How to Restore Files from File History in Windows 11

We’ll learn how to restore files and folders from File History if the originals are lost or damaged in this post. File History backs up your files in your home folders on a regular basis. File History, on the other hand, will not back up your apps or system settings. These can be reconfigured and reinstalled at any time.

However, important documents can be difficult to replace if they are lost or damaged, which is why File History is designed to only backup important files.

If you have File History installed on your computer and need to restore a missing or damaged file, follow the steps below. File History allows you to look through your backed-up data, allowing you to compare different versions of your files and folders to your current versions.

Simply select Restore to return the file to its original location when you find a better version of the file you want to restore. Below, we’ll show you how to do it. Follow the steps below to begin restoring files from File History.

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Restore missing or damaged file on File History

File History, as previously stated, enables you to quickly restore missing or damaged files to their original location. Here’s how to do it.

As shown below, go to the Start menu, then search for and open the Control Panel app.

How to Restore Files from File History in Windows 11

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Click the System and Security category group when the Control Panel app opens.

Then, as shown below, click File History to open the File History panel.

Click the Restore personal files link in the File History panel, as shown below.

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To navigate through the different versions of your backed up files and folders, click the Previous (CTRL + Left Arrow) or Next (CTRL + Right Arrow) buttons at the bottom until you find the date you want to restore a version from.

Then, select the file or folder you want to restore and click the restore button.

By default, File History restores the file to its original location, overwriting anything previously saved there. However, as shown below, you can use the control option to restore to a different location.

When it comes to restoring, you’ll have a variety of options.

Folder: To restore an entire folder, first open it to see what’s inside.
Files: To restore multiple files, select and open each one to ensure that they are the files you want to restore.
One file: To get back to a previous version of a file, open it from the File History window.

You’ll be prompted if you choose to restore a file or folder and the destination already has the same content.

Here are your choices:

Replace the File in the Destination Folder – Only use this option if you are certain that the older file is superior to the current one. The backed up version will overwrite the current file in that location.
Skip This File – If you don’t want to restore the file or folder, select this option.
Compare Info for Both Files – This option allows you to compare the sizes and dates of the files before deciding which to keep.

Exit File History after selecting the restore option.