How to set search parameters in Windows 7. Instantly search for files in Windows. Sleight of hand and no fraud
Search is an integral part of the operation of any computer; in fact, it is its most important function. If you, say, need to find answers to basic questions, then, of course, there is no point in bothering with search settings. However, if you set more complex tasks for yourself and the computer, and the end result is important to you, it’s better to worry about it. A standard search in Windows 7, of course, will bear fruit and will produce many results, but will they be suitable and necessary? The question is rhetorical, but if you are still concerned about properly setting up your computer, I offer variations on the topic of how to upgrade/improve the built-in search in Windows 7.
How to set up search in Windows 7
First of all, let's understand how the search happens. You can only find indexed files and folders, that is, those that have been assigned an index. It is assigned to all elements that are in standard folders. In order to set up indexing, you need to do the following: go to the start menu, look for “search options” and select “Change search options for folders and files” in the drop-down list. In the window that appears, select the “Search” tab and check the boxes wherever you see fit, but it’s better to do it as in the picture below . By the way, I advise you not to choose a search by file name, but to give preference to indexed applications, this way you will limit yourself from unnecessary garbage.
It also wouldn't hurt to set up indexing by extension. To do this, click on the “Advanced” – “File Types” tab. This allows you to index exactly the contents of the folder if you decide to search by this parameter. Then everything is as usual: click “OK”, and go ahead, search through files in Windows 7. And in order for the search to happen as quickly as possible, use from time to time.
Search sources
In order to consolidate the material, let's clearly formulate the places where an extensive search for information will be carried out, namely:
- Start menu;
- main search window;
- libraries;
- other explorer windows, such as folders, open, save as.
In general, if you calmly sit down and figure it out, setting up a search turns out to be a fairly simple process. To do this, you don’t need to have any specialized knowledge at all, just follow the simple tips in this article, and I’m sure everything will work out for you!
When starting to use the new system, I think you might have encountered the fact that file search in Windows 7 is organized somewhat differently compared to other operating systems. Now I will tell you about where the search is in Windows 7, and also look at an example of searching for files in Windows 7.
Setting up search in Windows 7
The Windows 7 menu has a built-in search bar that allows you to find not only menu programs by their name, but also files and folders. I should note that not all files are searchable, but only indexed ones, that is, those to which the system has assigned a special number called “index”. If your files and folders are in standard folders, then you don't need to set up indexing.
To make the settings, open the “Start” menu and type “search options” and select “Change search options for files and folders” in the results.
In the “Search” tab, the parameters should be as in the picture below.
I do not advise you to choose a search by file name, although at first glance this seems like a good idea, in practice it will lead to the fact that the search will not only take an incredibly long time, but will also return a lot of irrelevant results, and therefore will not be effective. In this window, all settings are set optimally; there is no need to change anything.
Now, similarly to the previous case, we find it in the “Indexing Options” menu. In the window that opens, click “Edit” and now we can select all your data folders for indexing. You should not select Windows system folders, select only the data that you need. There is no need to choose like Plyushkin. What if it comes in handy!?
Another useful configuration feature is setting indexing by extension. Click the "Advanced" button and select the "File Types" tab. Here you can add indexing of the contents of files that you will search by content. For example, you want to search documents by content. Click on “doc” and select “Index properties and contents of files” at the bottom.
Now that you have configured everything, you can click “OK” and “OK” again to save the results and let’s start searching in Windows 7 in practice!
Search in the Start menu
In the previous paragraph, we easily found the necessary programs in the Start menu using the search bar, I will only add that now that your indexing system is configured, you can search not only programs, but also all the necessary files and folders, and they will be conveniently grouped by type.
To consolidate, so to speak, the material, let’s repeat the steps that have already been voiced in the article. To start the search, you need to click on Start and enter a word or phrase of an element at the very bottom.
Search using Windows Explorer
In the previous chapter of the article, you could open the search window from the start menu, the same effect can be achieved if you open “File Explorer” or “Computer”. You will see a search bar at the top right of the window. You can enter there the file name, part of the contents of files or their extension for which you previously configured a content search.
But this is not all the possibilities. You can enter various filters there: type, modification date, author and others. You can see the filters by placing the cursor in the search field in one of the “Library” folders; the wider the field, the more filters are visible. Each of the Libraries folders has its own filters, for example, the duration of the music file or the date the image was taken.
You can also see that you can now organize your search results by selecting a method in the upper right corner of the window, and by scrolling down to the end of the results, repeat the search in other Libraries folders.
