Windows 7: Search does not find files that it should, directory is indexed, and *.php included on the extension list

Your answer helps, but my (copy; version; build [???] of) Windows 7 has no "expand icon and select/deselect options" under "Indexing Options". It does have a "Modify" button that opens an "Indexed Locations" box in which one may include or exclude some indexed locations, however. Windows 7 is not well-thought-out in regards to how an everyday user might want to use searches on one's own computer hard disc. Windows XP was much more easy, even effortless to use in this regard.

Windows 7 brings to mind an automobile that has door handles flushed to the surface and camouflaged by excess door trim such that only people with acute eyesight and mechanical instincts can spot their location and operate them right away.

Omg, I finally solved it for myself!!

Background: Windows search didn't find all files that were there so I rebuilt the index numerous times and tried bunch of other tips in this discussion. Nothing worked. I reduced the problem to just indexing one folder with 2 files, one that could be found and one that couldn't. I inspected the files and noticed that the one that couldn't be indexed had Attribute: AT, while the other one had just A.

Apparently T stand for temporary, no idea how my file got that since I created that wave file myself.

Anyway, the solution is (taken from http://blogs.technet.com/b/askds/archive/2008/11/11/dfsr-does-not-replicate-temporary-files.aspx):

Bring up a Powershell prompt (Start, Run, Powershell or from the Programs menu) and run this command to remove the temporary attribute from all files in the specified directory, including subdirectories (in this example, D:\Data):

Get-childitem D:\Data -recurse | ForEach-Object -process {if (($_.attributes -band 0x100) -eq 0x100) {$_.attributes = ($_.attributes -band 0xFEFF)}}

If you don’t want it to work against subdirectories just remove the -recurse parameter.

And BAM!! Windows Search indexed the file right away!!

You can't imagine how much I've cursed and slammed the table over this before.

I'm so happy that I registered here just to share this info with you! Hope it helps!

This was pretty impressive m_south_a! imagine that, remove indexing and get a better search result (actually, GET a search result). who would have thought.

thanks a lot!

Avraham

Try this.

I had this same problem, and over a couple of attempts to remedy this I had tried pretty much everything posted online, but nothing fixed it.  I then decided to turn my attention away from the Search feature and turn it to the Start Menu customization state.  It is there that I found this solution  

• Right click on the Start button (or on your taskbar where they are no task icons present)
• Click Properties
• Click on the Start Menu tab
• Click the Customize button
• Scroll down (almost to the bottom of) the customization items and you will find an item Search other files and libraries
• If your setting is currently Don't Search, then change it to Search with (or without) public folders
• Click OK to close the Customize Start Menu dialog
• Click OK to close the Taskbar and Start Menu Propertiesdialog

My system had somehow been set to Don't search here, and as soon as I changed it to Search with public folders the problem was resolved.  Now for an extra measure, I performed a re-index after changing this setting through the Control Panel->Indexing Options->Advanced->Rebuild button, but that may not have been necessary.

Key phrases: Windows Search not working, Windows Search finds no files