[3+ Ways] Recover Permanently Deleted Google Drive Files

We make use of Cloud Storage tools to keep our files safe and secure in case our computer’s HDD gets corrupt or we accidentally delete them. Google Drive is one such cloud storage offering from Google, that allows its users to save files of any type, safely store them onto the cloud, and have access to them whenever they want. However, what if the files also get deleted permanently from Google Drive as well?

That sounds scary because you have put your files in cloud storage as a backup. If you are also experiencing the same issue and are looking for solutions for it, then you have come to the right place. In this guide, we will show you some of the methods that can help you get back or recover permanently deleted Google Drive files. This guide will be helpful for both G Suite and general users. Having said that, let us check out the steps to recover permanently deleted files in Google Drive.

Is it Possible to Recover Permanently Deleted Drive Files?

Well, the first question that may pop up in your head is whether there is an actual way of recovering permanently deleted Google Drive files? Notably, this question coming to your mind is legit as there are several articles on the internet that just throw you some random steps, but they are good for nothing.

Luckily, based on our research, we will be giving you all the best and possibly the most effective methods that can help you recover those deleted Google Drive files. And Yes! You can recover permanently deleted Google Drive files, only if you follow the methods given in this post as mentioned. Let us check them out.

Best Ways to Restore Files Deleted from Google Drive Trash Bin

Here are the Best Possible Methods to Recover Permanently Deleted Files from Google Drive Trash Bin Folder

1. Contact Google Drive Support

You can directly contact Google and request them to restore the deleted files from Google Drive.

Here is a Simple Guide to Get Back your Files Deleted from Trash on Google Drive Talking to a Drive Specialist.

1. Go to Find or recover a file Google Support Page.
   
2. Scroll down and click on Sign in under Need more help?
   
3. Here login in with the Google Account for which you wish to recover the photos.
4. If you are already signed in make sure you select the correct Google Account from the account list.
   
5. Once signed in you will see two options; Ask the Help Community and Contact Us
6. Click on Contact Us.
   
7. Fill in the details.
8. First, tell Google that you wish to restore the photos and click Next Step.
   
9. Confirm your issue.
   
10. Scroll down and click the Next step.
    
11. Here you will be given two options Email and Chat Support.
12. Click on Chat support.
    
13. Confirm your Email Address and other details and click Submit.
    
14. A small chat box will open at the right bottom corner.
    
15. A Google Drive Specialist will be available within a few minutes.
16. Tell him/her about your issues and he will ask you for some details.
17. He/She will confirm your email and type of document.

    

    

    

18. The support will also give you some details regarding the recovery.

    

    

    

19. Once you confirm the recovery, it will take a few minutes to recover the files.

    

    

    

20. You can check the files will be back in your Google Photos account.

    

    

2. Use G Suite Admin Console

Your Google Workspace admin can easily help you recover those deleted files. But only for a limited time. You can ask the G Suite admin to recover the file that you have deleted in the last 25 days. Beyond this timeline, even the G Suite admin won’t be able to help you out. There are a few criteria that need to be fulfilled if you want to recover those deleted files:

• The file requested for recovery should be created or uploaded to the Google Drive server by the same user.
• If the file is created/uploaded by a different user, then the original owner must grant rights to the files to the user.

Here is how a G Suite Admin can recover deleted files using the Admin Console:

1. Open Gmail Admin Console on any web browser and log in.
2. Now, the admin console interface will show up.
3. Now go to Directory → Users.
   
4. Look for the user for whom you wish to recover the deleted files.
   
5. Options will highlight for the desired user. Here click on the More option.
   
6. Simply click on the ‘Restore Data’ option.
   
7. Select the date range during which you wish to restore the deleted files.
8. Select ‘Drive’ from the drop-down menu.
   
9. Finally, click on the ‘Restore’ button to recover all the files that need to be restored.

Similarly, here are the steps that the G Suite admin needs to follow in order to restore deleted files from a shared drive or team drive.

1. Open Gmail Admin Console on any web browser and log in.
2. Navigate to Apps > G Suite > Drive and Docs.
3. Select the option ‘Manage Team Drives‘.
4. Locate the file that needs to be restored.
5. Hit the restore button.
6. Now, select the date range during which the files were deleted.
7. Finally, click on the ‘Restore Data’ button to recover the permanently deleted Google Drive files.

3. Recover Files From A Deleted User Account

Yes, you can also recover permanently deleted Google Drive files from a deleted user account. However, you need to be the admin of the workspace or request the admin to do this. Basically, you need to restore the deleted account and then transfer the ownership of the account to another user, and then recover the deleted files. Here are the steps:

Restore Deleted Account

1. Sign in to the Google Admin Console.
2. On the interface, you need to head over to ‘Users’.
   
3. You will find an Add a Filter button just above the user’s list.
   
4. After clicking on the Add a Filter button, choose Recently deleted.
   
5. It will list all the deleted user accounts. Simply hover over to the user account that you wish to recover and click on ‘Recover.’
6. Review the confirmation notice that pops up and click on Continue.
7. Assign the recovered user account to a new user.
8. Voila! That’s it.

Do note that it may take up to 24 hours for the changes to take effect. Moreover, if it has been longer than 20 days since the account was deleted, you may not be able to restore the deleted account.

Transfer Ownership

1. Login to the G Suite admin account.
2. Head over to Apps > G Suite > Drive and Docs.
   
3. Here you need to click on the ‘Transfer Ownership’- option.
4. Now, type in the username of both the previous and the future owners.
   
5. Once done, click on Transfer Files.

4. Use Google Takeout

Many users do not know about Google Takeout. Notably, Google Takeout is a G Suite application that allows you to take backup of your Google Drive. Meaning all the files that you store in Google Drive can also be backed up using Google Takeout. Using this G Suite you can try your luck and download the Google Drive backup as a zip file on your device. Here are the steps involved:

1. Open Google Takeout on a web browser.
2. Locate the Google Drive option and click on the checkout next to it.
3. There are three options that you can choose to have granular control on what you want to recover. There is:
   Multiple formats: This option will let you decide the format for your archive.
   Advanced settings: This will show you two options, first to include named, published, and uploaded versions. And the second option is to include additional info for files and folders.
   All Drive data included: This option ensures that you are downloading the entire Google Drive data.
4. Once the data is selected, scroll all the way down and click on the ‘Next step’ button.
5. Now you have to make a few selections. Such as whether you want to download the backup via a download link on your email, set the frequency of exporting, file type, and size.
6. After selecting as per your choice, click on the ‘Create export’ button.
7. You will be shown an Export progress bar at the bottom.
8. That’s it!

With this Post you can;

• Recover Permanently Deleted PDF from Google Drive
• Recover Permanently Deleted Photos from Drive
• Recover Permanently Deleted Zip files from Drive
• Restore Permanently Deleted Files from Trash of Drive
• Recover Permanently Deleted Google Docs
• Recover Permanently Deleted Google Sheets
• Recover Permanently Deleted Google Slides