10 Ways to Find a Lost Word .doc

10 Ways to Find a Lost Word Document (.doc)

9:34 am on October 17th, 2007 by Rosario Doriott

Accidentally delete your work? Or save it somewhere and you can’t find it? Or the power went out? Before you start frantically emailing your professor, follow these steps:

Send out a search party.
In Windows, click Start, Search, All files and folders.
Type what you remember of the name or simply *.doc to get all your Word documents.
Select My Computer under Look in, and then under More advanced options, make sure Search hidden files and folders is checked.
Then hit Search.
Still no luck? Check your Recycle Bin.
Open it up and look through whatever files you’ve got. Did you find it? If so, right-click and choose Restore. Then if you’re not sure where it actually restored to, perform a search for it.
Or you can pray for AutoRecover.
Sometimes if Word crashes or closes unexpectedly, it’ll still save what you had. Re-open Word. If a Document Recovery task pane comes up, double-click your document to open it and immediately Save As.

Search for AutoRecover files, yourself.
In Word, go to Tools, then Options.
Under the File Locations tab, double-click AutoRecover files and make a note of that path location.
Click Cancel and Close.
Open up that folder in My Computer or Windows Explorer and search for any .asd files. (Or another way to do this would be to run a search similar to step one but with *.asd instead of *.doc)
If you have Word set to automatically back-up your documents, there’s still a chance here. Check the original folder for any .wbk file.
In Word, click File, then Open.
Navigate to the folder you think the file used to be located in and make sure All Files *.* is selected.
Is there any .wbk file there? Select it and see if it’s what you’re looking for.
Still no dice? Send out a *.wbk search party.
This step is the same as the first search party step, but now search for *.wbk files. You might find a few. Open them up, one by one.
Or search your temporary files.
Again, this is like step one. But search for *.TMP files this time. You’ll come up with a lot, so change the When was it modified? to the last week or so.
Or search even more of your temporary files.
Some temporary files like to be unique. Search for those with ~*.* this time.
Open up C:\Documents and Settings\*USERNAME*\Local Settings\Temp
This is a hidden folder, so you’ll probably have to use Windows Explorer. Hit Start, then All Programs.
Go to Accessories, then Windows Explorer. Navigate to that folder, where *USERNAME* is whatever your computer calls you. Do you see your document in that folder?

If none of those steps work, there are also programs that will help you recover deleted files. So this is the 10th and final option.

What’s important to understand here is that if you delete something, it doesn’t actually get deleted. Rather, it sits in a pile waiting to be overwritten. So the best way to recover a deleted file would be to try to find it right away –before it’s overwritten.

If you’d like to use a program, I’d recommend: Restoration, Undelete +, or Recuva. All are free. [There's also a newcomer to the scene for Windows, UndeleteMyFiles. Thanks Lifehacker! ~Kelly, 6/25/08]

I hope this helps. And remember: Jesus saves, but Buddha does incremental back-ups.

So, to turn on the automatic back-up feature in Word, check out Tools, Options, and the Save tab.

Filed under: Dear HackCollege

68 Comments »

Jason Shore

on October 17, 2007 @ 6:59 pm

One could also try using Recuva (pronounced “recover”) if the document was accidentally (or purposely) deleted. It’s a freeware app, from the creators of CCleaner. It can also restore files from bugs, viruses, or crashes. It’s a pretty handy app that you hope you never have to use.

http://www.recuva.com/
Kelly Sutton

on October 18, 2007 @ 12:36 am

Or you can just write in Google Docs… okay, okay I’ll stop.
Rosario Doriott

on October 18, 2007 @ 5:06 am

@Jason: From the post:

“If you’d like to use a program, I’d recommend: Restoration, Undelete +, or Recuva. All are free.”

