Windows File Recovery Software - Undelete & Recycle Bin Windows File Recovery Software - Undelete & Recycle Bin
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Windows File Recovery Software lists what you deleted with the folder it came from and the day it went to the bin, and says for each file whether it can still come back.

   
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5 files free, any sizeWindows 11 / 10Recycle Bin, folder or whole drive
Windows File Recovery Software - Undelete & Recycle Bin Screenshot.
This SoftOrbits program is separate from the free Microsoft app of the same name, which runs from the command line as winfr. It opens the Recycle Bin as Windows keeps it, with each deleted file's original location and date deleted. On an NTFS drive, both are often still readable after the bin is emptied.

Typed commands or a list you can read

Microsoft's free undelete option makes you type the source, destination and usually a file mask before you see a file name.

Free

Command-line recovery

  • Installed from the Microsoft Store, run from a command prompt
  • Source drive, destination and filters typed as switches
  • Two basic modes: Regular for recent deletions, Extensive for older ones
VS
Paid, with a trial

Clicks and a list you can read

  • Two screens of questions, no syntax to learn
  • Where each file lived and when it went, in columns
  • Each file's chances visible before you pay
  • No signature search, so formatted disks need another tool
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How to download and use the Windows File Recovery Software

Download it and answer Step 1.
1

Download it and answer Step 1

Download and install the program. Windows asks for administrator rights. The first screen is Step 1: What did you lose? Click the Recycle Bin card, choose the drive under Which drive? and leave Deleted when? on Any time.

Narrow the list and open a file.
2

Narrow the list and open a file

In Step 2, the Deleted and Type buttons can show documents from the last 7 days. Type part of the name in File name. Click any row to see it in the preview.

Tick the files and press Recover.
3

Tick the files and press Recover

Tick what you need and press Recover 3 files (the number follows your selection). The dialog shows where each one goes in the Goes to column. For files from an emptied bin, choose a folder under Save to: on another disk.

Emptied the bin by mistake? Don

Emptied the bin by mistake? Don't save anything to that disk

After Empty Recycle Bin, Windows marks the files' space as free. A download or update can write there. Close anything that writes to the disk and scan before anything else. The program refuses a folder on the same physical disk, with a note that writing there can overwrite the deleted files.

   
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Back in the folder it came from

A file still In the bin returns to its own folder through a rename inside the drive. If that folder was deleted too, the program creates it again. When a newer file has taken the name, the returning one gets a suffix and the newer one stays in place.

   
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Back in the folder it came from.
Undo a cleanup that went too far.

Undo a cleanup that went too far

Sort newest deletions first. Set Deleted to Today, press Select all, and untick the files you meant to lose.

   
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Inside the Recycle Bin recovery tool

Path and date from the bin

Windows saves every deleted file as two parts. $R holds the data, while the small $I record keeps the original path and deletion time. The program reads both formats: a fixed 544 bytes from Vista to Windows 8, and in Windows 10 and 11, 28 bytes plus the path.

Five statuses per file

Each file gets one of five labels: In the bin, Bin emptied - intact, Partly overwritten, Wiped by TRIM (SSD) and Overwritten. The last two have no data behind them, so you cannot tick them and the preview shows nothing. Sort by chance of recovery to put the intact files on top.

TRIM only where it applies

The SSD TRIM status appears only on an internal SSD when TRIM is on in both the drive and Windows. Hard disks and USB drives are not affected. On those drives, a file from an emptied bin keeps its chance until new data covers it.

Filters that match how you remember

Deleted when? offers Today, Last 7 days, Last 30 days and Any time. Type splits the rows into photos, videos, documents, archives and mail. Type part of the file name, or order rows by original location to see one folder at a time.

Preview before you recover

A file that still has data opens in the right pane before recovery if it is under 10 MB and Windows has a previewer for its type. If a picture opens broken here, a license will not fix it.

Files that skipped the bin

Shift+Delete, files too big for the bin and anything on a USB stick never get a deletion date. In folder or whole-drive mode, the program still lists them. Intact files show as Deleted - intact, with the date shown as unknown, so they appear under Any time.

Windows File Recovery Software - Undelete & Recycle Bin
Windows File Recovery Software - Undelete & Recycle BinDownload the program, scan the Recycle Bin and preview what can still come back before you buy a license.
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Trial and full version

The trial scans and shows everything the full version does. The limit counts files, not megabytes: a 1 GB video and a 200 KB photo are one file each, a folder counts as the files inside it.

FeatureTrialFree downloadFull versionWith a license key
Scan of the Recycle Bin, a folder or a whole drive✓✓
Original folder and deletion date✓✓
Status of each file✓✓
Preview✓✓
Recovered files5 filesNo limit
Get back the one file you need first. Buy a license if the rest of the list is worth it.
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From $ 24.99
  Buy now
From $ 24.99
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Get back the one file you need first. Buy a license if the rest of the list is worth it.

Windows File Recovery Software - Undelete & Recycle Bin
Windows File Recovery Software - Undelete & Recycle Bin
Price
from $ 24.99
Version
4.14
File Size
6.7 Mb
Last updated on
18/09/26
Free trial: scan and preview everything, recover up to 5 files of any size
System Requirements
  • Windows 11/10/8.1/8/7 (32/64 bit)
  • Intel i3, AMD Ryzen 5 or above
  • 4 GB of RAM or above
  • NVIDIA® GeForce® series 8 and 8M, Intel® HD Graphics 2000, Quadro FX 4800, Quadro FX 5600, AMD Radeon™ R600, Mobility Radeon™ HD 4330, Mobility FirePro™ series, Radeon™ R5 M230 or higher graphics card with up-to-date drivers
  • 1280 × 768 screen resolution, 32-bit color
  • 1 GB of free hard disk space or above

Frequently Asked Questions

Often, yes. While a file is in the bin, Restore in Explorer is enough. After the bin is emptied, an NTFS drive usually keeps the record and the data until new files take the space. The exception is a built-in solid-state drive with TRIM. There the data is gone soon after the bin is emptied.

In a hidden $Recycle.Bin folder at the root of each drive, with a subfolder per user. Every file there is a pair: $R with the content and $I with the original path and the time it was deleted.

Stop writing to that drive first. Then scan in Recycle Bin mode and look for the status Bin emptied - intact. Those files can be saved in full, to a folder on another disk.

Microsoft's winfr is free and runs from the command line. Its Extensive mode handles formatted or corrupted disks. The SoftOrbits program is paid, recovers 5 files of any size in the trial, and adds a list with paths and deletion dates plus a preview.

Files removed with Shift+Delete, or from a USB drive, skip the bin. Choose A specific folder or A whole drive in Step 1 and keep the period on Any time, since these files have no deletion date.

Files still in the bin return to their own folders. Everything else goes to the folder you choose under Save to:, on a different physical disk. At the end a line says how many went back and how many were written to that folder.

Not once the bin is emptied on a built-in SSD with TRIM on. Such files get the Wiped by TRIM (SSD) status. Files still in the bin are fine, they were never trimmed. For a damaged or RAW SSD, see the separate SSD recovery tool.

Records of an emptied bin are read straight from the NTFS file table, and Windows allows that only to an administrator. Without the rights, on an internal disk you would see only what is still in the bin, same as Explorer shows.

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Rate Windows File Recovery Software - Undelete & Recycle Bin

  • Windows 7
  • Windows 8
  • Windows 10
  • Windows 11
Author: SoftOrbits (English)
4.5
Avg. rating: 4.5 from 870 votes
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