Find lost or missing files in OneDrive (Work/School)

However you use OneDrive, we recommend searching your OneDrive storage using the OneDrive website. It's where all your devices sync and store your files, and it's the best place to start looking.

 

 

1. Sign in to OneDrive with your work or school account.​​​​​​​
   Sign in

   Tip: Mobile users should use a Private or Incognito window to prevent the OneDrive app from opening.

2. Use Search everything at the top of the page to look for your files.

   Tip: When searching, don't just use filenames, search with descriptions, tags, dates and places, e.g. "sales", "xls", "April" or "Paris".

   

   Note: If someone deletes a file or folder they shared with you, it will no longer be available.

 

1. On the left side of the OneDrive website, select   Recycle bin

2. If you find the item you're looking for, select it and choose Restore at the top of the page.

   Note: If you delete something from the recycle bin, your admin may be able to restore it. See Manage the Recycle Bin of a SharePoint site. 

 

If you can't find files you deleted, check whether you're logged in to the correct Microsoft account - your files might be safely in another OneDrive.

Did you use someone else's computer or account when saving the file? Was someone else signed in to your computer when the file was saved? If so, sign out of your OneDrive and sign in again using the other account.

If you also have a personal OneDrive, you might have saved your files to your other account instead of your work or school account. Review the steps in the Personal tab near the top of this article.

Note: Personal accounts that have been inactive for two years may have been deleted. Work or school accounts may have files may have been deleted after 93 days.

 

If your organization supports it, you can restore your entire OneDrive to a previous point in time.

1. On the top right of the OneDrive website, select  then Options and Restore your OneDrive.

2. Undo all the actions that occurred on both files and folders within the last 30 days.

Learn more about Restoring your OneDrive.

 

If a file has been saved outside of your OneDrive, or your device has not yet synced the file to OneDrive, try these options:

• Use File Explorer or Finder to search for files on your computer, or use the Files app to search for content on your mobile device.

  Tip: If you have an iOS device that has photos optimized for iCloud, photos aren't stored on the device and can't be uploaded to OneDrive. To disable iCloud optimization on your iOS device, tap Settings > iCloud > Photos and clear Optimize Storage.

• Check your computer's Recycle bin or Trash.

• Learn more about searching for files in Teams channels or SharePoint sites.