Recursively Searching for "text" in files in windows 11
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I use Notepad++ for searching in a specific file - so I use Notepad++ for searching in all files. It lets me select between case sensitive and insensitive search. It lets me search for whole words only. It lets me search for either plain strings, strings with control characters escaped by backslashes, or a regular expession. It lets me filter files by name and/or extension, with a list of alternatives (such as "*.txt;*.log;*.cs") It lets me select files in a single directory or also in subdirectories. It lets me replace the found string with another text in all matching files. It lets me navigate the directory tree graphically for selecting the directory (tree) to search. It handles files in various encodings, including UTF-8 and different line ending conventions. It lets me fetch two (or more) files with hits, and compare them (with plugin, but a standard one that should always be installed). The hit list is very well organized: It shows a single line for each hit; you can open that file on that line by clicking it. You can temporarily hide all hits in one (or all) files. You can delete files of no interest from the hit list, while continuing to inspect the remaining ones. It is quite fast. But most of all: Using the same tool, with the same dialog fields, for searching a directory tree as the one you use for searching in the one text file you are editing means that there is no new tool to learn, no new command syntax or specification format. It is familiar and friendly. This of course is if np++ already is your standard text file editor. If it is not, my question is "Why not?" :-)
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This rather plain vanilla operation in terms of a user view point is surprising complicated in Windows. This is used to be easy to do using grep or some version of it. Hey, Microsoft how about this command search for "text" in all text files "on my disk" and I mean that simple. No ??..xxgreppx */*/.*(*dmmd Grrrr.
"A little time, a little trouble, your better day" Badfinger
If you have Linqpad -- LINQPad - The .NET Programmer's Playground[^] -- (and what self-respecting C# dev doesn't :rolleyes: ) then I got your back on this: Here's a great little findInFiles script I wrote a few years ago when i was frustrated because I couldn't search inside of source code (*.cs) to find specific text items I needed. Keep in mind I wrote this very quickly bec I was needing to search in files for specific text. It ignores case and finds all matches ( you can add a parameter to handle this). it will prompt you for a few items: 1. Directory you want to search (searches all subdirs) 2. text you want to search for. 3. file pattern you want to search against *.*, *.cs, *.txt, etc. that's it. It'll go through them all and give you some results. Yes, it's just bruteforce but it works and it's relatively fast and you'll see updated results as it finds the text.
void Main()
{
Console.WriteLine ("Enter the path you want to search.");
string searchPath = Console.ReadLine();
Console.WriteLine(string.Format("Searching : {0}", searchPath));
DirectoryInfo DirInfo = new DirectoryInfo(searchPath);
Console.Write("Search Term: ");
string searchTerm = Console.ReadLine().ToUpper();
Console.WriteLine(searchTerm);
Console.WriteLine("Enter the file pattern you want search against.");
string filePattern = Console.ReadLine();
try
{
var files = DirInfo.EnumerateFiles(filePattern,SearchOption.AllDirectories);
foreach (var f in files)
{
// Console.WriteLine($"Searching {Path.GetFileName(f.Name)}"); // uncomment to see all file names searched
string [] allLines = File.ReadAllLines(f.FullName);
int lineCount = 1;
bool foundInFile = false;
foreach (string line in allLines)
{
if (line.ToUpper().Contains(searchTerm))
{
if (!foundInFile)
{
// insures it only prints filename once
Console.WriteLine("searching {0}", f.FullName.ToUpper());
foundInFile=true;
}
Console.WriteLine(string.Format("FOUND : {0} {1}",lineCount, line));
}
lineCount++;
}
if (foundInFile)
{
Console.WriteLine("#############################");
Console.WriteLine();
}
}
}
finally
{}}
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[Try Google](https://www.google.com/search?q=grep+for+windows&sourceid=chrome&ie=UTF-8&tbs=li:1) - maybe they are wrong, but it is a start.
