Delete a file in One Drive

Question

I have deleted a file from One Drive, empty and recycle bin, and empty the second stage recycle bin.

Is there a way to retrieve the file?

Answer 1

Hello Lolita L. Buncic,

Sad News: it is considered "permanently deleted"

However,

If you are using a OneDrive Work or School Account (Microsoft 365 Business): You have a 14-day grace period from the moment it was deleted from the second-stage recycle bin. Microsoft retains back-end backups for site collections (At this case, Contact your IT Admin to open a Support Ticket with Microsoft).

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In case of (Personal OneDrive Account):

The only option for you is to check your Local saved files on your hard disk or try to recover the lost/deleted from your local disk since it's considered purged from the cloud.

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Best ofLuck,

I wish you find those files / Waiting for your feedback.

M.

Answer 2

Hi Lolita,

For your concern, I'm really sorry and I truly wish I could assist you further but since the file has already been deleted and both Recycle and second stage Recycle Bin have been emptied, the file is permanently gone and there isn't anything further we can do to recover it.

If you're using a business account, the admin may still be able to help only if your organization has extra protections enabled like Purview retention policies, endpoint backup, litigation/preservation hold. You can try contacting your admin and ask whether they can assist. If you don't know who your IT administrator is, please refer to this article: How do I find my Microsoft 365 admin? - Microsoft Support 

I understand how disappointing this situation must be and this may not be the answer you were hoping for. However, if even the IT admin couldn't help, I'm very sorry that I couldn't provide a better outcome in your case since the file is no longer recoverable.

If you have any concerns or questions in the future, please don’t hesitate to reach out. Not only will I be happy to assist you, but all moderators in the Q&A forum will also do their best to provide support and guidance.  

Wishing you a great day ahead.