How do I undo empty trash on Mac? If you’ve accidentally emptied your trash bin on your Mac and now wish to recover the deleted files, you’re in luck. This article will guide you through the steps to undo the empty trash operation and restore your deleted items.
In the digital age, we often find ourselves in situations where we delete files without realizing their importance. Whether it’s a critical document, cherished photo, or a personal video, the loss of such files can be distressing. However, if you’ve recently emptied your trash on a Mac and now wish to undo that action, follow these simple steps to recover your deleted items.
First, it’s essential to understand that the trash bin on a Mac is not a permanent storage location for deleted files. When you empty the trash, the files are moved to a special folder on your hard drive, and the space they occupied is marked as available for new files. This means that the deleted files are still on your Mac, but you need to act quickly to recover them.
Here’s how to undo an empty trash operation on a Mac:
1. Open the Trash Bin: Click on the trash bin icon on your dock to open it. If you can’t find it, you can also search for “Trash” in Spotlight (Cmd + Space) and open it from there.
2. Check for Recently Deleted Items: In the trash bin, you’ll see a list of recently deleted files. If the items you want to recover are among them, simply drag them back to their original location on your Mac.
3. Empty the Trash Bin Again: If the items you’re looking for are not in the trash bin, you may need to empty the trash bin again to access the special folder containing the deleted files. Click on the “Empty Trash” button in the trash bin window to do this.
4. Access the Special Folder: Once the trash bin is empty, navigate to the following path on your Mac:
“`
/var/folders/…
“`
This path will vary depending on your Mac’s configuration and the version of macOS you’re using. Inside this folder, you’ll find a folder named “.Trashes.”
5. Search for the Deleted Files: Inside the “.Trashes” folder, you’ll find multiple folders corresponding to each user on your Mac. Look for the folder that matches the user account from which the files were deleted. Inside this folder, you’ll find the deleted files.
6. Restore the Deleted Files: Copy the deleted files from the “.Trashes” folder to their original location on your Mac. If you’re unsure of the original location, you can create a new folder and place the files there for safekeeping.
7. Securely Delete the Files (Optional): If you want to ensure that the deleted files are permanently removed from your Mac, you can securely delete them using the “Secure Empty Trash” option in the trash bin’s right-click menu.
By following these steps, you should be able to undo the empty trash operation on your Mac and recover your deleted files. Remember that the sooner you act, the higher the chances of successfully recovering your files, as the space they occupied may be overwritten by new data.
