Good afternoon friends! Today we will continue our lessons from the operating room Windows system 7 and learn another secret - how to properly configure and search for files in windows 7.
It would seem that there is such a thing? The search engine is the search engine. I switched to 7 about a year ago. And to be honest, in XP I tried not to use the built-in search engine. Absolutely uncomfortable. Yes, and what you need either does not find, or finds, but the process is sometimes delayed for several hours.
From the 7-ki, I really did not expect anything. But, just the other day, this OS pleasantly surprised me. I needed to search for one file in Windows 7, I did not remember its exact name, but I typed part of the name .. and got my file in less than 2-3 seconds. Now I use only the built-in search engine.
indexing service in windows 7
Microsoft developers did a good job. The search tool in Windows 7 compares favorably with previous operating systems of this family not only in quality, but also in search speed.
My favorite browser is Chrome, so its search mechanism is very similar to that in Windows 7. The search starts when you enter the first characters. In addition, there is a hint system based on the history of previous requests. If there are too many results for the search query, the system suggests using dynamic filtering by various criteria - date, file size, type, etc.
The basis of such an effective work of the OS search engine is a special indexing service. It starts with the operating system, works in the background, creates a special database of information about files. Updating and restoring the index in case of any failure also occurs automatically, without user intervention.
It should be noted that for the operation of this service, the OS allocates a certain system resource. In order for the service to work effectively, but not to the detriment of other programs, it must be configured correctly. We will definitely talk about this today.
Instant file search in windows 7
In 7-ke there are two ways to instantly search for files.
- 1. Search using the start menu. Click on the “Start” button and enter the required search query in the search field at the bottom. For example "Christmas trees".
In the process of entering data, search results will be displayed directly in the “Start” window. It should be noted that the search is also carried out by the contents of the files.
If there are too many results, and you want to see them in more detail, click on the "View more results" button.
The Search Results window will open. The files here are already sorted by type and the search query is highlighted in yellow.
You can refine your search. To do this, scroll the list of search results to the very end.
And in the “Repeat search in:” section, select the appropriate option.
If you assume that the file you are looking for is in the OS Library, then select this option.
If you know approximately what folder to search in, select the “Other…” option and specify a specific folder to search.
If you want to search on the Internet, then click the "Internet" button.
If you want to repeat the search on the entire computer, then click on the “Computer” button. By default, the indexer goes through all files except OS system files and program files. This allows you to increase search speed and reduce the size of the indexer base. and it's true, how often do we look for system files? It's not often. By selecting the “Computer” option, the system will repeat its search, but only more thoroughly and, accordingly, will take a longer period of time.
- 2. The second instant search option is to search in the “Windows Explorer” window. The principle of operation is about the same.
Configuring the Indexing Service
- 1. Go to “Start” –> “Control Panel” –> then in the search area, enter “indexing” –> select the “Indexing Options” section.
- 2. In the window that appears, you will see all the folders on which the indexing service works. If you want to exclude a folder from the search (for example, you know that one of the sections of your hard drive used for Reserve copy, then, in principle, it can be removed from this list), click the “Change” button.
And uncheck the box next to the folder that you want to remove from the search engine. Next, click the “OK” button.
- 3. Next, click on the “Advanced” button. In the window that opens, on the “Indexing Options” tab, uncheck all two items. In 99% of cases, we do not need these functions, and therefore there is no need for an additional load of the indexing service.
- 4. If you wish to migrate the index base from system partition hard drive to another partition to free up free space on the disk, then for this you need to specify a new folder in the “Index location” section on the same tab.
Do not forget to restart the indexing service or simply restart the computer to successfully change the location of the index database.
- 5. Next, go to the “File Types” tab and edit the list of file types, leaving only the most significant (with which you work). Thus, you will significantly reduce the load on the system. By default, the indexing service handles almost all file types that are used.
- 6. Finally, decide how the indexing service handles files.
If you select “Index only properties”, then the indexer will only process the file name and its metadata (size, type, creation date).
If you select the “Index file properties and content” option, then the document will be completely processed, including its contents. This will take longer and require additional system resources, but will increase the likelihood of search accuracy.
The choice is yours, my dear reader.
- Next, click the “OK” and “Close” buttons.
Today we looked at the features of the Window 7 search service and how to configure it. In the next article, I will share with you another interesting tool (though from a third-party developer) that allows you to search adapted to the Russian-speaking population, taking into account declensions and cases.
