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How do I search EVERY file name in a certain directory (for example C:\
) for a certain character string (for example obscure.dll
) in Windows 7? For instance, Start Menu search does not find files in C:\WINDOWS
or my ~\AppData
directory.
I'm looking for a method that utilizes the built-in search of Win7, without installing Cygwin or other major system-level changes, and without using incredibly slow command line tools. I want to know aht incantation will search all filenames in a specified directory.
Again, I am trying to search (not necessarily index) ALL file names in all subdirectories of an arbitrary directory, not just some extensions or some directories. If I tell it to INDEX the whole drive, it will index the CONTENTS of those files. I just want to know what magic incantation to add to my search of a directory to search every file name in it.
As another example, I was searching for MultiDoc
and multidoc
in the right-corner search box in Windows Explorer inside of the just unpacked C:\Users\myname\Downloads\afolder\subdir
where several subdirectories of that contained a MultiDoc.py
. My search returned no results. Why?
There has to be a way to search all file names in a directory just as one does in Windows XP. What is it?
I'd really suggest Cygwin in this case if you're already familiar with Linux or want an extremely powerful search program. Using the
find
command is just invaluable. You can also use regular expressions with the find command. You can achieve what you want with something like this:find /cygdrive/c/ -iname '*file name to search*' -depth 1
– Nitrodist – 2010-07-11T01:40:28.210I need to be able to do this on others' Win7 machines. – A Student at a University – 2010-07-11T01:44:35.490
The Windows 7 Search won't let you search all of C:\WINDOWS. Even the wonderful Search Everything Engine fails there. Feel good: It's in the name of security & stability. – harrymc – 2010-08-11T12:38:47.037
@Nitrodist:
find
is available on Windows, but it's *nix'sgrep
. – Hello71 – 2010-08-29T18:26:23.497How can I feel good when I want to find my code on my drive, or someone else's lost doc or py file on their Win7 drive, and there is no tool that can do so in a reasonable amount of time? – A Student at a University – 2010-08-29T18:34:52.730