Did you mean a different program?
How To: Recover a Deleted Word Document · TechBlogger

on October 19, 2007 @ 7:02 am

[...] recovery, too.) If not, turn it on in the Tools menu’s Options dialog’s Save tab. 10 Ways to Find a Lost Word .doc [...]
foo

on October 19, 2007 @ 7:10 am

very windowsish-tipps … if you use linux, you have all your backups where you want them. At first, backup-files (if configured) of the last version als filename.odf~ in the same dir, or backups on your backup-medium, where you backup your files each (day|week|…)
TC

on October 19, 2007 @ 7:41 am

@foo: Good luck finding “Word .doc”s (per article title) on your linux system …
10 Ways to Find a Lost Word .doc « Hartness Library System

on October 19, 2007 @ 7:54 am

[...] 10 Ways to Find a Lost Word .doc [HackCollege] [...]
cypher

on October 19, 2007 @ 8:07 am

I rely on Google DeskTop.
This app works marvels. It searches way better than the normal search feature, and also stored cached copies of your document, once deleted.

Frankly, what else would you need ?
Speedmaster

on October 19, 2007 @ 8:14 am

Useful post, thanks.
My Ghillie » 10 Ways to Find a Lost Word .doc | HackCollege

on October 19, 2007 @ 9:04 am

[...] Check it out! While looking through the blogosphere we stumbled on an interesting post today.Here’s a quick excerpt [...]
palinode

on October 19, 2007 @ 9:16 am

Also, if you lose the document at work, your IT department may have a recent backup handy. But doing it yourself is so much more fun.
Ghillie Suits » 10 Ways to Find a Lost Word .doc | HackCollege

on October 19, 2007 @ 9:29 am

[...] Check it out! While looking through the blogosphere we stumbled on an interesting post today.Here’s a quick excerpt [...]
Bob

on October 19, 2007 @ 9:29 am

What about other operating systems?
Jason Shore

on October 19, 2007 @ 9:29 am

@Rosario

Whoops must have overlooked that part. Sorry! Great post btw!
subcorpus

on October 19, 2007 @ 1:27 pm

great article … hope all of these tips come to mind when i’m frantically searching for a .doc …
anyways … it would be nice if you could tell how to perform the same search on a mac …
Usersky Daily News Network » How To: Recover a Deleted Word Document

on October 19, 2007 @ 3:42 pm

[...] recovery, too.) If not, turn it on in the Tools menu’s Options dialog’s Save tab. 10 Ways to Find a Lost Word .doc [...]
The Vortex Effect » Archive » links for 2007-10-20

on October 19, 2007 @ 8:18 pm

[...] 10 Ways to Find a Lost Word .doc Ever shut down a Word document realizing seconds later that you didn’t save it? This just recently happened to someone I work with and I know I’ve been there before. This list tells you what steps to take to find the doc and save yourself the hassle. (tags: word documents recovery tips howto) [...]
Recover lost word document | Techmartini.com

on October 20, 2007 @ 1:02 am

[...] lost word files by trial and error methods, nothing would match this list of ideas presented in the Weblog Hack College [...]
How To Find A Lost Word Document | The How To Do Things Blog

on October 20, 2007 @ 3:17 am

[...] Do you need to find a lost Word document? This happens when you have hundreds of documents on your computer. I think I have been creating Word documents since 1995. Whenever I upgrade my hard disk or purchase a new computer I take a complete backup and then dump the entire backup onto the new hardware. This way I think I must have accumulated hundreds of Word documents a post on HackCollege tells you how to find your lost Word documents. [...]
Sildi?iniz bir Word döküman?n? kurtar?n - Joeybs

on October 20, 2007 @ 4:47 pm

[...] yazd???n?z 20 sayfal?k belge bir and yok mu oldu? Weblog Hack College yanl??l?kla silinmi? bir Word döküman?n? kurtarman?n 10 yolunu anlatm??, Word [...]
Find a Lost Word File « Entangled

on October 20, 2007 @ 9:44 pm

[...] 21st, 2007 by wildeny HackCollege posted 10 ways to find a lost Word file. These tip could be useful if you accidentally delete the file or lose it because Word just [...]
lxrichter.com » Blog Archive » Recover doc files

on October 21, 2007 @ 5:31 am

[...] don´t seem to be able to find a back-up copy. Lifehacker’s How-to with a good link to “10 ways to find a lost word doc“. I somewhat assume that this also applies in parts to other documents of the Office package, [...]
» Recuperar un documento de Word borrado | Informática Práctica |

