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How can I recover deleted or overwritten files?

On my H: drive.

You can recover recently deleted or changed files yourself by using our 'Previous Versions' feature. We have full instructions on how to do this. If you have any difficulties, please contact us via the IT Helpdesk.

If the file was deleted some time ago, we can recover your file from our backup system. We can restore back from as far as two years. Please contact the IT Helpdesk to request this.

On the shared M: drive, Storage Now or High Capacity

IT Services can recover your file either from either Commvault Backup or Snapshot, depending on the location of the file. We use backup and snapshot to create 'recovery points' which allow us to recover data, as it existed at that point in time. If your file did not exist when the recovery point was taken, it will not be avalible for restore. Traditional backup system recovery points (M: drive and StorageNow) are taken each day at 20:30. Snapshot recovery points (High Capacity Storage service) are taken every hour.

More information can found on the backup intranet pages and the High Capacity Storage (snapshot) pages.

If you have any queries - please do not hesitate to call the IT Services Helpdesk.

Recovering a file that opens but some or all of the text / data is corrupted, missing or appears as symbols.

We can help to recover data from a wide range of Microsoft file formats such as:

  • Word Documents .doc(x)
  • Excel .xls(x)
  • Powerpoint ppt(x)
  • Access .mdb(x)
  • Other less common programs such as Publisher and Project.

Our success varies depending on how badly damaged the file is. In some cases, it is better to go back to a previous version of the file (See above).

You can request this service via telephone, email or by visiting our office in the Library.