What to do right now
- Press Windows key + R, type %temp% and press Enter to open your Temp folder.
- Switch to Details view and sort by Date modified to see what was written around the time of the loss.
- Copy candidate files to another folder first, then rename the copy with the right extension and open it.
- If a cleanup already ran, the files are deleted and only a deleted file scan of drive C: may still find them.
Step by step
Pause cleanup and avoid restarts
Do not run Disk Cleanup, Storage Sense or third-party cleaners, and avoid restarting repeatedly. Some setups and cleanup tools clear Temp at sign-in or on a schedule.
Open %TEMP% and sort by date
Press Windows key + R, type %temp% and press Enter. In File Explorer choose View, then Details, and click the Date modified column so the newest files are on top. Turn on hidden items so files starting with ~ are visible.
Narrow down by time and size
Look for files written in the minutes before the crash, with a size that fits your document. Word often uses names like ~WRL0001.tmp or ~WRD0002.tmp; other programs create random names or subfolders named after the program.
Copy first, then test the copy
Copy each candidate to a folder outside Temp. Rename the copy with the extension you expect, such as .docx or .xlsx, and open it. Never open and save the original inside Temp, because the program may delete or replace it.
Let the finder identify the content
In FileFix Ultimate, open Find files lost when a program crashed or closed without saving and click Find unsaved files. Filter Program by Temporary folder: it checks the content of each file and shows only documents, photos and archives, with a matching extension.
Scan for deleted temp files if needed
If Temp was already cleaned, open Deleted file recovery, scan drive C: and search for the Temp folder path, .tmp files or the expected file type. Save results to another drive.
What ends up in the Temp folder and why
Temp is a scratch area. Word writes a temporary copy while it saves, so if it crashes mid-save the ~WRL file may hold the newest version of your document. Email programs and browsers copy attachments there when you open them directly, and installers unpack files there. When you edit an attachment opened from email and close it without saving elsewhere, the edited copy may exist only in a temporary folder.
Each Windows user has a separate Temp folder, and there is also a system Temp folder at C:\Windows\Temp used by services. If %temp% opens a numbered subfolder such as Temp\2, that is normal for some remote sessions; check the parent folder too.
What survives a reboot and what does not
Restarting Windows does not reliably empty Temp, so files often survive several reboots. What removes them is cleanup: Storage Sense, when it is set to delete temporary files, Disk Cleanup, third-party cleaners and some programs that tidy their own temp files when they start again. That is why reopening the crashed program several times can also destroy what you are looking for.
Names lie, contents do not
A .tmp extension says nothing about what is inside. A DOCX, XLSX or PPTX file is really a ZIP package, a PDF starts with %PDF and a JPEG has its own signature, so a tool that reads the first bytes can tell what a .tmp file really is. Small files starting with ~$ next to an open document are lock files holding only a user name, so you can skip them.
When it won't work
- The program never wrote a temporary copy, or wrote it somewhere other than the user Temp folder.
- Storage Sense, Disk Cleanup or a cleaner already deleted the files and the space has been reused, or TRIM on an SSD erased it.
- The temporary file is only part of the document, for example an interrupted save, and may open only partly or not at all.
- The file was in use and locked by a running program; close that program and search again.
How FileFix Ultimate helps
- Searches your Temp folder read-only and skips browser caches and Windows update leftovers to keep the list short.
- Recognizes documents, photos and archives by content and suggests a name with the right extension.
- Includes Word ~WRL and ~WRD temporary files, AutoCAD .sv$ files and unfinished browser downloads.
- Copies selected items to a folder outside the searched locations and can repair Office copies that do not open.
- If the files were already cleaned up, Deleted file recovery can search drive C: for them, offline and free for personal use.
FileFix Ultimate is free for personal use, works offline and never writes to the drive you are recovering from. Business use needs a one-year licence per PC. Check the signature before you run it.
Frequently asked questions
Is it safe to delete everything in the Temp folder?
Usually yes for space, but not while you are trying to recover something. Programs that are running may still use their files, and a deleted temp file is much harder to get back than one you simply copy out.
Does restarting Windows empty the Temp folder?
Not by itself in most setups. Files are usually removed by Storage Sense, Disk Cleanup, cleaners or the program that created them. Check the folder before running any of those.
How do I tell which .tmp file is my document?
Use the time it was modified and its size, then copy it out and try likely extensions on the copy. A tool that reads the file signature can name the type for you, which avoids guessing.
Why does %temp% open a different folder than I expected?
The Temp path comes from the TEMP setting of your user account, so it can differ between users and can be changed by policies. Typing %temp% always opens the folder in use for your account.