How to Recover Deleted Python Files & Delete a File in Python

What is Python?

Python is a high-level interpreted programming language known for its clear syntax and readability, making it an excellent choice for both beginners and experienced developers. Python has become one of the most popular programming languages, used in everything from web development to software engineering and scientific computing. It has many important statements and commands.

File management in Python involves more than just writing and executing scripts. At some point, you may need to Python delete files or, conversely, recover accidentally deleted files. In this comprehensive guide, we’ll cover two aspects of how to delete a file in Python effectively and how to recover deleted Python files if needed. let's start!

How to Delete a File in Python (3 Ways)

Deleting files in Python is a common task, usually to manage temporary files or clean up old data. How do you safe delete a file in Python? Fortunately, Python provides the OS module, Shutil module, or Pathlib module to delete a file. We'll explore this below.

Way 1. How to Delete a File with the OS Module in Python

The OS module in Python is a versatile toolkit containing functionality for interacting with the operating system. It can be used to delete individual files or entire directories. Deleting files using OS modules is simple, but requires care to avoid deleting the wrong files. Follow the steps below to delete a file using Python.

⚠ Note: It does not provide any administrative permissions or error handling capabilities.

Step 1. Begin by importing the module at the start of your script: import os

Step 2. Determine the path to the file you wish to delete. You can use absolute or relative paths: file_path = 'path/to/your/file.py'

Step 3. Employ the os.remove function to execute the deletion: if os.path.isfile(file_path)

Way 2. How to Delete a File with the Shutil Module in Python

Python's Shutil module provides many utility functions to manage files and directories, including copying, moving, renaming, and deleting files. While the os module functions are more commonly used for file deletion due to their simplicity, Shutil is also very efficient, especially when working with directory trees.

Step 1. Start by importing the module at the beginning of your Python script: import shutil

Step 2. Determine the path of the file or directory you want to delete. While shutil is often used for operations on directories, it can also manage individual file operations when needed: file_path = 'path/to/your/file.py'

Step 3. To delete an entire directory tree: shutil.rmtree(file_path)

Way 3. How to Delete a File with the Pathlib Module in Python

The Pathlib module provides an object-oriented approach to file system paths. It's especially useful for more complex path operations and can make your code easier to read and write.

Step 1. Introduce Pathlib at the start of your script: from pathlib import Path

Step 2. Create a path object pointing to the file you wish to delete: file_path = Path('path/to/your/file.py')

Step 3. Use the unlink() function to delete a file: file.unlink()

How to Recover Deleted Python Files (2 Ways)

Can you recover deleted Python files? Yes, you can get back something you accidentally deleted quickly and easily. You have 2 primary options for recovery: using Python's built-in history feature to restore your file or trying robust data recovery software like MyRecover.

Way 1. Recover Deleted Files with Python’s Local History Feature

How to recover deleted files using Python? Deleted files in Python can often be recovered by accessing the local history feature in the development environment. This feature automatically records file changes so you can revert to a previous version if needed. Here are the steps using Python for data recovery:

Step 1. Navigate to the folder directly above where the deleted file is located. Right-click the folder and select Local History > Show History. This will open a window showing a list of recorded file changes and deletions over time.

Step 2. Find your wanted files or folders and click the revert button in the upper left corner of the window.

Way 2. Recover Deleted Python Files by MyRecover

For more Python file recovery needs, such as those not limited to recent deletions tracked by local history, using dedicated data recovery software can be highly effective. Python data recovery - MyRecover, can be used to recover deleted Python files easily with a high recovery rate.

• Apply to recover deleted files from almost any data loss scenario, including accidental deletion, partition loss or damage, virus infection, system crash, etc.
• Support all common file types: recover deleted Excel files, images, audio, videos, emails, and 200+ other file types.
• Supports previewing deleted files before recovery and recovering files retaining the original file name/format.
• Recover files from USB flash drives, SD cards, and internal/external hard drives, including FAT, NTFS, and exFAT file systems.

How to recover deleted Python files? Please download MyRecover and follow the 3 simple steps below to perform deleted Python files recovery.

Step 1. Download, install, and run MyRecover on your PC, and hover the mouse on the drive where the deleted Python files were stored. Click Scan.

Step 2. It runs Quick Scan & Deep Scan to search your deleted Python files automatically and thoroughly. After the process, you can apply the filter and preview feature to find the deleted files quickly.

Step 3. Then, choose the Python file and click Recover X Files. Please remember select a different location to save the file.

🎈Tip: MyRecover provides the capability to recover deleted Python files up to a total of 500MB. For unlimited data recovery options, consider upgrading to the advanced editions.

Summary

Python provides 3 ways to delete files. The easiest way is to use the "os" module, which allows you to interact with the operating system. If you need to delete an entire directory and its contents, you can use the "Shutil" module, which is designed for managing files and directories. To delete open files you can use "os.unlink" which can delete any open or closed file.

If you accidentally delete a file and want to learn how to recover deleted Python files, don't worry. You can restore it using Python's Restore option in your development environment, or you can use specialized data recovery software like MyRecover to recover deleted files effectively.

FAQ

1. What is the Python code that deletes files?

To delete a file or folder in Python, you can use the following commands:

50. os.remove() is used to delete a file.
50. os.rmdir() is used to delete an empty folder.

2. Does Python automatically delete objects?

Yes, Python has a built-in garbage collection system, which is an automated memory management process. It deletes objects automatically when they are no longer in use.

3. What is the difference between clear and delete in Python?

In Python, the del keyword is used to delete objects such as lists, list elements, variables, user-defined objects, dictionaries, etc. Conversely, the clear() method is specifically used to remove all items from a dictionary, leaving it empty but still existing.

4. Does Python overwrite files?

In Python, you can overwrite files using the write function when you open a file. Any existing content in the file will be completely replaced with the new data you input into the opened file.

5. Are Python objects stored in memory?

Yes, each object in Python is assigned a unique identifier (ID) when created, which acts as an address in the memory where the object is stored. You can use the id() function to retrieve the unique ID of any object.

6. How can I ensure that my Python file deletions are reversible?

To make file deletions reversible, regular backups and the use of version control systems like Git are recommended. Additionally, for Windows users, using free backup software for Windows such as AOMEI Backupper Standard can help you back up your data effortlessly, ensuring that you can restore deleted files when needed.