The large volume of modern discs allows you to store many documents or multimedia files. Therefore, without initially subjecting your directories to a certain structuring, you can get complete chaos on your hard drive. If this has already happened, and you forgot the location of any files, it will not be easy to find them without knowing how to use the built-in search of the operating system.
Search by file name
Knowing the name of the document, you will greatly facilitate your task and after a short period of time you will already see the file you are looking for on the computer screen. There are several ways to find it by name in Windows 7.
Through the start menu
There is a search field in the start menu of the operating system. To find the required document through this field, you must:
- Click on the "Start" button.
- Find a field.
- Enter a name to search for.
- Check out the suggested results.
After entering the proposed name of the document, you will immediately be shown a list of found files:
In this case, Windows 7 was looking for a document called "Agency". As you can see from the previous screenshot, the first suggested option is the file you are looking for.
How to find in a folder?
There is another way to find documents. In every directory Windows Explorer 7 there is a corresponding field:
Therefore, knowing the name of the file and its location, you can:
- Open desired folder in the conductor.
- Enter the name of the document in the field.
- Get a result.
In this example, the search was conducted on the template "Biology". As a result, the following files and folders were found:
Knowing the location of the object is not necessary. It simply speeds up the search for files by the operating system. Since modern computers have high performance, the duration of finding the necessary information with a known location and with an unknown one is practically the same. If you have no idea in which folder or even on which drive the file is saved, you can search the entire computer:
Additional filters
With a common file name, you run the risk of seeing several thousand options that complicate the choice of the desired document. If you know the modification date of the file or its size, you can specify them when searching (by entering the pattern in the field, you will see the suggested filters):
You can also scroll down the found list and limit the search range by clicking the "Other" button:
After such a click, Windows 7 will display the settings window:
In this window you must:
- Select the desired folders to be searched.
- Confirm the selection with the "OK" button
After the actions taken, the number of items found in the list will decrease significantly, so finding the right one will become much easier.
How to find inside files?
The methods discussed above make it easier to search by name. But what if you don't know the name? In this case, you should know approximately the text of the document you are looking for. Windows 7 can also find files by their content. This function was not introduced in vain, because it is easier for a computer user to remember what is inside a document than to try to restore its name in memory.
By default in operating system this way of finding files is disabled. To enable it, you must:
- Open Computer in File Explorer.
- Press and release the ALT button (this action allows the top horizontal menu, which is normally hidden).
- Select "Service".
- Go to the "Folder Options" sub-item.
After clicking on the specified submenu, Windows 7 will display the following window:
In it you must:
- Go to the "Search" tab.
- Mark the item responsible for scanning the contents of objects;
- Confirm the changes with the "Apply" button.
The procedure is shown in the following screenshot:
This method significantly slows down the search for the desired object, but sometimes it is simply irreplaceable (for example, if several people use the computer). Therefore, if you don't want to wait and don't want to spend time scanning inside all documents, you can turn this option on or off as you see fit. After changing the settings, the search for the file is carried out according to the same scheme as described above, without any changes.
An example of finding a document by its content
You can find an object by any phrase, but it is especially easy to search for a file with poems. After all, it is easier to remember a line from a poem than a phrase from an accounting report. However, in the second case, a few of the most common words in the document will help you find any report.
For example, you have somewhere a document with Shakespeare's sonnets, and you remember a phrase from one sonnet: "Will you compare me." To find this collection on your computer, you need to:
- Open "Computer" in Explorer.
- Go to the desired folder (if known).
- Enter the phrase you remember in the search field.
- Get a result.
In this way, any information is found, provided that it is stored on your disk.
When switching from Windows Vista search in Windows 7 only becomes more convenient and does not contain any special surprises. You can't say the same for many. Windows users XP, just discovering their daily work in the system with such a convenient tool as instant search. Searching in Windows 7 is really very easy. But, as with any search, the goal is to find what you need, and sometimes there are difficulties with this. With this article, I begin a story about how search works in Windows 7, how to set it up, how to search, and most importantly, how to find.
How search works
You have most likely heard of an index - a set of files that contain a variety of information about the files and documents stored on the disk. When you use the search, it is the index files that allow you to quickly display the results. Included in the index various properties files, and it's not just the path, name or size. For example, MP3 files have all tags indexed - from author to bitrate. For office documents, data is indexed, which can be seen in the file properties on the tab in detail, document content, and so on. If this kind of search is new to you, I recommend reading a couple of help articles to get an introduction to searching. Minimize all windows, press F1 and in the field Help search enter... Search.
