Onedrive recover deleted files

Hi Enbew,

I’m sorry you’re in this situation — losing photos and videos unexpectedly can be very stressful. Here are some options you can try to hopefully recover your photos depending on the type of OneDrive account you have.

1. Check OneDrive Recycle Bin (Web & App)

• You mentioned your recycle bin is empty, but OneDrive has its own cloud recycle bin.
• Go to OneDrive online.
• On the left-hand menu, select Recycle Bin.
• If your files were deleted within the last 30 days (or longer if you’re on a work/school account), they may still be there.
• If you see them, select the files → click Restore.

1. Check “Second-stage Recycle Bin” (Work/School accounts)

If this is a work/school OneDrive:

• Go to OneDrive online → Recycle Bin.
• Scroll to the bottom and choose “Second-stage recycle bin.”
• Sometimes files bypass the first recycle bin but are still stored here for an additional period.

1. Use OneDrive’s Files Restore Feature (Work/School accounts, or Personal Premium)

• If you’ve deleted a large batch of files, OneDrive offers a feature called Files Restore.
• Go to OneDrive online.
• Click the Settings gear → Restore your OneDrive.
• You’ll see a timeline view of your OneDrive from the last 30 days — you can roll your entire OneDrive back to a date before the deletion.

1. Contact Microsoft Support

Since you mentioned you don’t know how to reach them:

• For personal OneDrive:
1. Sign in at OneDrive Help & Support.
2. Scroll down → click Contact Support.
3. You’ll chat with a Microsoft support agent.
• For work/school OneDrive:
1. Contact your organization’s IT administrator (they can open a support ticket directly with Microsoft 365 support).