Recover Deleted Files from Mac Terminal and Better Recovery Options

Translating English to Chinese involves turning English texts into Chinese, whether it's sentences, paragraphs, articles, or any other form of English content. For instance, "Hello, how are you?" would be "你好，你怎么样？" in Chinese.

There's nothing more frightening than accidentally deleting a file on your Mac. You might feel hopeless when you realize that you don't know how to recover emptied trash on Mac. Don't despair. It is possible to recover deleted Mac files even after you have emptied the Trash. The best way is to recover deleted files from Mac Trash using Terminal.

However, there are other options, such as restoring from Time Machine or using third-party software. So, in this article, we'll guide you through how to use the Mac Terminal and other methods to recover your deleted files.

Can you recover deleted files from a Mac?

Yes, you can recover deleted files on a Mac. However, the method for doing so depends on how you deleted the file in the first place. Pressing the "Delete" button doesn't actually remove the file; it just sends it to the Trash. To permanently delete these files, you must empty the Trash on your Mac manually.

So, if you accidentally deleted a file but didn't empty the Recycle Bin, you can go there to restore them. Or, if you accidentally hit the delete key, you can use the “Undo” option to restore the file. However, this method only works if you act immediately after deleting the file. Otherwise, they'll be sent to the Recycle Bin where you can still restore them. This tool will find the entry for the file and restore it.

However, if you've already emptied the Trash or deleted the file permanently without going through the Trash, you'll have to use other methods to restore your deleted files. These include recovering the deleted file from the Mac Terminal app, using Time Machine, or using a viable Mac data recovery tool.

Restore Trash on Mac | Recover Data from Trash on Mac

It's effortless for users to delete files to the Trash on Mac, and most Mac users empty the Trash regularly.

Recover Deleted Files from Mac Using Terminal

You can use special text commands in the Mac Terminal to recover deleted files. If you want to restore permanently deleted files on your Mac without using third-party tools, the Mac Terminal is a good option. However, you can only use Terminal commands to recover files that were trashed from your Mac.

To recover a deleted file from the Terminal on a Mac, follow these steps:

Step 1: Go to Finder > Applications > Utilities.

Step 2: Find "Terminal" and double-click to open it. Type in `cd .Trash` and press "Return" to access the Trash folder.

Step 3: Enter the command ls -al ~/.Trash and press Return to see what's in your Trash.

4. Type mv xxx.. ~ and press Return to move the recovered file into your home folder (replace xxx with the name of the file you want to restore).

Step 5. Type “Quit” into the Terminal, then press Return. This will exit Terminal and close the window.

Type quit and press Enter.

Please try to open it from its saved location to see if it has been restored.

Alternative Ways to Recover Deleted Files on Mac

If you've emptied the Trash and cannot recover the deleted Mac file through Terminal, there are other methods to restore deleted files on a Mac. Users can utilize Time Machine or third-party tools to retrieve the removed files.

Solution 1: Try using Time Machine

If you fail to recover lost files from Mac, and you have a Time Machine backup, it's the easiest way to restore data on Mac without software.

Time Machine is Apple's built-in backup solution for Mac available in macOS High Sierra and macOS Catalina. If you had enabled Time Machine backup on your Mac before deleting the files, you can restore the deleted data from the latest backed up files even after emptying the Trash.

However, if you didn't have Time Machine enabled before you deleted the files, this recovery option won't be available to you. In that case, you'll need to try something else.

To restore a deleted file using Time Machine on a Mac, follow these steps:

Step 1: Launch the Time Machine app on your Mac.

Step 2: Use the up and down arrows on your screen to search for the specific file you want to restore within Time Machine. Press the space bar to preview it.

Step 3: Click on the "Recover" button to restore the deleted files.

Solution 2: Use the tool "Mac Data Recovery Wizard"

You can also use specialized data recovery software to retrieve data from your Mac. One such tool is the tools Data Recovery Wizard for Mac. This is a professional data recovery software with specific features tailored for Mac, capable of restoring lost data due to accidental deletion, emptying the Trash, or other reasons.

With data recovery tools, you can retrieve various types of data such as document files, photos, music, videos, emails, and more. You can recover data from any Mac-based device, including SSD, HDD, fusion drives, Time Machine backup drives, and so on.

Equipped with advanced features like data scanning, file filtering, file preview, data protection, and remote IT support, the best part is that it requires no technical expertise to operate.

How to use a Mac Data Recovery Wizard Utility to Retrieve Deleted Files:

Step 1. Select the drive to scan

On the main interface of the Data Recovery Wizard, all drives connected to your Mac will be listed. Select the drive from which you wish to recover lost/deleted files and click on the “Search for Lost Files” button.

Note: Before data recovery, it is recommended that you click “Disk Backup” from the left sidebar to create a backup for your Mac to prevent further data loss. After the backup, the software can recover data from the Mac backup, and your computer can then write new data.

Select a location and scan for lost Mac data

Step 2: Choose the data/files you lost

Data Recovery Wizard immediately scans the selected disk volume and displays the results in the left pane. If you are looking for specific files, you can sort the results to locate the needed items.

Step 3: Recover Lost/Deleted Data

Once the scan is finished, preview the found files and then click “Recover” to start recovering your deleted/lost files from Mac.

A Practical Guide to Mac Data Security

Unfortunately, not all Mac file recovery attempts are successful. Sometimes, recovery fails because the deleted files have been overwritten. Other data recovery failures may be due to user error, data corruption, or physical damage. Thus, it's crucial to avoid attempting to recover data after accidental deletion or other damages.

Here are some tips for keeping your Mac and its data secure and healthy:

Regularly back up your data: Use Time Machine on a Mac to back up your data. Alternatively, you can use other cloud storage apps to physically back up your data to a different hard drive.

Turn on the built-in firewall: MacOS has a built-in firewall that's easy to use. Turning on the firewall can help prevent potentially harmful incoming connections that might delete your data.

Get antivirus software: Antivirus tools scan your Mac regularly for malware and malicious actors, and stop them from doing further harm to your data.

Turn off Remote Access: Remote Access lets you get to your files from anywhere, but it's risky, because anyone with an admin account can access your files.

Use a password manager: A password manager helps you create strong passwords with the right length and character mix, and securely saves them so you don't have to write them down. It's fundamental to good password hygiene and general Mac security.

Conclusions

If you accidentally delete a file on your Mac, don't panic, because you can use Terminal commands to restore it from the Trash. If you've emptied the Trash, you can still recover deleted Mac files from Time Machine or by using a data recovery software. However, it's important to always back up your data so you don't need to rely on recovering files.