# Where did my recycle bin go?

**URL:** <https://boards.straightdope.com/t/where-did-my-recycle-bin-go/312412>\
**Category:** Factual Questions\
**Created:** [July 13, 2005, 9:12pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/where-did-my-recycle-bin-go/312412 "2005-07-13T21:12:06Z")\
**Posts on this page:** 6\
**Page:** 1

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**Author:** ![dauerbach](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/d/c2a13f/32.png) [@dauerbach](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/dauerbach)\
**Post date:** [July 13, 2005, 9:12pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/where-did-my-recycle-bin-go/312412/1 "2005-07-13T21:12:06Z")

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I want to undelete something I just deleted and the desktop icon for the recycle bin had disappeared. How do I find the recycle bin, and how do I make a desktop icon for it?

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**Author:** ![Ethilrist](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/ethilrist/32/4604_2.png) [@Ethilrist](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Ethilrist)\
**Post date:** [July 13, 2005, 9:16pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/where-did-my-recycle-bin-go/312412/2 "2005-07-13T21:16:01Z")

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Not sure how to get it back on your desktop, but if you right-click on Start and scroll all the way down to the bottom, you should be able to find your recycle bin in the folder tree.

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**Author:** ![dauerbach](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/d/c2a13f/32.png) [@dauerbach](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/dauerbach)\
**Post date:** [July 13, 2005, 10:15pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/where-did-my-recycle-bin-go/312412/3 "2005-07-13T22:15:44Z")

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I tried that and still couldn’t find it. I am using XP.

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**Author:** ![Jeff\_Lichtman](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/jeff_lichtman/32/1531_2.png) [@Jeff\_Lichtman](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Jeff_Lichtman)\
**Post date:** [July 14, 2005, 7:12am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/where-did-my-recycle-bin-go/312412/4 "2005-07-14T07:12:44Z")

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If you have a lot of clutter on your desktop, it’s possible that something is hiding the Recycle Bin icon. Try right-clicking on the desktop, then selecting “Arrange Icons By”. It probably doesn’t matter how you rearrange the icons, but you could choose “Auto Arrange”.

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**Author:** ![Fredescu](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/f/73ab20/32.png) [@Fredescu](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Fredescu)\
**Post date:** [July 14, 2005, 7:52am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/where-did-my-recycle-bin-go/312412/5 "2005-07-14T07:52:06Z")

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There should be a folder called Recycler under your C: drive. This will have a folder or two under it with a Recycle Bin icon. Check these folders for your file. You can get get it back on your desktop by dragging with the right mouse button.

If you can’t see these, check that you have hidden files and protected operating system files shown under Tools, Folder Options, View.

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**Author:** ![LSLGuy](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/lslguy/32/5813_2.png) [@LSLGuy](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/LSLGuy)\
**Post date:** [July 14, 2005, 11:35am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/where-did-my-recycle-bin-go/312412/6 "2005-07-14T11:35:34Z")

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Assuming we’re talking XP, try this …

Right-click on an empty area on the desktop and choose “Properties” from the context menu.

Click the “Desktop” tab and then the [Customize Desktop…] button.

Click the [Restore Default] button.