Files/Folders Keep Reappearing After Deletion in Windows 10/8/7

Why Deleted Files Keep Reappearing After Deletion?

"Hi, I'm using Windows 10. I did an update recently and I don't know whether it's the trigger for the problem I'm going to state. Since yesterday, when I deleted some of my files they insisted on reappearing, typically audio files and images. This happened right after I refreshed or restarted the computer. I tried to empty the recycle bin, even format a partition, but all failed. Files and folders keep coming back in Windows 10. How can I solve the problem?"

How frustrating! Getting rid of something you don't want on a computer could have been easy and effortless, simply by pressing a Delete button or by pressing Shift + Delete keys to permanently delete files or folders. Why do deleted files keep reappearing on Windows 10? On this page, you'll need four solutions to fix deleted files keep coming back after deletion. Directly jump to the part you're most interested to fix files and folders keep coming back after deletion:

How to Fix Deleted Files/Folders Keep Coming Back on Windows 10/8/7

We find some clues that may cause the deletion trouble in Windows 10, and hope that your case is the same. Depending on the situation you are in, you may need to try different solutions to cope with the issue. 

Fix 1. Fix A Corrupted Recycle Bin

If you see files and folders in Windows Recycle Bin keep coming back after a refresh, it's most likely that something went wrong with the Recycle Bin application. To stop files from reappearing after emptied recycle bin, you need to fix the corrupted recycle bin in Windows 10 by using the command prompt.

Step 1. Run "Command Prompt" as an administrator in Windows 10.

Step 2. Type the command rd /s /q C:\$Recycle.bin and press "Enter".

Step 3. Type exit to close the Command Prompt window.

Fix 2. Check Permissions

If you are not allowed to make changes to the files or folders by the system, how can you successfully remove items from your computer? Thus, the first thing you need to do is to check your system permission. (The steps below are performed on Windows 10.)

Step 1. Find and right-click on the file/folder you want to delete, then choose "Properties".

Step 2. Click the "Security" tab and choose "Advanced" at the bottom.

Step 3. Click the link "Change" next to "Owner".

Step 4. In the box, input everyone and click "OK".

Step 5. Go back to the "Security" tab, click "Edit" to change permissions.

Step 6. In the "Permissions for SYSTEM" section, choose "Allow" for all permissions.

Fix 3. Run Microsoft Safety Scanner

"Deleted files or folders keep coming back" can also be caused by a virus or malicious software. Microsoft Safety Scanner works as a malware removal tool that can be used to scan your system for viruses or other kinds of malware and then remove them. Thus, it's also effective to run the Microsoft Safety Scanner to solve the problem of files/folders keeping coming back after deletion.

Step 1. Since Microsoft Safety Scanner is not a built-in tool in Windows, you will need to download it first from the official Microsoft site.

Step 2. Run the tool and select the type of scan you want to run, Quick scan, Full scan, or Customized scan. Then click "Next"

Step 3. Wait for the scanning process to complete. When it has done, the scanner will tell you there is no virus found or it has removed the deleted viruses, spyware, and other potentially unwanted software. If there is malicious software deleted and removed, you can click "View detailed results of the scan" to check for more information.

If there are files and folders being infected by a virus or malware, they will be removed by the Microsoft Safety Scanner. Thus, data loss may be found after the fix. That's when you need the hard drive recovery software - EaseUS Data Recovery Wizard to recover your precious data.

Fix 4.  Remove/Turn Off Syncing Services 

Do you currently use a cloud syncing service? If you do, the problem is there. Whether you're using Windows 10 cloud storage or a third-party cloud syncing app, they're probably Sharp shell that controls the context menu. You don't need to know the exact impact of the Sharp shell. Just uninstall the cloud storage or turn off the syncing service, the deletion function will return to normal without the files and folders reappearing.

Bonus Tip - How to Recover Deleted Files in Windows 11/10/8/7

If there are files you don't want to delete after you have emptied the recycle bin, how can you make it? All you need is EaseUS data recovery software. This file recovery tool works well in restoring lost from a hard drive, SSD, SD card, and more.

Step 1. Select a location and start scanning

Launch EaseUS Data Recovery Wizard, hover on the partition/drive where the deleted files were stored. Click "Scan" to find lost files.

Step 2. Select the files you want to recover

When the scanning has finished, select the deleted files you want to recover. You can click on the filter to display only the file types you want. If you remember the file name, you can also search in the "Search files or folders" box, which is the fastest way to find the target file. 

Step 3. Preview and recover deleted files

Preview the recoverable files. Then, select files you want to restore and click "Recover" to store the files at a new storage locations instead of the disk where the data was previously lost.

The Bottom Line

Usually, when files are stubbornly returning after deletion, the most heard suggestion is to format the hard disk partition where the problem shows up. This formatting behavior could work only when hard drive corruption leads to the error. 

Even though, do not attempt to try formatting so easily. All data will be erased during the process. If you've tried the method and failed. Unfortunately, you've lost all data and demand a recovery. In this case, download EaseUS hard drive recovery software to recover the formatted hard drive with ease.