My Word document crashed while saving. Now it seems to be gone entirely. How can I recover it?

Question

One of my projects, a Word for Mac document containing around 200 changes and 51 comments, crashed while I was saving it. Now, the document appears unrecoverable. The only way I can open any version of the doc is by opening the original downloaded attachment. After I do so, the file name appears in Recent folder, but when I try to open it, it says the file has either been deleted or moved.

I have looked in the Auto Recovery folder, and the document is not there. I have also tried restarting both the application and my computer, and double checked finder to make sure there is no trace of the project. It is very important that I recover this document, along with all of the changes and comments. What are my options?

Answer 1

Hi @Cait L, thanks for posting this in the Microsoft Q and A! If you're facing a crashed Word document, here are some simple steps to try:

1. Check AutoRecover Folder:
   • Go to Finder.
   • Navigate to Containers > com.microsoft.Word > Data > AutoRecovery.
   • Look for files with names like AutoRecovered or similar to your document name.
   • Double-click any relevant file to open it in Word.
2. Enable AutoRecover (if not already on):
   • Open Word.
   • Go to Preferences > Save.
   • Check the box next to "Save to AutoRecover information every minutes".
3. Use "Open Recent" or "Browse Recent Locations" in Word:
   • Open Word.
   • Click File > Open Recent.
   • Look for the lost document in the list.
   • If not found, click Browse Recent Locations and search manually.
4. Search for Temporary Files:
   • Open Finder.
   • Use Spotlight search and type "*.asd" (Word temporary file extension).
   • Look for files with timestamps matching your work session.
   • Right-click any relevant file and select Open With > Word.

If you found the solution useful, consider accepting it! Good luck with recovering your document.