Accidentally Deleted Everything on PC: How to Recover?

You may be experiencing accidentally deleted everything on PC but don't know what to do. This guide will tell you 3 effective ways to fix the problem, as well as how to accidentally deleted files on PC.

Kelsey

By Kelsey / Updated on April 2, 2024

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What do I do if my computer deletes everything?

 

Help! I accidentally deleted everything on my computer. My computer was supposed to have an automatic update last night, and when I logged back into my computer this morning, everything was gone, including apps and tasks. Column item. When I look in Explorer, what crashes me is that all my files are lost as well. I’m at a complete loss as to what to do now. Is there any way to recover the lost data?

Data loss accidents are not uncommon, but if you lose the files of your entire computer, it can be a headache for anyone. If you accidentally deleted everything on PC, you can learn how to get them back in this article. Before you perform computer data recovery, you can read on to find out what is causing this issue.

Common causes of accidentally deleted everything on PC

You’d better be able to rule out that the reason your PC lost everything was due to a Windows 10 factory restore, then your data might be hard to get back. In addition to this, there are several reasons why everything on your computer can be deleted:

Human error: After accidentally triggering Windows' Reset this PC command, the system will be restored to factory settings and all files will be deleted after the computer restarts.

Virus infection: If your computer gets infected when you click on a link or an unsafe web page, it may cause your computer to restart, and corrupt system files and delete all your data.

Software errors: If the software you store on your computer is incompatible with the system, you may force your computer to restart, and some serious software failures may also cause your computer to lose data.

Storage device failure: If you connect to a storage device on your computer, such as an external hard drive, USB flash drive, etc., virus infection may also cause the PC to delete all files. Moreover, the sudden failure of these storage devices can also cause file corruption and data loss.

If your data may have been lost due to the above reasons, please keep reading and learn how to recover accidentally deleted files.

3 fixes on PC accidentally lost everything

Now, we are going to share with you how to fix the PC deleting everything issue, here, there are three effective methods to try. If you want to get your files back quickly, you can also go to the next section to learn how to get back something you accidentally deleted.

Way 1. Switch user account

If all your data is accidentally lost after the system is updated and restarted, it may be because your configuration file cannot be configured when the computer is started. At this time, the system adds a temporary configuration file for you, which is to log in to another account. It means that the data in your original account is not on the computer at this time. You can fix it by switching Windows user accounts.

Step 1. Find the Start (Windows) button from the desktop tray and tap on it.

Step 2. If you are not currently logged in to your user account, you can click Sign out and enter the correct information to log in; Or click on the old account directly to switch.

Windows user account

Way 2. Check your Windows.old folder to find old files

Maybe the data on your computer still hasn't come back, you can check the Windows.old folder, which is usually used to store old files before the system upgrade, you may be able to find all the PC files you thought had been accidentally deleted here.

Step 1. Press the Win+ E keys to open File Explorer.

Step 2. Click on the drive where you installed the new operating system (usually a C drive).

Step 3. In the next window look for the folder named Windows.old, click on it and see if your previous files are stored here and if there is one that can recover them.

Windowsold

Way 3. Use System Restore

System Restore is a file recovery tool built into the Windows system. If users experience problems such as disk failure, the tool can revert to a previous point in time, which means you can retrieve previous Windows files, downloads, Windows registries, etc., as well as restore the settings made to Windows. However, this method is only available to users who have enabled System Restore. Read on to learn how to recover accidentally deleted files on PC.

Step 1. Click the Start (Windows) button, then type Create a restore point in the search box and click Open.

create-a-restore-point-open

Step 2. Tap System Restore in the pop-up window, click Next to continue.

system-drive-on-system-restore-next

Step 3. Select the restore point you need to recover data from the list and click on the Scan for affected programs and you will see a list of items that will be deleted if you are sure to restore to that point. After that click Close to exit the window.

scan-for-affected-programs-close

Step 4. In the next window, confirm the restore point you selected again and click Finish.

confirm-your-restore-point-finish-next

Step 5. If a prompt pops up, click Yes to determine how to restore your PC from the restore point of your choice. Then your PC will restart. After the PC restarts, the system restore process is complete, click Close.

close-system-restore

Recover accidentally deleted files on PC with a data recovery tool

Maybe you still can’t recover the loss caused by “my PC deleted everything” after trying the above three methods. If you need to get back all the contents you accidentally deleted, the easiest and most effective method is to use a data recovery tool. We strongly recommend you use MyRecover, a powerful tool designed with advanced algorithm technology and with a perfect track record in the field of data recovery.

MyRecover
Powerful Data Recovery Software

 

  • Supports permanent deletion file recovery, formatted file recovery, and other data recovery methods.
  • Recover deleted files from PC after data deletion, formatting, system crashes, etc.
  • Recover lost Word documents, Excel spreadsheets, email messages, videos, audio, pictures, and hundreds of other file types.
  • Compatible with Windows 7/8/10/11 and Windows Server.

Now download and install MyRecover and run it.

Step 1. On the main page, hover the mouse over the drive saved deleted files before, and click Scan.

select-a-partition-to-scan

Step 2. The tool will perform Quick Scan and Deep Scan automatically, you can see deleted files and other lost files in the scan list.

At this step, you can locate your files quickly by using the search feature or filter feature.

scan-lost-data

Step 3. Select all the files that need to be recovered and click on Recover x files in the lower right corner to start restoring data. You can go ahead and scan other drives knowing that all the needed data is recovered.

select-deleted-images-to-recover

🌟Tips:
  • Choose a new destination for your recovered files. This action can avoid data overwriting effectively.
  • You can recover data free 500MB. If you need more, consider upgrading to an advanced MyRecover edition.

Another way to recover deleted files from PC

In addition to professional data recovery software, you can try some other ways to get deleted files back.

After normal deletion, your files will not be permanently deleted at once. They will be kept in the Recycle Bin. Just go to the Recycle Bin on your desktop, and locate your files. Then right-click on them to choose the Restore option.

Click Restore Recycle Bin

Final words

In this post, we list 3 ways to solve the accidentally deleted everything on PC problem. If you are tired of trying one by one or can't get all your data back after using these three methods, you can try MyRecover, which can completely free you from the annoyance of data loss.

FAQs

How do I recover deleted items on PC?
 
Generally, you can recover deleted items from Recycle Bin, from previous versions, from file history, or with a professional data recovery tool.
How do I recover permanently deleted files from PC?
 
After files are permanently deleted, you can find it from previous backups. However, if you do not have a backup, please ask help from a professional data recovery tool like MyRecover.
Are permanently deleted files gone forever?
 
Permanently deleted files are not gone forever. If there is no new data written in to the storage location, it is possible for you to get them back.
Kelsey
Kelsey · Editor
Kelsey is an English editor of AOMEI Technology. She is passionate about helping people find effective ways to deal with all problems in computer. She has great insights into data backup and recovery, disk partition and clone, and other data protection measures. She likes learn computer skills to improve herself and enjoy quality time with family and friends.