LOST.DIR directory: what folder is it and why is it needed?

Quite often, many owners of Android-devices when viewing the contents of internal storage or removable media (SD-cards) using file managers face the directory LOST.DIR. What kind of folder is in front of us in this case, let's try to figure it out. In conclusion, several tips will be given on whether it should be deleted, moved or renamed.

LOST.DIR - what is the folder: main purpose

If you look at the files contained on the memory card or in the absence of such, you immediately notice the incomprehensible folder LOST.DIR. Not all users clearly understand what role it performs.

Let's see what's what. First of all, it is worth noting that the Android operating system is essentially built on the principle of the Linux OS, in which there was (and is) a special command to restore files or check the disk fsck.

By analogy, Windows also has such a system command. This is chkdisk. And this is not only a means of comprehensive verification, as most users believe.

As you can see, the command itself is intended for checking a disk or logical partition, but the result is stored in a strictly defined place. Almost the same thing is observed in the case of the LOST.DIR directory. What kind of folder is created in the sections? Yes, just a file vault in which copies of objects are created, if the user, for example, for some reason, extracts the card from the mobile device. Roughly speaking, this is a kind of data warehouse.

By the way, the same applies to retrieving the SIM card from the smartphone, when the Google account is deactivated for a while. But many people probably noticed that after changing the number, but when logging in with their login and password, some files are restored quickly and in full.

Therefore, the folder LOST.DIR on the "Android" can be empty and take up to hundreds of megabytes or more. Probably, it is not necessary to explain that everything depends only on the number of user files, both in the internal memory of the device and in the memory of a removable card.

Why is the LOST.DIR folder created and where is it located?

The folder itself is not created when the Android device is running normally. As it was said above, such a temporary storage system creates and puts objects there when retrieving maps. However, this is not the only reason.

In some cases, the directory can be created automatically when the system crashes, for example, during file copying, disabling the device in some active process with files, or simply when the operating system itself hangs.

Actually, the directory itself is created only in two root directories: either it is a folder on the internal drive (if the card is not used), or the same folder on the SD-card. In this case, each of them is responsible exclusively for the data stored on each of the above devices.

Folder LOST.DIR on a flash drive or internal drive: secure removal

In principle, looking at the size of the directory, many users decide to get rid of it. But here it is worth paying attention to the fact that it is not worth underestimating the role of this folder. Sometimes, when the default settings are used, rather than manually selecting a location, system or user data backups can be stored here.

Therefore, before deciding to delete a folder, you need to check its contents - it's not enough, and maybe there are saved the necessary files, which then it will be impossible to restore. Applications can be recovered from the same Google Play service (Play Market, Android Market). But if the user's files or the same contact book was registered in one of the two storage media with subsequent removal of the data from the SIM card, then you will have to think about the advisability of such operations.

Here we are a little and figured out the directory LOST.DIR. What kind of folder and what it is created for, it seems, is already clear. Now a few words about the removal. By and large, if it does not have any critical data for both the system and the user, you can "demolish" it quite simply, using any file manager or the system's own resources for this. Nothing terrible will happen. Here it is worth noting only that when you repeat situations related to incorrect work or forced completion of the processing of files, the folder will be created again automatically. The user does not even know about it (in this case the notification system does not give, but works in the background).

Conclusion

Now it is already a little clear what the LOST.DIR folder means and why it is needed. As you can see, nothing particularly critical will not be to remove it irretrievably. But you need to do this only if the data in it is not needed by the owner of the mobile gadget, as well as backup copies of files and folders or created images of the system for later recovery.