Windows 10: Restore Files or Folders from File History in Windows 10

How to: Restore Files or Folders from File History in Windows 10

How to Restore Files or Folders from File History in Windows 10


Information File History was first introduced in Windows 8, and has been improved in Windows 10.

You can use File History (if turned on) to automatically back up versions of your files on a schedule to a location you select to save to. You can select to save backups to an internal hard drive, externally connected drive (ex: USB drive), or you can save to a drive on a network. You can add, remove, and exclude folders to be backed up by File History.

The default folders in your "C:\Users\(user name)" profile folder are added by default to be backed up by File History.

Over time, you'll have a complete history of your files. If the originals are lost, damaged, or deleted, you can restore them. You can also browse and restore different versions of your files. For example, if you want to restore an older version of a file (even if it wasn't deleted or lost), you can browse through a timeline, select the version you want, and restore it.

This tutorial will show you how to view and restore different versions of files and folders backed up by File History in Windows 10.



Warning Making new backups with File History is no longer supported starting with Windows 10 build 16215.

You can still restore files from an existing File History backup though.

File History will eventually be replaced by a new feature called Timeline.

Update: File History is back in Windows 10 build 16226.



Here's How:

1. Do step 2 (File Explorer), step 3 (Control Panel), or step 4 (Settings) below for how you would like to restore a previous version of files and/or folders from File History.


2. To Open File History and Restore Previous File Version from File Explorer
A) While in File Explorer, browse to and select a file, folder, or library you want to restore a previous version of. (see screenshot below)

B) Click/tap on the Home tab, click/tap on the History button in the ribbon, and go to step 5 below.





3. To Open File History and Restore Previous File Version from Control Panel
A) Open the Control Panel (icons view), and click/tap on the File History icon.

B) Click/tap on the Restore personal files link on the left side, and go to step 5 below. (see screenshot below)





4. To Open File History and Restore Previous File Version from Settings
A) Open Settings, and click/tap on the Update & security icon.

B) Click/tap on Backup on the left side, and click/tap on the More options link on the right side. (see screenshot below)



C) Click/tap on the Restore files from a current backup link, and go to step 5 below. (see screenshot below)




5. You can now use the left and right blue arrows at the bottom to browse through different versions of your folders and files, and then select what you want to restore. (see screenshots below)


Note You can enter the name of file you're looking for in the search box.
You can click/tap on the Home

button (Alt+H) at the top right corner will take you to the most current version of your files and folders in File History.
You can click/tap on the Options

button (Alt+O), and click/tap on View to be able to change the folder view of File History to what you like.







6. Do step 7 (Restore), or step 8 (Restore to) below for how you would like to restore it.


7. To Restore Backup Version of File, Folder, or Library to its Original Location
A) Do either action below, and go to step 9 below.
1) Click/tap on the green Restore button at the bottom. (see screenshot below)



OR

2) Right click or press and hold on the green Restore button at the bottom, and click/tap on Restore. (see screenshot below)



OR

3) Click/tap on the Home

button (Alt+H) at the top right corner, and click/tap on Restore. (see screenshot below)




8. To Restore Backup Version of File, Folder, or Library to a Specified Location of Your Choice
A) Do either action below.
1) Right click or press and hold on the green Restore button at the bottom, and click/tap on Restore to. (see screenshot below)



OR

2) Click/tap on the Home

button (Alt+H) at the top right corner, and click/tap on Restore to. (see screenshot below)



B) Browse to and select where you want to restore your files at, click/tap on Select Folder, and go to step 9 below. (see screenshot below)




