Current file disappearing, older version reappearing

[lughlamhfhada]

[Problem]

I have an OpenOffice file (current version 4.1.13), list of books running to about 20 pages, been updating it every month or so over 10 years.
Suddenly the file has disappeared, not just on Mac hard-drive but on my Flashdrive simultaneously, and in each case it has been replaced by an older version (dated Dec 2017). Weird.
I did nothing to it, and nobody else has access to my computer. Never happened before.
Any ideas??

Thanks,
james

[RoryOF]

Perhaps you have enabled Version saving in Writer, and inadvertently switched back ti that earlier version?

[Hagar Delest]

What are the file time stamps?
Are the size of the files consistent with an end-2022 content or a 2017 content (if you have an idea)? If consistent with a 2022 content, it may indeed be the versioning.

[John_Ha]

AOO cannot have caused it so look for other reasons.

It is most unlikely to have been done automatically by MacOS (how did it know to find the old file?) so look for something you have done.

How does a copy get placed on the USB stick?

Did you delete entries from 2017 to 2023 in error and then save the file so it is the latest file, albeit with missing entries - this is the most likely scenario. What is the date stamp on the actual .ods file?

Look for something you have done, especially something involving the old file. Did you have Versions enabled and you pulled the old file from the .odt and overwrite the newer file? Have you restored the old file from a backup and overwritten the file? Have you copied the old version onto the USB stick? Is the old version stored on the PC anywhere else? On the USB stick?

Do a search on the PC with the filename to find all versions of the file in other folders - have you swapped folders in error?

If you still cannot find it then see [Tutorial] How to find and un-delete AOO temporary files for detailed instructions on how to

a) use Previous Versions (W7 and later) to recover previous versions of the file (is there something similar on MacOS and Linux?);

b) recover your file as it was when you last opened or saved it, or as it was when it was last saved with AutoRecovery;

c) find previous versions of the file in the folder it is located in, but which have since been deleted;

d) find any temporary files AOO wrote while you were editing the file but which have not yet been deleted;

e) un-delete the temporary files AOO wrote while you were editing the file, and then deleted. d) and e) will recover your file as it was when you last opened or you last saved it.

If you cannot follow the instructions ask someone with more PC skills to help you. Act quickly - the longer you wait the more likely any deleted temporary files are to be overwritten and therefore lost.