Windows: Restore a File Deleted from LAN Storage using ShadowCopy
- Daniel Brashler
Most LAN file storage at Lehigh runs on Windows servers, and Windows client PCs have a fairly convenient means of retrieving files that have been accidentally deleted during the day. This feature is called ShadowCopy, and it saves backups of previous versions of files on the H: and I: drives, and also allows backups to occur while files are open. Shadow copy backups are made twice a day at 12 Noon and 7PM.
This allows you to restore files or whole folders that have been changed/overwritten or deleted. The ShadowCopy volume has a limited amount of space and will overwrite the oldest entries when it runs out of room.
Files and folders stored for more than a day (and deleted less than a year ago) can also be restored from tape backups, but their retrieval can only be done by LTS system admins. Requests for restoration from those backups should go through your Computing Consultant or Margaret Petrovich (83830) in Client Services.
1. Click 'Start', and type 'This'. In the results window, click on 'This PC', or just hit 'Enter' if it's selected. A File Explorer window will open, showing your user folders and connected drives.
2. In the File Explorer Window, navigate to a network storage drive, like H: or I:, and find the folder in which the deleted document was stored.
Then, right-click on it, and select the 'Properties' command, and then the 'Previous Versions' tab in that window.
3. In the 'Previous Versions' tab, you'll see a list of stored copies of that folder with dates and times. Scroll through to the time you're sure your file would have been there, and select that row.
Click "Open" to check the contents of the folder, and find your deleted file. If it's not there, close the window, and select an earlier time.
From that window, you can right-click on your file, and select 'Copy'. Then you can right-click on the desktop (or in any other folder you like) and select 'Paste' to restore that file to that location.
Note: Be careful using the 'Restore' button -- it will change the contents of the entire folder to their status as of that time/date. If you updated other files in the meantime, you could lose those changes.
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