And finally, I’ll add that a similar search for files in Windows 7 is available everywhere. You can open any folder and start searching in it. And it's very convenient!
For those who are considering upgrading to Windows 8:
It so happened that after the release of Windows 7, many users became disillusioned with the file and folder search system. The fact is that in the standard settings there is not even a search by file content. Windows 7 turned out to be somewhat unusual in this regard.
Search Basics in Windows 7
It goes without saying that some basic search elements have been retained. But the file search itself in Windows 7 has become slower. In addition, if you enter a regular scan of your computer for the presence of files with a certain extension, the system itself assumes the use of a comparison of the entered type only in the name of the file or folder.
Unfortunately, the same search for the contents of a Windows 7 file in the initial settings does not suggest at all. It, as well as other parameters, must be configured manually. What this approach was connected with still remains a mystery.
Standard means
Naturally, when calling the standard Explorer, you can use either the search bar in the upper right part of the main application window, or the Ctrl + F key combination. Actually, it works in almost all programs, with rare exceptions.
But now about the system. When it comes to searching for programs and applications, everything is simple here. The system is optimized in this regard very well. Even in the Start menu, in the line below, you can enter at least part of the name. The result will be immediate. If for some reason the user is not satisfied, a link is displayed just below, indicating that he can view other search results. In principle, it is very convenient. In addition, in this case all possible matches will be shown, even sorted by file type.
Search settings
In order to properly configure the search for files in Windows 7, you simply need to enter the phrase “Search Options” in the main “Start” menu in the bottom line and select changing them in the results.
In the new window, you should not use the search option by file name or content. This is due to the fact that the system will produce a huge number of extraneous results, especially if the service responsible for partial matches is involved.
In this case, when searching for files in Windows 7, it is better to change the indexing parameters. At the same time, you should not select system folders in which the file you are looking for simply cannot be located.
Another important point in indexing parameters is setting up a search by extension. On the Advanced tab, you just need to select the types of registered extensions you want in the system, and then set the property and content indexing option as a priority. In this way, you can get rid of the appearance of results that may coincide at least partially with the original.
In the same “Explorer”, when you click on the search bar, you can select the appropriate filters. It’s worth noting right away: the more filters, the slower the search for files in Windows 7 will be. You yourself understand that they need to be used with a certain degree of caution, and even then only as a last resort, when you need to find something specific with full confidence that that such a file or folder is present on the hard drive or logical partition.
Finding duplicate files
Unfortunately, finding duplicate files using standard Windows 7 tools turns out to be quite problematic. That is why it is recommended to search for duplicate files using third-party utilities.
One of the simplest programs is the well-known Duplicate File Finder application. It is designed even for an inexperienced user and allows you to perform almost all operations without his participation. But here’s the problem - then you’ll have to rack your brains about which duplicates to delete. The fact is that some programs, when installing different versions, can introduce files with the same names and extensions into the system, which the application itself can identify as the same (even when comparing checksums). So you need to be very careful here.
File search program in Windows 7
As for search tools, we have already figured out a little what they are. Now it’s worth noting that the question of how to enable file search in Windows 7 has one more aspect. Everyone knows that there is no provision for restoring deleted files and folders in the system.
Here it is better to use system utilities such as the Recuva program, which is capable of recovering deleted data even after formatting the hard drive or partition. Unfortunately, it, like some other software packages, does not always work correctly in terms of determining the status of a deleted file. In addition, some utilities have a generally narrow focus. For example, they can search and recover only media files (graphics, video or audio) or office documents. So here, too, you need to choose exactly what the user needs at the moment.
As for how to search for hidden files in Windows 7, everything is simple. When using standard system tools, you must first enable their display in the service menu on the “View” tab, where the corresponding parameter is enabled. Naturally, after this you can use a regular search engine using the same indexing or search by extension or content. As you can see, there are no problems.
Conclusion
In conclusion, it remains to add that although the search for files in Windows 7 is organized somewhat differently compared to, say, the same XP or Vista system (not to mention earlier versions), nevertheless, with the right approach, you can configure the search engine itself , as they say, for yourself, using some additional features.
This should not cause any particular difficulties. A little patience, and the custom setup will be done within a couple of minutes. Moreover, the use of some specialized settings compared to those installed by default will even reduce the search time in terms of information processing. And we’re not even talking about specialized programs and applications designed to use many additional functions that are simply not available in Windows 7 itself.
The Windows operating system provides several ways to search for files and folders. You can use the search box in the Start menu to search for files, folders, programs, and email messages on your computer. But when I try to search for something in the Start menu, the search field is missing.
