Lost files after an update on Windows 11

If Office 365 then by default any new docs are saved to OneDrive, provided you named the new doc using SaveAs, and no docs are on the local device.

Open Word in recents check unsaved docs in the list

If a previous Office version a win update has no impact on docs

Hi, my name is Kelly, and I'm an independent consultant and I'm here to help.

I'm sorry to hear that you're experiencing this issue. There are a few things that could have caused your files to go missing after the Windows 11 update. Here are some troubleshooting steps you can take:

Check the Recycle Bin: It's possible that the files were accidentally deleted or moved to the Recycle Bin. Check there to see if the files are still available.

Use File Recovery Software: If the files are not in the Recycle Bin, you can try using file recovery software to see if the files can be recovered. There are many free and paid options available online.

Check the Windows Update Log: It's possible that the update process interrupted the file saving process and caused the files to be lost. You can check the Windows Update log to see if there were any errors during the update process that could have caused this issue.

Contact Microsoft Support: If none of the above steps work, you can contact Microsoft support for assistance. They may be able to provide additional troubleshooting steps or help you recover the lost files.

It's always a good idea to regularly back up important files to an external hard drive or cloud storage service to prevent data loss in case of unexpected issues.

Most likely, you are logged into a temporary account.

Before you do anything or move any files around

Restart (not shut down) your PC 4 times, each time let your PC get to the Desktop before the next restart, this will fix this issue a lot of the time...

Otherwise:

Please open Windows File Explorer

Navigate to C:\Users

Do you see two user folders that look like yours?

Open those folders and check inside Pictures, Documents... etc. and see if your files are there

If your files are there:

Create a new user profile with Admin privileges

Log into the new user profile

Copy all your data from the old profile to the new profile (Documents Library, Pictures Library... etc.)

If you still have not found your files, look for a Windows.Old folder on your C Drive, expand that to open the users folder contained inside - check there for your files, icons... etc.

If you do find your files... etc. there, copy them out as soon as possible as Windows will remove the Windows.Old folder in time

NOTE VERY IMPORTANT: Do Not copy your files into the Temporary profile you are currently in, when the situation is corrected, your files will be deleted with the Temporary Profile and will not be recoverable !!

Hi Thank you for answering my question. The MS word version I have is WORD LTSC, and apparently the autosave feature is turn off when we created the lost document.