# 05 — Deleting files and directories

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Nothing is ever truly lost: a deletion is just another commit, and the old content stays in the history.

## Deleting one file

1. Open the file.
2. Press the **…** menu at the top right of the file view.
3. Choose **Delete this file** (or use the 🗑️ icon next to the edit pencil).
4. Write a commit message and press **Commit Changes**.

## Deleting a folder

1. Open the folder.
2. Press the **…** menu next to *Add File*.
3. Choose **Delete this directory**.
4. Commit.

Everything inside the folder is removed in that single commit.

## Deleting several files at once

The browser deletes one path at a time. For a large clean-up, work from your computer (chapter 10):

```bash
git rm -r old-folder
git commit -m "remove old folder"
git push
```

## Getting a deleted file back

1. Open **History** on the folder that used to contain it, or the repository history.
2. Find the commit *before* the deletion.
3. Open the file at that commit and copy the content, or press **Browse source at this point** and recreate it.

Anything that was ever committed can be recovered. Something you typed in the editor but never committed cannot.

## Careful with

- **Deleting the folder instead of the file** — check the menu title says *file* when you mean one file.
- **Protected branches** — if `main` is protected, deletion goes through a pull request instead (chapter 09).
- **Secrets** — deleting a password from a file does *not* remove it from the history. Change the password itself.

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