How to Recover an Unsaved Word Document 2007
By Kenrick Callwood
Updated September 15, 2017
The Microsoft Office 2007 suite of programs features an auto-recovery system that helps avoid losing work in unsaved documents. Word 2007, and the other programs, allows the user to configure the auto-recover feature to save a backup of the file at different intervals. If the computer loses power or Word is accidentally closed without saving the file, then a version of the file will be available the next time Word is launched. The temporary backup copies are saved in special locations and may also be available for manual retrieval.
Automatic Recovery
Open Microsoft Word 2007.
Look for the file on the list of available files in the "Document Recovery" pane.
Double-click on the file you wish to recover.
Review the file to see if anything is missing. Word automatically makes a copy every "x" minutes. "X" is defined by the user in the "Save" section of the "Word Options" panel found under the "Office" symbol. If "x" equals 10 minutes, then the recovered file will not include the changes made during the last 9 minutes before the file unexpectedly closed.
Save the Word document, and continue working.
Manual Recovery
Open Microsoft Word 2007, and click on the "Office" symbol.
Click "Word Options," and select the "Save" link.
Verify that the check box beside "Save AutoRecover information every" is checked, and enter a different number if you are unsatisfied with the current setting.
Take note of the "AutoRecover file location." By default, it will be "C:\Users\
Open the AutoRecover folder described above, and look for recent files with the file extension .wbk.
Double-click on the desired file, and choose Word 2007 if prompted to choose which program to open the file with.
Tips
Sometimes files may be recovered manually from the following folders: "C:\Documents and Settings\<username>\Local Settings\Temp" or "C:\Documents and Settings\<username>\Application Data\Microsoft\Word," substituting <username> with your user name.
References
Writer Bio
Kenrick Callwood has been involved in Internet marketing since 2007 and his work has appeared in numerous online publications. His main areas of expertise are psychology, travel and Internet marketing. He holds a bachelor's degree in psychology from California Polytechnic University.