Folders missing after upgrade to Ventura 13.3.1

Cannot find folders and files after upgrade to Ventura 13.3.1 How can I restore them?

MacBook Air 13″, macOS 10.14

Posted on Apr 12, 2023 12:38 PM

Reply
Question marked as Top-ranking reply

Posted on May 5, 2023 01:07 AM

I'm sorry if I am blunt, but if you don't take the care to have a backup of your data, that's on you.


You should not expect an update to wipe all your data, of course (*); but it's not just "before an update", it is something that you should do regularly. Apple has made it so easy to do, with Time Machine.


If the data was lost, it can't certainly magically reappear.

But I think it is there, as it always has.



OMGjustgetmein wrote:

All of my personal folders and files on my MacBook Pro were deleted since it received the Ventura 13.3.1 update last night. iCloud does not show my info either (and I thought all of my files in Finder were automatically saved to the cloud). After an hour with the Apple Help desk, the advisor believes that likely all of my data is lost.


Most likely they are just missing from the sidebar.

Hover near the word Favorites, and click ">" to disclose.


Also, the sidebar is just a quick way to reach the data. Even if it's empty, it does not mean that the data is not there. You can press Command-Shift-H to open your home folder, and see your Documents, Pictures, etc.




11 replies
Question marked as Top-ranking reply

May 5, 2023 01:07 AM in response to OMGjustgetmein

I'm sorry if I am blunt, but if you don't take the care to have a backup of your data, that's on you.


You should not expect an update to wipe all your data, of course (*); but it's not just "before an update", it is something that you should do regularly. Apple has made it so easy to do, with Time Machine.


If the data was lost, it can't certainly magically reappear.

But I think it is there, as it always has.



OMGjustgetmein wrote:

All of my personal folders and files on my MacBook Pro were deleted since it received the Ventura 13.3.1 update last night. iCloud does not show my info either (and I thought all of my files in Finder were automatically saved to the cloud). After an hour with the Apple Help desk, the advisor believes that likely all of my data is lost.


Most likely they are just missing from the sidebar.

Hover near the word Favorites, and click ">" to disclose.


Also, the sidebar is just a quick way to reach the data. Even if it's empty, it does not mean that the data is not there. You can press Command-Shift-H to open your home folder, and see your Documents, Pictures, etc.




Apr 14, 2023 03:56 PM in response to tbirdvet

I was able to put the Documents folder in my sidebar but it is empty. Where is all my stuff? I'm panicking here. When I click on the folder a message pops up "The operation can't be completed because the original item for "Documents" can't be found". I get the same message when I click on "desktop".


Someone at the Genius bar helped me make room on my hard drive so I could do the upgrade. Could he have accidentally deleted my documents? I watched as he did it and there was nothing that seemed like it.

May 4, 2023 01:18 PM in response to Srofik

All of my personal folders and files on my MacBook Pro were deleted since it received the Ventura 13.3.1 update last night. iCloud does not show my info either (and I thought all of my files in Finder were automatically saved to the cloud). After an hour with the Apple Help desk, the advisor believes that likely all of my data is lost.


Unbelievable fail.


Also, apparently for the last 15 years that I have been purchasing Apple products the sales people should have told me to 'back up the entire laptop on an external hard drive' before any update. Really? I am going to the Apple store to see if they can uninstall the Ventura update -- in the hopes that some data may be recovered.

This thread has been closed by the system or the community team. You may vote for any posts you find helpful, or search the Community for additional answers.

Folders missing after upgrade to Ventura 13.3.1

Welcome to Apple Support Community
A forum where Apple customers help each other with their products. Get started with your Apple Account.