How to Recover Unsaved/Deleted LibreOffice Document?

Why Your LibreOffice Documents Go Unsaved?

Before jumping into LibreOffice document recovery methods, it helps to understand why the files sometimes go unsaved in the first place.

• Unexpected System Crash: A sudden system crash can close LibreOffice before it has a chance to save your latest changes.
• LibreOffice Program Crash: If LibreOffice freezes or crashes while you’re working, the document may close without saving recent edits.
• Power Outage or Forced Shutdown: An abrupt power loss or forced shutdown can interrupt LibreOffice and prevent the file from being saved.
• Accidental Closure Without Saving: Closing the document or LibreOffice itself without clicking Save can result in lost work.
• AutoSave Disabled or Set Too Infrequently: When AutoSave is turned off or runs too rarely, recent changes may not be preserved.

How to Recover Unsaved/Deleted LibreOffice Document?

Once you understand why LibreOffice docs can go unsaved or get deleted, the next step is recovering your work. In this section, we’ll focus on the most effective ways to find and recover your unsaved or deleted LibreOffice docs.

1 Try LibreOffice Document Recovery

The simplest and most reliable way to recover unsaved LibreOffice documents is to use its built-in document recovery feature. This tool automatically detects files that were open during a crash or unexpected shutdown and gives you a chance to restore them the next time you launch LibreOffice.

It’s usually the first thing to check before trying more complicated methods. Let's see how to restore LibreOffice unsaved document using this feature.

• Open LibreOffice. If the program crashed previously, the Document Recovery dialog should appear automatically.
• In the Document Recovery dialog, you’ll see a list of documents that were open before the crash.
• Select the document you want to recover and click "Start".
• LibreOffice will try to restore the document to its last saved state.
• Once recovered, save it to a secure location.

2 Use LibreOffice AutoRecovery

If your document wasn’t saved before a crash or sudden shutdown, LibreOffice’s AutoRecovery feature can help. AutoRecovery automatically creates temporary copies of your open documents at regular intervals, allowing you to restore recent changes even if you didn’t manually save.

You can go to "Tools > Options > Load/Save > General" to check if the AutoRecovery feature is enabled.

If you have this feature enabled before your LibreOffice file gets lost, it would be pretty easy to recover LibreOffice document. Here's how to use the AutoRecovery information to recover an unsaved LibreOffice file：

• Locate the AutoSave folder on your computer. By default, it’s usually in your system’s temporary files directory, or you can find it under "Tools > Options > Paths > Backups".
• Look for files with names ending in ".bak or .tmp" that correspond to your lost document.
• Open the file, check it then recover and save it to a different location.

3 Recover from the Backup Copy

If your document was saved at least once before it went missing, LibreOffice may have created a backup copy automatically. This backup preserves the last saved version of your file, making it a useful option when a document is accidentally deleted, overwritten, or saved incorrectly.

You can go to "Tools > Options > Load/Save > General" to check if the “Always create backup copy” feature is enabled.

Unlike AutoRecovery, which focuses on restoring unsaved changes after a crash, the backup copy feature saves a separate version of your document each time you manually save it. This means you can recover the last saved version of a file even if the original document was deleted or overwritten.

• Open the LibreOffice Writer or Calc file.
• Locate the Tool tab and select “Options” from the drop-down menu.
• A window will pop up. Select "LibreOffice > Paths". Look for the “Backups” folder which contains the latest file backup in the Paths and take notes of the backup location.
• Now, head back to the LibreOffice program, choose “File > Open” and navigate to the following path to open the backup copy (.bak)
  C:\Users\UserName\AppData\Roaming\LibreOffice\4\user\backup
  

4 Find Temporary (.tmp) Files

If other recovery options don’t work, you may still be able to retrieve your unsaved documents by looking for temporary files. While editing, LibreOffice often creates .tmp files that store unsaved changes. By locating these files from the LibreOffice temporary files location, you can sometimes recover content that wasn’t saved or backed up.

• Open your system’s temporary folder by going to
  C:\Users\UserName\AppData\Roaming\LibreOffice\4\user\backup
• Look for files with the ".tmp" extension created around the time you lost the document.
• Copy the suspected file to a safe location and rename its extension to match your document type (e.g., ".odt").
• Open the renamed file in LibreOffice and save it immediately if it contains your content.

5 Restore from Recycle Bin

Restoring files from the Recycle Bin is important because it keeps deleted files temporarily before they’re permanently erased. If you accidentally deleted a LibreOffice document, you can easily recover it from the Recycle Bin (Windows) or Trash (macOS) without any special tools.

• Open the Recycle Bin on your desktop.
• Search for your LibreOffice file by document name, file type, or date deleted and select the once you want to retrieve.
• Right-click on the selected files and select "Restore". The selected files will be immediately sent back to their original location.

6 Recover from File History/Time Machine

Your system actually has a built-in feature that can help recover lost files (Windows has File History, and Mac has Time Machine). These tools automatically save previous versions of your documents, so you can easily restore an earlier version of your LibreOffice file or recover it if it was deleted or accidentally overwritten.

