Recover an Earlier Version of a File

Recover an Earlier Version of a File

Recover an Earlier Version of a File

Overview

If you saved over a file with the wrong changes, or a teammate made an edit you want to reverse, you can roll back to an earlier version. OneDrive, SharePoint, and Google Drive all keep version history automatically.

Before You Begin

  • You know the file name and roughly when the good version existed.
  • The file lives in OneDrive, SharePoint, or Google Drive (not a local-only folder).
  • You can sign in with your work account.

Steps

For OneDrive or SharePoint

  1. Open a browser and go to https://www.office.com. Sign in.
  2. Open OneDrive or your SharePoint site and find your file.
  3. Right-click the file and choose Version history.
  4. A pane opens showing every saved version with date, time, and who modified it.
  5. Click the three dots next to the version you want.
  6. Choose Restore to make that version the current one, or Open file to preview it first.
  7. The restored version becomes the latest; the prior versions stay in history.

For Google Drive

  1. Open https://drive.google.com and sign in.
  2. Right-click your file and choose File information → Manage versions (for non-Google files) or Version history → See version history (for Docs, Sheets, Slides).
  3. Pick the version you want from the list on the right.
  4. Click Restore this version at the top.

Troubleshooting

  • If version history is empty: the file was created very recently or has not been edited since creation. Version history starts after the first save.
  • If you cannot see the option: you may have view-only access. Ask the owner to share with edit rights, or have them restore the version for you.
  • If you opened the file from email and edited it: edits made on a downloaded copy are not in version history. Check your local Downloads folder for older copies.
  • If you need a version older than what is shown: OneDrive keeps up to 500 versions but for most documents this stretches back years. Contact support if you need to go further.
  • If you restored the wrong version: restore again — every restore becomes a new version, so nothing is lost.

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Need More Help?

Submit a ticket at support.bostonmit.com or email support@bostonmit.com.

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