How to Recover Files From an Empty Recycle Bin on Windows 10/11?

11 minutes read

Did you accidentally empty your Recycle Bin? If you are frantically searching for ways to undo the empty Recycle Bin action, you are in the right place. This article discusses all possible ways to restore deleted files after emptying the Recycle Bin, ranging from free manual methods to professional tools.

If you want to recover your data with minimal effort, look no further. This guide walks you through the process and explains why Remo Recover is the ultimate solution for restoring permanently deleted files.

Gravatar John Harris
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Updated On

As we all know – all deleted files and folders end up in the Recycle Bin of your system. Where they stay until you decide to delete them permanently by emptying the bin or restoring them.

Emptying the Recycle Bin is a solution to multiple questions like –

  • How To Increase Storage Space?
  • How To Get Rid of Confidential Information or Data Permanently?
  • How To Improve The Performance of Your Computer?

To name a few.

Irrespective of the reason why you have emptied your bin folder. You might face a situation where you realize that while emptying the Bin, you have deleted a few important files permanently. 

Empty Recycle Bin

If you are one of those who are searching for answers to questions like – 

  • Can you Recover Files After You Empty the Recycle Bin?
  • Or, How to Recover Items from Recycle Bin After Emptying?

Then, you have ended up in the right place; this article answers those two questions. 

So, without wasting any more time, let’s fire!!!

Can you Recover Files from the Emptied Recycle Bin?

Yes, you can recover files even after you have emptied the Recycle Bin. This is because it is not erased from the hard drive whenever you delete a file. Only the space the file was occupying earlier now becomes unallocated or free.

Thus, only the pointer is removed when the file is deleted. That’s why the file is invisible from the operating system now. Windows can keep track of all the files through its pointers. Every file stored on your PC has a pointer that indicates the file location.

But you still have an excellent chance to restore the emptied files from the Recycle Bin. If you act fast so that the free space is not overwritten with new data.

Warning:

Once you have encountered accidental deletion of files from the Recycle Bin, it is recommended to stop using your PC. Cease using the same PC until you recover files from Windows, increasing the chances of recovery.

How to Recover Files from Recycle Bin after Empty?

There are four approaches for recovering files from an emptied Recycle Bin. The first is to try manual methods using Windows built-in Backup and File History options. If these methods do not work, then go with Remo File Recovery Software, which is the safest solution for recovering files from an empty Recycle Bin

Method 1: How to recover empty recycle bin files using Windows File History

  • Type “File History” in the Windows Search bar and select “Restore your files with File History”.
  • Navigate to the folder where your deleted files were originally stored.
  • Use the Green Arrow buttons at the bottom of the window to scroll back in time until you see the files you deleted.
  • Select the files you want to recover and click the Green Restore Button to save them back to their original location.

Note:

This method only works if you had set up a backup drive and turned on File History prior to the data loss. If you see a message saying “No file history found,” skip to Method 4 below to scan your drive directly.

Method 2: Restore empty Recycle Bin files with “Previous Versions”

Even if you didn’t manually back up your files, Windows sometimes automatically creates “Shadow Copies” of your files as part of System Restore points. You can access these through the “Previous Versions” tab. To do so:

  • Open File Explorer and navigate to the folder that used to contain your deleted file.
  • Right-click on the folder (not the file, since it is gone) and select Properties.
  • Click on the Previous Versions tab.
  • Look for a folder version dated before you deleted the files.
  • Select that version and click Open to check if your files are inside. If they are, click Restore.

Pro Tip:

If the “Previous Versions” list is empty, then there is no System Restore points were created recently. In your case, the data is still on your hard drive but requires Remo Recover software to access.

Method 3: Restore items from an Emptied Recycle Bin using Backup and Restore (Windows 7)

You can use Backup and Restore (Windows 7) available in Windows 10 and 11 to restore the files after they are deleted from the Recycle Bin. But it will work only if you have set up a backup under the Backup and Restore your files option stored on an external drive. Otherwise, it is nearly impossible to recover an emptied Recycle Bin without any backup.

How to check for a Windows backup:

  • Open Control Panel (you can search for “Control Panel” in the Start menu or search bar)
  • Go to System and Security > Backup and Restore (Windows 7)
    • If you see a “Restore my files” button: A backup exists. Click it and follow the wizard to browse for your deleted files.
    • If you see “Set up backup”: Backup has never been configured on this PC, and no backup exists here. Proceed to the next recovery method
    • If you are asked to “Select another backup to restore files from”: This usually appears if your backup is stored on an external drive or network location that is currently disconnected. Connect the backup drive or network location and try again.

