I am writing an important paper. I need it back in 20 mins or I'm doomed.

Basically I overwrote the content of my word document. Then I closed Word. When I reopen it, I wasn't given the option to recover it. Revision history has no backup...

What can I do to get my original document back?

Thanks.

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D: ܂܂܂܂܂܂܂܂܂܂܂܂ – mtone Dec 21 '11 at 21:20
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I'm so sorry... but... It is pitch black. You are likely to be eaten by a grue. – Dan Andrews Dec 21 '11 at 21:49
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3 Answers

It's a long shot, but there are a couple of things you can try:

  1. Disable hiding "hidden" files and check your document's folder for temporary saves (~WRD????.TMP).

    These files should be deleted on a clean exit, but sometimes they won't.

  2. Install Recuva and search for deleted files in your document's folder.

    With a little luck, one of the deleted temporary saves will save you.

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You need a file recovery program to do this sort of thing. However, there are the following issues:

  1. They usually cost a lot of money.
  2. They take longer than 20 minutes to run.
  3. They work best on deleted files, and some of them may have issues completely recovering a file that was simply changed and overwritten.
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In Windows Vista or 7, go to the file in My documents, right-click it, press Properties, open the Previous Versions tab, and wait to see if you have a backup.

Good luck!

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There is none... thanks for helping.. Any way else? – JohnWong Dec 21 '11 at 21:20
Which only works if you have the backup source properly configured. It is not on by default. – music2myear Dec 21 '11 at 21:20
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