Solved Holy Cow! Unable to search files in File Explorer!

RDG · Dec 14, 2025

Win11 Home: Rebooted and still cannot search files. It finds nothing, no matter what. Any idea what could have caused this or what I should do? Thanks.

glasskuter · Dec 14, 2025

Try this Repair Windows Search and Index in Windows 11

glasskuter · Dec 14, 2025

And this. Do this one first then the one above

Reset Windows Search in Windows 11

This tutorial will show you how to reset Windows Search in Windows 10 and Windows 11. You can use Windows Search to find your apps, files, settings, help, and more on Windows—plus unlock the power of the web with quick access to online information like time zone conversions, fact lookup...

www.elevenforum.com

Treeyard · Dec 15, 2025

Try Everything search engine

voidtools

www.voidtools.com

dacrone · Dec 15, 2025

Does it find nothing or is search not functioning? Open start menu and search for “explorer”. Post a screenshot of what it looks like please

idgat · Dec 15, 2025

RDG said:
still cannot search files

"search files" (as in content search) or "search FOR files"??

In any case, built-in Explorer search has been flawed for so long - inaccurate, unreliable, unsustainable. It could never be relied upon for any sort of complete search

Far superior 3rd party freeware options
- Everything
- Ultrasearch
- Agent ransack
- et al. Your search engine would be your friend

RDG · Dec 16, 2025

dacrone said:
Does it find nothing or is search not functioning? Open start menu and search for “explorer”. Post a screenshot of what it looks like please

Is this what you mean?

dacrone · Dec 16, 2025

your search looks to be working based on the start menu image. what is not working? FE? have you tried from a folder aside from Home?

RDG · Dec 16, 2025

idgat said:
"search files" (as in content search) or "search FOR files"??

In any case, built-in Explorer search has been flawed for so long - inaccurate, unreliable, unsustainable. It could never be relied upon for any sort of complete search

Far superior 3rd party freeware options
- Everything
- Ultrasearch
- Agent ransack
- et al. Your search engine would be your friend

I stayed with Win7 for eons and would still be kicking and screaming with Win11 if not for the wonderful help I got in "taming" it from this forum. What they could not fix, however, was File Explorer. With some tweaks and a few apps, I had been enduring it. Maybe it is time to try something else (just watched the "Everything" video above), but I sure want to know how I managed to break search.

RDG · Dec 16, 2025

dacrone said:
your search looks to be working based on the start menu image. what is not working? FE? have you tried from a folder aside from Home?

When you said search seemed to be working I recalled that all my files and folders are on an external drive. So I searched while in the C drive; no problem. Initially, through steps in a tutorial likely from here, I linked the remote location of the libraries. That is where the problem lies. If I access a folder through the library then searching fails. If I go directly to the folder on the external drive, search works.

dacrone · Dec 16, 2025

sounds like an indexing issue then. you can reindex and see if that helps it

RDG · Dec 16, 2025

dacrone said:
sounds like an indexing issue then. you can reindex and see if that helps it

I'm unsure of what to do. One to the troubleshooting steps I took early on was to change the search settings to default, which did not help, then I reset my search options with all the boxes checked like before. Indexing was among them. That changed nothing

glasskuter · Dec 16, 2025

All my files are on external drive as well and search works fine(and fast) when searching from This PC or the drive itself. However I do not use libraries.

dacrone · Dec 16, 2025

Indexing Options > Modify > Drive > Advanced > Rebuild

RDG · Dec 16, 2025

dacrone said:
Indexing Options > Modify > Drive > Advanced > Rebuild

I kept waiting for a reply to my reply above, only to discover I had not clicked on "Post reply". I found info on where in Setting to go and stumbled on the right thing to do. I opted for modify because none of the libraries and folders I use were showing. I was able to add them and indexing is still working. I may have to leave my pc on when I go to bed. Thanks so much for seeing the forest hidden among the trees. The second I read your comment that search was actually working, I had a better idea of how to try to "see" what you saw and understood. Well, not really, but I believed you and proved your point! Best wishes for the holidays

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