on October 21, 2007 @ 8:32 am

[...] Por alguna circunstancia y si no tienes bakcups de tus documentos realmente importantes, puede ocurrirte que se te haya borrado un documento muy importante y necesites recuperarlo. En ese caso no todo está perdido, y hay al menos 10 formas de tratar de buscar/recuperar el documento. No son 100% efectivas, pero si de ninguna de esas formas puedes recuperar el documento, ya puedes ir depsidiéndote de él. Si quieres ver las 10 formas de tratar de recuperar un documento word, en HackCollege nos las explican. [...]
Sildi?iniz bir Word döküman?n? kurtar?n

on October 21, 2007 @ 11:31 am

[...] yazd???n?z 20 sayfal?k belge bir and yok mu oldu? Weblog Hack College yanl??l?kla silinmi? bir Word döküman?n? kurtarman?n 10 yolunu anlatm??, Word [...]
Ghillie Suits » 10 ways to find a lost word doc

on October 21, 2007 @ 6:48 pm

[...] Check it out! While looking through the blogosphere we stumbled on an interesting post today.Here’s a quick excerpt [...]
Business Hacks mobile edition

on October 22, 2007 @ 11:01 am

[...] the power went out in the middle of typing, you know what a painful, panic-filled time it can be. HackCollege offers 10 tips on recovering Word files that have vanished unexpectedly. Starting at the [...]
Silenen Word döküman?n? kurtarman?n 10 yolu

on October 25, 2007 @ 9:39 pm

[...] yazd???n?z 90 sayfal?k belge bir anda yok mu oldu? Weblog Hack College yaln??l?kla silinmi? bir Word döküman?n? kurtarman?n 10 yolunu anlatm??, Word [...]
Productivity Links - the best from around the blogosphere | GearFire Student Productivity

on October 29, 2007 @ 8:42 am

[...] 10 Ways to Save a Lost Word .doc - a must for any student who does rely on Word, including me. [...]
Morten Brunbjergs Blog » Blog Archive » Find et mistet Word dokument

on October 30, 2007 @ 11:29 pm

[...] uheldet har været ude er her 10 måder at finde et tabt Word dokument på. Hvem ved, måske var det dette århundredes roman der gik [...]
Kolz Blog » Blog Archive » How To: Recover a Deleted Word Document

on October 31, 2007 @ 5:16 pm

[...] for possible recovery, too.) If not, turn it on in the Tools menu’s Options dialog’s Save tab. 10 Ways to Find a Lost Word .doc [...]
Mine del.icio.us-links fra 26. oktober til 6. november | shevy.dk

on November 6, 2007 @ 4:30 pm

[...] 10 Ways to Find a Lost Word .doc - Hvor snÃ¸vsen blev mit dokument af? [...]
sufyan

on November 12, 2007 @ 4:20 am

Thanks dear, your recovery method really works. I just recored one very important file which i deleted by mistake. thankfully i recovered it in the 5th step.
Sildi?iniz bir Word döküman?n? kurtar?n » SEFA YAPICI

on November 17, 2007 @ 2:21 pm

[...] yazd???n?z 20 sayfal?k belge bir and yok mu oldu? Weblog Hack College yanl??l?kla silinmi? bir Word döküman?n? kurtarman?n 10 yolunu anlatm??, Word [...]
Alex Krenvalk

on November 22, 2007 @ 3:33 am

know how recover doc file - recover doc file, this tool can recover information from corrupted Microsoft Word documents and templates located on corrupted media (floppy disks, CDs, DVDs, Zip drives, etc.), Export the recovered information both to Microsoft Word and to a plain text file.
Ben

on November 29, 2007 @ 8:32 am

I just recently had to find a document for my wife - and just for those searching…She was OPENING (not saving) a .doc attachment from an e-mail, altered the files and clicked ‘Save’ - not Save-As. So thinking the file was saved where she wanted it - she clicked close. After doing some research, the location Word stores these temp shortcut files that are opened and not saved: C:\Documents and Settings\username\Application Data\Microsoft\Office\Recent. Once you find the shortcut, Rt Click > Properties > Find Target. Just FYI
Thank You Thank You

on December 10, 2007 @ 10:54 pm

Wow thanks Ben… I had the same problem.. for me though I found the file in . \Application DaTa\Local Temp

