[Guide] How to Permanently Delete Files from Recycle Bin in Windows 11/10/8/7

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Last updated on April 19, 2024

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Overview of Permanently Deleting the Recycle Bin In computer operating systems, the Recycle Bin is a special area where deleted files and folders are stored. In Windows, when you move a file to the Recycle Bin, it's not truly deleted but rather moved to this designated space for potential recovery if needed. However, there may be occasions when you wish to permanently delete the Recycle Bin to free up disk space or for privacy and security reasons. Here's an overview of how to do it: 1. **Confirm Intent**: Before proceeding, ensure that you no longer need any files within the Recycle Bin, as once deleted, they cannot be recovered. 2. **In Windows**: - Open My Computer or This PC. - Right-click on the Recycle Bin icon. - Select "Properties" from the context menu. - In the Properties window, uncheck "Show icon on desktop" (if you don't want the Recycle Bin on your desktop). - Click "Apply" and then "OK." - Right-click the Recycle Bin again and choose "Delete" or "Format." - A warning will appear, asking if you want to permanently delete the Recycle Bin. Click "Yes" to proceed. 3. **On a Mac**: - Open Finder. - Go to Applications > Utilities. - Double-click on "Disk Utility." - Select your startup disk, then click "Erase." - Enter a new volume name like "Macintosh HD," choose "Mac OS Extended (Journaled)" as the format, and click "Erase." This process will format the entire hard drive, including the Trash, deleting all data permanently. Make sure to back up important files beforehand. Please note that permanently deleting the Recycle Bin not only removes the icon but also deletes its contents. Therefore, exercise caution before proceeding. If you simply want to empty the Recycle Bin, right-click its icon and choose "Empty Recycle Bin." This will remove all files without affecting the Recycle Bin itself.

The Recycle Bin is a storage area for all the files you've temporarily removed from your computer. The deleted files remain there until you permanently delete them from the Bin. The Recycle Bin folder is usually located in the C:\$Recycle.Bin directory, with all the metadata of the deleted files piling up in the C: partition.

When the Recycling Bin gets bigger, you may receive alerts like "C drive out of space" or "low disk space". These warnings pop up when you try to store new content on the partition and can even affect your system's performance. So, how to free up C drive space to speed up your computer? Permanently deleting files to empty the Recycling Bin might be the quickest and easiest way to achieve this goal.

This tutorial is focused on how to permanently delete files from the Recycle Bin in Windows 10, Windows 8, or Windows 7. There are a few ways you can do this. Read on.

How to Permanently Delete Files from the Recycle Bin in Windows 10/7

There are three ways to empty the Recycle Bin on a Windows 10, Windows 8, or Windows 7 computer. First, make sure there aren't any files in there that you want to keep.

1. Two Ways to Permanently Delete Files from the Recycling Bin

1. Right-click the Recycle Bin icon on your desktop, then click **Empty Recycle Bin**. 2. Or, you can double-click the Recycle Bin icon on your desktop. Click the **Empty Recycle Bin** button in the top menu instead. 3. A warning will appear. Confirm that you want to permanently delete the files by clicking **Yes**.

2. Permanently Erase the Recycle Bin in Windows 10

If you're using Windows 10, go to Settings > System > Storage. Then, select “This PC,” and click “Temporary files.” In the new window, find and click the “Empty Recycle Bin” option. Confirm by pressing Delete.

Additional Tip: How to Recover Permanently Deleted Files from an Empty Recycle Bin

If you accidentally emptied the Recycle Bin with important files in it, you can still recover permanently deleted files from an empty Recycle Bin. The world-renowned data recovery tool, Data Recovery Wizard, can help you restore lost data in any complicated situation.

It can help you recover lost Word documents, restore deleted files from an SD card, retrieve deleted email files, recover permanently deleted files in Windows 10, and more.

Download this powerful file recovery software, and then follow the steps below to retrieve files from an emptied Recycle Bin.

