Pinchai Speaks During His Keynote Address at the Google I/O Developers Conference in San Francisco
Sundar Pinchai, Google's senior vice president of Android, Chrome and Apps, speaks during his keynote address at the Google I/O developers conference in San Francisco, June 25, 2014 REUTERS

Unintentionally deleting SMS messages is one of the most common accidents that happen on mobile phones. The good news is not everything is lost - there is a way to recover the lost SMS messages using different recovery tools.

A quick search on Google Play will pull up apps that will recover data directly on Android devices. However, the method to be discussed here uses PC-based tools in case the apps on Google Play don't work.

Before Retrieving the Messages

A few things need to be done in preparation for the desktop retrieval of the deleted SMS messages. First, users need to protect the remaining messages on their Android phones. Users with custom messaging display apps usually have the option to lock SMS message threads and back up existing messages, protecting them from being overwritten once the old messages have been retrieved.

To begin the process, AndroidPIT recommends enabling USB debugging on the Android. Activate Developer Options by repeatedly pressing the build number in the About Phone menu inside Settings, until a message confirms that the user is now a developer. Next, go to the Developer Options menu and enable USB debugging from there.

Finally, users will need to download a desktop program that will retrieve the lost messages. Some examples are the Coolmuster Android SMS+Contacts Recovery and Android Data Recovery. Reviews of different programs can easily be found online - users may choose a program that is proven to work, and that is compatible with their desktop computer.

The Retrieval Process

While there will be minor differences depending on the program used, the main process for retrieving lost or deleted SMS messages basically goes the same way. It begins by installing the retrieval program downloaded earlier, then running it on the desktop device according to My Tech Update. Users must then connect the phone via USB cable. Remember to enable USB debugging to ensure the program will detect the device; otherwise, it will not show up on the program.

The recovery tool will detect the phone and display a request to scan and analyze the connected device's memory. Simply follow the instructions and once done, the program will present a list of existing and deleted files on the Android device. It is at this point that the user can restore accidentally deleted SMS messages to the phone, or create a back-up on the computer for future reference.