Can I Delete Windows Recycle Bin?

Some people prefer absolute nothingness on their desktop, not even the Recycle Bin icon. But unlike other icons, when you right-click on Recycle Bin, there is no delete option available. What exactly is Recycle Bin and can it be deleted?

Although you can't directly delete the Recycle Bin, you can choose to hide it from desktop.

For Windows 8 and 10 users

• Right-click on the Desktop.
• Select Personalize in the pop-up menu.
• In the left navigation menu, click on Themes.
• Under Related Settings, click on the Desktop icon settings option.
• Uncheck the Recycle Bin box and click OK.

For Microsoft Windows Vista and 7 users

• Right-click on the Desktop.
• select Personalize in the pop-up menu.
• In the Personalize appearance and sounds window, click the Change desktop icons link on the left-hand side.
• Uncheck the Recycle Bin box and click OK

We can only assume the reason behind why there is no delete recycle bin option is that Microsoft wants to prevent accidental deletion of the recycle bin. Users with not so much technical background will have trouble viewing, restoring or deleting deleted files.

Now that we've hidden the Recycle Bin icon, can it be deleted?

I couldn't think of any reason why anyone would want to delete Recycle Bin. Maybe it's out of pure curiosity: if deleted files go to Recycle Bin, where does Recycle Bin go if I delete it? Does it consume itself like Ouroboros?

The answer is a little bit complex than a simple yes or no.

The Windows desktop Recycle Bin is not an actual folder. It is a virtual folder that collects the information about deleted files such as file size, original file location and then presents information to users. It is a built-in tool (function) and cannot be actually deleted.

For example, in Windows Vista and above with NTFS, each drive has a $Recycle.Bin special folder under it, which normally is set to Hidden. Deleted files’ information is stored in these $Recycle.Bin folders. Desktop Recycle bin collects information from these separate $Recycle.Bin folders and presents them to users so users can view, restore or "permanent delete" these files. However these $Recycle.Bin folders can be deleted. But they will automatically be recreated by the system if needed.

Some tips regarding file deletion

1. Files deleted from within Recycle Bin will be "permanently deleted"
2. Shift+delete will "permanently delete" files without first routing to Recycle Bin
3.  Files deleted from external storage devices like USB flash drives and external HDDs will also be "permanently deleted"

These permanent deletion are not actually permanent, it's just that Windows does not provide any tools to undelete these file. You can achieve that with some third party tools like H Data Recovery Software to recover accidentally deleted files with just a few clicks.