Our Forgotten Astronomy | Object Oriented Programming with C++ | Wordle solver
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I use Notepad++ for searching in a specific file - so I use Notepad++ for searching in all files. It lets me select between case sensitive and insensitive search. It lets me search for whole words only. It lets me search for either plain strings, strings with control characters escaped by backslashes, or a regular expession. It lets me filter files by name and/or extension, with a list of alternatives (such as "*.txt;*.log;*.cs") It lets me select files in a single directory or also in subdirectories. It lets me replace the found string with another text in all matching files. It lets me navigate the directory tree graphically for selecting the directory (tree) to search. It handles files in various encodings, including UTF-8 and different line ending conventions. It lets me fetch two (or more) files with hits, and compare them (with plugin, but a standard one that should always be installed). The hit list is very well organized: It shows a single line for each hit; you can open that file on that line by clicking it. You can temporarily hide all hits in one (or all) files. You can delete files of no interest from the hit list, while continuing to inspect the remaining ones. It is quite fast. But most of all: Using the same tool, with the same dialog fields, for searching a directory tree as the one you use for searching in the one text file you are editing means that there is no new tool to learn, no new command syntax or specification format. It is familiar and friendly. This of course is if np++ already is your standard text file editor. If it is not, my question is "Why not?" :-)
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Google used have a search engine one could use search you own system (can't recall it's exact name google_something). They don't have it anymore. It was great.
"A little time, a little trouble, your better day" Badfinger
I believe you are talking about this: [Google Desktop - Wikipedia](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Google\_Desktop). I think it was known for sending lots of data back to Google, if my memory serves, but everyone liked it. It also became redundant when Windows added about the same thing with its file search capabilities where it databased everything (which is what Google also did I believe). I'll also add my two cents for Agent Ransack, which I use occasionally.
Our Forgotten Astronomy | Object Oriented Programming with C++ | Wordle solver
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What about the "find" command, or Select-String - PowerShell - SS64.com[^] in Powershell?
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Agent Ransack I have not tried this, but, check out: [^]
«The mind is not a vessel to be filled but a fire to be kindled» Plutarch
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I believe you are talking about this: [Google Desktop - Wikipedia](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Google\_Desktop). I think it was known for sending lots of data back to Google, if my memory serves, but everyone liked it. It also became redundant when Windows added about the same thing with its file search capabilities where it databased everything (which is what Google also did I believe). I'll also add my two cents for Agent Ransack, which I use occasionally.
Our Forgotten Astronomy | Object Oriented Programming with C++ | Wordle solver
-
If you have Linqpad -- LINQPad - The .NET Programmer's Playground[^] -- (and what self-respecting C# dev doesn't :rolleyes: ) then I got your back on this: Here's a great little findInFiles script I wrote a few years ago when i was frustrated because I couldn't search inside of source code (*.cs) to find specific text items I needed. Keep in mind I wrote this very quickly bec I was needing to search in files for specific text. It ignores case and finds all matches ( you can add a parameter to handle this). it will prompt you for a few items: 1. Directory you want to search (searches all subdirs) 2. text you want to search for. 3. file pattern you want to search against *.*, *.cs, *.txt, etc. that's it. It'll go through them all and give you some results. Yes, it's just bruteforce but it works and it's relatively fast and you'll see updated results as it finds the text.
void Main()
{
Console.WriteLine ("Enter the path you want to search.");
string searchPath = Console.ReadLine();
Console.WriteLine(string.Format("Searching : {0}", searchPath));
DirectoryInfo DirInfo = new DirectoryInfo(searchPath);
Console.Write("Search Term: ");
string searchTerm = Console.ReadLine().ToUpper();
Console.WriteLine(searchTerm);
Console.WriteLine("Enter the file pattern you want search against.");
string filePattern = Console.ReadLine();
try
{
var files = DirInfo.EnumerateFiles(filePattern,SearchOption.AllDirectories);
foreach (var f in files)
{
// Console.WriteLine($"Searching {Path.GetFileName(f.Name)}"); // uncomment to see all file names searched
string [] allLines = File.ReadAllLines(f.FullName);
int lineCount = 1;
bool foundInFile = false;
foreach (string line in allLines)
{
if (line.ToUpper().Contains(searchTerm))
{
if (!foundInFile)
{
// insures it only prints filename once
Console.WriteLine("searching {0}", f.FullName.ToUpper());
foundInFile=true;
}
Console.WriteLine(string.Format("FOUND : {0} {1}",lineCount, line));
}
lineCount++;
}
if (foundInFile)
{
Console.WriteLine("#############################");
Console.WriteLine();
}
}
}
finally
{}}
Wow ! thanks ... May I suggest you publish this as a Tip/Trick, or flesh iit out a little bit and publish as article. I can "see" adding an Enum that would filter on either lower or upper case matches, or both. cheers, Bill
«The mind is not a vessel to be filled but a fire to be kindled» Plutarch
-
This rather plain vanilla operation in terms of a user view point is surprising complicated in Windows. This is used to be easy to do using grep or some version of it. Hey, Microsoft how about this command search for "text" in all text files "on my disk" and I mean that simple. No ??..xxgreppx */*/.*(*dmmd Grrrr.
