File explorer search not finding files that are obviously there

When in the file explorer normally I can find files easily by doing control-F then typing in a few letters or if looking for a specific type using type:.zip for example.  On my new Windows 10 machine (purchased just a few weeks ago) this doesn't work.  See the video below for an example.  Even when there is obviously a file right there visible in the folder when I type the start of the filename in the search box it doesn't show it at all.

https://drive.google.com/file/d/16chk2X3bKmKgFbpcbXKGnDGdpdI8EXnH/view

What I have done so far:

I went through some steps found in other posts and checked to make sure that services.msc had the Windows Search running (you will see me check this in the video linked above).

Ran the troubleshooter as suggested in another post but it said that no problems were found.

How can I get this fixed?

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Hi ChadCriswell,

I'm Roshan V S, Independent advisor and a Windows user like you.

Open file explorer. Then click on the search window.
It will open a search tool menu from the tool bar.
From the search tool menu you can see advanced options.
Click on Advanced options, then check every options are selected(file contents, zipped folders, system files etc).
I hope this helps.

If you don't have any more questions, feel free to choose a rating and have a great day!

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Open file explorer. Then click on the search window.
It will open a search tool menu from the tool bar.
From the search tool menu you can see advanced options.
Click on Advanced options, then check every options are selected(file contents, zipped folders, system files etc).

The only one that was not already checked was the zipped folders item.  File contents and System files was already checked when I looked.  Still, put a check in the zipped folders box and tested again but no luck.  Nothing comes up for any searches that I try to make.

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Sorry for the late reply. You can run the in-built troubleshooter for search and indexing.
Press Win+S then type control panel then hit enter.
Then type troubleshooter on the search window.
Click troubleshooting, then click on view all from the left pane.
Then run the troubleshooter for search and indexing.
Then follow the on screen instructions.
Looking forward to hear back from you.

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The search and indexing troubleshooter couldn't identify the problem even when it ran as an administrator.

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The search and indexing troubleshooter couldn't identify the problem even when it ran as an administrator.

I'm having the same indexing problem with tax return files from H&R Block. These files are of the form "Bill Smith 2019 Tax Return.T19"

Windows Search absolutely will not find them, even though it finds other files in the same folder when searching by date.

Other than being invisible to Windows Search, these files are normal Windows files as far as I can see. I can move/copy/delete etc with no problem.

Fairly annoying problem, as it means I have to remember to back these files up by hand (to an SD card) instead of doing a Windows Search for all files modified today, then dragging the whole group to the card.

Equally of concern, it means I have no idea how Search actually behaves. Is it missing other types of files that I don't know about?

Thanks, Microsoft.

Sigh.

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Hi Chad

I was fighting with the same problem for several months.

I have a directory with more than 15000 links to songs, and the annoying thing was, that the search showed some, but not all results - it found none of the newest files.

After trying out all kind of things, I finally found out, that System hat no access to the folders on my second partition on the harddisk, as described here:

https://www.partitionwizard.com/partitionmagic/file-explorer-search-not-working.html#fix-7:-add-system-permission-to-a-file/folder-1226

I might have overlooked similiar suggestions on other sites, and I found the list on partitionwizard.com only after I had fixed the problem. This seems to be a quite complete list which might support your troubleshooting, if you keep having problems with the search.

Good luck, Dan

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Last updated July 15, 2021 Views 5,282 Applies to: