Lots of files disappeared from my account - how can I get them back?

AN79

Hi, I have been using dropbox for many years and have many word files which I keep editing online. I noticed that many files had disappeared from different folders with some of them I surely used 2 weeks ago. I don't have any hard copy and all files have been online. My deleted file folder is empty. There is no way that I have accidentally deleted them.

I am desperate to retrieve the files as I have built up so much information into those files over the years. It is very frustrating to see the online platform that you may think is a safe place, loses your data.

I am on the basic plan hence limited support.

I would be grateful if you could help, please

Neal

Hi @AN79,

Let's jump right in and see if we can troubleshoot this for you. Can you try the following steps for me:

• Double-check the following
  • Sign out and back in; confirm the email shown under your avatar is the one you usually use.
  • In the search bar, type a distinctive word from the file name (or even “.docx”) to surface anything that was moved.
• Deleted files (30-day window on Basic)
  • Go to dropbox.com → Deleted files in the left sidebar.
  • Change the filter from the default 24 hours to Last 30 days.
  • Tick what you need and click Restore.
  • Inside any folder you can also open the … menu → Show deleted files; grayed-out items can be restored the same way.
• Events log
  • Visit dropbox.com/events (or append /events to the URL).
  • Scroll back to the day you last remember using the docs.
  • If you spot a bulk delete or move, click the ► arrow and choose Restore.
  • If the event lists an unfamiliar device or location, change your password and enable two-factor authentication right away.
• Version history for a single file
  • If the file name still exists but its content is wrong or empty, hover over it and click Version history.
  • Pick a timestamp from before things went wrong and click Restore.
  • Basic accounts keep 30 days of versions.
• Desktop cache (only if you run the Dropbox app)
  • Recent edits often linger here for a few days even after deletion:
    • Windows: C:\Users\<your-name>\Dropbox\.dropbox.cache\
    • macOS: ~/Dropbox/.dropbox.cache/
  • Copy anything you want out of that folder before it’s purged.
• If the folder is shared
  • Only the folder’s owner can restore permanently deleted items, so ask them to run these same steps in their account.

Let me know how you get on with these steps.