"A little time, a little trouble, your better day" Badfinger
I'm using Total Commander for that
Wrong is evil and must be defeated. - Jeff Ello
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I'm using Total Commander for that
Wrong is evil and must be defeated. - Jeff Ello
Supports search by ANSI, ASCII, UTF8, UTF16, Office XML, EPUB, HEX and REGEX.
Wrong is evil and must be defeated. - Jeff Ello
-
This rather plain vanilla operation in terms of a user view point is surprising complicated in Windows. This is used to be easy to do using grep or some version of it. Hey, Microsoft how about this command search for "text" in all text files "on my disk" and I mean that simple. No ??..xxgreppx */*/.*(*dmmd Grrrr.
"A little time, a little trouble, your better day" Badfinger
I've been using Agent Ransack for over 15 years and it's still a great piece of software for searching both by file name and within files.
“That which can be asserted without evidence, can be dismissed without evidence.”
― Christopher Hitchens
-
If you have Linqpad -- LINQPad - The .NET Programmer's Playground[^] -- (and what self-respecting C# dev doesn't :rolleyes: ) then I got your back on this: Here's a great little findInFiles script I wrote a few years ago when i was frustrated because I couldn't search inside of source code (*.cs) to find specific text items I needed. Keep in mind I wrote this very quickly bec I was needing to search in files for specific text. It ignores case and finds all matches ( you can add a parameter to handle this). it will prompt you for a few items: 1. Directory you want to search (searches all subdirs) 2. text you want to search for. 3. file pattern you want to search against *.*, *.cs, *.txt, etc. that's it. It'll go through them all and give you some results. Yes, it's just bruteforce but it works and it's relatively fast and you'll see updated results as it finds the text.
void Main()
{
Console.WriteLine ("Enter the path you want to search.");
string searchPath = Console.ReadLine();
Console.WriteLine(string.Format("Searching : {0}", searchPath));
DirectoryInfo DirInfo = new DirectoryInfo(searchPath);
Console.Write("Search Term: ");
string searchTerm = Console.ReadLine().ToUpper();
Console.WriteLine(searchTerm);
Console.WriteLine("Enter the file pattern you want search against.");
string filePattern = Console.ReadLine();
try
{
var files = DirInfo.EnumerateFiles(filePattern,SearchOption.AllDirectories);
foreach (var f in files)
{
// Console.WriteLine($"Searching {Path.GetFileName(f.Name)}"); // uncomment to see all file names searched
string [] allLines = File.ReadAllLines(f.FullName);
int lineCount = 1;
bool foundInFile = false;
foreach (string line in allLines)
{
if (line.ToUpper().Contains(searchTerm))
{
if (!foundInFile)
{
// insures it only prints filename once
Console.WriteLine("searching {0}", f.FullName.ToUpper());
foundInFile=true;
}
Console.WriteLine(string.Format("FOUND : {0} {1}",lineCount, line));
}
lineCount++;
}
if (foundInFile)
{
Console.WriteLine("#############################");
Console.WriteLine();
}
}
}
finally
{}}
Be careful - if your account doesn't have permission to read any of the folders in the search path, the script will fail at the first one. In .NET Framework, there's no way to make a
SearchOption.AllDirectoriessearch skip folders you don't have access to. If you're using .NET Core 2.1 or later (including .NET 5/6/7/...), you can use the EnumerationOptions[^] class with theIgnoreInacessibleproperty set totrueto resolve this:EnumerationOptions options = new()
{
RecurseSubdirectories = true,
IgnoreInaccessible = true,
};var files = DirInfo.EnumerateFiles(filePattern, options);
"These people looked deep within my soul and assigned me a number based on the order in which I joined." - Homer
-
Wow ! thanks ... May I suggest you publish this as a Tip/Trick, or flesh iit out a little bit and publish as article. I can "see" adding an Enum that would filter on either lower or upper case matches, or both. cheers, Bill
«The mind is not a vessel to be filled but a fire to be kindled» Plutarch
-
