Score Gone

• Aug 10, 2024 - 14:21

I accidentally replaced one of my scores with another score that had the same name. The file was saved on my desktop and then was removed (because I clicked replace file). I looked at the one of the MuseScore support pages and it said to look for backup scores. I found the file with MuseScore backup scores, and found a bunch of older scores, but not the one I am looking for. Apparently even overwritten scores are supposed to show up in the "hidden files", but I can't find it.

Because I saved the score before, it SHOULD BE THERE regardless of whether or not I replaced the original file with another... what do I do?! I really need that score. HELP!

Comments

bobjp

• Aug 10, 2024 - 18:15

Run a search for the MuseScore autosave folder. You might get lucky there. But....

graffesmusic

• Aug 10, 2024 - 18:26

What makes you think that "even overwritten scores are supposed to show up in the "hidden files"?

cbjeukendrup

• Aug 11, 2024 - 23:33

If you overwrite a file with another file, the original file is gone. It's really not better than that, I'm afraid. That's why your OS gives a warning when you're about to overwrite a file. This is more a thing of how file systems work in general, than a MuseScore issue.

Someone mentions Autosave, but when you save and close a score successfully, MuseScore deletes the Autosave file, because it normally serves no purpose anymore then. So Autosave is not going to help here.

The .mscbackup folder that you already seem to have found would be the only hope. But it is always only one "save" behind the actual file. So if you replaced the original file and then didn't do anything after that, the original file should be in the .mscbackup folder; but if you saved the overwrite file another time after replacing the original file, then the original file is also no longer in the .mscbackup folder.

To prevent losing significant work from such mistakes, it is recommended that you make backups of your entire computer regularly (for example, incremental backups every hour). On macOS, this can be done using the built-in TimeMachine utility. On Windows, similar tools exist. Using such backups, you can retrieve the original file, from a backup that was made before you replaced it.