How to recover lost memo data (Samsung J3 “Memo” app)

[Mark_Law]

I’m a newbie to this forum, and I’ve joined to get help with a problem. I made changes to an old and lengthy (and valuable) memo on my Samsung J3 phone. After making the changes, I tapped the upper right corner of the memo (“Save”) as I have done many times before. Weirdly, the contents of the memo disappeared. The memo’s title remains (i.e., the memo itself was not deleted), but now it’s a blank slate. I had not selected any text for cutting or deletion, and it’s not as if I tapped anything that said “Delete.” I’ve left the memo alone for now until I figure out what happened and whether I have any ability to recover the previous contents.

I recall that years ago, some computer programs (such as Lotus 1-2-3 and WordPerfect) would automatically save a *.bk1 or *.bak file that represented the file in its next-to-last state, so that if a file was accidentally overwritten, you could restore the previous version from the backup. Does Samsung’s memo app have a similar backup feature?

I’ve also come across ads for some apps that purport to allow the user to recover deleted memo files. I don’t know whether they would help in my situation, where the issue seems to be deletion (or overwriting) of the file’s contents rather than deletion of the file itself. Are any of these apps effective (and safe)?

Any thoughts as to how the text in my memo could have disappeared and whether/how I can safely recover it? Any and all suggestions would be greatly appreciated.

Mark_Law

 

[Golfdriver97]

Welcome to the forums. I found a couple websites, but I am not sure if I would trust them.

Here are the links if you would like:
Best Way To Retrieve Deleted/Lost Android Memo & Notes Files

https://www.easeus.com/android-data-recovery/how-to-recover-lost-or-deleted-android-memo-files.html

 

[Mark_Law]

Thank you for the links, Golf. I had come across the EaseUS | Data Recovery, Backup, Partition Manager & PC Utility Software site myself, as well as another recovery app called Dr. Fone. I’m reluctant to use them. “Trust” is definitely a concern when it comes to installing apps that may be sketchy.

As put out as I am about the loss of the memo’s text, I am equally vexed by my inability to figure out what I might have done to cause it to disappear. (The memo file itself still exists.) I experimented (in an expendable memo) by clicking on commands and sub-commands near the memo’s upper right-hand corner, thinking that perhaps I had accidentally activated a command other than “Save.” I was unable to reproduce what happened earlier. So I can’t be certain I won’t inadvertently do the same thing – whatever it was – and trash another memo.

I also activated “Paste,” thinking that if the underlying cause had been accidental activation of a “Cut” command, then perhaps “Paste” might reverse it. That wasn’t helped either. Nothing that I have thought of doing has worked to restore the text. It seems there should be some non-third-party way to get the disappearing text back again.

Very frustrating. If any readers have a reasonable hypothesis as to the cause of the deletion, I’d love to hear it.

Mark_Law

 

[Golfdriver97]

Thank you for the links, Golf. I had come across the EaseUS | Data Recovery, Backup, Partition Manager & PC Utility Software site myself, as well as another recovery app called Dr. Fone. I’m reluctant to use them. “Trust” is definitely a concern when it comes to installing apps that may be sketchy.

As put out as I am about the loss of the memo’s text, I am equally vexed by my inability to figure out what I might have done to cause it to disappear. (The memo file itself still exists.) I experimented (in an expendable memo) by clicking on commands and sub-commands near the memo’s upper right-hand corner, thinking that perhaps I had accidentally activated a command other than “Save.” I was unable to reproduce what happened earlier. So I can’t be certain I won’t inadvertently do the same thing – whatever it was – and trash another memo.

I also activated “Paste,” thinking that if the underlying cause had been accidental activation of a “Cut” command, then perhaps “Paste” might reverse it. That wasn’t helped either. Nothing that I have thought of doing has worked to restore the text. It seems there should be some non-third-party way to get the disappearing text back again.

Very frustrating. If any readers have a reasonable hypothesis as to the cause of the deletion, I’d love to hear it.

Mark_Law

I have seen (admitted rarely) random unexpected and unexplainable data loss. The only thing I can think of to counter this is to use document files and save it as a backup.

 

[Cutae143]

Hello Mark I am also dealing with the same memo text loss problem in Samsung j7. It would be v nice of you if you share me the solution if you've got any.

 

[DsM]

Does settings allow auto backup to the Samsung cloud? S Finder on old versions of the Note would scour the phone but that's useless advice unless you can locate a particularly comprehensive file app--which I haven't found.

There are expensive devices that will download everything not written over. The police particularly favor this method. Commercial companies charge hefty prices.