Be careful - if your account doesn't have permission to read any of the folders in the search path, the script will fail at the first one. In .NET Framework, there's no way to make a
SearchOption.AllDirectoriessearch skip folders you don't have access to. If you're using .NET Core 2.1 or later (including .NET 5/6/7/...), you can use the EnumerationOptions[^] class with theIgnoreInacessibleproperty set totrueto resolve this:EnumerationOptions options = new()
{
RecurseSubdirectories = true,
IgnoreInaccessible = true,
};var files = DirInfo.EnumerateFiles(filePattern, options);
"These people looked deep within my soul and assigned me a number based on the order in which I joined." - Homer
-
This rather plain vanilla operation in terms of a user view point is surprising complicated in Windows. This is used to be easy to do using grep or some version of it. Hey, Microsoft how about this command search for "text" in all text files "on my disk" and I mean that simple. No ??..xxgreppx */*/.*(*dmmd Grrrr.
"A little time, a little trouble, your better day" Badfinger
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Several 3rd party tools I keep available include "Windows Grep", grepWin and SearchMonkey. SearchMonkey and grepWin are my favorites. Both support regular expression searches.
GREP AND GREPWIN I HAVE USED BUT NOT WITHOUT ISSUES. SEARCH MONKEY i WILL TRY. I TRIED RANSACK. PRETTY GOOD. WINDOWS DOES FINDSTR COMMAND BUT ONLY AT COMMAND PROMPT LEVEL. I KNOW THERE ARE MANY WAYS, MY ANGST IS THAT WINDOWS HAS NOT DONE THEIR OWN VERY WELL. I DON'T WANT TO HAVE TO THINK TOO MUCH EVERY TIME I USE IT. IT SHOULD BE INTUITIVE.
"A little time, a little trouble, your better day" Badfinger
-
This rather plain vanilla operation in terms of a user view point is surprising complicated in Windows. This is used to be easy to do using grep or some version of it. Hey, Microsoft how about this command search for "text" in all text files "on my disk" and I mean that simple. No ??..xxgreppx */*/.*(*dmmd Grrrr.
"A little time, a little trouble, your better day" Badfinger
If you have Git for Windows installed already then you have the POSIX ports of
grepandfindfor Windows already installed, it's just most likely they are not in your PATH to avoid name clashes. You can use it outside of Git Bash in CMD or PowerShell as it's just a Windows port.C:\Program Files\Git\usr\bin\find.exe
C:\Program Files\Git\usr\bin\grep.exeIf you don't have Git for Windows installed, install it. No developer should be without Git these days. Also, WSL2 is great, if you want to use a full-on environment. Better than the old Cygwin days. I say this as a dude that used to be all about PowerShell. If you're going to take the time to learn something may as well learn something cross platform that you can use on a Mac as well.
Jeremy Falcon
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This rather plain vanilla operation in terms of a user view point is surprising complicated in Windows. This is used to be easy to do using grep or some version of it. Hey, Microsoft how about this command search for "text" in all text files "on my disk" and I mean that simple. No ??..xxgreppx */*/.*(*dmmd Grrrr.
"A little time, a little trouble, your better day" Badfinger
Personally, I download a copy of [`ripgrep`](https://github.com/BurntSushi/ripgrep) and enjoy using the fastest, most concurrent text search utility you're going to find (at the moment, anyway).
Java, Basic, who cares - it's all a bunch of tree-hugging hippy cr*p
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I have used find command, but does not recursive search, but I learned that FINDSTR command does. I'll try it. wish Windows had a more general search engine like a google equivalent built-in.
"A little time, a little trouble, your better day" Badfinger
Basically the idea from unix (or before) was that command line commands were supposed to be stacked. Apparently powershell took that to heart. If you search for the following you can do it with find but it requires more than one command.
powershell find recursive
For myself the editor I use has a search feature which even include regex if I want. So I just use that.
