Applications folder in Finder shows all your Mac apps and you can quickly manage your apps in this folder, no matter the apps are downloaded from App Store or websites. If you can’t find the application folder on Mac, it may cause you inconveniences, for example, deleting apps. In the upper right of the Explorer Window, there is a Search box. The search will look in all the folders and sub folders in the current location. Try searching for the exact name of your lost file. To pull up only files with the.plan extension, type in.plan; To pull up only files with the.layout extension, type in.layout. Mar 24, 2021 By default, Mac’s Dock has the Downloads folder, next to the Trash icon. However, if you have accidentally (or even intentionally) removed it from the Dock and are finding it harder to access the downloaded files, don’t worry! Here are the two straightforward ways to restore the missing Downloads folder on Mac. However, sometimes the Downloads Folder can get accidentally deleted or go missing from the Dock on your Mac for some other reason. As you will agree, having the Downloads Folder readily available in the Dock on Mac makes it really convenient to access Files, Photos and Songs that you download from the internet.
QUESTION
My Chief Architect or Home Designer file was here yesterday, but today it seems to be missing. Where is the first place I should look for my missing plan or layout* file?
*Layout files are only available in Chief Architect Premier, Chief Architect Interiors and Home Designer Pro.
ANSWER
Chief Architect programs save files to the location on your computer that you have chosen to save them; the program cannot delete files from your system.
In this article, we will discuss how to check your Recycle Bin/Trash and search your operating system for lost or missing Chief Architect files. If you're unable to locate the original file you were working on, you may be able to locate a backup of the file within the Chief Architect or Home Designer Archives.
To check your deleted items in the Recycle Bin/Trash
- Oftentimes, 'lost' files are files that have simply been deleted - either accidentally or intentionally. Check your Windows Recycle Bin or Trash.
You should check your Recycle Bin/Trash immediately, as continued write activity increases the possibility of an unrecoverable loss.
- For more information on how to use the Recycle Bin/Trash, please see the appropriate link for your operating system below.
- Windows 8 / 7
- macOS Big Sur 11.0
- macOS Catalina 10.15
- macOS Mojave 10.14
Not all versions of Chief Architect will be supported on every operating system listed above.
Please check the System Requirements for your version of Chief Architect or Home Designer if you have any questions as to whether or not your version is supported under your operating system.
The third party information presented in this document was verified at its writing, however, it's subject to change. - Windows 8 / 7
If the missing or lost files cannot be located in your operating system's Recycle Bin or Trash, it is possible they haven't been deleted, but may be at a different location then you initially checked. Use the search function in your operating system to locate them.
To search for files on Windows
- Open File Explorer by clicking the File Explorer icon on your taskbar.
- In the upper right of the Explorer Window, there is a Search box. The search will look in all the folders and sub folders in the current location.
- Try searching for the exact name of your lost file.
- To pull up only files with the .plan extension, type in *.plan
- To pull up only files with the .layout extension, type in *.layout
*Layout files are only available in Chief Architect Premier, Chief Architect Interiors and Home Designer Pro - Sort by the Date Modified in order to quickly locate the most recent files.
- Try searching for the exact name of your lost file.
- To learn more about searching your Windows computer for files, please see the link below.
- Searching on Windows
- Searching on Windows
To search for files on macOS
- Click on the Spotlight tool (Magnifying glass) located in the top right corner of the menu bar.
- Type in .plan to search for plan files.
- Scroll down and click on the Search in Finder option to show every plan file and its location on your system.
- To learn more about searching for files on a Mac, please see the appropriate link below.
- Searching on macOS Big Sur 11.0
- Searching on macOS Catalina 10.15
- Searching on macOS Big Sur 11.0
Accessing the archives
If you encountered a power failure or forced system restart before you were able to save your most recent changes in the file, you may be able to locate a recent backup which has much of the data still saved in it.
To learn more, please see the 'Accessing Your Archive Files' resource in the Related Articles section below.
Archive files are meant to be for emergency use only and should not be used as your primary backup method for plan and layout files.
If you do not already have a backup system in place, please see 'Backing up Chief Architect Content' in the Related Articles section below.
Seek professional assistance
If you are not able to access your hard drive, or if you are unable to find your missing data, contact a computer professional in your area.
Alternatively, use another computer to search the Internet for a data recovery expert, as you may be experiencing a hard drive failure resulting in data loss that could become more serious as time goes on.
For future reference on how Chief Architect recommends organizing your files, please see the 'Organizing your Plan and Layout Files' linked in the Related Articles section below.
By Vernon Roderick, Last updated: June 16, 2020
The Downloads folder can mean a lot to many users. It’s where most files go when you download something from the internet. And we all know that this folder is built-in, meaning it is already there before you even got your Mac.
Despite being built-in to the Mac computer, it is still as vulnerable to data loss as other folders on your Mac. In fact, quite a few users have already been complaining about losing their Downloads folder out of the blue.
This article will talk about how you can restore deleted Downloads folder Mac so you may also restore the files contained within the folder. Let’s start with what I consider the best solution.
Part 1: Restore Deleted Downloads Folder Mac with Mac Data Recovery
Our very first entry involves a third-party tool that specializes in file recovery. File recovery software is known to have the capability of recovering files and even folders altogether. As such, a data recovery tool is a must, and for that, I recommend FoneDog Data Recovery.
FoneDog Data Recovery is a tool that is capable of restoring files from their original state. It supports all kinds of files and can even include folders. Since it supports Mac, it is the perfect tool for the job. Here’s how you can restore deleted Downloads folder Mac with this tool:
Data RecoveryRecover deleted image, document, audio and more files.Get deleted data back from computer (including Recycle Bin) and hard drives.Recover loss data caused by disk accident, operation system crushes and other reasons.
