Drive by contacting support:

1. Go to your Google Drive account and click the Help icon in the upper right-hand corner;
2. Select Help and scroll down to Contact us;

   

3. In the available space, explain your issue and wait for them to get back to you.

Make sure to keep your explanation up to 100 characters long. Hopefully, the support teams at Google Drive will be able to help you out.

How to Restore Permanently Deleted Google Drive Files From PCs With Recovery Software

If you've ever uploaded important files to Google Drive from a local storage device (such as an external HDD or even directly from your computer) and then deleted them from both locations, professional data recovery solutions such as Wondershare Recoverit could have your back.

Recoverit is a powerful recovery expert with over 20 years of experience in the field. It uses patented tech to seamlessly recover data without quality loss. It works with over 2,000 different storage devices from no less than 500 data loss scenarios.

Supporting thousands of file formats and being compatible with Mac and Windows OS, it boasts 98% recovery rates – meaning that it will be your best friend whenever you encounter data loss issues.

Wondershare Recoverit

Your Safe & Reliable Data Recovery Expert

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Easily recover deleted or lost files in 500+ data loss situations, such as deletion, formatting, and disk corruption. The software confidently retrieves all data types, regardless of how they went missing.

Note: Keep in mind, this is only applicable if the files were at one point stored on a local device, as no professional data recovery software could retrieve G Drive data without access to Google's servers.

To retrieve data with Recoverit, you'll need to follow these steps:

1. Download and launch Wonderhsare Recoverit on your computer;
2. From the main menu, select a location to start recovery (if your data was stored on an external device, use a USB cable to connect it);

   

3. Wait for Recoverit to scan the location and filter through the results by time, file status, type, size, or tag;
4. Pause or stop the scan without progress loss at any time;

   

5. Preview the files that can be recovered and click Recover to retrieve them.

   

How to Prevent Google Drive File Loss

Google Drive is generally a safe place to store and backup your data. While it can occasionally glitch, most permanent file deletion and data loss issues come down to user error. So, you'll want to minimize the chances of user errors occurring. You can do so by following a few simple practices:

• ✅Go over access permissions – if you don't want others to access and potentially delete your files, make sure to adjust permissions and ensure that only you can see and edit your data;
• 📖Keep a backup of your data – it's always a good idea to store essential data on Google Drive and a safe external hard drive. That way, should either of them become compromised, you'll have access to your data on the other;
• 🤳Double-check the data you're deleting – before hitting the "delete" button, removing accounts, and more, double-check whether the data you're removing is truly inconsequential. Only delete accounts and data when you're absolutely certain you won't be needing them;
• 📌Don't delete data from your Trash folder – there's no reason to delete data from your Trash; it will get permanently erased after 30 days in any case.

Still, even if you take all these precautions, mistakes can still happen. So, it's in your best interest to always have a backup plan and the above-mentioned methods for retrieving your data.

Conclusion

In most instances, simply deleting your data from Google Drive won't immediately erase it permanently. Still, even if your data is permanently deleted, there are a few things you could try to get it back.

From using professional recovery solutions like Wondershare Recoverit to contacting customer support as a last resort, give all of the methods mentioned above a try and see whether you can restore your data without issues.