How to Recover Deleted Skype Messages and Chat History in 2024

How to recover Skype messages or how to read old Skype messages? Check the tutorial below.

Please provide the English content you would like translated, and I will promptly translate it into Chinese for you.

User Question: Lost Skype chat history in Windows 10

"Hello, I updated to Windows 10 last month and have been encountering numerous technical issues with Skype. The most severe one is that Skype becomes unresponsive and crashes repeatedly, causing me to lose all chat messages and history. I did a hard reset and reinstalled Skype, but lost all my Skype chat history in the process. I need those conversation logs. Can you tell me how to recover Skype messages and chat history on Windows 10?"

A lot of users have reported that Skype crashes on Windows 10. Some managed to fix the issue in time without losing anything. Many didn't, though. Their chat history, video calls, and messages were lost to unknown software crashes, freezing, unresponsiveness, or 'Not Responding' Windows.

In response to this issue, seasoned members of the Skype community suggest updating Windows 10 to the latest version to see if Skype is still not working, or you might need to install the latest drivers. We'll discuss here how to recover lost or missing Skype messages due to various issues.

How to Recover Deleted Skype Messages and Chat History

You can recover deleted or lost Skype conversations from the Skype database or an earlier version.

1. Recover Skype messages from the main.db file

You can access lost or deleted Skype messages from the AppData folder on your Windows computer. Skype chat logs, call history, messages, documents, videos, voicemails, file transfers, and other information are stored in a database file named main.db. When you delete a message in Skype, it only hides the interaction but doesn't remove it from the program's database file. You can use tools like Skyperious, SkypeLogView, or the Skype Log Viewer to recover chat histories and Skype messages from the database file on your Windows computer.

To recover deleted or lost Skype data, you might want to try the following methods.

The first step is to download and install Skyperious, SkypeLogView or Skype Log Viewer to open and read the contents of Skype's database files.

Step 2: Launch the program you just installed, and open the main.db file that contains your Skype chat logs, which is stored in the following folder:

C:\Users\Your Windows Username\AppData\Roaming\Skype\Your Skype Username

< strong > Step 3. < /strong > Use the app's browser to find the conversation that had the deleted message.

2. Recover Deleted Skype Messages from a Previous Version

If you had "Windows Backup" enabled before, you might be able to restore your Skype messages, chat logs, and other sent or received items from a previous version. If you didn't enable backups, this won't work.

Step 1: Go to C:\Users\Your Windows Username\AppData\Roaming\Skype\Your Skype Username.

Step 2: Right-click the file > select “Properties” > click the “Previous Versions” tab > select the old version > click “Restore.”

Additional Tip: How to Recover Deleted Files on Windows 10

Most Skype users manage to restore their lost data by following the guide, but some might fail if the AppData folder is missing from their Windows computer. Don't worry – you can use the tool Data Recovery Wizard to recover the lost AppData folder.

This data recovery software allows you to:

Now, download the hard drive recovery tool to help you recover deleted Skype chat history. Try it anyway and do not miss any chance to recover lost data.

Step 1. Select the exact location of the file and click on the "Scan" button to continue.

Step 2. Once the scanning process is finished, select the “Deleted Files” and “Other Lost Files” folders on the left. You can then use the “Filter” feature or click on the “Search for a file or folder” button to look for your deleted files.

Step 3. Click the “Recover” button and save your recovered file – preferably to a location different from the original.

How to Retrieve Old Skype Messages and Chat History

After some time, some of your older Skype conversations might no longer appear in the chat window. However, Skype doesn't actually delete these messages. As long as you can still access the Skype account where the conversation took place and haven't manually deleted the chat history, you can view and access old messages by:

Step 1: Sign in to the Skype account that contains the chat logs you want to view.

Step 2: Click on "Contacts" in the left-hand column of Skype. Your list of Skype contacts will appear.

Step 3: Find the contact whose Skype conversation you want to view. Open that contact.

Step 4 Look to the right side of your Skype window. Above the current conversation with this contact, you will see a heading labeled “Show messages from:” followed by a list of time periods.

5. Choose a time range, either "Yesterday," "1 Year," or "All Time." Then, search and look through your old chat logs for the information you need.

How can I export Skype chat history from Windows 10?

Here, you can learn how to easily export and download your Skype chat history.

Step 1: Log in to your Skype account.

Step 2. Choose whether you want to download only your Skype chat history, or your chat history and files. Then, select Submit request.

< strong > Step 3. When the request is complete, you'll get a notification in Skype with a link to view or download your chat history. If you don't see the notification in Skype, check the export page. You'll also find a link to download the file there once it's available.

Step 4: Click the “Download” button to download your file.

Downloaded Skype conversations and files are saved in a .tar format. You might need an additional app to open a .tar file and extract your Skype conversations and chat history. To learn how to extract and view your exported .tar files on Windows 10, follow this detailed guide.

How to Retrieve Deleted Skype Messages on iPhone?

Is it possible to recover deleted Skype messages or chat history on iPhone? You can have a try on MobiSaver, a powerful iPhone Data Recovery tool. It can help you retrieve photos, contacts, videos, movies, messages and more from your iPhone/iPad with or without backup.

With this iPhone data recovery tool, you have 3 ways to retrieve deleted Skype messages: scan your iPhone for the deleted Skype chat logs, recover lost Skype messages from an iCloud backup, or retrieve old Skype messages from an iTunes backup. The steps below show you how to recover deleted Skype messages from your iPhone.

Step 1: Connect your iPhone to the computer

Download and run the MobiSaver app. Click “Recover from iOS Device” on the left, then click “Start.”

Step 2: Scan the Lost iPhone/iPad/iPod Data

MobiSaver will scan your device automatically and find all your lost data, and all you need to do is wait for the scan to complete.

Step 3: Recover Lost iPhone/iPad/iPod Data

You can select the lost data that you want to recover, such as photos, videos, contacts, messages, notes, voicemail, and other files, and then save these data to another location.

How to Retrieve Deleted Skype Messages on Android

If you delete chat records from Skype on your Android device, how can you get them back? When you delete a conversation in Skype, it removes all the messages within that conversation from your chat list and history. These messages will be removed from Skype on that specific device you're using, but they'll still be accessible from other devices unless you've also deleted them there.

The last 30 days of conversations are stored in the cloud, so you can sign in to Skype on any device and view or recover them. So, if you lost messages, photos, videos, or other files from Skype on your Android phone, you could try signing into your cloud storage app to restore deleted Skype messages.

Conclusion

If you accidentally lose or delete your Skype chat history, don't worry. You can recover Skype messages from the main.db file, or restore deleted Skype chat history from an earlier version. Additionally, you can find help on retrieving deleted Skype chat history on Android or iPhone on this page.

The Data Recovery Wizard tool can help you recover deleted Skype messages by restoring the lost main.db file, which might have been removed due to hard drive formatting, accidental deletion, or other reasons. It has a good reputation for fixing corrupted files (including damaged videos, photos, Word, Excel, or other documents) on Windows 10.