I installed Windows File Recovery from the Microsoft Store and the command window just shows help text. What is the correct syntax to recover deleted Word files?
How do I use the Windows File Recovery (winfr) command?
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Data Recovery
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Adrian Bennett October 22, 2026
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The basic format is winfr source-drive: destination-drive: /mode /switches. The destination must be a different drive than the source.
Example for deleted Word files on C: saved to D:
winfr C: D:\Recovered /regular /n \Users\YourName\Documents\*.docx
Modes:
• /regular: for recently deleted files on NTFS.
• /extensive: a deeper scan, for NTFS files deleted a while ago, or from a formatted or damaged drive.
• /segment and /signature: for specific cases like FAT and exFAT drives (signature mode lets you filter by file type, for example /y:PDF,JPEG).
Run the Command Prompt as administrator. The tool needs Windows 10 version 2004 or later. Check the recovery folder when it finishes, since it creates a Recovery_ folder with the files.
Regular mode found my docx files. Thanks for the example.