How to view recently opened files on Windows

 Locating recently opened files is extremely easy with Windows. So whether you want to re-edit recently closed files or keep track of who accessed them before, you can do it easily.

In this article, we will discuss how to view recently opened files on Windows, when they were last modified, and how to recover if they have been deleted.

How to view recently opened files on Windows

Windows offers two ways to view recently opened files; use Quick Access or the Recent Items folder.

While Quick Access only shows some recently opened files (about 20), the Recent Items folder keeps a history of files and folders opened many days ago. So users can go back to check which files were opened on a particular day, even a week or a month ago.

Furthermore, Quick Access does not allow you to sort recently opened files by specific parameters, but this is very easy to do in the Recent Items folder. Let's see how you can access recently opened files on Windows using both methods.

How to view recently opened files in Quick Access

You can view recently opened items in Quick Access by opening File Explorer from the taskbar and selecting Quick Access from the left sidebar. You will then see a list of recently opened files in the right pane. Scroll down to find the recent file or folder you're looking for.

In most cases, Quick Access displays recently opened files in File Explorer; however, there are times when it crashes and stops showing them.

If you can't fix the error that Quick Access doesn't show recently opened files or want a more in-depth analysis of recently opened items, you can switch to method 2 - using the Recent Items folder.

How to view recently opened items in the Recent Items folder

Follow these steps to view recently opened items in the Recent Items folder:

1. From the taskbar, open File Explorer.

2. Paste the following link into the File Explorer navigation bar.

C:UsersusernameAppDataRoamingMicrosoftWindowsRecent

3. Press the Enter key.

Note : Don't forget to replace your real username in the above mentioned path. If you don't do this, you won't be able to access the Recent Items folder.

The steps above will take you to the Recent Items folder, where you can view recently opened items. And depending on how many recently opened files and folders, you can even check which files and folders were opened last month.

How to sort recently opened items

When viewing recently opened items in the Recent Items folder, you can sort them by various parameters, such as modification date, type, size, author, etc. To sort items according to a specific parameter, perform the following steps:

1. Right click on the same folder.

2. Navigate to Sort by in the context menu.

3. Click the parameter you want to sort files by.

4. If you can't find the parameter you want to sort the items by, click the More. button in the Sort by menu , check the box for details you want to sort the data by, and click OK .

5. The parameter will then appear in the Sort by menu , where you can select it to sort the recently opened items.

How to view recently opened files for specific applications on Windows

Although most programs allow users to view recently opened files within the application itself, Windows also keeps track of recently opened files in most of those applications.

To see recently opened files for a specific app, go to Windows Search and enter the app name. In the right pane of search results, you'll see recently opened items in that app, accessible with one click.

To see more recently opened items than those that appear in search results, open the app and navigate to the app's recent files section.

How to view recently deleted files from Quick Access

Quick Access is an access point that allows you to quickly access recently closed files. Therefore, even if you or someone else who shares a computer with you deletes files from Quick Access, they will not be deleted from their original location. You can still access recently closed files in the main Recent Items folder using the same steps as the article explained earlier.

How to view recently opened files that have been deleted from the Recent Items folder

When you delete File Explorer history or recently opened files from the Recent Items folder, they are permanently deleted from Windows. This data recovery is complex and the chances of successful implementation are slim. However, some alternatives may allow you to access recently opened files again.

Go to the Recent Items folder location , right-click on the folder and select Restore previous versions from the context menu. Then, click on the latest version of the folder (if available) and then click Restore .

If this option is not available in the context menu for the Recent Items folder, repeat the process for its parent folder, "Windows". Right-click on the Windows folder and select Restore previous versions from the context menu.

If neither of these folders have a previous version, the only way is to use third-party recovery software to recover the data in the Recent Items folder, although the chances of success are low.

Lesley Montoya

Update 21 March 2023