Microsoft Shadow Copy is a program that allows users to restore previous versions of files that are stored on the School District's network. Shadow Copy works by using restore points (or shadows) of folders and files that are periodically made by the Technology Department. This allows the user to revert back to a previous stored point to undo any unwanted changes, recover a corrupted file, or restore a file that is accidentally deleted.

You can recover a previous version of an individual file or folder. If you restore an entire folder, all of the contents of the folder will be restored to the previous version.

1. Navigate to the folder or file on the network that you wish to restore.

2. Right click on the folder or file and select Properties.

3. On the Properties window, click the Previous Versions tab.



4. Highlight the version date of the item that you want to recover.

5. You can View the previous version of the folder or file, Copy it to another location, or Restore the folder or file to the previous version. Click the appropriate button for the action you wish to take.

Note: If you restore an item it will replace the current file or folder on the network drive with the previous version you've selected. Any changes you've made to the file or folder since the time of the previous version will be lost.

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You can recover a previous version of an individual file or folder. If you restore an entire folder, all of the contents of the folder will be restored to the previous version.

1. Navigate to the folder or file on the network that you wish to restore.

2. Right click on the folder or file and select Properties.

3. On the Properties window, click the Previous Versions tab.



4. Highlight a previous version of the folder in which the deleted or missing file was stored.

5. Click the View button. A Windows Explorer window will open with the contents of the previous version of the folder.

6. Highlight the file you wish to restore and choose Copy to Folder from the Edit menu.



7. In the Copy Items window, navigate to a folder where you want to store the file and click the Copy button. The file will be restored in the location you specified.

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Documentation Courtesy of: Information Technology Services at The University of Iowa