Where Are Autosaved Word Files Stored?

By Khubaib Jamil On Jul 18, 2024

Do you need an automatic Word save location for Windows 10 or 11, and wondering where are autosaved word files stored? Don’t worry. We’ve got you covered! Many Microsoft Word users often forget to save their work, but fortunately there is an automatic storage function to prevent data loss. In this article we will introduce how to locate, enable and access Word’s automated storage locations in Windows 10 and 11. Hurry up!

To use the automatic saving function in Microsoft Word 2023, you’ll need to make sure your files are stored in Microsoft Cloud. To enable automatic local file saving in Windows 11, you will need to use the latest version of Office. Follow these steps:

Go to File > Information, then select Upload and Save to the Cloud

Choose OneDrive or SharePoint as your cloud storage option.

Once you set the AutoSave feature, you can easily search for documents that are saved in Word. There are several options:

Option 1: Enable automatic Word saving features through Microsoft Word settings.

To access Word’s automatic saving location in Windows 10, you need to enable the feature first. Here’s how:

Click File Tab in Word.
Select an option and click Save from the left menu.
Select “Save Auto Recovery Data”. Auto recovery intervals can be set.
The default AutoRecover file location is C:\Users\Your_username\AppData\Roaming\Microsoft\Word. Change this position by clicking Browse.

Open Word and navigate to the directory after setting the autosave location. Saved files are easy to find and open in Word. If the AppData folder contains hidden directories, use the file explorer address bar. You can also manually access the folder by following the route and disclosing hidden objects to examine appData.

The process is the same for Windows 11. Follow the same instructions to activate Word Auto Saving Position in Windows 11.

Option 2: Search for unsaved Word files using recovery software.

If you have lost an unsaved Word document by mistake, you can try a free word recovery software like WinfrGUI. This software thoroughly scans your computer to find temporary Word files and documents that have not been saved. Here’s how to use it:

Click the Download button on this page and install WinfrGUI on your Windows computer. Start the software and select the local disk to scan.
Under “Type”, check the “Files Unsaved” option. This will show all MS Word files. Select “doc/docx” to recover unsaved Word documents.
Scroll down to find the unsaved Word file you want to recover. Click on “Sample” to check the contents of the document. Then click on “Recover” and select a location to save the selected document. (This software can also help you with deleted file recovery on Windows 10.)

Option 3: Check the AppData folder

Automatic saving settings in Word are usually stored in the AppData folder. Although the location may vary depending on the version and settings. In some cases, you may encounter unsaved files in C:\Users\Your_username\AppData\Local\Microsoft\Office\UnsavedFiles for Microsoft 365 users on Windows 10 or 11.

You can find the backup document in C:\Users\Your_username\AppData\Roaming\Microsoft\Word or C: \Usars\Yur_username\ AppData \Local\ Microsoft\Office\UnsavedFiles.

Automatically saved files usually have a letter or symbol tilde (~) before the file name with the.mpt extension and number. The automatic recovery file number may have the.kwb extension.

To locate these files, you can use the file detector to locate or search for.asd or.wbk files in the search bar.

Option 4: Use the option to recover unsaved documents.

If Word fails unexpectedly, or if you shut down the program without saving it, you can still access the auto saver location. Here’s what you can do:

Open Word and go to File Tab
Select Last and click Recover Unsaved Document
You will be taken to the AutoRecover folder, selecting the document you want to recover.

Another option is to navigate to File > Information > Version Management > Recover unsaved documents.

Option 5: Check the recycling tank.

Check the recycling tank for documents that have not been saved. Word usually creates temporary documents that end up in the tank if not recovered. You may find previously deleted documents there.

Double-click the Recycle Tank icon on your desktop to open it.

Search for documents that have not been saved or are missing, paying attention to file names that end with extension.doc,.docx and.dot.

If you find a document, right click on it and select “Reset” to restore it.

Option 6: Search for.asd or.wbk files on your computer

If you have trouble locating an automatic saving location, try searching for a specific backup file, such as.asd or.wbk. Here’s how:

Press Windows + E on your keyboard to open the file scanner.
Click on the search bar at the top right.
Print.wbk or.asd and press Enter.
Your system will search for all.wbk and.asd files. Right-click on the file to select the location to open the file. This will reveal Word’s automatic saving location and display all user-generated files.

If you can’t find any.asd or.wbk files, it’s worth searching for.tmp files or exploring other options to identify temporary files associated with Word.

Option 7: Check Document Directory

Sometimes automatically saved files are in the same directory as your current files. These saved documents are usually hidden, but you can reveal them using the following steps:

Open Word. Search the file and click Open.
Click the browse button and navigate to the location of the file.
Change file type from Word to all files
Search for files with “backup” in the name
Save and Open Files

Option 8: Search for documents using Windows Search

If you believe you saved the document but can’t remember where, try the search function on your Windows 11 PC.

Press the Windows button and type a document name or use a keyword.

If the search results list includes the desired document, click to open this document.

To conclude, knowing how to locate Word’s automatic saving location in Windows 10/11 is important in preventing loss of data and recovering important documents. By following the steps described in this guide, you can easily access and manage whether you need an automatic Word saving location for Windows 10 or 11? No need to worry. We have you covered! Microsoft Word is widely used, but many users forget to save their work. Luckily there is an automatic saving feature to prevent data loss. In this article we will show you how to search, enable and access Word’s automatic storage locations in Windows 10 and 11, so let’s dive into this!