How could I restore a Windows 10 virtual machine (or virtual hard disk) with no backups?

Question

How could I restore a Windows 10 virtual machine (or virtual hard disk) with no backups?

Ben Corriette 20

Is it possible to restore a Windows 10 virtual machine (or virtual hard disk) without backups? I deleted the virtual machine in September 2024 because I thought it was no longer needed, but I would like to recover a CSV file that was on that machine. The virtual machine ran on the Hyper-V platform.

I checked if there are any remaining resources from that virtual machine, and only the "NetworkWatcher_eastus" resource is left.

Ashok Gandhi Kotnana 10,430 Reputation points Microsoft External Staff Moderator

2025-06-28T06:18:17.4333333+00:00

@Ben Corriette

You have deleted the Virtual machine; can you please check whether you have deleted the disk as well along with virtual machine?

Go to Disks check whether the disk also got deleted if not deleted we can restore the virtual machine from the disk

Thankyou
Ashok Gandhi Kotnana 10,430 Reputation points Microsoft External Staff Moderator

2025-06-30T02:14:26.05+00:00

@Ben Corriette

Just want to check if the answer provided by @Marcin Policht worked for you or else please let us know if any help, we are always here to help whenever you need us.

Please do not forget to "Accept the answer” and “upvote it” wherever the information provided helps you, this can be beneficial to other community members.it would be greatly appreciated and helpful to others.
Vinod Pittala 4,335 Reputation points Microsoft External Staff Moderator

2025-07-01T01:08:05.88+00:00

Hello Ben Corriette,

We haven't heard back from you regarding the advice we provided earlier. Could you please let us know if it was helpful? If you have any questions or encounter any issues, please don't hesitate to reach out. We are committed to resolving your concerns as a priority.

Thanks
Ben Corriette 20 Reputation points

2025-07-07T02:43:22.9233333+00:00

Ashok and Vinod, thank you for the follow up; I have accepted Marcin's answer.

Accepted answer

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Your answer

Ashok Gandhi Kotnana 10,430 Reputation points Microsoft External Staff Moderator

2025-06-28T06:18:17.4333333+00:00

@Ben Corriette

You have deleted the Virtual machine; can you please check whether you have deleted the disk as well along with virtual machine?

Go to Disks check whether the disk also got deleted if not deleted we can restore the virtual machine from the disk

Thankyou
Ashok Gandhi Kotnana 10,430 Reputation points Microsoft External Staff Moderator

2025-06-30T02:14:26.05+00:00

@Ben Corriette

Just want to check if the answer provided by @Marcin Policht worked for you or else please let us know if any help, we are always here to help whenever you need us.

Please do not forget to "Accept the answer” and “upvote it” wherever the information provided helps you, this can be beneficial to other community members.it would be greatly appreciated and helpful to others.
Vinod Pittala 4,335 Reputation points Microsoft External Staff Moderator

2025-07-01T01:08:05.88+00:00

Hello Ben Corriette,

We haven't heard back from you regarding the advice we provided earlier. Could you please let us know if it was helpful? If you have any questions or encounter any issues, please don't hesitate to reach out. We are committed to resolving your concerns as a priority.

Thanks
Ben Corriette 20 Reputation points

2025-07-07T02:43:22.9233333+00:00

Ashok and Vinod, thank you for the follow up; I have accepted Marcin's answer.

Answer 1

In short, unfortunately not. Azure only retains soft-deleted managed disks for 14 days, and backups or snapshots must have been created beforehand; without those, and after nine months, the data (including your CSV file) is permanently lost.

The only possibility which would allow you to access your data is if you chose the option to NOT delete the disk with the VM (which, by default is enabled) when provisioning the VM (or after you provisioned it). This would retain the disk following the VM deletion - which you could then use to provision a new VM (or attach to an existing one).

If the above response helps answer your question, remember to "Accept Answer" so that others in the community facing similar issues can easily find the solution. Your contribution is highly appreciated.

hth

Marcin

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How could I restore a Windows 10 virtual machine (or virtual hard disk) with no backups?

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