• Find Temporary File
• Temporary File Movie

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Note

The UnsavedFiles folder contains all unsaved files Office has created temporary backups for. Select the file you need and then click Open. Office applications automatically save temporary backups of files at periodic intervals (every 10 minutes, by default), so your file should contain most of the work you lost. Office Mac Help A Resource For Microsoft Office: Mac. Search A-Z Index. Location of Microsoft Files. Office X: The Normal file is located in the 'Templates' folder in your 'Microsoft Office' folder. Tip: Put your templates in your Microsoft User Data folder, where they won't be touched if you use 'Remove Office.

Office 365 ProPlus is being renamed to Microsoft 365 Apps for enterprise. For more information about this change, read this blog post.

If you're looking for recent Word document recovery info, see:

• Recover your Office files (For versions through Office 2019)

For more on earlier versions of Word, see:

Resolution

To fix this problem, use the following methods in the order in which they're presented, as appropriate for your situation.

Method 1: Search for the original document

To do this, follow these steps, as appropriate for the version of Windows that you're running.

Windows 10 and Windows 7

1. Select Start, type the document name in the Start Search box (.doc or .docx), and then press Enter. If the File list contains the document, double-click the document to open it in Word.
2. If the File list does not contain the file, go to Method 2.

Method 2: Search for Word backup files

Word backup file names end with the .wbk extension. If the Always create backup copy option is selected, there may be a backup copy of the file.

Note

To locate this option:

• Word for Office 365, Word 2019, Word 2016, and Word 2013:Select File, then Options, and then Advanced. Scroll down to the Save section and select Always create backup copy.
• Word 2010:Select File, then Options. In the Save tab, select Always create backup copy.

To find the backup copy of the file, follow these steps:

1. Locate the folder in which you last saved the missing file.
2. Search for files that have the .wbk file name extension.

If there's no .wbk file in the original folder, search the computer for any .wbk files. To do this, follow these steps:

Windows 10 and Windows 7

1. Select Start, type *.wbk in the Start Search box, and then press Enter.
2. If the File list contains the backup file, repeat the steps in step 2 ('Search for files that have the .wbk file name extension') to open the file. If the File list does not contain the backup file, go to Method 3.

If you find any files that have the name 'Backup of' followed by the name of the missing file, use one of the following procedures, as appropriate for the version of Word that you're running.

Word for Office 365, Word 2019, Word 2016, and Word 2013

1. On the File menu, select Open, and then Browse. (In some versions, select Computer and then Browse.)
2. In the Files of type list (All Word Documents), select All Files.
3. Select the backup file that you found, and then select Open.

Word 2010

1. On the File menu, select Open.
2. In the Files of type list (All Word documents), select All Files.
3. Select the backup file that you found, and then select Open.

Method 3: Search for AutoRecover files

AutoRecover file names end with the .asd extension. By default, Word searches for AutoRecover files every time that it starts, and then it displays all that it finds in the Document Recovery task pane.

1. Use Word to automatically find the AutoRecover files. To do this, follow these steps:

   1. Right-click the taskbar, and then select Task Manager.

   2. On the Processes tab, select any instance of Winword.exe or Microsoft Word, and then select End Task or End Process. Repeat this step until you have exited all instances of Winword.exe and Word.

   3. Close the Windows Task Manager dialog box, and then start Word.

      If Word finds the AutoRecover file, the Document Recovery task pane opens on the left side of the screen, and the missing document is listed as 'document name [Original]' or as 'document name [Recovered].' If this occurs, double-click the file in the Document Recovery pane, select Save As on the File menu, and then save the document as a .docx file. Manually change the extension to .docx, if necessary, by right-clicking the file and selecting Rename.

2. If the Recovery pane does not open, manually search for AutoRecover files. To do this, use one of the following procedures, as appropriate for the version of Word that you're running.

   Word for Office 365, Word 2019, Word 2016, and Word 2013

   1. On the File menu, select Open, and then Browse.
   2. If you don't see your document listed, select Recover Unsaved Documents.

   Word 2010

   1. On the File menu, select Recent.
   2. If you don't see your document listed, select Recover Unsaved Documents.

3. If you can't locate an AutoRecover file in the location that is identified in the Folder name list, search your whole drive for any .asd files. To do this, follow these steps:

   Windows 10 and Windows 7

   Does microsoft have a better processor than mac and computer. That's the tricky part.The current laptop landscapeAs we move into the Haswell era, the market is in flux. If better battery life isn't a big concern, for example if you're going for a desktop PC, or if you have a 'desktop replacement' laptop that you don't tend to disconnect from the power cord, this could work in your favor, and you could score a nice discount as more pre-Haswell PCs make their way to the discount bin.How do you tell which is which?

   1. Select Start, type .asd in the Start Search box, and then press Enter.
   2. If the File list does not contain AutoRecover files, go to Method 4.

   If you find any files that have the .asd extension, use one of the following procedures, as appropriate for the version of Word that you're running:

   Word 2019, Word 2016, or Word 2013

   1. On the File menu, select Open, and then Browse. (In some versions, select **Computer **and then Browse.)
   2. In the Files of type list (All Word Documents), select All Files.
   3. Select the .asd file that you found, and then select Open.

   Word 2010

   1. On the File menu, select Open.
   2. In the Files of type list (All Word Documents), select All Files.
   3. Select the .asd file that you found, and then select Open.

Note

If you find an AutoRecover file in the Recovery pane that does not open correctly, go to 'Method 6: How to troubleshoot damaged documents' for more information about how to open damaged files.

Method 4: Search for temporary files

Temporary file names end with the .tmp extension. To find these files, use one of the following procedure.

