How to Recover Lost Word Files in Windows 10

In order to minimize the possible damage that data loss due to corrupted or lost Microsoft Word files might do to their users, Windows 10 offers some quick fixes. You can prevent data loss from Word files with auto-recover and auto-backup.

Data loss due to unsaved or lost Word documents is an inherent risk that comes with using computers in our work life.

While you can’t totally prevent data loss, the Windows 10 operating system includes some quick fixes to minimize the problem of data loss from Word files.

How do I recover lost Word Files in Windows 10?

This option works well if your computer or your Word document closed unexpectedly due to a power interruption or your system crashed.

1. Go to the “Start” menu and click on Microsoft Word
2. In Microsoft Word, choose to open a new blank document.
3. When your document opens, go to the “Files” tab.
4. When the “Files” menu opens, find the “Info” tab and click on that.
5. Find and click on the option “Manage Document”
6. You should be presented with several options, one of which says “Recover Unsaved Documents”. Click on that option.
7. You will be presented with files in the ASD format, click the last one and choose to “Open” it.
8. Word should open the latest version of your file that was saved before the program unexpectedly closed.
9. Choose “Save As” and save this version under a new file name.

Take note that, while the most recent changes you made might not be recovered, what will be missing will probably be just a few lines of text. That is still better than losing the entire file.

It is also a good idea to have data recovery software on your computer. If you have a lot of important Word documents, a good program to have is DataNumen Word Repair as it specifically repairs and recovers Microsoft Word documents.

How to backup my Word files on Windows 10

If you have several important Word files on your computer, it is a good idea to create regular backups of these files. Here is how you can do so.

1. Open Word and find “Options” at the bottom of the home screen on the left corner and click.

2. In the new menu, the left side will have set of options that will open different tabs. Choose “Save” and click.

3. You will be presented with a set of options to “Customize how documents are saved”.

4. Make sure the box for “Save AutoRecover information every _ minute” is ticked. You can also choose the number of minutes here.

5. There will also be a tick box for “Keep the last AutoRecovered version if I close without saving”. Tick it.

6. Back on the left side of the menu, choose “Advanced” and click. Another set of options will appear.

7. Find and tick the option “Always create a backup copy”

These backup files will be saved in the format WBK and you will be able to find them in the same location as the original file, but the file name will be “Backup copy of (original document name)”