Indexing happens all the time - if you add, delete or change a file in a folder, it will be immediately 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 indexed and will not be found by a quick search - they must be added to the index separately. Search settings will be discussed below.
Search and indexing settings
Honestly, standard settings searches are quite successful, 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 casually we used one of the search options Windows 7- quick access to control panel items from the start menu.
Change search options for files and folders
I will not duplicate the parameters that are perfectly visible in the screenshot.
Pay attention to the following points:
by default search in folder searches in all subfolders
in non-indexed places, only filenames are searched, and compressed files are ignored
you can use language search, i.e. write search queries in a looser language - for example, last week's video (a lot of unexpected results will be mixed in here, especially in localized versions)
Indexing Options and Windows Search Services
Here you can configure many more options. To add folders to the index, click Change.
The Windows and Program Files folders are not accidentally excluded from the search - they will greatly increase the size of the index, and there will be 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 have access to two groups of settings:
indexing technical parameters
indexing options for file types
In the first one, 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 also content will be indexed
add new extension
For example, if suddenly your instant messaging client saves history in text files with LOG extension or you just need to parse logs, their contents will not be indexed by default. But you can easily customize the search - just type log on the keyboard to move through the list of extensions and enable search by content.
How to search
When starting a search, it is desirable 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 even get the impression that "the search does not find anything" - after all, 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 ways to search in Windows 7. You can search:
from the start menu
in the main search box
in libraries
in other explorer windows - folders, "Open" and "Save As" dialogs
Start menu search
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 part with the habit of the times of Windows XP - careful sorting of 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 are using portable applications, just add their shortcuts to the %appdata%\Microsoft\Windows\Start Menu\Programs folder (you can create a subfolder for them). In the search results, they will appear in a group 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 is an improvement over Windows Vista. As you can see in the screenshot, searching for the word word finds not only Microsoft applications Word and WordPad, but also offers results in other groups.
The Start menu displays multiple results for each group, and clicking on the group's name opens a search box with all search results in the group.
Start menu search is good when you have an idea about the name of the file or its contents - the first 5 - 10 results are immediately visible, and you don't have to go far. In addition, the Start menu is indispensable for quick access to programs and control panel items using search.
Main search box
An empty search box can be opened by pressing a keyboard shortcut WIN+F. It, in my opinion, has somewhat lost its meaning, since it no longer contains advanced file search capabilities. Searching in the windows of the explorer practically forces it out of the system. It seems to me that links to help on using the search or a link to this article could brighten up its dull look.
However, the main search window still carries a payload. It opens with search results by typing a query in the Start menu and clicking on the name of a group of search results, or by See other results right above the search field.
Libraries
Now I will explain why I separated the search in libraries and other explorer windows. Pay attention to how search results are displayed in the library. They correspond to the type of files in it and are very well perceived visually. For example, music files display album art, large song title, size, and "music" options for ordering results. This is a property of all libraries, which confirms the thesis - Windows features 7 is best used together. In this case, it is a search in libraries, which has other advantages.
Here's what a search for a simple query in the library will offer Music.
While in File Explorer, you can sort 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 alongside Explorer's traditional sorting and grouping features (although the latter may be new to Windows XP migrants).
In this case, the results will display several songs from each album. You can see all the songs in the album, and then "fold" it if the one you need is not there.
If you didn't find desired file 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 opportunity is in the "Open" and "Save as" windows, which are used even by those who prefer alternative file managers.
Searching in folders is more convenient 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 maybe they've worked out for you. However, sooner or later you will need to find the file, and a simple query won't help. Next, I will tell you how to use advanced features. Windows Search 7 to find the files you need.
What's New in Windows 7 Advanced Search
To master the search, of course, you need to practice using its capabilities. In the Windows 7 Search articles, I'll give you some examples that you can easily replicate on your own.
If you're migrating from Windows XP, everything about Windows 7 will be new to you. Compared to Windows Vista in Windows 7 externally:
have changed search filters
Search filters
When the name of the file or the subject of the document is approximately known, it is usually not difficult to find the desired file - just enter a partial or complete request in the start menu search. But this information is not always deposited in random access memory brain, and simply often you need to set special search conditions - the size, date of modification or the author of the file. Windows XP had a search assistant, Windows Vista had filters.