Windows 10 and Windows 7

1. Select Start, type .tmp in the Start Search box, and then press Enter.
2. On the Show only toolbar, select Other.
3. Scroll through the files and search for files that match the last few dates and times that you edited the document. If you find the document that you're looking for, go to 'Method 6: How to troubleshoot damaged documents' for more information about how to recover information from the file.

Method 5: Search for '~' files

Some temporary file names start with the tilde (~) character. To find these files, follow these steps:

Find Temporary File

Windows 10 and Windows 7

1. Select Start, type ~ in the Start Search box.

2. Select See more results.

   Scroll through the files, and look for any that may match the last few dates and times that you edited the document. If you find the document that you're looking for, go to 'Method 6: How to troubleshoot damaged documents' for more information about how to recover information from the file.

For information about how Word creates and uses temporary files, see Description of how Word creates temporary files.

Method 6: How to troubleshoot damaged documents

For information about how to troubleshoot damaged Word documents, see the following articles in the Microsoft Knowledge Base:

More information

You can lose a Word document in certain situations. For example, the document may be lost if an error occurs that forces Word to close, if you experience a power interruption while editing, or if you close the document without saving your changes.

Note

The whole document may be lost if you have not recently saved the document. If you have saved your document, you may lose only the changes that you made since the last save. Be aware that some lost documents may not be recoverable.

The AutoRecover feature in Word performs an emergency backup of open documents when an error occurs. Some errors can interfere with the AutoRecover functionality. The AutoRecover feature is not a substitute for saving your files.

We do not provide any utilities to recover deleted documents. However, some third-party utilities to recover deleted documents might be available on the Internet.

For more information about AutoRecover, see the following articles in the Microsoft Knowledge Base:

The third-party products that are discussed in this article are manufactured by companies that are independent of Microsoft. Microsoft makes no warranty, implied or otherwise, regarding the performance or reliability of these products.

Summary

The Microsoft Office 2016 update crashes on macOS or Mac OS X is a high-frequency problem, which can cause the unsaved Word document lost unexpectedly. To recover the unsaved Word document on Mac, three available approaches are covered here: from AutoRecover, Temporary folder, and Time Machine. Besides, EaseUS Data Recovery Wizard for Mac is recommended to help you recover deleted or lost Office files 2016.

Stay calm when you lost an unsaved Excel file when suddenly the Office 2016 application crashed on Mac. Follow the provided methods, you will bring the unsaved Excel file back:

Workable Solutions	Step-by-step Troubleshooting
Method 1. Recover from AutoRecover	Open Finder > Go > Go to Folder > Type '~/Library/Containers/com.microsoft.Word..'..Full steps
Method 2. Restore Temporary Folder	Go to Applications > Utilities > Terminal > Type open $TMPDIR ..Full steps
Method 3. Use Recovery Software	Run EaseUS Mac data recovery software > Scan drive > Restore lost Excel..Full steps

Microsoft Office for Mac 2016 update crashes from time to time on macOS or Mac OS X, which will cause the unsaved Word document lost unexpectedly. You may have been working hard for long nights and days on the Word file, and the sudden loss is unacceptable. Then, how to recover the unsaved Office files due to accidental application crash? Read on and see the three potential solutions here. What's more, a professional Mac data recovery tool is recommended to help you recover permanently deleted/lost Word document in the simplest way.

How to Recover Unsaved Word in Microsoft Office 2016 on Mac

Two possible ways are listed below to recover the unsaved Word files caused by software crash on Mac. We also offer online tutorials on how to recover unsaved or lost Excel file on Mac, check it if you need.

Method 1. Recover from AutoRecover Word 2016

AutoRecover, a feature that is available in some Office applications, attempts to recover files automatically in the event of an application or system crash.

Step 1. Open 'Finder' on your Mac, then head to 'Go' > 'Go to Folder'.

Step 2. Type: ~/Library/Containers/com.microsoft.Word/Data/Library/Preferences/AutoRecovery and click 'Go'.

Step 3. Open the AutoRecovery folder, locate all the files that start with the words 'AutoRecovery save of'. Select the one you want to recover, rename the file, then add the '.doc' filename extension.

Step 4. Double-click the file. The document now opens in Word for Mac.

Step 5. Click the File menu and select 'Save As'. Type a new name for the file into the Name field, select a folder for the file and click the 'Save' button.

Method 2. Restore from the Temporary Folder

Follow steps provided below to restore unsaved Office files caused by software crash on Mac from Temporary/Temp folder.

Step 1. Go to 'Applications' > 'Utilities' and double-click 'Terminal'.

Step 2. In Terminal, enter open $TMPDIR and you will be directed to the TMP folder which is used to keep files temporarily.

Step 3. In the TMP folder, find and open the folder named 'TemporaryItems'. In it, right-click the desired unsaved Word files and 'Open with..' Microsoft Word.

Step 4. Save the Word file by clicking on 'File' > 'Save As' and save it to another location.

If you still need the guides on how to recover unsaved Word document on Windows, here is the access.

How to Recover Permanently Deleted/Lost Word 2016 on Mac

If your saved Word, Excel or PPT is lost permanently from your Mac resulted from mistaken deletion, disk formatting, virus attack, partition loss, etc., you have to apply a third-party software to help you recover the files. And EaseUS Data Recovery Wizard for Mac is one of the top best Mac data recovery software worthy of trying.

With this tool, you have a pretty big chance to recover Mac deleted files from a trash bin, memory card, USB drive, internal/external hard drive, and more.

Step 1. Select the location where your important Word documents were lost and click Scan button.

Step 2. EaseUS Data Recovery Wizard for Mac will start immediately a quick scan as well as a deep scan on your selected disk volume. Meanwhile, the scanning results will be presented in the left pane.

Temporary File Movie

Step 3. By Path and Type, you can quickly filter the Word files you've lost earlier. Select the target files and click Recover Now button to get them back at once.