Word deletes files after saving – here’s what you can do

For some users who are writing important work for school, study or work in Microsoft Word, the whole thing sounds like a disaster: files do not end up safely on the hard drive after they are saved, but are simply deleted.

Microsoft offers a workaround

That’s how bad the bug in Word is, which various users are currently reporting reportfortunately not. But it’s always annoying. After all, Microsoft has the problem recognized and confirmed. And there is a way to get the “missing” files back.

Accordingly, Word files that have capitalized file extensions (.DOCX, .RTF) are said to be affected by the deletion problem. A “#” in the title also seems to ensure that a file is deleted undesirably.

According to Microsoft, the problem occurs when users want to save a file after editing it – after trying to close Word and being asked to save by the program.

How the Word bug is triggered

This means that anyone who closes Word when the open file has not yet been cached and then agrees to save it in the following save dialog could trigger the bug. According to Microsoft, Microsoft 365 version 2409 is affected. However, the software company does not yet know why the problem occurs.

The good news is: The files are not completely deleted, they are just moved to the trash. So if you haven’t emptied it in between, you’ll find the file you thought you lost there.

How to prevent the problem

The bug can also be avoided if users save their files manually before closing Word. If you want to be on the safe side, you can also click on “Do not show backstage when opening or saving files using keyboard shortcuts” under “File” -> “Options” -> “Save”.

However, it is not clear why this of all things prevents Word files from ending up in the trash. Microsoft is currently still investigating the issue. A fix is ​​currently awaited.