Whenever a file is deleted on your laptop or computer, the reality is that it’s not actually deleted permanently because it will continue to exist on your hard drive. This applies even if you empty your recycle bin, meaning erased data and deleted files can be recovered if you know how.

This can either be good or bad depending on the situation. If you really need to recover data it’s good to know that you can, however, if you are disposing of your computer or hard drive you need to be careful because strangers might be able to access your confidential files you thought were deleted.

When you delete a file, it will no longer be present or available on your hard drive and the sectors that held the data related to that file are emptied and free in terms of space. While that sounds like your file has been deleted, the reality is that it’s still there and can be recovered up until your desktop software writes new data over those sectors which held your file and its contents. Until that has been done, a file recovery program can easily scan your hard drive and restore your deleted files. 

The reason why files aren’t erased immediately is because of the time it takes to do so. It would be ideal for your computer to simply erase your files the moment you delete them, but in order to do that by overwriting its data would take a very long time. Changing the sector and marking its space as available, on the other hand, takes no time at all, making it a faster operation and easier to complete. Your desktop software will do this to save time and to increase performance. There is a file shredding tool you can use if you want to erase a files contents. 

If you do need to recover a file because you deleted it accidentally, there are two things you should do to help retrieve the contents. The first is to recover your file as soon as you can because time does matter. The second is to try to use your hard drive as little as possible. This means shutting your computer down right away once you’ve deleted the file and inserting the hard drive into another computer. You can then use the operating system running on another hard drive to allow you to recover it. 

Computer programs and software procedures can be confusing and most people don’t want to attempt fixing or recovering files on their own. The good news is that Surrey Geeks can help with all of your laptop and computer repairs so that you don’t have to panic if something goes wrong. They also offer other services as well like keyboard and laptop motherboard repair, so if you ever need help with your computer, give them a call right away!