Below are the steps to recover LibreOffice files via system's built-in tools:

• For Windows, right-click the folder where your lost LibreOffice document was saved and select "Properties > Previous Versions". For Mac, open "Time Machine" from the menu bar.
• Browse through the list of available versions to find the one you want to recover.
• Select the desired version and click "Restore" to recover the file to its original location, or copy it to a safe location.

7 Recover Unsaved/Deleted/Lost LibreOffice Documents with Tenorshare 4DDiG

Sometimes built-in recovery options just aren’t enough, especially if your LibreOffice document was accidentally deleted, your system was crashed, or other recovery methods failed. In that case, you can get 4DDiG Data Recovery to retrieve the unsaved documents.

This software can perform a deep scan of your computer, external drives, USB sticks, or SD cards to locate your files if you are unable to auto-recover the lost LibreOffice files. It supports a wide range of file types, including unsaved Word documents, LibreOffice documents, and allows you to preview files before recovering them.

Within 3 steps, even files that are permanently deleted or corrupted can be restored quickly and safely. Check out the amazing features of this software:

• Recovers more than 2,000 types of data including audio, video, image files and LibreOffice documents within seconds.
• Retrieves deleted, lost, formatted, and hidden files from SD cards, USB sticks, hard disks, and digital cameras.
• Restores saved and unsaved LibreOffice files lost due to power outages or malfunctioning systems.
• Offers quick scan and deep scan mode to find lost files under most data loss situations.

To recover lost or permanently deleted LibreOffice files, follow the given instructions:

• Download and install the 4DDiG tool on the computer where you have the LibreOffice suite installed. Launch the program. Then choose the disk where you suspect loss of LibreOffice files.
• Click "Start" once you've chosen the file path. The 4DDiG tool will begin looking for lost LibreOffice files. You can pause or stop it in mid-scan to preview the details of your targeted files.
• Once the scan is finished and you've recovered your chosen LibreOffice files, hit "Recover". This will save the files in your desired location. Don't save the files in a place where you lost them to eliminate the risk of overwriting.

8 Restore from Cloud Backup

Provided that you have synced your Windows with OneDrive beforehand, you can retrieve lost or accidentally deleted LibreOffice files easily. OneDrive is an in-built feature in Windows that provides cloud backup for all your system files. Follow the steps below to restore LibreOffice files from OneDrive:

• Launch OneDrive on your browser.
• Sign in to your OneDrive account with your username and password.
• Head to the Recycle Bin in the left-hand pane on OneDrive.
• Choose the files you want to recover and click on "Restore".

FAQs about LibreOffice Files

1. How do I recover a file that disappeared?

You can recover a lost LibreOffice file with the help of the Auto Recovery feature. Open the unsaved file you closed. The Auto Recovery feature will prompt you to recover it. Press Start. This will restore your document.

2. Where are LibreOffice backup files stored?

LibreOffice backup files are stored in the backup folder present in your LibreOffice user profile. Follow the path C:\Users\UserName\AppData\Roaming\LibreOffice\4\user\backup to open LibreOffice backup files.

3. Does LibreOffice have autosave?

Yes, LibreOffice has an autosave feature you can enable, so the program will always save a backup copy of your file. Here’s how you can enable autosave: Open Tools in the LibreOffice program, choose Options, select Load, then click Save.

4. How do I recover an unsaved document in Open Office?

If your LibreOffice program closed unexpectedly and you didn’t get the time to save your work, you can recover the file from its backup folder. All you have to do is open Tools in the LibreOffice program. Then choose Options. Navigate to LibreOffice. Choose Path. Find your desired file and restore it.

How to Keep Your LibreOffice Files Safe?

Many file loss situations can be prevented with the right habits and settings. By taking a few simple steps, you can protect your LibreOffice files from accidental deletion, crashes, or other unexpected problems, ensuring your work stays secure and easy to recover.

• Enable AutoRecovery: Make sure AutoRecovery is turned on and set to save at short intervals (e.g., every 5–10 minutes).
• lways Create Backup Copies: Activate the “Always create backup copy” option to keep a copy of the last saved version.
• Save Frequently: Get into the habit of manually saving your work regularly, especially after major changes.
• Use Reliable Storage: Store files on stable drives or cloud services to reduce the risk of corruption or loss.
• Use Cloud Backup or File History: Enable Windows File History, macOS Time Machine, or cloud backup solutions for an extra layer of protection.
• Avoid Abrupt Shutdowns: Shut down your computer properly and avoid closing LibreOffice during unsaved work.
• Keep LibreOffice Updated: Updates often include bug fixes that prevent crashes or file corruption.

Final Words

Losing LibreOffice files due to accidental deletion, power outage, or system crash can be frustrating. However, you can restore them quickly. We’ve discussed eight ways to recover unsaved libreoffice document but some built-in methods work only if features like AutoRecovery or backup copies were enabled beforehand.

For better LibreOffice file recovery, Tenorshare 4DDiG is worth considering. It can recover lost, deleted, unsaved, or permanently deleted files quickly, with a high success rate and support for many file formats.