I hate word… this always happens to me when I am working on my paper the night before its due
Vivek Chauhan

on December 11, 2007 @ 6:55 am

My saved Word document vanished before my very eyes when I tried to save it for some 34-35th time. An error box popped, and whoosh….it disappeared never to be found in the most intricate and hidden directories.

Solution: Have Google Desktop installed. It’s a life saver. Found almost 90% of my work through Google Desktop. Microsoft sucks. Google Ahoy.
Making Friends Out There | geek stew

on January 19, 2008 @ 10:39 am

[...] 10 Ways to Find a Lost Word Doc [...]
Vincent's Tip's & Trick's

on January 24, 2008 @ 4:54 pm

That’s a great tip, You better expect a pingback coming your way;)

Cheers

Vincent

The World of Office, XP and Vista Tips and Tricks.
3 Essential Productivity Reads To Survive College — Grad School Journal

on January 29, 2008 @ 11:54 am

[...] Hack College, humor and wisdom rolled into a jelly donut Favorite Post: 10 Ways to find a lost word doc [...]
Mark

on February 9, 2008 @ 7:12 am

Thank you so much! You helped me recover something very important and now I really know the value of backing everything up!
Alex

on February 19, 2008 @ 5:14 am

Hi there. I found a review of RECOVER(By Brian Kato) in http://www.thereviews4u.com
It seems pretty easy to use and effective. You can give it a try if you think you deleted your file recently.

Also you can use Google Desktop too to find it (but you have to complete an indexacion first)

Good Luck.
Penny Stock

on February 28, 2008 @ 3:30 am

I think 1st and the 4th point are the good option.
the 1880 » Blog » FUCK. You’ve lost your Word document?

on March 27, 2008 @ 7:27 pm

[...] Read more @ HackCollege [...]
Anonymous

on April 2, 2008 @ 10:11 pm

Northern Nurses In The Civil War…

Northern Nurses In The Civil War…
Paulo

on April 6, 2008 @ 6:46 am

excellent info but no joy ;(
I opened a doc from hotmail…modified it…and then saved it but when i looked for it - nothing! Can’t find any trace of it anywhere….not in word, not listed under recent docs, no temp file….like I said nothing!
The worst bit is that I can’t figure out what happened and it’s driving me nutz!!!
Advokat

on April 13, 2008 @ 12:36 am

Hi there,

This is some pretty cool thing you got going here. Gonna check out the remaining site pages to see if there are any updates.

Cheers!
Kate

on April 20, 2008 @ 8:02 pm

Thank you! Your search for *.asd files advice yielded the document I thought I’d lost. Many, many thanks.
Dawn

on April 21, 2008 @ 3:09 pm

Thank you soooooo much! I thought I lost my statistics homework with tons of hand calculations, etc. It would have taken me hours to recreate. Number 9 completely saved the day!!!
Katie

on May 1, 2008 @ 4:56 am

Thank you so much! I am so impressed. I tried the first couple, then skipped down to 9 and retrieved my poor lil bro’s paper for him! I was so surprised when it actually appeared I jumped out of my chair. haha
Ways to save for College » Blog Archive » God’s existence - Accounts of pre-mortal existence

on May 1, 2008 @ 7:46 pm

[...] 10 Ways to Find a Lost Word .doc | HackCollege HackCollege.com is a lifehacking site for college students. 10 Ways to Save a Lost Word .doc - a must for any student who does rely on Word, [...]
Alex S

on May 9, 2008 @ 8:24 am

Thanks for the information. It made interesting reading but I still can’t find my file.
I saved a document on my dektop and then emailed it to myself so that I could work on it at home. Then I emailed it back to myself thismorning so that I could work on it some more in the office. I opened it from Outlook and have been saving it regularly all day but now when I try to re-open it, none of the changes have been saved!
Oh well, I have set Word to make automatic back ups now.
You live and learn eh?
Ways to save for College » Blog Archive » Ways to save for college - Collingwood College

