Restoring deleted files

Whenever you delete a file from your project, it is placed in the Windows Recycle Bin, located on the Windows desktop. It remains there until you empty the Recycle Bin. Once the Recycle Bin is emptied, the files are permanently destroyed and you cannot restore them.

Sometimes, the wrong files are deleted or a file is accidentally deleted that should not have been removed. If this happens, you can retrieve the deleted files, as long as they are still contained in the Recycle Bin. After they are retrieved, you can reuse them in your project.

Keep the following in mind when retrieving files from the Recycle Bin:

To retrieve a deleted file from the Recycle Bin:

  1. From the Windows desktop, double-click the Recycle Bin icon.

  2. Click the file you want to retrieve.

  3. From the File menu, select Restore. The file is restored to its original location (inside your project folder).

  4. If you are restoring a topic, you'll need to import it back into your project. For details, see Importing HTML files.

Tips:

  • To open a file that is in the Recycle Bin, drag the icon onto the desktop, and then click it.

  • You can quickly find the files you recently removed that are contained in the Recycle Bin. From the View menu, select Details (so you view deletion dates). Then select View - Arrange Icons - Delete Date. All files contained in the Recycle Bin are sorted according to their delete date.

  • To retrieve several files at once, hold down the CTRL key, click each file you want to retrieve, and then select Restore from the File menu. If the files are adjacent, press and hold SHIFT, click the first file, and then click the last one.

WARNING! It's possible to permanently remove files when you delete them by selecting a feature in the Recycle Bin called "Do not move files to the Recycle Bin." This feature is off by default so you can recover files. To find out if it's on or off on your system, right-click the Recycle Bin icon on your desktop and select Properties. If the box is selected, all files you delete are placed in the Recycle Bin until you empty it. If this check box is not selected, you will be unable to recover any files you delete.