Can a deleted file in Google Drive be recovered?

Overview

If you delete a file in Google Drive, it will be in your Google Drive trash folder until you empty your trash. When you put a file in the trash:

  • If you own the file, people you've shared it with can make a copy.
  • If you don't own the file, removing the file from your Drive only removes it for you.

 

Empty your trash

You can permanently delete an individual file, or empty your entire trash.

  • After you delete a file permanently, anyone you've shared the file will lose access to it.
  • If you want others to be able to view the file, you can transfer ownership to someone else.

 

Restore from your Trash

If there's a file in your trash you want to keep, put it back in My Drive.

  1. On a computer, go to drive.google.com/drive/trash
  2. Right-click the file you'd like to restore.
  3. Click Restore.

 

Restore deleted files not in Trash

If you've emptied your trash there is a limited time window of 25 days in which you can request permanently deleted files to be restored. After that, the data cannot be recovered and is gone forever.

  1. Contact the UAA IT Technical Support Center within 24 calendar days of permanently deleting your files.
  2. Specify if you want data restored from either Gmail, or Google Drive.
  3. Specify the data range to restore data that was deleted within that range (remember nothing older than 25 days).
    • Note: All files permanently deleted within the requested data range are restored. It is not possible at this time to selectively restore specific files.

 

What can't be done

  • Restore data that was permanently deleted more than 25 days ago.
  • Restore a deleted folder structure.
  • Restore deleted Google My Maps files, or Fusion Tables.
  • Restore sharing. After an item in Drive is restored, the individual needs to re-share the item for others to have access.
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