Note:

If you are seeing the “Set up backup” screen and no backups are listed, then this method is not for you. You will need to try next mentioned method or software.

Method 4: Restore files and folders from the Recycle Bin After Emptying using a Specialized Emptied Recycle Bin Recovery Software

Remo File Recovery is an advanced Emptied Recycle Bin Recovery tool. The tool is designed to retrieve files from an empty Recycle Bin easily. The software is engineered with automated dual-scan technology. This helps you restore more than 500 file formats from an emptied Recycle Bin. The tool has an augmented preview that lets you view the files recovered from any empty Recycle Bin

Download now and recover deleted items after emptying the Recycle Bin with ease.

Steps to Recover files from Empty Recycle Bin using Remo File Recovery Software:

Step 1: Download and Install the Remo Recover tool on your Windows PC.

Step 2: You can choose the preferred location recovery – empty Recycle Bin from which you want to recover data and click on Scan.

select the recycle bin folder to start the recovering files from emptied bin folder

Step 3: The tool will automatically initiate Quick Scan. Once the Quick Scan is completed, the tool runs Deep Scan, where it restores data sector by sector. Open the Dynamic Recovery View to recover the files simultaneously while the Deep Scan runs.

Step 4: You can also search for the specific file format in the search bar with the Advanced Filter option.

sort and find files recovered from the emptied recycle bin

Step 5: After the emptied Recycle bin is scanned, the recovered data will be presented to you. Which can be Previewed by double-clicking on any file.

Step 6: Choose the files from the recycle bin, click Save, and browse for a location to save the recovered data and selected files.

select the recovered files that remo has recovered from empty recycle bin and save it on any location of your choice

We are sure you have restored the emptied recycle bin after using Remo Recover. However, if you have a backup of all the files that you have lost after emptying the bin folder. Then, we recommend you try the methods mentioned in this article to recover permanently deleted files.

If you have a regularly scheduled backup, you can restore the deleted files from Windows 10. Most users do not rely on this backup because of its configuration. It might not backup the files in the Recycle Bin, and it does not have single file restorations. This makes the process hectic and unhandy.

Conclusion

Recovering files deleted from Recycle Bin is simple and possible when you do not use Shift+Delete to erase the files. However, if you have mistakenly emptied the Recycle Bin or shift deleted the files, Remo Recover can be your ally here. As this helps you restore deleted files not in the Recycle Bin. To avoid permanent data loss from the Recycle Bin, it is always recommended to create a backup and update it periodically. Be careful while using shift delete keys or any other third-party tools to delete files, as it doesn’t leave any trace of deleted files in the Recycle Bin.

Frequently Asked Questions

1. Where do Files go after emptying the Recycle Bin?

Whenever you delete a file from the Recycle Bin, Windows will remove the reference to the file on the hard drive. Thus, once the file reference or header is removed, your PC cannot access the deleted file. The space is now free and is ready to be taken by a new file. The deleted file will still be on the hard drive until it is overwritten. 

2. How to Recover Deleted Files from the Recycle Bin after Empty without the software?

You can recover files after emptying the Recycle Bin without software by using backup copies of lost files and folders; you can restore it from any external storage device and other Cloud storage such as OneDrive or by using Windows Backup only if you have a backup readily available.

3. Can you Get Files Back After Emptying the Recycle Bin using Windows Backup?

Windows Backup allows you to recover files from Recycle Rin without using the software. Follow the below-mentioned steps to recover files using Recycle Bin.
1. Click the “Start” button and type ‘’Control Panel.”
2. Now, Open Control Panel and click on “System and Security,” Then Click on “Backup and Restore”.
3. Click on “Restore my files.”

4. Do external storage devices have a Recycle Bin?

Yes, external storage devices have a Recycle Bin. The Recycle Bin is a folder that stores deleted files until they are permanently deleted or overwritten by new data.
The name of the Recycle Bin on an external storage device may vary depending on the operating system and file system.
To access the Recycle Bin on an external storage device, open File Explorer or Finder and navigate to the external storage device. The Recycle Bin will be listed as a folder.

Gravatar John Harris

About the Author: John Harris

With a decade of experience in data recovery, John Harris, Senior Editor at Remo Software, is your go-to specialist. His focus includes partition management, Windows solutions, and data troubleshooting, delivering insightful content that serves both users and search engines. John's expertise shines through in illuminating blog posts, untangling data loss intricacies across diverse storage platforms.…