There are several options to return everything to its place.
First option
The easiest way is to try to return the search field using Windows. Open Control Panel - Programs and Features. Select a tab "Turn Windows features on or off". Finding the component Windows Search. If the component is not selected, check the box.
Click OK. Now we check whether the service is enabled or not Windows Search. To do this, open Control Panel - Administration - Services. Checking the service mode Windows Search. Must stand Automatically.
Second option
Apply. To do this, in the Start menu - Run, enter the command gpedit.msc and OK. Now we are looking for User Configuration - Administrative Templates - Start Menu and Taskbar. In the right half of the window, look for the item Remove “Search” link from the “Start” menu. Let's check the value of this parameter. Must be Not specified.
Third option
This option will be useful for those users who have a version of Windows other than Pro, Enterprise and Ultimate. Only these versions support Local Group Policy Editor.
Open the registry editor: Press the Win key + R and enter the command regedit And OK. Finding the section
HKEY_CURRENT_USER\Software\Microsoft\Windows\CurrentVersion\Policies\Explorer
if there is a parameter in this section NoFind- it must be removed.
When switching from Windows Vista, search only becomes more convenient and does not contain any special surprises. This cannot be said about many Windows XP users who are just discovering the daily use of the system with such a convenient tool as instant search. Searching in Windows 7 is really very simple. But, as in any search, the goal is to find what you need, and sometimes difficulties arise with this. With this article I begin a story about how search works in Windows 7, how to configure it, how to search, and most importantly, how to find.
How search works
You've most likely heard about an index - a set of files that contain various information about files and documents stored on disk. When you use search, it is the index files that allow you to quickly display results. The index includes various file properties, and this is not just the path, name or size. For example, all tags of MP3 files are indexed - from the author to the bit rate. For office documents, data is indexed, which can be seen in the file properties on the tab Details, document content, and so on. If this search is new to you, I recommend reading a couple of help articles to get some background information on searching. Minimize all windows, click F1 and in the field Search help enter... Search.
Indexing happens constantly - if you add, delete or change a file in a folder, it will immediately be reflected in the index.
The screenshot shows the locations that are indexed by default. Therefore, if you store your documents somewhere in F:\Documents, they will not be included in the index and will not be found by a quick search - they must be added to the index separately. Setting up the search will be discussed below.
Search and indexing settings
To be honest, the standard search settings are quite good, and most users do not need to change anything in them, especially if documents and files are stored in standard folders. To configure settings, open the Start menu and type search options into the search box.
This is how we easily used one of the search features - quick access to control panel elements from the Start menu.
Change search options for files and folders
I will not duplicate the parameters that are clearly visible in the screenshot.
Please note the following points:
By default, search within a folder searches all subfolders
in non-indexed locations, only file names are searched and compressed files are ignored
you can use language search, i.e. compose search queries in a more fluent language - for example, last week's video (there will be a lot of unexpected results mixed in here, especially in localized versions)
Indexing options and Windows Search services
Here you can configure many more settings. To add folders to the index, click Change.
It is no coincidence that the Windows and Program Files folders are excluded from the search - they will greatly increase the size of the index, and will be of little practical use. Programs can already be found by searching in the Start menu - after all, the main menu is indexed by default.
Clicking Additionally, you get access to two groups of settings:
indexing technical parameters
indexing options for file types
In the first of them, you can add encrypted files to the index, rebuild the index (which may be necessary in case of problems) and set a new location for it.
For file type (extension) you can:
include or exclude it from the index
determine whether only properties or content will be indexed
add new extension
For example, if your instant messaging client suddenly saves history in text files with a LOG extension, or you just need to analyze logs, their contents will not be indexed by default. But you can easily customize the search - just type log on your keyboard to move through the list of extensions and enable content search.
How to search
When starting a search, it is advisable to immediately imagine whether the search object is included in the index. As I said above, the index covers the user's profile - libraries, files, etc. Here you can find the files you need relatively easily.
But if you open the main search window and expect to find something in the Program Files or Windows folder, you may generally get the impression that “the search finds nothing” because only the results from the index are displayed. We'll talk about searching in non-indexed places later, but now we'll look at general search methods in Windows 7. You can search:
from the Start menu
in the main search window
in libraries
in other Explorer windows - folders, "Open" and "Save As" dialogs
Search in the Start menu
When you search from the Start menu, the search results show not only files and documents, but also programs and Control Panel items. Now you can safely give up the Windows XP habit of carefully sorting applications in the menu Programs. It is enough to enter the first few letters of the program name to find it. This is much more convenient, especially if you have many programs installed.
Advice. If you use portable applications, simply add their shortcuts to the %appdata%\Microsoft\Windows\Start Menu\Programs folder (you can create a subfolder for them). They will appear in a group in search results Programs.
In Windows 7, search results in the Start menu are very conveniently grouped, and the number of results in each group is immediately visible - this point has been improved compared to Windows Vista. As you can see in the screenshot, a search for the word word finds not only Microsoft Word and WordPad applications, but also offers results in other groups.
The Start menu displays multiple results for each group, and clicking on the group name opens a search box with all the search results for the group.
Searching in the Start menu is good when you have an idea of the file name or its contents - the first 5 - 10 results are visible immediately, and you don’t have to look far. In addition, the Start menu is indispensable for quickly accessing programs and Control Panel items using search.
Main search window
A blank search window can be opened by pressing the keyboard shortcut WIN+F. It, in my opinion, has somewhat lost its meaning, since it no longer contains advanced file search capabilities. Searching in Explorer windows practically forces it out of the system. It seems to me that links to help on using search or a link to this article could brighten up its dull appearance.
However, the main search window still carries a payload. It opens with search results if you enter a query in the Start menu and click on the name of the search result group, or on View more results right above the search field.
Libraries
Now I will explain why I separated the search in libraries and other Explorer windows. Notice how library search results are displayed. They correspond to the type of files in it and are very well perceived visually. For example, for music files, the album cover, large song name, size are displayed, and there are also “musical” options for organizing the results. This is a property of all libraries, which confirms the thesis - the capabilities of Windows 7 are best used together. In this case, it is searching in libraries, which has other advantages.
This is what a simple library search will suggest: Music.
While in File Explorer, you can organize your search results by available file properties. The default display order is top scores, but, for example, you can organize music files by album or genre. This feature is available along with the traditional Explorer tools of sorting and grouping (although the latter may be new to Windows XP migrants).
In this case, the results will display several tracks from each album. You can view all the songs on an album, and then “fold” it if the one you need is not there.
If you don't find the file you need in the current folder, you can search again:
Other Explorer windows
In folders and libraries, the search field is the same as in the main window. But we must not forget that the same option is available in the “Open” and “Save As” windows, which are used even by those who prefer alternative file managers.
It is more convenient to search in folders when you know the approximate location of the file or document - in this case you will not get lost in the results. In addition, this method is useful when it is known for sure that the file is not included in the index. Finally, in the Open and Save As windows, you can quickly filter the contents of a folder using search.
I'm sure you've already tried simple search queries and you're probably completely satisfied with them. However, sooner or later you will need to find the file, and a simple query will not help. Next, I'll show you how to use Windows 7's advanced search capabilities to find the files you need.
New advanced search features in Windows 7
To master search, of course, you need to practice using its capabilities. In articles about Windows 7 search, I will give a number of examples that you can easily reproduce in your own home.
If you're upgrading from Windows XP, absolutely everything in your Windows 7 search will be new. Compared to Windows Vista, Windows 7 looks:
have changed search filters
Search filters
When you roughly know the name of a file or the topic of a document, finding the desired file is usually not difficult - you simply enter a partial or full query into the Start menu search. But this information is not always stored in the RAM of the brain, and it is simply often necessary to set special search conditions - size, modification date, or author of the file. Windows XP had a search assistant, Windows Vista had filters.
At first glance, there is nothing that stands out visually in Windows 7. In fact, filters are still there - they just become visible when you place your cursor in the search field.
Advice. To see more filters, expand the search field - position the cursor on the separator between the field and the address bar and drag to the left.
In the screenshot you see a standard set of filters in the main search window.
Hints
Your search queries are remembered if they were entered:
to the search window
in explorer folder or library
in the Start menu (assuming you navigated to results and didn't just open the file)
These prompts annoy some users, and they tend to turn them off immediately. And, in my opinion, they are doing it in vain. The tips remember not only search queries as such, but also filters searches that you specified - for example, the size or modification date of the file. Suggestions are very useful if you want to use the full power of Windows 7 search. It's easy to change the old condition to the current query, and it's faster than entering it again. And you can always delete an unnecessary hint - just select it (with the mouse or cursor) and press Delete on the keyboard.
As I said above, the new features of Windows 7 are best used together. The connection between search and libraries is not only in the display of results, but also in the formation of search conditions. In the next part of the article I will look at:
using filters to search libraries and mail
search in Internet Explorer 8
search in non-indexed places
search operators
