Created by @Punam Mahadik

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If you are working on a drawing file and due to some unexpected behavior you did not get chance to save your data then you might be wondering if there is any way to recover the lost work.Lets discover methods to retrieve unsaved work in case of abnormal closure/instability event in DraftSight:

A. Change the extension of a BAK file to DWG in Windows Explorer or File Explorer:

 1. In Windows Explorer or File Explorer, locate the backup file identified by the (drawing name).bak file extension. (Here, 'Drawing name' is the name of the drawing to be recovered)

2. Right-click a file and choose Rename.

3. Enter a new name using the .dwg file extension.

4. Open the file as you would any other drawing file.

 (For instance, if there is a file called "pump housing.bak", change the file name to "pump housing_bak.dwg" to open it in DraftSight.)

 B. Restore from an AutoSaved file:

1. Open the C:\\Users\\[username]\\AppData\\Local\\Temp\\DraftSight_autosave folder in Windows.

2. Show hidden extensions

3. Look for a file with a (Drawing name).ds\\\$ extension and a similar name to the corrupted file.

4. Copy the file to a new location and rename the extension to DWG.

 (For instance, if there is a file called "pump housing.ds\\\$", change the file name to "pump housing.dwg" to open it in DraftSight.)

 5. Open the file in DraftSight.

Note: Auto-save & Backup option should already be enabled for the creation of AutoSaved and backup files. Follow the below steps to enable this feature:

1. Type ‘Options’ at the command prompt
2. ‘System Options’ dialogue box will appear.
3. Next, click on ‘System Option’ and expand ‘Auto-save & Backup’.
4. Click on respective checkboxes to enable ‘Save backup at each save’ and ‘enable Auto-save’ options