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when I run a search in Windows 7, only one folder at a time is searched. How do I broaden a search to a folder and all of its subfolders? Vista did that automatically; Windows 7 does not seem to do so.
Thanks!
Locked Question. This question was migrated from the Microsoft Support Community. You can vote on whether it's helpful, but you can't add comments or replies or follow the question.
I had the same prob & none of the answers on this page helped. I mucked around a bit & ticked a box in the search options folder Called "Don't use the index when searching in file folders for system files" Problem fixed... although the title of the tick box has nothing to do with searching sub folders, whenever it's not ticked I can't search any subfolders.
Ok here is the scoop. If you are searching in a folder selected from underneath the "Libraries" folder (Documents, Videos, Music, Pictures, Etc.) it does not search subfolders. I do not know why, but if you go to your "C:\Users'username'" and open the needed folder (or even just in your UN folder), it will search subfolders. I think it is either a glitch, or because Libraries is just a phantom name for a grouping, the search doesnt work. You have to be directly in the folder, or the folder directly above it, not in a windows "cloud" version of it like the ones in Libraries.
Sorry if this is hard to follow, i'm a better techy than a teacher. Hope this helps
Rick Flach
Live Out Loud Media & Design
Hi Rick
Open Windows Explorer.
Select Organize / Folder and Search options.
Select the Search Tab.
In the How to search section, select the Include subfolders in search results when searching in file folders option.
Regards
Hello,
Entering an asterisk (*) in the search box immediately returns all files in the current folder and all its subfolders.
Lisa
Microsoft Answers Support Engineer
Visit our Microsoft Answers Feedback Forum and let us know what you think.
Ok here is the scoop. If you are searching in a folder selected from underneath the "Libraries" folder (Documents, Videos, Music, Pictures, Etc.) it does not search subfolders. I do not know why, but if you go to your "C:\Users'username'" and open the needed folder (or even just in your UN folder), it will search subfolders. I think it is either a glitch, or because Libraries is just a phantom name for a grouping, the search doesnt work. You have to be directly in the folder, or the folder directly above it, not in a windows "cloud" version of it like the ones in Libraries.
Sorry if this is hard to follow, i'm a better techy than a teacher. Hope this helps
Rick Flach
Live Out Loud Media & Design
This is the only thing that has worked for me (including every other "fix" on the 4 pages before my post). Clearly the search functionality is borked if you start your journey by clicking on one the the "Library" folders.
Hi there,
[Win 7 64 Home Premium]
Having read through this forum, I can identify with all the issues of Win 7 search that everyone has, and have found out (on my very own, too) that Ricks's scoop works in some situations. Working from piddles (that's what they used to call "My Documents" "My Computer" "Recycle Bin" "Libraries" etc) has always been a dodgy business.
Many of us run vast file systems on multi-terabyte drives running at ever increasing speeds- is the operating software always to blame?
I have around 50K files currently indexed using the default settings.
WinXP (and back) searches always worked for me, however.
In Folder Options: Search "always search file names & contents" and "include subfolders" are turned on.
At the moment I am working with an opened folder:
"B:\Steam\steamapps\common\Skyrim\Data\Scripts\Source"
This contains *.psc files among others, and I wish to do a text search inside the files.
My text search is bad, or "bad"
I know some files contain this text because I have them currently opened in notepad.
The search, which takes around 90 seconds comes up with zip.
Funny thing is, it seems to take just as long to search after indexing the drive as it did before!
Searching again in "contents", or typing content:bad in the search box still doesn't work.
I did run "troubleshoot indexing and searching" and the response was
"Incorrect permissions on Windows Search Directories."
This was "fixed" by the software, although its probably messed security changes I have made previously to get bleeping programs to work.
The search was repeated, and hey presto, still nothing.
I will perform a system restart (even though there was no prompt to do so) and will post if any better developments.
Keep in mind, too a recent comment from Social.technet:
'Windows Search isn't a search at all, but rather some kind of fuzzy logic ridden "poke around and find me something interesting to look at" program presumably trying to emulate Google. Searching a hard drive for something is not the same as searching the internet for something.
Windows Search results are usually inaccurate and at best incomplete. It CANNOT be relied upon to actually FIND things you know are there, so you'd be a fool to try to rely on it to find things you don't know are there. As such worthless to anyone who really needs to be accurate and thoroughat what they're doing.'
Contributors there have also suggested 3rd-party tools like:
Locate32 (My choice)
grepWin tool
Super Finder XT
or, last resort,
install XP mode.
Hope this helps.