Step 1: To recover files from Recycle Bin in Windows 11/10/8/7, hover the mouse pointer over the 'Location' section and click on 'Scan'.

Step 2: The tool will instantly perform a quick scan for all deleted files, followed by a deep scan to find more lost files. Once the scanning is finished, you can use the "Filter" option to choose a specific file type, such as images, Word documents, videos, and so on.

Step 3: Once you locate the file to restore, double-click it for a full preview. Then, select the target file and click “Restore”. We recommend saving the recovered files to a different volume or an external USB drive to avoid overwriting your data.

How to Permanently Delete Files Without the Recycling Bin in Windows 11/10/8/7

If you want to permanently delete a file on your Windows computer instead of sending it to the Recycle Bin, try one of these two methods.

1. In File Explorer, find the file you want to delete, then press Shift + Delete. You'll be asked if you want to permanently delete the file.

2. Permanently delete the file by setting its attribute to "Move to Trash." Here's how: In American English, this would typically be phrased as: 2. Permanently get rid of the file by changing its setting to "Send to Trash." Here's what you do:

1. Right-click the Recycle Bin and select "Properties." 2. Check the option that says "Don't move files to the Recycle Bin. Remove files immediately after deletion." 3. Then, click "Apply" and "OK" to save the settings.

This will delete the file from your computer without sending it to the Recycle Bin. You can change this setting at any time.

How to Extend C Drive Space without Deleting or Formatting

Emptying the Recycle Bin can free up space on drive C:. If you still run out of space after emptying the Recycle Bin, you can use the disk partition manager Partition Master to extend C: without deleting or formatting. It is an ultimate disk and partition management tool.

With the help of a partition tool, you can directly allocate free space from other drives to C drive without deleting or losing data. Other excellent features of the Tool Partition Master are as follows.

• Resize/move partitions, create, format, delete and merge partitions
• Copies and clones an entire disk to another, even if the target partition is smaller than the source
• Convert logical partition to primary and vice versa, convert FAT to NTFS partition, convert MBR disk to GPT, or convert GPT disk to MBR
• Permanently wipe all data on the hard drive to prevent data leakage or recovery
• Migrate OS to SSD for faster Windows upgrade and system speed boost

Now download the disk management tool and extend the C drive by allocating space from Drive D or any other data drive.

Step 1. Right-click on the D: partition with enough free space, and select "Extend Volume."

Step 2: Select the target partition - Partition C, then drag the partition panel to the right to add the free space of Partition D to Partition C. Then click “OK” to confirm.

Click the "Execute Task" button and then "Apply" to start the process of moving space from Drive D to Drive C.

Final Award

This article provides the most comprehensive guide on how to permanently delete files from the Recycle Bin. You can use any of these three simple methods to permanently erase your files.

Moreover, if you empty the Recycle Bin and then realize that you have permanently deleted some important files, you can immediately use data recovery software to get back your lost files.

How do I permanently delete files from the recycle bin? FAQ

The following topics are highly relevant to how to permanently delete the recycle bin. Read through them for more guidance.

How do I permanently delete files from the Recycle Bin in Windows 10?

To empty the Recycle Bin, you can:

• Right-click the Recycle Bin icon on your desktop, then select "Empty Recycle Bin."
• Or, double-click the Recycle Bin, then click "Empty Recycle Bin" at the top of the folder window.
• Go to Settings > System > Storage. Then select "This PC," and click "Temporary files and Recycle Bin." In the new window, find and click "Empty Recycle Bin," then press Delete to confirm.

How do I permanently delete a virus from the recycle bin?

To remove a virus from your computer, download and install an antivirus program. Run a virus scan, and then delete or quarantine the virus.

How do I delete a .bin file?

You can try deleting the file by right-clicking it and selecting "Delete." If you're unable to delete the bin file, check if the related program is still installed on your computer. If so, uninstall the program and then attempt to delete the file.

Alternatively, you could try starting your computer in Safe Mode and attempt to delete the file from there. See if that helps.