Step 1: Choose File Type and Storage Drive
Open the FoneDog Data Recovery software on your computer. Now on the main page, there will be a selection of file types and storage drives. For the file type, I suggest selecting the Check all file types option since the Downloads folders are likely to have all kinds of files. For the storage drive, select the drive where the Downloads folder is located, which is most likely to be the C: drive.
Step 2: Scan for Files
Once you have configured the settings on the first page, click on the Scan button. This will initiate a Quick Scan by default. However, you may continue with Deep Scan if you want to get more results.
Step 3: Restore Deleted Downloads Folder Mac
The scanning will start after you click on the Scan button. At that point, you will get a list of files on the next page. However, all you have to do is look for the Downloads folder and click on its box. Then, click on the Recover button.
It should be very easy to restore deleted Downloads folder Macwith this tool. However, some people may find it very difficult to trust a tool that they haven’t heard of before. If that’s you, then this solution may not be the most suitable option for you. So you may want to look elsewhere for the best solution.
Part 2: Restore Deleted Downloads Folder Mac from Trash
The keyboard of Mac is the same as of Windows’. They both have the Delete key that is used to delete items on your computer. That’s why if Windows users can unintentionally delete folders in their computer, Mac users can also do the same. If your case is an unintentional deletion, there is a high chance that you will be able to restore deleted Downloads folder Mac.
This is pretty common since there are two ways to send files and folders to the trash. The first one would be by pressing the Command + Delete, and the second one is selecting Move to Trash. Files and folders that go through this process will always be sent to the Trash, but since it is common, a solution was made immediately.
If that’s the case, you can restore deleted Downloads folder Mac by first opening the Trash by clicking on its icon on the Mac Dock. Once you are in the Trash, you can restore deleted Downloads folder Macin several ways:
- Select the Downloads folder and press Command + Delete. This will return the selected files or folder into its original location.
- Drag back the Downloads folder outside. This of course will not return the folder into its original location, but into the place where you drag it into.
This is a very quick solution since it won’t take long even if the Downloads folder is filled with files. However, there are many occasions where you won’t be able to use this method. You now have the Downloads folder again. Now, what if you can’t find the Downloads folder in the trash? How will you restore deleted Downloads folder Mac then?
Part 3: Restore Deleted Downloads Folder Mac from Home
Although most files that are lost get sent to the Trash, sometimes you just need to look harder since it was probably sent somewhere else and not deleted. This is the problem with some users. They often assume immediately that the files are deleted just because they can’t find it the same way they did before.
How To Delete Downloaded Files On Mac
Fortunately, there is a way to automatically go to where the Downloads folder is located and possibly put it into the Dock once again. This is so you can restore deleted Downloads folder Maceasily. Here are the steps to do put the Downloads folder into your Dock again:
- Open a session of Finder on your Mac.
- On the menu bar of Finder, click on Go.
- From the resulting dropdown menu, select Home.
- Now you will see a list of folders inside the Home directory. You can now find the Downloads folder here.
- Simply click and drag the Downloads folder and drop it into the Dock.
The Downloads folder is now on the Dock once again. With this, you can restore deleted Downloads folder Mac by simply finding it and not recovering it from deletion. However, there are actually two possible reasons why you can’t find the Downloads folder in the Trash. The first one would be because it wasn’t deleted in the first place, which is that case you can solve it with this method.
The second reason would be if it was permanently deleted, thus explaining why it wasn’t sent to the Trash. This is often the case when the user presses Shift + Delete instead of the Delete key only.
Part 4: Restore Deleted Downloads Folder Mac with Time Machine
How do I restore my Downloads folder? If your case involves deleting the Downloads folder permanently, there is only one solution left, and that would be to revert your whole computer altogether into its original state. In other words, you have to turn back time on your computer, which will return the Downloads folder along with other files and folders.
Altogether it is quite extreme; there is an easy way to do this. And it involves a function that is literally named “Time Machine”, and you can probably guess what this function can do.
Time Machine is a built-in function in all Mac devices that allows users to turn back time on their computers. It is often used to solve any issues that may be related to the operating system.
Follow these steps if you are ready to restore deleted Downloads folder Mac:
Should I Empty Download Folder
- Connect the Time Machine disk into your Mac. It should be the disk that you used when creating the Time Machine backup.
- Go to the Applications folder.
- Select Utilities and open the Migration Assistant.
- Follow the onscreen instructions until you get to the main page of Migration Assistant.
- Select From a Mac, Time Machine backup, or startup disk and click on Continue.
- Select the backup that you would like to use, preferably the one where the Downloads folder still exists and you already have the new files. Click on Continue.
- Select the files you want to include. I recommend including Applications, the option with your profile name, and Other files and folders. Click on Continue.
This will not only restore deleted Downloads folder Mac, but it will also restore other files that you have lost, regardless of whether you intend to recover them or not. The only downside of this is that you will lose some of your files, most likely the ones that you didn’t have before or the ones you have recently downloaded or transferred into your Mac.
Lost Downloads Folder On Mac
Data RecoveryRecover deleted image, document, audio and more files.Get deleted data back from computer (including Recycle Bin) and hard drives.Recover loss data caused by disk accident, operation system crushes and other reasons.
Part 5: Conclusion
Lost My Downloads Folder Mac
A lot of users complain about not being able to access their Downloads folder the same way they did before. This often leads to many complications, but that just goes to show how important the Downloads folder is to Mac users.
Although it is quite difficult, you can always learn how to restore the deleted Downloads folder Mac. Once you have gained such skills, you can always keep tabs on your Downloads folder and possibly retrieve it if the worst comes to pass.