[100% Work] How to Recover OpenOffice Unsaved Document?

What Is OpenOffice?

OpenOffice (formerly OpenOffice.org, often shortened to OOO) is a well-known open-source office suite available in multiple languages. It’s free to use and offers functionality similar to Microsoft Office.

OpenOffice works across major operating systems, including Windows, macOS, and Linux, making it accessible to a wide range of users. It includes four main applications: Writer, Calc, Impress, and Base, which correspond to Word, Excel, PowerPoint, and Access. The suite stores data in an international standard format and can easily open and save files created by other popular office programs.

⚠️Files in OpenSource can be accidentally deleted or corrupted, just like in any other software, so it's recommended to regularly save files and keep backups.

How to Recover OpenOffice Documents from Backup?

OpenOffice may sometimes close unexpectedly—due to a system crash, power outage, or the program freezing while you’re working. When this happens, unsaved documents can feel lost, leaving you frustrated.

Luckily, OpenOffice has an AutoRecovery feature that automatically saves a backup of your work at regular intervals. This means that if the program crashes, you may still be able to recover your unsaved documents after restarting the program. However, this method only works if AutoRecovery was enabled beforehand.

Next, we’ll show you how to recover OpenOffice documents from the AutoRecovery backup (also check if this feature is enabled or not).

• Launch OpenOffice. Click "Start > All Programs", find "OpenOffice.org", and open the application.
• If prompted, follow the instructions to restore from the most recent backup. If not, continue to the next step.
• In OpenOffice, go to the "Tools" menu and select "Options".
• In the following windows, click on the "Load/Save" and select the "General" option.
• Check whether the “Save AutoRecovery information every” option is enabled. If it’s already checked, there might be a backup. If not, enable it now to make sure OpenOffice creates backups going forward.
• Click on the "OpenOffice.org" option from the “Options” list.
• Select the "Paths" options from the sub-menu. Now, see the document/file location written beside the "Backups" option. Backups are stored in this directory. "C:\Users\Username\AppData\Roaming\OpenOffice.org\Version number\user\backup" is the default path.
• Go to "Windows Explorer" and navigate to the backup directory. Once done, double-click on the preferred file to access it.
• Save the file/document to your desired location and you can continue editing it.

Tips about OpenOffice recovery files location:

• Once the AutoRecovery is turned on, you can go to File → Open → navigate to the backup folder to find the temp files.
• AutoRecovery files are temporary copies, usually with extensions like .bak or .odb for databases, .odt for text, .ods for spreadsheets. The filenames often start with ~ or Backup of, e.g.
• This software may overwrite or delete old backups automatically, so it’s best to move recovered files elsewhere.

How to Recover Unsaved & No Backup Documents from OpenOffice?

While the AutoRecovery feature works well for recovering files after sudden crashes, it won’t help if the OpenOffice document was never saved or was manually deleted. In such cases, the best solution is to use a professional data recovery tool. And we recommend 4DDiG Data Recovery.

4DDiG can scan your computer or external storage devices to locate deleted or missing OpenOffice files. It works not only for documents (like previous version of Word, Excel, PowerPoint) but also for other file types such as photos, videos, audio files, and emails.

Whether files lost due to deletion, formatting, partition errors, or malware, it can recover them with ease. It also lets you preview files before restoring them, helping you verify that the correct documents are recovered.

Download and install 4DDiG, then follow our detailed steps to recover your unsaved OpenOffice documents:

• Launch 4DDiG Data Recovery on your computer and choose the drive where the unsaved OpenOffice document was last working or stored.
• In the left-hand panel, go to the "Type" tab and select "Unsaved File" to quickly locate any unsaved OpenOffice documents, as well as other office files like Word, Excel, or PowerPoint.
• Check the scan results, select the document you want to recover, and click to preview to make sure it’s the correct file. Then click "Recover".
• When prompted, choose a different location to save the recovered document—avoid saving it to the same drive to prevent overwriting other lost files.

How to Enable AutoRecovery on OpenOffice? (Step-by-Step)

The AutoRecovery feature in OpenOffice is usually enabled by default, automatically saving copies of your work at regular intervals. However, if this option is unchecked, your documents won’t be backed up automatically. In that case, you can manually enable it to make sure your files are protected by following steps here:

• Open OpenOffice on your computer. Launch the program you use most often, such as Writer, Calc, or Impress.
• Click "Tools" in the top menu, then select "Options".
• In the window, expand "Load/Save" and click "General".
• Check the box “Save AutoRecovery information every [X] minutes” and enter a number, for example 10 minutes, to determine how often OpenOffice saves backups.
• Click "OK" to save the settings and enable AutoRecovery.
• You can also check “Always create backup copy” for an extra layer of protection.

Tips to Prevent Losing OpenOffice Documents in the Future

• Enable AutoRecovery – Make sure AutoRecovery is turned on and set to save every 5–10 minutes.
• Always create backup copies – This keeps a separate backup each time you save a document.
• Save frequently and use versioning – Save your work often, and use “Save As” for major updates to keep multiple versions.
• Store files in safe locations – Avoid temporary folders or Desktop; use organized folders or cloud storage.
• Keep external backups – Use an external drive or cloud service for extra security.

Conclusion

That’s all for how to recover the OpenOffice document. If you regularly use this productivity suite, then be sure to enable the Auto Save feature to recover documents easily. Otherwise, you can simply rely on Tenorshare 4DDiG Data Recovery. It is effective and fast when it comes to recovering files and documents.