The Recycle Bin is a place where items deleted in Windows are temporarily stored until they are permanently deleted. It has enabled users to recover deleted files in Windows operating systems since Windows 95. Until the user completely deletes the data, they remain on the hard drive all deleted files or folders are placed in the Recycle Bin. Additionally, Recycle Bin lets you restore all saved files to their original location.
What is a Recycle Bin?
The Recycle Bin is a default folder on the computer’s operating system. It serves as a temporary storage area for files and folders that have been erased from the computer, whether accidentally or intentionally. When you delete an item from your computer, it goes into the Recycle Bin rather than being permanently deleted. This enables users to restore wrongly deleted files without utilizing data recovery software.
Features of Recycle Bin
- Recovery: When you delete a file you have an option for recovery because of recycling otherwise it would deleted permanently and cannot be recovered. They can be restored directly to their original place by a single click. Because of this, people can delete unnecessary files without worrying.
- Customization: We can easily customize the features of the recycle bin by going by right-mouse clicking on the recycle bin icon and then clicking on recycle bin properties. It provides us the option of using a recycle bin or permanently deleting files. We can also decide the maximum size of the recycle bin per each disk as shown in the image.
- Auto delete: When the recycle bin has reached the defined size or your hard disk is running low on space then the files start being removed from the recycle bin. This stops the recycle bin from getting filled or stops the hard drive from getting slow because of the recycle bin.
- Restore All Items: Recycle bin also provides us the option to restore all the files directly with a single click. You need not restore files one by one and can do it directly with a single click.
How to Recover Files sent to the Recycle Bin?
- Navigate to the desktop window where the recycle bin icon will be shown.
- To see the deleted files, open the recycle bin window by double-clicking the recycle bin icon.
- Now you need to select the file that you want to restore from the recycle bin window, then choose the Restore option after right-clicking on the selected file. The file will be returned to its original storage place on the hard disc from where it was erased by the user.
- The recycle bin also allows you to restore the file to the desired location on your hard drive. To do this, choose the file that you wish to recover and right-click on it.
- Then, click the Cut option, or use the shortcut key Ctrl + X to cut the file.
- Now, select the location where you wish to restore the deleted file and press Ctrl + V or click the Paste option.
- You may also use the drag-and-drop feature to restore deleted files from the recycle bin to the desired location or folder.
Advantages of Recycle Bin
- Accidental Data Protection: If you accidentally deleted a file but need it after some time then because of the recycle bin you can recover it because of the recycle bin. Your data is not permanently gone. You can go to the recycle bin and click to restore it. This is also the primary purpose of a recycle bin which is to safeguard against accidental deletions.
- Optimizes Storage: Instead of redownloading the deleted files we can restore them from the recycle bin this will save the storage bandwidth. This becomes very important when you are working with large files and limited internet resources.
- Easy User Interface: The user interface of the recycle bin is very easy to use and understand. Even a beginner can understand how to restore deleted files with just a single click. The restored file will come back to its original location from where it was deleted.
- User confirmation: Even if you try to delete a file from the recycle bin it will ask for user confirmation This extra step helps prevent accidental permanent deletions by requiring users to confirm their intention to remove files.
Disadvantages of Recycle Bin
- Occupies storage space: The Recycle bin does not store the deleted files on external storage such as the cloud rather it takes space from the computer’s hard drive. So, it cannot be used as a backup for cloud storage and if you are deleting things for getting storage back then recycle bin will not help much.
- Slows down the deletion process: In the case you want to delete the files permanently then also recycle bin is not helpful because of recycle bin you first delete the file then it will move to recycle bin then you have it from there. So, for normal people it will slow down the process of deletion because of recycle bin. But there is a way you can delete the file permanently without storing it to recycle bin. It is done by holding the shift key while deleting the file. In this will file won’t be stored in recycle bin and will be deleted permanently.
- Potential security risk: If sensitive or confidential files are deleted and not permanently removed from the Recycle Bin, there is a potential security risk. Someone with access to the computer could restore these files and gain unauthorized access to sensitive information.
- Not applicable to network locations: The process of storing to recycle bin will only work if the files are deleted from local storage drive but for network files location it wont work in the same way and if the files are deleted from network location.
How to add a Recycle Bin to your Flash Drive?
Sometimes you may be working on another computer system and want to save all deleted files from the recycle bin folder to the flash drive you are using with that computer. In this case, you can use the iBin software to move all deleted files to a recycle bin folder on the associated flash drive. It provides extra security for your data. To use the iBin program, download and execute the ibin.exe file from the flash drive. Then, delete files by clicking the Windows Key Delete. When you initially install or use this program on your flash drive, it may take a few minutes to install. When you finish the iBin’s configuration settings, all temporarily deleted files will be routed to the flash drive recycling bin folder rather than the Windows recycle bin. Additionally, you may change the settings of this tool by selecting Custom Options from the iBin notification area button. To view all deleted files, open either the iBin contain folder or the iBin folder on the flash.
How can be changed the Recycle Bin icon?
- Step-1: First, right-click anywhere on your Windows desktop. Then you will see a drop-down menu with several options then select the Personalise option.
- Step-2: Now, select the Themes option from the left navigation window.
- Step-3: The next step is to scroll down to the bottom of the Settings box and pick Themes. In the Related Settings section, click on the Desktop Icon Settings option.
- Step-4: You may now change the recycle bin icon by clicking the Change Icon button in the desktop Icon Settings box.
- Step-5: When you click the change icon button, you will be able to select icons from your computer’s hard drive or by searching the internet. You can also choose icons from the available list then click the OK button.
How do I empty my Recycle Bin?
To empty your recycle bin, right-click it and choose “Empty Recycle Bin” from the drop-down menu. This will permanently remove all of its data and free up space on your hard drive. You can also choose multiple things from the trash (or all of them) and click “Delete” to remove them permanently. Make sure you don’t need any of these items before deleting them, because once they’re gone, there’s no way to get them back without third-party software or services.
Frequently Asked Questions on Recycle Bin – FAQs
Can I permanently delete files from the Recycle Bin?
Yes, you can permanently delete files by selecting “Empty Recycle Bin,” option in UI interface of Recycle bin which will remove them from your system.
What occurs when the Recycle Bin reaches its capacity?
When the Recycle Bin is full, older files might be automatically deleted to make space for new deletions.
How do I change the size of my Recycle Bin?
To change the size of your Recycle Bin, right-click on it and pick “Properties” from the drop-down menu. You can set a new maximum size for the bin.
Can I use Recycle Bin as a backup solution?
No, it functions as a safety net for accidental deletions, but for regular backups you can use cloud storage as they provide protection and space.
Is the Recycle Bin found on all operating systems?
While the concept of a Recycle Bin exists in various forms on Windows, other operating systems like macOS and Linux may employ different methods for file recovery.
How long do items stay in the Recycle Bin?
Unless you empty the recycle bin, all temporarily deleted files remain in place. However, your files will begin to be removed from the recycle bin if the recycle bin storage limit has been reached.