How To Recover Deleted Files From Android Phones

If you have mistakenly deleted important files from your mobile device and want to know how to recover deleted files from Android, this guide is for you.

We know how painful it can be when your important files got mistakenly wiped out from your mobile device. It might even affect your job and productivity.

But the good news is, there is a way out.

In this article, we shall take you through how to recover deleted files from Android phones.

Before we dig into the main article, let’s see a few things about files on Android phones.

Let’s get started.

Table of Contents

Where Do Deleted Files Go On Android?

Android files aren’t totally gone when you delete them. When you delete a file on your Android device, the space appears unused. But space is created for new files.

However, the deleted files remain invisible and occupy no space in your phone’s memory.

When Can You Restore Deleted Files on Android?

You can restore your files if you’ve not written over (replaced) new files on the space left unused when you deleted them. So, ensure you don’t update new files as you proceed on how to recover deleted files from Android.

Actions That Create New Files on Your Android Device

There are certain actions that can create files on your device with or without your consent. You should avoid them when you intend to recover deleted files from your device. Some of these include:

Updating Apps (auto Update)
Shooting pictures
Downloading – music, pdf’s, video, e.t.c
Receiving messages

All of the above take space unused on your device. Either switch it off or activate the airplane mode till you recover your files. This helps to ensure no new file is created on your device.

Now let’s take a look at how you can recover deleted files from Android.

How to Recover Deleted Files From Android Step by Step

If you’re looking to recover deleted files from Android, follow these steps.

Get a PC.

You’ll need to use a PC. That’s where you recover the lost files to when you’ve accessed them.

Download an Android Data Recovery Tool.

An Android Recovery App helps you recover your deleted files from Android. With this tool, you can recover:

Photos
Videos
Contacts
Audios
Messages

Download and install the application on your PC.

Run the Recovery App.

Run the Android Data Recovery App. Connect your device to a PC via a USB cable.

Enable USB debugging on your device.

Allow USB debugging on your Android device. Based on the version of your device, you can do this differently in these Android versions.

Android 2.3 plus

Go to settings, click applications, click developer, then click USB debugging.

Android 3.0 to 4.1

Go to settings, tap the developer options, find and click USB debugging.

Android 4.2 and above

Go to settings, click on “about phone”, tap on the build number several times till you get a reaction. Then, you’re on the developer mode.

Get back to the settings, locate the developer options to debug USB.

Scan Android for lost files.

Once you’ve enabled the debugging mode, then go ahead to select the kind of files you wish to recover. Then, click the next button to analyse your data.

Once you do this, the page below pops up on your system. Click “Allow” on your Android device to create access to the deleted files. Click the start button to continue on your PC.

Preview and save files to PC.

At this point, you can check to choose the files you want to recover. Then click the recover button to save the files to your computer.

Wrapping Up

It’s not an exciting experience to lose files on your Android device. Apart from the feeling of loss, the painful realization of not having access to important documents from work and other relevant activities is hurtful. This is why this article has covered all the steps you need to take on how to recover deleted files from android phones.

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