At first glance, there is nothing visually striking in Windows 7. In fact, the filters have not gone away - they just become visible when you place the cursor in the search field.
Advice. To see more filters, expand the search field - place the cursor on the separator between the field and address bar and drag to the left.
On the screenshot you see standard set filters in the main search window.
Hints
Your search queries are remembered if they were entered:
to the search box
in explorer folder or library
in the start menu (assuming you navigated to the results and not just opened the file)
These prompts annoy some users and they tend to turn them off immediately. And, in my opinion, they do it in vain. Tips remember not only search queries as such, but also filters searches you specified, such as the size or modification date of the file. Suggestions are very handy if you want to use the full power of Windows 7 search. It's easy to change an old term to fit the current query, and it's faster than typing it all over 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 shared. The connection of search with 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 in libraries and mail
search in Internet Explorer 8
search in non-indexed places
search operators
It so happened that after the release of the Windows 7 operating system, many users became disillusioned with the file and folder search system. The point is that in standard version There are no settings even a search for the contents of the file. Windows 7 is somewhat unusual in this regard.
Search Basics in Windows 7
It goes without saying that some basic search elements have been retained. But the search for files in Windows 7 has become slower. In addition, if you enter a normal computer scan for files with a specific extension, the system itself assumes that the comparison of the entered type is used only in the name of the file or folder.
Unfortunately, the same content search Windows file 7 in initial setup no parameters at all. It, like other parameters, must be configured in manual mode. What this approach was connected with still remains a mystery.
Standard Tools
Naturally, when called standard conductor you can use either the search bar in the upper right part of the main application window, or a combination Ctrl keys+ F. Actually, it works in almost all programs, with rare exceptions.
But now about the system. As for the search for programs and applications, everything is simple here. The system is optimized in this regard very successfully. Even in the Start menu in the line below, you can enter at least part of the name. The result will be instant. If for some reason the user does not like it, a link is displayed below, indicating that you can familiarize yourself with other search results. Basically, it's very convenient. In addition, in this case, all expected matches will be shown, even sorted by file type.
Search settings
In order to properly configure file search in Windows 7, you just need to go to the main Start menu in bottom line type the phrase "Search Options" and select the change in the results.
In the new window, you should not use the search option by name or file content. This is due to the fact that the system will produce a huge number of extraneous results, especially if the service responsible for the partial match is involved.
In this case, when searching for files in Windows 7, it is better to use a change in indexing parameters. However, you don't have to choose system folders, in which the desired file simply cannot be located.
Another important point in the indexing parameters is setting the search by extension. On the "Advanced" tab, you just need to select the desired types of registered extensions in the system, and then set the property and content indexing option as a priority. Thus, you can get rid of the appearance of results that may coincide with the original at least partially.
In the same "Explorer" when you click on the search line, 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 you need to use them 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 exists on the hard drive or logical partition.
Search for duplicate files
Unfortunately, duplicate files are standard Windows tools 7 is hard to find. That is why it is recommended to search for duplicate files using third-party utilities.
One of the most simple programs you can call the famous application Duplicate File Finder. It is designed even for an inexperienced user and allows you to perform almost all operations without his participation. But the trouble is - then you have to puzzle over which of the duplicates to delete. The fact is that some programs during installation different versions can embed 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 have to be very careful here.
File Finder for Windows 7
As for the search tools, we have already figured out a little what they are. Now it is worth noting that the question of how to enable file search in Windows 7 has another aspect. Everyone knows that the recovery of deleted files and folders in the system is not provided.
Here it is better to use system utilities such as the Recuva program, which is able to recover 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 state remote file. In addition, some utilities have a generally narrow focus. For example, they can only search and restore media files (graphics, video, or audio) or office documents. So here you need to choose exactly what the user needs at the moment.
As for how the search is done hidden files in Windows 7, everything is simple here. Using standard means system, you must first enable their display in the service menu on the "View" tab, where the corresponding parameter is activated. Naturally, after that, 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 right approach you can customize the search engine itself, as they say, for yourself, using some additional features.
This should not cause any particular difficulties. A little patience, and customization will be done within a couple of minutes. Moreover, the use of some specialized settings compared to those that are set by default, will even reduce the search time in terms of information processing. And we are not talking about specialized programs and applications designed to use a variety of additional features, which are simply absent in Windows 7 itself.
