Microsoft Word is a widely used program that is frequently considered the gold standard for any type of word processing. The most secure way to use Word is probably to automatically save documents, although this could cause users to lose unsaved work. The auto-recovery folder, temporary folder, and trash can are all areas where unsaved documents from Microsoft Word for Mac can be found. This article serves as a guide on how to recover unsaved Word documents on a Mac terminal.
Enjoy the ride!
How to Recover Unsaved Word Documents on Mac
Have you been worried about how to recover unsaved Word documents on a Mac? Worry not! The following is a guide on how to recover unsaved Word documents on a Mac:
#1. Restore a Lost Word File
You might think you’ve lost your Microsoft Word file for good if you just dump it in the trash. Your deleted Word file may still be recoverable by exploring the trash icon’s contents. If you’ve accidentally deleted a Word file on your Mac, you can recover unsaved Word documents on a Mac by following these instructions:
- To do this, right-click the trash can icon in your Mac’s dock.
- Choose the “Open” option.
- Use the Finder’s Recycle Bin to Track Down That Missing Microsoft Word File
- From the pull-down, choose “Put back.”
- The file can be dragged and dropped into a new folder in the Finder if you can’t remember where you originally stored it.
#2. You Can Use a Program to Recover Unsaved Word Documents on a Mac
Anyone who has ever lost a document may find third-party apps useful because of how simple they are to employ. If you think some files should be in the Temporary Things folder but aren’t, you can utilize the software to look for them by following these steps:
- Launch the external app on your Mac.
- Select the ‘Recover’ tab on the right side of the window.
- You can narrow down your search by adding filters.
- Whenever you become aware of missing data, you can repeat the ‘Recover’ process by clicking the button.
#3. Find Missing Word Files in the Temporary Folder
The Microsoft Word file you’re looking for may be in your Mac’s temporary files folder. Here’s how to use Mac Terminal to recover a lost Word file:
- Launch the Terminal app on your Mac.
- Type “Open $TMPDIR” at the command prompt.
- Go to your ‘Temporary stuff’ folder.
- If your unsaved Word file is still visible, you can move it to the desktop by right-clicking on it.
#4. Use Auto-recovery to Recover Unsaved Word Documents on Mac
Traditionally, Microsoft Word has incorporated an auto-recovery feature that saves your Word documents automatically every few minutes. If your copy of Word ever crashes, you’ll have something to fall back on, and your files won’t be lost. Here’s how to use Mac AutoRecover to recover unsaved Word documents on a Mac:
- launch the Finder program.
- Click the ‘Go’ button on the navigation bar.
- The ‘Go to Folder’ button must be clicked.
- Enter the string that contains your Mac’s login name
- Follow this link to access the ‘Containers’ section of your personal library!
- Find the file you need by looking for com.microsoft.Word, then opening it.
#5. Restore Files From a Previous Backup
Once a backup has been created, it is typically much simpler to restore previously lost data. Sometimes we delete old papers without giving them much thought, or we accidentally delete a file while trying to save it. Having a solid plan in place to back up your Mac can be useful. With Get Backup Pro, you can choose to back up individual folders or the entire folder tree. It’s a great choice if you care about the safety of your files and want to set up a regular backup schedule. With Get Backup Pro, you can schedule backups for whenever you need them.
#6. Fix a damaged Word Document so that You can Read it
There are times when a Word file becomes corrupted and cannot be opened on a Mac. The following procedures detail how to recover unsaved Word documents on Mac that were lost due to file corruption:
- Select ‘Preferences’ in the Word menu.
- To access ‘General’, choose it from the menu labeled ‘Authoring and Proofreading Tools.
- make a choice from the following “At Open, verify the new file format.”
- Close the Common Message Box
- Go to file>Open1 to get back the text. As soon as you finish creating the Word document, save it.
A Word document that was never saved will be located in RAM rather than on the hard drive. Therefore, there is little hope of recovering an unsaved Word document. When you create a new document in Word, you may receive a warning to save it.
How to Recover Unsaved Word Documents on Mac Terminal
Did you ever forget to save a Word document before closing it? Maybe you’ve been working on an important document, but suddenly Word has crashed and you’ve lost everything. Unsaved Word documents on a Mac can easily be lost, but this section provides several options for how you can recover unsaved Word documents on a Mac terminal:
#1. Recover Unsaved Word Docs on a Mac with AutoRecovery
AutoRecovery is a tool of Microsoft Word for Mac that lets you recover unsaved Word documents on Mac. Automatically save a copy of open documents every 10 minutes with this setting, which is enabled by default after installation.
This option allows you to change how often the app saves data, making it more or less frequent. You can restore your Word document to the point in time of the last automatic save if the program or your machine unexpectedly closes while you are working on it.
Steps to recover unsaved Word documents on Mac terminal:
- Step 1: Launch the Finder application on your Mac.
- Step 2: Make your entire PC the target. To search for it, just type “AutoRecovery” into the search bar. You’ll see a directory listing of available documents. It will start with “AutoRecovery save of” and then the name of the Word file you’re attempting to restore.
- Step 3: Then, just double-click the file you want to restore. This will launch Microsoft Word to display the document.
- Step 4: Choose Save As from the File menu. Click the Save button after giving the file a new name and choosing where to keep it.
If you haven’t disabled AutoRecovery, this method should help you recover Word files on a Mac. This strategy will only recover recently deleted files that were still being edited at the time of their disappearance. If you accidentally delete a finished Word document from your Mac OS X computer, you will need to resort to alternative ways of recovery.
#2. Recover Lost Word Docs From The Mac Temporary Folder
Your Mac’s temporary folder might contain the missing Word document. If you’re curious about what’s in your temporary folder, try this:
- Turn on the computer’s terminal.
