Deleted File Recovery and File History

Recover deleted files

Accidentally delete an important file? Unexpectedly wipe out everything? Don't worry—Dropbox saves all your lost files or work for 30 days (or longer for Dropbox Professional and Business users). And there’s no need to use any other data recovery tools or file recovery software, or talk to tech support—you can restore deleted files yourself at dropbox.com. Unlike accidentally deleted data on remote storage devices such as USB flash drives, memory cards and external hard drives, Dropbox file recovery means you can always get your data back.

View your version history

Accidental file changes and deletions happen. With Dropbox, they’re easy to fix—just pull up your version history to undo changes and restore old versions of any file. No matter the file type, Dropbox saves version history for all your files.

User restoring an earlier version of a file

Get notified about file changes

Any time a team member moves or deletes a file in a shared folder, we’ll confirm with them to prevent files from being lost. And if they do accidentally delete or update a file in a shared folder, you’ll receive desktop and email notifications. You can then follow the file recovery process to bring your lost file back to life.

User notified of a shared file change and opening the file

Rewind your entire account

Undo accidental overwrites and edits, recover deleted files, or restore your files from virus attacks or ransomware threats. With Dropbox Rewind, you can take a whole folder or even your entire account back to any time in the last 30 days (or longer for Professional and Business users). You can also turn on computer backup so key folders on your Mac or PC back up automatically.

User restoring a deleted folder using Dropbox Rewind

Frequently asked questions

What is file recovery?

File recovery is a way of restoring or recovering lost data because of accidental edits or deletion. Typically, you can restore deleted files or folders, pieces of lost data, or even an entire hard drive.

Can I recover or restore deleted files from Dropbox?

Yes, recovering or restoring deleted files from Dropbox is simple. On dropbox.com, navigate to the Deleted files page, select the recoverable files or folders you’d like to recoup, and click restore. Dropbox keeps your deleted files and edits for up to 180 days, depending on your plan.

How do I see file history on Dropbox?

Dropbox stores previous versions of your file for up to 180 days depending on your plan; your file history doesn’t count toward your storage quota. To see your file history on Dropbox, first search for the file name in your account on dropbox.com. Then, click Version history and select which version you’d like to preview. After you’ve seen the file edit history, you can choose to restore it or stay with the current version. This applies for all types of files.

How does Dropbox Rewind work?

Dropbox Rewind works by reverting your folders or even your entire account back to a specific point in time in the last 30 days (or longer for Professional users)—restoring everything in your Dropbox account to what your file system looked like before your mishap. Rewind makes fixing big accidents or recovering your files after data disaster simple. Note: Rewind is not available for Basic users.

How does file recovery work with computer backup?

Computer backup applies to entire folders on your PC or Mac. When you enable computer backup, files saved in folders like Desktop, Documents, and Downloads are automatically and continuously synced to the cloud. If you delete a file in your Desktop, Documents, and Downloads folders it will also be deleted from your cloud backup. You can use file recovery to restore that deleted file.