I deleted EVERYTHING!

Question

I thought I was deleted emails from my inbox, but now I have nothing in any of my inbox folders that i have had for years! HELP!

dIANE

Answer 1

Hi there,

You might be able to get your emails back.

First, check your Deleted Items or Trash. If the emails are there, move them back. If not, look for a Recover Deleted Items option, usually under the Folder tab (Outlook) or by right-clicking Deleted Items. This helps restore recently deleted emails.

Here’s how to do it in Outlook:

1. Go to Deleted Items. If your emails are there, move them to your inbox or the original folder.
2. If Deleted Items is empty, click Recover Deleted Items from Server. It's usually under the Folder tab (Outlook desktop) or at the top of Deleted Items (Outlook Web). Then, select the emails you want and restore them.
3. If you use Outlook Web, sign in to Outlook.com, open Deleted Items, and look for Recover items deleted from this folder at the bottom.

If nothing shows up, quickly contact your email admin or Microsoft Support, as recovery is time-sensitive.

Are you using Outlook desktop with Exchange, Outlook.com, or Microsoft 365?

Regardss,

Rez

Answer 2

If you've deleted emails from your inbox and can't find them, you may be able to recover them from the Recoverable Items folder. When you delete an item in Outlook, it is typically moved to the Deleted Items folder first. If you empty the Deleted Items folder or delete items using Shift+Delete, those items are moved to the Deletions subfolder of the Recoverable Items folder.

To recover deleted items:

1. Use the Recover Deleted Items feature in Outlook or Outlook Web App. This feature allows you to recover items that were permanently deleted, as long as they are still within the retention period.
2. Check the Deleted Items folder first to see if the emails are still there.
3. If you have administrative access, you can use the Search-Mailbox cmdlet in PowerShell to search for and recover missing items from the mailbox, if they are still within the retention period.

The default retention period for deleted items is 14 days, but this can be configured by an administrator. If the retention period has expired, the items may no longer be recoverable.

If you're unable to recover the emails yourself, consider reaching out to your IT support for assistance.