Move files to Trash & restore files from Trash

You can move files to Trash with Files by Google. You can also restore files you accidentally moved to Trash.

Important:

• This feature is available in Android R and will be rolled out in phases for other Android versions.
• Files remain in Trash for 30 days and then are automatically deleted.

Move files to Trash from the app's homescreen

1. On your Android device, open Files by Google .
2. Select the files you want to move to Trash.
3. At the top right, tap Trash .
4. On the confirmation dialog, tap Move x files to Trash.

Tip: To cancel your action, on the progress bar below, tap Stop

Move files to Trash from the Clean menu

Important: Files deleted from "Junk files" card will be permanently deleted. They will not be moved to Trash.

1. On your Android device, open Files by Google .
2. Tap Menu   Clean .
3. On any of the suggestion cards, tap Select files.
4. Select the files you want to move to Trash.
5. At the bottom, tap Move x files to Trash.

Tips:

• To cancel your action, on the progress bar below, tap Stop.
• To restore your files after they’re moved to the Trash, go to Trash to manually restore them.

Delete files from Trash

Important: Files deleted from Trash are permanently deleted.

1. On your Android device, open Files by Google .
2. At the top left, tap Menu   Trash.
3. Select the files you want to delete.
4. At the bottom, tap Delete  .
5. On the confirmation dialog, tap Delete.

Restore files from Trash

1. On your Android device, open Files by Google .
2. At the top left, tap Menu   Trash.
3. Find the files you want to move out of Trash.
4. At the bottom, tap Restore .
5. On the confirmation dialog, tap Restore.

Troubleshooting: Trash screen is blank

Tip: If you’ve an SD card in your device, remove the SD card and check if files in Trash are loaded.

1. On your Android device, open Files by Google .
2. At the top left, tap Menu  Settings .
3. Under “Browse,” turn on Show hidden files.
4. At the top left, tap Back .
5. Under "Storage devices," tap Internal storage.
6. Find the “.FilesByGoogleTrash” folder.
7. To delete, tap More  Delete permanently.
8. On the confirmation dialog, tap Delete.
9. After the folder is deleted, close and re-open the app.

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