- Simply enter cd $TMPDIR to change directories.
- Type: ls to display the files. Look in the TemporaryItems subfolder for your document.
- Find the missing document, please. Once you’ve located the desired Word document, it’s a good idea to make a backup copy and save it elsewhere.
#3. Restore a Previous Version of a Word File from Within the Word App
The OneDrive Way
The following is a detailed guide on how to access older versions of files in Word while syncing with OneDrive.
- To complete the repair, follow these procedures:
- Launch the most current revision of the Word document you wish to restore.
- Choose File > Browse Version History in Word.
- All of the file’s previous versions will be listed in a panel.
- Choose the backup from which you want to restore your data, and then click Restore.
AutoRecovery Method
The following procedures should be followed if Word unexpectedly closes without saving and AutoRecovery is enabled:
- The Word program has to be restarted.
- The saved file will be retrieved and opened in the app mechanically.
Recover Unsaved Word Documents on Mac from the Trash Bin
It’s possible that you accidentally deleted your document. It’s sometimes done when you’re trying to make space on your Mac. By doing so, you may remove some necessary old files by accident. The situation isn’t quite as dire as it may sound. Anyway, you could try looking in the Trash for the record. You can recover unsaved Word documents on Mac by following these procedures:
- The Dock’s trash can icon can be accessed by clicking on it.
- Everything you’ve hidden from view will eventually be revealed.
- Try to track down the file you’re looking for. Pressing the space bar after selecting a record may reveal a preview of that track.
- Look under the Trash’s “Recovered Items” folder if you can’t find your file. It’s possible that’s where your document was stashed.
- If it is, select it using the right-click menu and then select Put Back. The file will be restored to its original location, and you can resume editing it there.
How to Recover Unsaved Word Documents on Mac Through iCloud Backup
The following are ways on how to recover unsaved Word documents on Mac through iCloud backup:
- Visit the iCloud website or use the iCloud app and sign in.
- Select “Restore Files” under “Advanced” under “Settings.”
- Click “Restore File” after selecting the Word file you wish to retrieve.
Recover an Unsaved Word Document on Mac Using Time Machine
Once you turn on Time Machine on your Mac, it will back up all of your files for up to 24 hours. So, if you’ve been working with a Word document, Time Machine might already have a copy ready for you to use. Navigate to the folder on your Mac where you’d like to see the document, or a folder containing a previous version of the document. You can also try the AutoRecovery folder to get back a Word document, like the one mentioned above.
You can check to see if your file was saved by using the Time machine and scrolling through the past days, weeks, or months. Our best wishes are with you as you try this. The methods below will show you how to use Time Machine on a Mac to access and recover unsaved Word documents on a Mac.
- Find and activate the Time Machine with the help of the Search feature.
- Reconstruct the missing Word file using the historical record.
- After locating the missing Word document, simply choose it and hit the Restore button.
How to Recover Text from a Damaged File in Word
Forcing Word to attempt to repair a damaged file is possible. Follow these directions to give this way of recovery a shot:
- Select Open > File in Word.
- Choose the corrupted file from the list.
- To access the drop-down menu, select the arrow next to the Open button.
- Select the Text Repair or Text Recovery option.
Read Also: How to Save Word Document as PDF: Detailed Guide
How to Keep Your Word Documents Safe
The following advice may help you keep your Word documents safe. We recommend you take the necessary precautions to safeguard the files if they include any sensitive information or are otherwise valuable to you.
#1. Wait Before You Start Emptying the Trash by Hand
Stop for a second and take a look at the stuff you’re about to get rid of. If you realize you deleted something by accident, you can probably get it back from the Trash without having to resort to data recovery tools.
#2. Adjust the Frequency of Automatic Saves
You should immediately begin saving your work in Word. When you save a document in Word, the auto-save feature kicks in. You may lessen the likelihood of losing work in progress on a Word project by adjusting the autosave frequency.
#3. Always Back Up Your Data
You may use Time Machine to create backups of your data and save them on an external hard drive. You can use a cloud storage service like Dropbox, OneDrive, or iCloud to back up your data and maintain multiple copies of your files without needing to connect an external drive. If you’re looking for a good app to help you protect your data in the future, consider ChronoSync Express.
#4. Use Virus Protection Software
Infections with malware and computer viruses both pose a risk of data loss. To avoid this, an antivirus program could be installed on your Mac. If you want it to be reliable and secure your data, it’s probably a good idea to keep it updated.
#5. Use a Surge Protector
Unexpected system crashes due to power spikes and surges are a leading source of data loss. A reliable surge protector could prevent this dangerous situation from occurring. Unsaved Word documents are often lost, but a reliable power supply can help prevent that.
#6. Turn on Auto-recovery
You can lose a lot of effort and the whole history of unsaved Word documents, if you rely on, autosaves instead of saving your work manually. It’s possible that all the details concerning this feature might be found in this Microsoft document. You can activate it and then use it to automatically secure your Word documents.
#7. Configure Guaranteed Recovery
Guaranteed Recovery is an add-on to your current data backup strategy. It has a one-click data recovery tool and can lock down individual folders and files to prevent their destruction. Recovering accidentally deleted Word files is possible with the help of the EaseUS Data Recovery Wizard for Mac.
Can I Recover a Document I Didn’t Save in Word on My Mac?
- Launch the Mac’s file browser.
- Set the location for the entire computer. To search for it, just type “AutoRecovery” into the search bar.
- To restore a file, simply double-click on it. The Microsoft Word application will launch.
- Choose Save As from the File menu.
Final Thoughts
This article has explained everything you need to know about how to recover unsaved Word documents on a Mac. We do hope you follow the steps carefully. Was this guide helpful? Let’s hear from you in the comment section below!
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