# Restore Deleted Items from the Recycle Bin

:::lead
When you delete something in TestOwl, it isn't gone straight away. It moves to the **Recycle Bin**, where you can restore it for **15 days** before it is permanently removed.
:::

Open **Recycle Bin** from the sidebar to see everything that has been deleted from your project.

## What ends up in the Recycle Bin

| Item | Notes |
| --- | --- |
| **Test Suite** | Deleting a suite also moves the Test Cases inside it. |
| **Test** | An individual Test Case. |
| **Flow** | A reusable [Flow](/docs/building-tests/flows). |
| **Environment** | Variables and Secrets that were scoped only to that environment go with it. |
| **Variable** | A [Variable](/docs/data/variables). |
| **Secret** | A [Secret](/docs/data/secrets). |
| **Tag** | A [Tag](/docs/data/tags). |

Everything deleted from the Test Suites, Tests, Flows, Environments, Data Config, and Manage Tags pages lands here. Other items — such as schedules, masking rules, and team members — are removed permanently when you delete them, after a confirmation.

## Finding items

The Recycle Bin table shows each item's **Type**, **Name**, when it was **Deleted**, and how many days are left before it **Expires**.

Use the toolbar to:

- **Search** by name.
- Filter by **Type** (one or more).
- Filter by a **date range** for when items were deleted.
- **Refresh** the list, or **Reset** the filters.

Some rows show extra context under the name — for example, the suite a test belonged to. Test Suites that were replaced during an [import](/docs/import-test-scripts/overview) show **Replaced** followed by the date.

## Restoring items

Click the **Restore** button on a row to bring the item back exactly where it was. To restore several items at once, tick their checkboxes and click **Restore Selected**.

Things to know when restoring:

- **Suites bring their tests back.** Restoring a Test Suite restores the Test Cases that were deleted along with it. A test you deleted separately, before the suite, stays in the Recycle Bin and must be restored on its own.
- **Restore the parent first.** A test whose suite is still in the Recycle Bin can't be restored until the suite is.
- **Environments bring their scoped data back.** Restoring an Environment restores the Variables and Secrets that were deleted with it.
- **Schedules resume.** If a [schedule](/docs/running-and-results/schedules) was paused because its target was deleted, restoring the target lets the schedule resume automatically.
- **Plan limits still apply.** If restoring would push you over a limit on your plan (for example the number of Flows or Environments), the restore is blocked until you free up space or upgrade.

## Deleting forever

To remove an item immediately instead of waiting for it to expire, click **Permanently delete** on its row and confirm. For several items, select them and click **Force Delete**. This can't be undone.

Items that reach the end of their 15 days are removed automatically.

:::warning{title="Permanent deletion can't be undone"}
Once an item is permanently deleted — by you or after it expires — it can't be recovered, and any Flow or Variable references to it are lost.
:::

## Who can restore and delete

Restoring and permanently deleting follow the same permissions as the feature the item belongs to:

| Action | Roles |
| --- | --- |
| **Restore** | Editor, Admin, and Owner. |
| **Delete forever** | Admin and Owner. |

Viewers can see the Recycle Bin but can't change anything. Buttons you don't have permission for are disabled with an **Insufficient permissions** tooltip. See [Project Roles](/docs/team-and-account/project-roles) for the complete permission list.

## Next steps

::::cardgrid
:::card{title="Test Suites" href="/docs/building-tests/test-suites"}
See what happens when you delete a suite.
:::

:::card{title="Flows" href="/docs/building-tests/flows"}
Understand what happens when a Flow that's in use is deleted.
:::

:::card{title="Project Roles" href="/docs/team-and-account/project-roles"}
Check who can restore and delete items.
:::
::::