Restoring Users
Site Administrators can recover users that were deleted accidentally, prematurely, or in error. Restoring a user brings the account back with its associated configuration, so you don't have to recreate the user and rebuild access or credentials by hand. Restore requests run in the background, don't interrupt other site activity, and can be tracked from the Restore interface without contacting Files.com Support.
When to Restore Users
Restore a user when the account was deleted but is still needed for access, ownership, or operational continuity. This commonly happens during early off-boarding, role changes, cleanup actions, or automated processes that remove users sooner than intended. Restoration is the right tool when recreating the account would require reassigning permissions, reconfiguring authentication, or issuing new credentials.
What Is Restored
User settings and authentication methods are recovered automatically. For Site Administrators, full access is restored exactly as it existed before deletion. For non–Site Administrator users, folder access permissions and Child Site access permissions are restored only when the Restore User Permissions option is selected, and only the permissions the user had at the time of deletion.
API keys and two-factor authentication methods are always restored. Other user settings are also restored, including protocol access, language, time zone, full name, company name, email address, notes, tags, and avatar.
Group memberships are not restored and must be reassigned after the restore completes. SFTP/SSH keys that were deleted as part of the user deletion are restored; keys deleted before the user was deleted are not.
Creating a User Restore Request
A user restore request requires a deletion date to identify which users are eligible for restoration. An optional username prefix narrows the request to users whose usernames start with a specific value. Selecting Restore User Permissions restores the folder and Child Site permissions the user had at the time of deletion, for non–Site Administrator users.
User restore requests run asynchronously in the background. Progress and status are available from the Restore interface. Larger restore requests take longer to complete.
User Activity Logs
User activity logs are always retained, even after a user is deleted. Deleting or restoring a user does not affect log data. After a deleted user is restored, existing logs can again be filtered and viewed by username, and new activity continues to be recorded.
Things to Consider
Restoring a user re-enables the access they had before deletion, which may not match current access and permission requirements. After restoration, review folder permissions, Child Site access, protocol access, API keys, group assignments, and authentication settings against current needs.
Restore is a recovery step within user lifecycle management, not a replacement for onboarding or off-boarding processes. Frequent restores are a signal to review deletion workflows, expiration rules, and automation that may be removing users sooner than intended.