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How to Recover Deleted Attachments in Outlook? Quick Methods

  author
Published By Ashwani Tiwari
Tej Pratap Shukla
Approved By Tej Pratap Shukla
Published On April 8th, 2024
Reading Time 8 Minutes Reading

There are a majority of users who have their accounts on Outlook for various purposes. Some of the emails that you receive have attachments with them which you can easily open and view and download if required. But what if these emails are gone? How would you recover deleted attachments in Outlook?

The attachments could be anything be it an image, a video file, document, audio file, etc. and are of immense importance. This is why Outlook keeps them stored in a folder in case users look for solutions on how to recover lost attachments in Outlook.

There are ways to do so but before that, check out this user query to get a more clear vision:

User Query – I had some PDF files in my Outlook mailbox which were related to a business project and I deleted them accidentally. Now, I can’t find a way to get those attachments back and I urgently need them. Is there any way possible to retrieve those files? Anything at all?

Table of Contents:

  1. Reasons Why Users Face Outlook Attachment Lost Issue?
  2. Direct Method to Recover Deleted Attachments in Outlook
  3. Working Steps to Undo Remove Attachment in Outlook
  4. Outstanding Characteristics of the Professional Software
  5. How to Recover Deleted Attachments in Outlook from Temporary File Folder?
  6. Recover Removed Attachment in Outlook Using Registry Editor Approach
  7. Conclusion & FAQs

Reasons Why Users Face Outlook Attachment Lost Issue?

Users can face the loss of attachments in Outlook due to various reasons, we have discussed some of the most common ones here.

  1. In many cases, the attachment size may exceed the maximum size limit as per the email server and hence the recipient of the email may not be delivered or accessible to the user, leading to attachment loss.
  2. File format restrictions, connectivity issues, and anti-virus software are also some of the most common reasons that can restrict users from accessing the required attachment files.
  3. Users face situations like Outlook configuration errors or a corrupt Outlook file that can also lead to Outlook attachment loss.
  4. Using outdated versions of Outlook or some third-party add-ons can also lead to various attachment-related issues faced by the users.

Now, let’s discuss how users can get their attachments restored.

What Are the Methods to Recover Deleted Attachments in Outlook?

The methods to get the attachment files recovered as we are going to mention here are well-working solutions. Find out the methods below followed by the explained working of each:

1. Directly Restore Lost Files (Recommended Solution)
2. Use the Temporary Files Folder
3. Apply the Registry Editor Method

All these solutions will help users and provide results as per the working. It is possible that the last two solutions might not resolve the issue which is why we are first going to explain the direct solution.

Direct Method to Recover Deleted Attachments in Outlook

Users can be stress-free if they have lost their attachments and have no clue on how to get those back as we have the perfect solution to solve their problem. This resolution is the Outlook PST Repair Software that has the capability of restoring deleted data from PST file.

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The software offers an option to restore deleted files in bulk and in different file formats such as PST, EML, PDF, MSG, and HTML. All of the deleted data is previewed in Red Color making it easier for the users to understand which data to recover.

The tool is compatible with Outlook 2019, 2016, 2013, and lower versions.

Working Steps to Undo Remove Attachment in Outlook

Points given below are the steps that you need to follow in order to recover deleted email attachment in outlook:

  1. Launch the software, run it on your Windows OS desktop, and click on the Add File option.2
  2. Mark the Select File radio button and click on the “…” option to browse for required PST file.select-1
  3. Select the file you want to recover and click on the Open button. Process further by pressing the Add button.select-2
  4. Choose the Quick Scan Mode and the software will start scanning your file. If the file is not scanned properly, choose the Advance Scan Mode option.6
  5. As soon as the process is completed, you will be prompted if you want to save the scan or not. Hit Yes if you want to, otherwise, hit No.

Just a few clicks on your work is done. Let’s now take a look at the manual methods to perform the same task.

Outstanding Characteristics of the Professional Software

The above discussed professional solution has various outstanding characteristics that make it an ideal solution for users to recover deleted email attachment in Outlook, let us have a look at some of the prominent features. 

  1. The tool has the ability to repair the damaged, crashed, or corrupted Outlook PST files easily including all mailbox items such as emails, calendars, contacts, etc. 
  2. It can repair multiple Outlook PST as well as BAK files together and restore them into multiple popular file formats such as PST, EML, PDF, MSG, HTML, etc. 
  3. Users can run this tool as a standard or guest user without the requirement of any Admin privileges and save their repaired PST file data in Office 365. 
  4. The tool doesn’t have any limitation on the size of PST files to be repaired and users can also preview their attachments in all categories. 
  5. It supports the PST file of multiple Outlook versions and retrieves the deleted data from the PST file in previews all its items in red color. 

How to Recover Deleted Attachments in Outlook from Temporary File Folder?

You can get your files recovered with the help of OLK folder. For that, you have to follow the steps as given below:

  1. Click on the Windows Start button and write “Folder Option” in the search bar to make the OLK folder visible.
  2. The File Explorer Options wizards will open up on the screen from which you have to click on the View tab and find Hidden files and folders option.
  3. Mark the radio button next to Show Hidden files, folders, and drive option. Click on the Apply button and close the window.
  4. Open the OLK directory using the default location as mentioned below:
    “C:\Users\$user\AppData\Local\Microsoft\Windows\TemporaryinternetFiles\ Content.Outlook\8OVAD”
  5. Here, look for the attachment you want to import, select the file, and copy it to your desired location on the local system.

If this doesn’t work, you can go for the next solution to recover deleted attachments in Outlook.

Undo Remove Attachment in Outlook Using Registry Editor Approach

To retrieve the lost attachments, follow the given points:

  1. Hit the Start button and enter Run in the text bar.
  2. When the Run Dialogue Box appears, type regedit and hit enter.
  3. Now, you have to locate to the appropriate registry.
  4. Go to the My Computer option and copy the registry path for your Outlook edition:registry-path-location
  5. After that, paste the copied location in the File Explorer and open OutlookSecureTempFolder.
  6. Here you will find all the lost attachments, copy the ones that you want and save them in your system at desired location.
Also Read: Save Outlook Email as PDF on Mac with Attachments 

Bottom Line

To recover deleted attachments in Outlook, users can choose any of the three methods. The direct method, which is a tool, can help make the process simpler and quicker. In case you want to go for the manual methods, you can try both the workarounds as given. If in case neither of the two manual ways work, that would mean that your attachments have been deleted permanently. You will then have to go for the direct method to undo remove attachment in Outlook.

Frequently Asked Questions

Q.1 Where do removed attachments go in Outlook?

Ans. If the attachments are removed from the emails in Outlook, they are typically moved into the “Deleted Items” folder or the “Trash” folder, which depends upon the specific Outlook configuration or settings. 

Q.2 Can I recover the attachments deleted from my email in Outlook?

Ans. Yes, you can try to recover the deleted attachments from an email in Outlook if it hasn’t been permanently deleted with the help of the “Recover Deleted Items” option in the “Folder” tab. 

Q.3 What if the “Recover Deleted Items” option isn’t working?

Ans. If users are not able to recover their deleted attachments with the available option in the Outlook application, then users can take the help of the professional recovery software as we have discussed above in the article.