SharePoint recycling bin not showing items: 7 causes and fixes
April 27, 2026 · 6 min read
Your SharePoint recycling bin looks empty when it should not be. Here are the seven reasons items disappear from the view, and what to do about each one.
The SharePoint Recycling Bin blog
Practical guides on searching, filtering, and restoring deleted items in SharePoint. Straightforward. No fluff.
How to access the SharePoint second-stage recycling bin (and what to do if you cannot)
April 27, 2026 · 4 min read
Step-by-step instructions for opening the SharePoint second-stage (site collection) recycling bin, the permissions you need, and what to do when you do not have them.
How long does SharePoint keep deleted files? The 93-day rule explained
April 27, 2026 · 4 min read
SharePoint keeps deleted items for 93 days across both recycling bins, and the timer does not reset. Here is how the retention window actually works, and what changes it.
Restoring a deleted SharePoint folder without breaking inherited permissions
April 27, 2026 · 6 min read
Restoring a deleted SharePoint folder is more nuanced than it looks. Permissions, broken inheritance, and version history all need to land back in the right state.
Recovering from a mass delete in SharePoint (accidental or ransomware)
April 27, 2026 · 7 min read
A practical incident-response walkthrough for mass deletions in SharePoint, whether caused by a misfiring sync client, a careless script, or a malicious actor.
Version history vs the recycling bin: which one to use when
April 27, 2026 · 5 min read
SharePoint has two ways to recover a previous state of an item: version history and the recycling bin. They solve different problems. Here is when to use which.
List items vs documents: how SharePoint handles deletion differently
April 27, 2026 · 5 min read
A SharePoint document and a SharePoint list item look similar but behave differently when deleted. Here is what changes for each one in the recycling bin.
SharePoint vs OneDrive recycling bins: what is actually different
April 27, 2026 · 4 min read
OneDrive and SharePoint recycling bins look similar but have different scopes, retention, and admin paths. Here is what changes between them.
Restoring from the SharePoint recycling bin with PowerShell (and why most admins regret it)
April 27, 2026 · 6 min read
PowerShell can drive the SharePoint recycling bin, but the script that worked on a small site falls apart on a large one. Here is what to know before you write the loop.
Recovering a deleted SharePoint site collection: a complete walkthrough
April 27, 2026 · 6 min read
A whole SharePoint site collection can be deleted. Recovery is possible during the retention window via the SharePoint admin center, but the path is not obvious.
Native SharePoint recycling bin vs Advanced Recycling Bin: feature comparison
April 27, 2026 · 5 min read
A side-by-side comparison of the native SharePoint recycling bin and Advanced Recycling Bin, covering search, filters, paging, stage coverage, bulk restore, and audit.
Sharegate vs Advanced Recycling Bin for recycling-bin recovery
April 27, 2026 · 5 min read
Sharegate is a broad SharePoint migration and management suite. Advanced Recycling Bin is a focused recovery tool. Here is which one fits which job.
AvePoint cloud backup vs Advanced Recycling Bin: when each one fits
April 27, 2026 · 4 min read
AvePoint is a backup product. Advanced Recycling Bin is a recovery tool for the native SharePoint recycling bin. Here is the line between them.
Microsoft 365 Backup vs Advanced Recycling Bin: what each one solves
April 27, 2026 · 4 min read
Microsoft 365 Backup is Microsoft's first-party backup product. Advanced Recycling Bin is a focused recovery tool for the recycling bin. Here is how they compare.
Advanced Recycling Bin is live!
April 24, 2026 · 3 min read
We just released Advanced Recycling Bin, a friendlier way to search, filter, and restore items from your SharePoint Stage 1 and Stage 2 recycling bins.
SharePoint document libraries explained: structure, permissions, deletion
April 22, 2026 · 8 min read
A practical tour of SharePoint document libraries: how they differ from folders on a file share, how permissions work, and what happens when users delete items.
SharePoint Stage 1 vs Stage 2 recycling bin: what is the difference?
April 21, 2026 · 5 min read
SharePoint has two recycling bins. Here is what lives where, who can see each one, how long items last, and what to do when the retention window runs out.
How to restore deleted SharePoint files (including from Stage 2)
April 20, 2026 · 7 min read
Learn how to recover deleted SharePoint files from the first and second stage recycling bins, how long you have to recover them, and what to do when the native UI gives up.
How to search the SharePoint recycling bin (step by step)
April 19, 2026 · 5 min read
A step-by-step walkthrough of searching and filtering the SharePoint recycling bin with Advanced Recycling Bin, including tips for narrowing results and bulk restore.
Why the native SharePoint recycling bin is so hard to search
April 18, 2026 · 6 min read
The SharePoint recycling bin has no search box, no filters, and an infinite scroll list. Here is why that breaks recovery workflows, and how to actually find what you deleted.