# How to Find a Record Deleted Months Ago

> Your data lake holds deleted records for the lifetime of your account. Time since deletion does not limit restorability. Here's how to find old records.
> Help → Sync → How to Find a Record Deleted Months Ago

URL: https://thatapp.io/help/sync/sync-find-historical
Category: Sync — Your Data Lake

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Your lake retains deleted records indefinitely. A record deleted two years ago is as retrievable as one deleted yesterday.

**The challenge with old deletions**

The longer ago a record was deleted, the less you may remember about it. You may not know exactly which app it was in, or when it was deleted. These tips help you find it when details are fuzzy.

**Search by content**

Ask AVA with whatever you remember:

> "Find deleted Podio records that mention 'Riverside project' anywhere in their content or comments."

AVA performs a full-text search across deleted records' field values and comment history.

**Search by date range**

> "Show me everything deleted from the Client Projects app in Podio between January and March 2024."

Date-range browsing in the Sync interface: navigate to Sync → platform → app → Deleted Items, then use the date filter to set a start and end date.

**Search by user**

> "Show me everything [user name] deleted in the last year."

Useful when you know a specific user deleted something and want to review their deletion history.

**Search by field value**

> "Find deleted Salesforce opportunities where the company name was Acme Corp."

AVA can search by any field value that existed on the record at the time of deletion.

**When you cannot find it**

If none of these approaches surfaces the record, contact support at support@thatapp.io with as much detail as you have. The support team can run deeper lake queries that are not exposed in the interface.

**Related:** How to Restore a Deleted Record · How to Browse Your Complete Platform History