How to delete or delete a file without sending it to the trash

In 1982 the recycle bin was invented, a measure to avoid accidentally deleting a file. But sometimes it can be annoying to have to empty it. That's why in this article we show you how to delete a file without sending it to the trash.

How does the recycle bin work?

If you want to skip the introduction and quickly learn how to delete files without using the recycle bin, you can skip to the next section.



In Windows, and in most operating systems, there is some sort of recycle bin. This implies that whenever we delete something, it is not actually deleted, but is saved in a folder until we decide to delete it definitely.


This option not only minimizes human error, but saves time when working with files. A computer hard drive is generally slow to read, and deleting a file from there can take some time. For this reason, files are typically not erased from the disk, but are marked for later deletion. But, of course, there is a way to permanently delete a file from the recycle bin.

However, this can be dangerous, as sometimes you want to delete a confidential file without it being transported to the recycle bin. This is especially true when you share the system with other people who may see the file if it is allowed to go to the trash.

We also remind you that the size of the recycle bin in Windows is not infinite, so it is advisable to delete the files that go to that folder from time to time, and so you can save some disk space.

For the above, it is recommended to schedule the automatic emptying of the recycle bin. This way you won't have to worry about doing this process manually, but the system will do it on its own.




How to delete or delete a file without sending it to the trash

How to delete a file without sending it to the recycle bin?

There are several ways to delete a file without sending it to the trash, you will have to choose one depending on what you need to do in each situation.

fast way

In Windows, if you just need to delete a file, and you want to do it quickly and safely, you can do it by pressing the "Shift" key and the key at the same time. "Cancel".

This will open a dialog box asking if you are sure you want to permanently delete the file. If you select “Yes”, the file will disappear without a trace.

On Mac, you can select the file, then press the “Options” key and look for the “Delete Immediately” option.

Disable the recycle bin

In Windows, you can disable recycle bin in so that files are always permanently deleted. To do this, follow the steps below:

  1. Position yourself on the desk
  2. Right click on the trash can
  3. In the options, select "Property"
  4. Select the option "Do not move files to Trash, remove files immediately after deletion"
  5. If you want a dialog box to appear to avoid deleting files by mistake, leave the “Show dialog to confirm deletion” box checked, otherwise uncheck it.
  6. Select "Accept"

Once this is done, any files you delete will disappear without going through the recycle bin first. But you have to keep that in mind è more can recover files that you eliminate, if you act quickly.



How to delete or delete a file without sending it to the trash


Recover a permanently deleted file

If you accidentally deleted a file after disabling the recycle bin, don't worry. If you act quickly, you can still recover the file. The easiest way is to go to the folder where the file was and press the "Control" key and the "Z" key at the same time. If you haven't done anything else after deleting the file, will come back where he was standing.



If you've already done something after deleting the file, this shortcut won't work for you, but there's still something you can do. If you haven't created a new large file yet, you can use a utility of file recovery.

Some popular utilities of this type are “Recuva”, “PhotoRec” and “GetDataBack”. Always install programs from its official website and beware of bundleware when installing. If you use Mac you can recover files with Recoverit.


Delete a file from the disk

If you are very concerned about safety and read that there are ways to recover files that they left you cold, don't worry, there are ways to delete files so they are unrecoverable.

A classic way is to change the contents of the file with random letters and save it, then delete it. If that fails, modern security programs like AVG allow you to delete files with nearly impenetrable security protocols.

TagsTutorial PC
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