Unable to restore the items at recycle bin

Question

Hi There ,

On 31st of March 2026 at 17.04 one of folder in my one drive suddenly moved ( without me clicking it delete ) to recycle bin .

I have not been able to restore it at all for 3 days already , event with the most powerful internet connection and i have tried it per folder or per file , from the smallest size even.

I suspect that it's a bug / error .

Should i try one drive recovery ? or anyone can help ?

Thanks a lot .

Erika

Answer 1

You are a life saver thank you ! i tried this one - it worked .
Check the local Recycle Bin / Trash If the folder was deleted from the synced OneDrive folder on the PC or Mac:

• On Windows: open Recycle Bin, select the folder or files → right‑click → Restore.
• On Mac: open Trash, select items → right‑click → Put back. Note: online‑only files do not appear in the local Recycle Bin/Trash.

But out of curiosity , why this happened ? i did not delete those folder .

Erika

Answer 2

Try these steps in order, based on how OneDrive recovery works:

1. Restore from the OneDrive recycle bin (web)
   Since the folder is already in the recycle bin but will not restore:
   • Go to the OneDrive website and sign in.
   • In the left navigation, select Recycle bin.
   • Try restoring:
     • First a single small file from inside that folder → select it → Restore.
     • Then the folder itself → select the folder → Restore.
       If this still fails, continue with the next steps.
2. Check the local Recycle Bin / Trash
   If the folder was deleted from the synced OneDrive folder on the PC or Mac:
   • On Windows: open Recycle Bin, select the folder or files → right‑click → Restore.
   • On Mac: open Trash, select items → right‑click → Put back.
     Note: online‑only files do not appear in the local Recycle Bin/Trash.
3. Use “Restore your OneDrive” (full account rollback)
   If individual restore from the recycle bin keeps failing and the deletion happened recently (within the last 30 days) and the account is a Microsoft 365 subscription:
   • Use Restore your OneDrive to roll the entire OneDrive back to a point just before 31 March 2026, 17:04.
   • This feature undoes all actions (deletes, overwrites, corruption, malware) on files and folders within the last 30 days.
   • Be aware: any files or folders created after the restore point date will be moved into the OneDrive recycle bin; they can be restored from there if needed.
   • If the folder was permanently deleted from the OneDrive recycle bin before this, it cannot be recovered.
4. If restore still fails
   If:
   • The folder is not in the OneDrive recycle bin, and
   • “Restore your OneDrive” does not bring it back,
     then follow the guidance for missing/deleted items:
   • If using the OneDrive sync client, check whether a copy still exists on the local computer.
   • If not, and the folder is not recoverable via recycle bin or OneDrive restore, contact Microsoft 365 support and provide:
     • The full OneDrive URL.
     • The folder name and some file names (with extensions).
     • The approximate date/time when the folder was last in a good state (e.g., just before 31 March 2026, 17:04).

If the folder is still present in the recycle bin and within the retention period (30 days for personal accounts), using Restore your OneDrive is the recommended next step when item‑level restore is failing repeatedly.

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References:

• Restore deleted files or folders in OneDrive
• How to recover missing, deleted or corrupted items in SharePoint and OneDrive for work or school
• Restore your OneDrive
• Unable to restore deleted files from C:OneDrive - Microsoft Q&A