9. If prompted, click/tap on Replace the file in the destination. (see screenshots below)



10. File Explorer will now open directly to the location you selected to restore your files at. (see screenshots below)





That's it,
Shawn


Related Tutorials

• How to Reset File History to Default in Windows 10
• How to Turn On or Off File History in Windows 10
• How to Select a File History Drive in Windows 10
• How to Exclude Folders from File History in Windows 10
• How to Manually Create a File History Backup in Windows 10
• How to Add or Remove Folders to be Backed Up by File History in Windows 10
• How to Change how Often to Save File History in Windows 10
• How to Change how Long to Keep File History in Windows 10
• How to Delete Older Versions of File History in Windows 10
• How to Recommend File History Drive to Homegroup in Windows 10
• How to Add History to Context Menu in Windows 10
• How to Restore Previous Versions of Files, Folders, and Drives in Windows 10
• How to Create File History shortcut in Windows 10

:)

 

File History Restore Not Working

My apologies for my not explaining my problem clearly.

File History would always list my external drive. It would not list the File History backup subfolder, "Computer Name", which contained my backup.

I completed the 5 steps you recommended, and in step (4), using Windows Explorer, I opted to change the name to "File History.old" instead of deleting it. Had I deleted it, all my backup files that I want to reload onto drive C would have been gone.

When I look at the external backup drive in Windows Explorer it now shows 4 folders, $RECYCLE.BIN, FileHistory, FileHistory.old and System Volume Information. Bottom line, FileHistory contains only the backed up data currently on Drive C as a result of step
5, while FileHistory.old contains the data I wish to reload.

Now when I go to Control Panel/File History/Select drive, and select the external backup drive, only the subfolder contained in FileHistory shows up. The subfolder contained in FileHistory.old, which contains the data I wish to restore, is still not listed.
When I select "Restore personal files" it only shows folders associated with FileHistory.

Thanks for your attention and help, but I am now resigned to copying and pasting the files that I need to restore. I totally yield to the higher power that is Microsoft.

Again thanks,

RP

 

Windows 10 Tweaks

Pressing “Windows+Pause Break” (it’s up there next to scroll lock) opens the “System” Window.

Windows 10: In the new version of Windows, Explorer has a section called Quick Access. This includes your frequent folders and recent files. Explorer defaults to opening this page when you open a new window. If you’d rather open the usual This PC, with links to your drives and library folders, follow these steps:

• Open a new Explorer window.
• Click View in the ribbon.
• Click Options.
• Under General, next to “Open File Explorer to:” choose “This PC.”
• Click OK

credit to Lifehacker.

 

Backup files that Windows creates with file history

You should be able to use File Explorer to browse the folder on the NAS share that you selected. You can find out the share that's in use in:
Settings > Update & Security > Backup > More options.

Select Drive for File History in Windows 10 | Tutorials

But to see what is held in File History and (if necessary) restore the files, see 'Step 3. To Open File History and Restore Previous File Version from Control Panel' in this tutorial.

Restore Files or Folders from File History in Windows 10 | Tutorials

 

File History Full Restore Fails Due To Shortened User Folder Name

We appreciate your response. If you have files or folders elsewhere that you want backed up, you can add them to one of these folders.

Meanwhile, we suggest that you follow these steps on how to restore files and folders using File History:

• Swipe in from the right edge of the screen, tap Search (or if you're using a mouse, point to the upper-right corner of the screen, move the mouse pointer down, and then click Search), enter restore your files in
  the search box, and then select Restore your files with File History.
• Enter the name of file you're looking for in the search box, or use the left and right arrows to browse through different versions of your folders and files.
• Select what you want to restore to its original location, and then select the Restore button.

If you want to restore your files to a different location than the original, press and hold or right-click the Restore button, select Restore To, and then choose a new location.

You may also check this article for more information about backing up and restoring files.

Let us know if you need further assistance.

 

File History won't work, says insufficient space

Hi,

It is possible that the user profiles are also being restored when restoring your files in
File History. We suggest that you manually choose the files you want to restore. Here are the steps:

• Go to Control Panel.
• Search for File History.
• Click the Restore personal files option on the left pane of your screen.
• Select the folders you want to restore and then click the restore icon.

Note: Make sure that you don't copy the duplicated folders listed.

Feel free to get back to us if you need further assistance.