windows - Find directories with file match 1 but not file match 2

windows windows-search

07
2014-07

Nick Wilde

I feel like I should have been able to find this with simple googling/searching here but haven't managed so... Basically the same as this question of at AU but for Windows.

I want to find directories that have a file with name including (for example) 02 or 03 but do not have a file with a name including 01. I'd prefer a nice CLI command but I'm open to installing anything less than Ubuntu (or other *nix distro).

For example:

\music\The Irish Roves\Hardstuff\
    01 - All Sing Together.mp3
    02 - Paddy On The Turnpike.mp3
    ...
    \\shouldn't match that folder
\music\Garth Brooks\Ropin' The Wind\
   03 - What She's DOing Now.mp3
   \\but should match this one

Answers

Nick Wilde

Figured out how to do this.

Requires the Microsoft free program Powershell. Just install that and then the command is:

Cmd:

$a = gci path/to/look/at -r | ? {$_.PSIsContainer -eq $True} | ? {$_.GetFiles().Count -ne 0} 
$a = $a | ? {Test-Path($_.fullname+"\*02*")}  | ? {(Test-Path($_.fullname+"\*01*")) -eq $False} 
$a | select FullName

You can also do that as a oneliner but wrote it multiline for easier reading here.

That cmd is also using some shortcuts; gci = Get-ChildItem and ? = Where-Object and select = SelectObject.

Thanks to arielnmz for pointing me in the right direction

Related Answers

Carlos Muñoz

To get to the Indexing Options:

Start --> Control Panel --> Indexing Options

See Change advanced indexing options for more information.

If you click on the Advanced button in Indexing Options and go to the File Types tab, you will get a list of file types and the way they are indexed. For the file types you want, you can specify that you want the file contents indexed, and not just the file properties.

Or you can just do a normal search, and after the search is finished you can click on the "File Contents" button under the "Search again in" field (which is located after the end of the search results list, if you scroll to the bottom).

Based on this page, the "File Contents" option won't always show up - only when the folder being searched is not marked for file content indexing; in that case, file contents are supposedly searched automatically, without having to specify this option explicitly.

twlichty

I've always gotten better performance when searching inside files by using a GREP tool. I'm a fan of AstroGrep.

Brian Hasden

I believe you can also just enter "content:blahblah" in the search filter box in upper right corner of Windows Explorer. This works at least for Text files and Office documents. It also works for source files.

Sathya

You can play with findstr.

findstr /s /m searchstring *.*

Alex Kamburov

Agent Ransack is always worth a look. It's free, fast, good reputation, and doesn't use indexing.

Peter Mortensen

In Windows Explorer, menu Tools -> Folder Options:

Press on the search tab and here, the first option: what to search, choose to search for non-indexed files inside the file.

Peter Mortensen

Windows 7 still has the ability to search for strings inside files everywhere (and not in indexed locations).

In Windows Explorer, go to menu Tools/Folder options and select "Always search file names and contents".

Probably the file types still have to be set up correctly in Advanced Options of Indexing Options".

rifferte

Have you tried search the internet for the correct iFilter (for instance - http://www.ifilter.org/)?

If you have the right iFilter, Windows should be able to search and index its content.

Jeff Roe

The answer by Sean Sexton gave me what I was looking for (putting "content:" in the search text box). But I think the following graphical explanation might be of help to others.

The equivalent of this search in XP Search Companion (dog):

XP Search Companion

is this in Windows 7:

Windows 7 Search

BennyInc

In Windows XP you could add further (text) file types to be searched via the registry:

Windows Registry Editor Version 5.00

[HKEY_CLASSES_ROOT\.dita\PersistentHandler]
@="{5e941d80-bf96-11cd-b579-08002b30bfeb}"

I'm not sure whether this works with Windows 7 as well.

Simon Sheehan

You could try using cygwin and searching *nix commands and search using the grep utility

From Manual:

grep options pattern input_file_names

SilverbackNet

Windows 7 SP1 ignores content: and contents: for me now, and it looks like the mechanism has changed: Now you type in what you want, and as soon as the search starts, a row at the bottom shows up with "Search again in:" Libraries, Computer, Custom, Firefox, and most importantly, File Contents. Click that and it restarts the search within files, even if the folder is unindexed.

Jens Erat

Notepad++ can do this and is free. Find in files is CTRL-SHIFT-F.

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windows - Find directories with file match 1 but not file match 2