Need to search for text within file name and file content

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I still have the XP mentality, it seems, when this simple search frustrates me.

I want to search all the files in a folder (and its subfolders) for those that contain a specific keyword. I remember in XP that I can search within the files. I’m only able to search the file names in Windows 7.

And Advanced Search isn’t any more helpful. I can narrow my search by file size and modify date, but I see no options for searching within the contents of the files.

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Have you tried Windows Grep?

Hope this helps…

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Have you tried Windows Grep?

Hope this helps…

It sounds lovely, but I’m limited in what I can have on my machine. For example, I’m on Windows 7.

But I did find a solution. I found “Change search options for files and folders.” By default, it had “In indexed locations, search file names and contents. In non-indexed locations, search files names only” selected.

I changed it to “Always search file names and contents”.

Okay, I can see why the default is set the way it is, but it really would have been nice to change this within the search tool. I appreciate the reference, Rick.

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Kuildeous – Our Windows 7 work PC’s are locked down so we can’t install any software ourselves. I used a portable version of Universal Extractor to unpack the Windows Grep installer to a folder on a USB stick.

Within the extracted files/folders you’ll see a folder called {app}. All you need are the files within this folder, nothing else.
39399-wingrep
Click to enlarge

I now have a portable version of Windows Grep which I can use at work.

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Where I used to work if we inserted our own memory stick it was promptly encrypted and you couldn’t see the contents. I think the system was called Ironman. It was to stop anyone using a stick to download and take away any data or secure stuff.

Eliminate spare time: start programming PowerShell

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Windows 7 natively indexes file contents, and a search can be targeted to a specific file type.

Try this: Click the Start Orb and just enter a word that you know is in a file that you wrote in the last week (like “franklin” or “david” in a word processing file or text file). Now…Just above the text box you just typed into, click the words “See more results”.

A window opens showing (lower left) that “XXX items” (XXX is the number of items it found). Note that email messages, PDF’s, and document files are in the list. Now…click in the box in the upper right that has your original search term in it. A small drop-down box indicates that you can limit the search to a specific file kind (i.e. documents, IM’s, etc,) or a file type (.txt, doc. etc.) Play around with that, and I think you’ll agree you can indeed find highly targeted keywords.

Max

P.S. Rick, thanks for pointing to GREP. I had forgotten about that one.

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Having just migrated from XP to 64 bit W7, I too was also a little frustrated with the inbuilt search tool. I tried out Everything which is very fast but does not search file contents, then FileSearchEX which is almost as fast and searches within files among many other settable parameters.
There is some useful description here: http://www.howtogeek.com/71216/how-to-get-a-blazing-fast-powerful-xp-style-search-in-windows-7/

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Nice one, MartinM. Thanks.

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For searches within files I use Agent Ransack.

http://www.mythicsoft.com/agentransack

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MartinM… I too use Everything daily. It finds most of what I really need on a day-to-day basis. I endeavor to save my files with keywords in the file name, making Everything far more useful. I am going to have to try out FileSearchEX…sounds very useful. Thanks!

Satrow…WOW! I used AgentRansack when I was on Win98SE. I held on to Win98SE and skipped over XP. I had no idea that it’s been updated. Does it work well with Win7? I appreciate your response when you’ve got time.

Max

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Satrow…WOW! I used AgentRansack when I was on Win98SE. I held on to Win98SE and skipped over XP. I had no idea that it’s been updated. Does it work well with Win7? I appreciate your response when you’ve got time.

It still works fine, Max

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Satrow,

Thanks for the link to Agent Ransack! That is one cool search program. I also downloaded the Office 2010 filters it recommends and it does great searches of Office documents. :cheers:

May the Forces of good computing be with you!

RG

PowerShell & VBA Rule!
Computer Specs

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I also downloaded the Office 2010 filters it recommends and it does great searches of Office documents.

I think the filter pack is only needed for the later x (zip format) documents, searches within ‘plain’ .doc files here work without any MS Office software/components/converters installed.

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