How do I recover old versions of files?

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Dropbox is like a time machine. It keeps snapshots of every change in your Dropbox folder over the last 30 days (or longer with the Extended Version History feature). So even if you saved a bad change or find that one of your files has been damaged or deleted, you can restore the file to an older version with just a few clicks.

On the Dropbox website

To find the file's version history online, right-click on the file from the file browser and select Previous versions from the pop-up menu. If you've deleted the file by accident, you'll need to recover the deleted file first.


Previous versions option from the website

Restoring a previous version

Once you click on Previous Versions, you'll get a list of the snapshots Dropbox has taken during the history of the file. When you see the version you want to restore, select the radio button to the left of the version and click the Restore button.

The Dropbox website context menu
Select and restore a previous version from the list

Windows On Windows

You can find a list of previous revisions by right-clicking the file from your desktop. Hover your mouse over the Dropbox submenu and select View Previous Versions....

The Dropbox context menu
Choosing View Previous Versions... from the context menu

Clicking on View Previous Versions... will take you to the Dropbox website to view old versions of your file. From there, you can follow the website instructions above to recover an old version or even to undelete a file removed by accident.

For our advanced users

Keeping a year of data with Extended Version History

If recovering files becomes a recurring issue, you can upgrade your account to include the Extended Version History feature, which allows you to revert to a previous file version or recover a deleted file at any time within a year of an edit or deletion made after your purchase. Learn more about Extended Version History.

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