on May 9, 2008 @ 1:21 pm

[...] 10 Ways to Find a Lost Word .doc | HackCollege HackCollege.com is a lifehacking site for college students. 10 Ways to Save a Lost Word .doc - a must for any student who does rely on Word, [...]
Monty

on May 13, 2008 @ 9:23 am

If you know the name of the file, goto Command Prompt in Start>Accessories
change to your C: drive, and at the C:\> prompt type,

dir myfilename*.doc /s /a /p
Alina

on May 15, 2008 @ 2:02 am

omg. i love you so much right now
Shark

on June 6, 2008 @ 7:52 am

I lost a file off a corrupted floppy disk! Still trying to find it, so fingers crossed, but this has kept be from breaking down into tears…
Lifehacker » ????? » ??? ???????????? Word’?????? ?????

on June 29, 2008 @ 9:00 pm

[...] 10 Ways to Find a Lost Word Document (.doc) ? How can I recover the lost Word files? ????????? ???????: ?????: [...]
?????????????? ?? Word .doc ???????

on June 30, 2008 @ 6:25 am

[...] ?? ??????????? Word .doc ???? 10 Ways to Find a Lost Word .doc | HackCollege Find New Article [...]
Ryan Graves

on July 16, 2008 @ 10:35 am

A combo of steps 4 and 9 finally worked! I love you guys, you saved me at least 2 hours! love you long time!!!!
Two Dead Drives; Back Stuff Up - 12 HackCollege Days of Christmas | HackCollege

on August 5, 2008 @ 7:45 pm

[...] Word documents and pdf’s, then a gig or two will do you good (and we know it’s easy to delete a word document). They’re the cheapest and most reliable; they’ve got zero moving parts. And a buyer [...]
gift from Ireland

on August 11, 2008 @ 5:07 am

Thanks for the list. My mums computer gave up on her about a week ago. She’s got it back up and running at the moment but it looked like she had lost about 5 hours of work but the .wbk thing worked for us.

Thank you so much!
Eve

on August 14, 2008 @ 6:19 am

Thank you SO much for this…I was not looking forward to retyping all that stuff…I’m now a card carrying member of backing up my stuff every ten minutes!
Jobin Martin

on August 15, 2008 @ 11:25 am

Though I had lost a few documents, I didn’t try to recover it! I just had to type them all again!

Now I know how to do it. Thank you very much.

Jobin
Dan Davies 23

on August 26, 2008 @ 7:23 pm

I used the command prompt search for temporary documents and lo and behold it worked. I found it!

Thanks guys you’ve saved me at least 7 hours work.

Though it took me a good 2 hours to find this site!
dcoffin

on September 12, 2008 @ 11:06 pm

I like using the CLI or Command line interface. Open up a command prompt and at the prompt type:

dir \*.doc /s

Every file on the drive ending with .doc will be displayed. Also works great to find evil hidden trojans as well if you know what file your looking for and you use the ‘h’ switch.
Mark Zurbrügg

on September 14, 2008 @ 4:52 am

I love you so much thanks a lot you just saved me 3 hours redoing my geography coursework
Watson

on September 22, 2008 @ 8:37 am

When the newest Word 2007 archives older documents, where are these files stored? A Windows Search function doesn’t even see them. Thanks.
Liz

on October 10, 2008 @ 11:04 am

Hey there. Excellent post.

As I assume you can sense a but coming …

so, the file I have lost - went missing after I used it this morning.
some 500kb, i used it this morning, typed happily, yeaddayea

-> after i wanted to reopen it, it’s gone …
nada, nil, zero, nothing

I did everything from 1-10 - used the nifty little progs

-> still nothing.

the funny thing is, there is a shortcut of the file, that i have never ever created, but of course, the path is corrupted as the main file doesnt exist

any possibility to recover from there?

btw: i got windows xp, but step 9, i couldnt execute, no clue why?

anyways, thanks for this