Recover Deleted or Unsaved InDesign Files on Mac

Jean updated on Feb 23, 2024 to Mac File Recovery | How-to Articles

Two methods are provided to recover deleted or unsaved InDesign files on Mac and Windows. EaseUS file recovery software can recover InDesign files both on Mac and Windows, including .indd document file and .ind graphics document file with ease.

Overview of Recovering InDesign Files on Mac

InDesign is a useful tool. It can be used to create works such as posters, flyers, brochures, magazines, newspapers, presentations, books and ebooks. It's a happy experience to use this tool. However, it is frustrating to lose InDesign files due to a system crash, power failure or mistaken deletion. Luckily, you can recover the unsaved or deleted InDesign files with two methods.

Workable Solutions Step-by-step Troubleshooting
Method 1. Restore Unsaved InDesign Files on Mac and Windows Step 1. Restart your computer.
Step 2. Launch an automatic recovery process.
Step 3. Browse the recovery folder...Full steps
Method 2. Recover Deleted/Lost InDesign Files Step 1. Download EaseUS file recovery software.
Step 2. Scan the drive to find lost files.
Step 3. Select files and recover..Full steps

Method 1. Restore Unsaved InDesign Files on Mac and Windows

InDesign guards your data against unexpected power or system failures using an automatic recovery feature. If you forget to save the files, you can make use of automatic recovery feature of InDesign to get back those lost files. Even though these features exist, you should save your files often and create backup files in case of unexpected power or system failures.

Step 1: Restart your computer. Open Adobe InDesign. After an unexpected shutdown, Adobe InDesign usually launches an automatic file recovery process.

If the automatic recovery process locates a lost file, it opens in your InDesign window. 

Step 2: Return to your computer's desktop if the automatic recovery process didn't yield any results.

For Mac Users:

Go to "~/Library/Cache/Adobe InDesign/Version[#.0]/InDesign Recovery" to find your data manually.

For Windows Users:

Click on the following folders in order to access the recovery folder: "Users/your user name/App Data/Local/Adobe/InDesign/Version/en_US/Caches/InDesign Recovery".

Step 3: Browse the recovery folder.

  • If you notice any drafts of your project, double-click to open the recovery file. 
  • If you were working with an unsaved and unnamed project, it will be labeled as some variant of "Untitled Project 1."

Step 4: Change the location of recovered documents.

Click "File" and "Save Project As" to save a permanent copy of the file after you open it.

What if you delete InDesign files unexpectedly? Automatically recovered data is important only if you’re unable to save successfully before an unexpected power or system failure. How to deal with the deleted InDesign files? The second method will do you a favor.

Method 2. Recover Deleted InDesign File With EaseUS Data Recovery Software

EaseUS Data Recovery Wizard for Mac supports InDesign file recovery on Mac, including .ind file format for Abobe InDesign graphics document files,  .indd  file format used for Abobe InDesign document files and some other common file formats used by Abobe ID like .doc,.docx, .jpeg, .jpg, .pdf, .psd, etc.

Besides InDesign file recovery, the software also works proficiently to recover Mac Keynote file. Being able to handle various kinds of data loss cases, the program usually used to recover deleted files on Mac, retrieve formatted or inaccessible files on Mac. 

InDesign file recovery is extremely easy with the help of EaseUS Mac file recovery software, which allows inexperienced users to recover ID files in three steps. If you also want to recover InDesign files on Windows, you can download the Windows version and recover deleted files.

Step 1. Search for lost files

Select the disk location to search for lost files (it can be an internal HDD/SSD or an external hard drive) where you lost data and files. Click the "Search for lost files" button.

Note: Before data recovery, you'd better click "Disk Backup" from the left sidebar to create a backup of your HDD/SSD to avoid further data loss. After backing up, the software can recover data from your disk backup, and you can use the HDD or SSD again.

Step 2. Go through the scanning results

This software will immediately scan your selected disk volume and display pictures, documents, audio, videos, and emails on the left pane.

Step 3. Select the file(s) and recover

Click the data to preview, and click the "Recover" button to have them back.