Many search engine users Google systems resorting to its help, they notice that often the first time it is not always possible to find the information you need. Perhaps users believe that these are shortcomings of the search engine itself, but this is not always the case. Sometimes, in order to find very specific information, you need to resort to the help of special tools (operators) of this search engine.
How to search on Google correctly?
To begin with, do not forget that the algorithm Google SERPs case insensitive, in other words, if you enter "Russia" or "Russia" in the query, the search result will not change. However, this search engine is very sensitive to the algorithm of search operators, for this reason, the search results for the queries "Windows OR Linux" and "Windows or Linux" can be fundamentally different.
The next thing to consider is that the Google search engine does not take into account many words - bundles, for example, such as "and", "a", "but" and the like. For this reason, the result search results does not depend on their use.
Thirdly, in order to correctly search in this search engine, you should remember the presence of certain operators (characters or words that refine the search) and learn how to use them.
Such operators are used not only by Google, but also by other search engines, for example, Yandex.
So, Google operators that will help you find the information you need:
«+» - better to use when you need to find documents containing more than two words, for example, "SEO + tools".
«-» - must be used to exclude from the issuance of documents containing any word, for example, “drinks - non-alcoholic”. In this case, the search engine will only find alcoholic beverages.
"OR"- needed to search for documents containing one of several words, for example, "woman OR girl".
«“”» - is needed in order to find documents in which there is a certain phrase in the same form in which it is used as search query, for example "buy a TV Tver"
«~» - is needed to search for synonyms of the words that are specified in the query, for example, “image ~ smartphones”.
«..» - is used if it is necessary to find documents that contain numerical values in the specified intervals, for example, "300 ... 500 rubles per day."
There are more popular Google operators for the correct search, among which the average user of this search engine may need the following.
daterange:- needed to search for documents created in a certain period of time, for example, "fire in Kyiv daterange: 20092011-21102010".
filetype:- used when searching for links to a document of a certain type, for example, "Solzhenitsyn's autobiography filetype:rtf".
site:- is needed in order to find all pages of the site you need or pages of the site containing a certain word, for example, "site:dirfreesoft.ru antivirus".
phonebook:- a very necessary operator who is looking for phone numbers according to the specified parameters, for example, “phonebook: Omsk hotels”.
It turns out it's not that hard to search Google correctly if you know how.
How to search in Yandex?
The answer to this seemingly stupid question is by no means known to all Yandex users. The reason lies in the fact that the largest number of users of Internet resources do not fully use the capabilities of search programs, just for this reason, in certain cases, many users of search engines may encounter any obstacles and difficulties in searching necessary information.
So, how do you use it correctly? search engine Yandex - the most popular search engine in the Russian-speaking segment of the World Wide Web?
1. If you need to find a specific, specifically formulated phrase. The search for such phrases is most conveniently used using the " " operator, in other words, in order to find a web document in which the phrase you need is located, it should be printed in quotes. For example, "Which files can be excluded from virus scanning?"
2. If you need to find a quote, but you have forgotten some words or simply do not know. There is no difficulty in this. In this case, you should enclose the entire phrase in quotation marks, and in places forgotten words you need to put the sign "*". For example, "I'm coming to you * what more."
3. If you need to generate output for several words or phrases at the same time. For such an operation, the operator | must be used, it must be used after each searched word or phrase. For example, raspberries | wild strawberries | Strawberry.
4. If you have to find several words that are in the same sentence. When performing this task, you need to use the & operator, it must be placed between the search words. For example, a monument to Mayakovsky & Samara.
5. If you need to find a document that contains a particular word. To do this, use the + operator. It should be used before the search words and should not be separated by a space. Also, the query may contain clarifying words or phrases. For example, a monument to Chapaev + square.
6. If you need to exclude documents that contain a specific word from the search. You need to use the - operator. It is placed before the words to be excluded and is not separated by a space. For example, a modern laptop - buy.
7. If you need to find information only from a specific site. In this case, the site operator will help. It is used along with a colon and is placed immediately before the site name. For example, PDF site:dirfreesoft.ru
8. If you need to find documents of one type or another. When searching for such files, use the mine operator. It is also used with a colon. For example, the instruction for HTS mine:doc.
9. If you need to find information in a specific language. For such a task, you need to use the lang operator, after which you should put a colon and specify the selected language for the documents you are looking for. For example, Angels and Demons lang:ru.