HT2531 Finder / Spotlight not finding files "containing ......."

I have a file named with a persons name and i have multiple files containing that same name, however when i search for that name i only get the file named with that name, not files containing that name. Very annoying, any suggestions, it used to work until I ran low on disc space, I since freed space but it still does not work

As baltwo eventually explained, you have to add the search criteria "System files" to your search, with the option "Include" selected, to find many items Spotlight otherwise excludes from search results. Alternately (& quite ridiculously), if your search is restricted to the parent folder containing the item, you don't need to add this.
For example, if you open /Library in the Finder, enter "Desktop Pictures" in the search box, you won't get it in the results with the default "This Mac" location, but if you click "Library" for the location, you will. (Yes, many users think this is bizarre, "what were they thinking?" behavior.)
What Spotlight considers "system files" is only slightly less bizarre, as you will probably discover once you start using it to broaden searches. For instance, Safari history items & Mail.app messages are not found unless you include system files, but many files like C Header Source files (in System/Library/Frameworks) are found without including system files in the search.
When it was introduced in Tiger, Spotlight was supposed to be a next-generation search engine, capable of accurately guessing what you were looking for (& filtering out what you weren't) with near-sentient intelligence. I think almost anyone who used that version will agree it did not achieve that lofty goal. Apple apparently agreed, or at least listened to the complaints enough to realize it needed rethinking. Unfortunately, what its designers came up with for the Leopard rethink feels like an early beta version, full of hastily implemented, quirky features that never got sorted out before it was released.
We can only hope that we won't have to wait for OS 10.6 for a more mature, less quirky version.

Similar Messages

  • Why is Spotlight not finding files in Applications Support

    Why is Spotlight not finding files in Users/UserName/Library/Applications Support ?
    What needs to be configured to do that?
    Thanks.

    CMD+F, click on Kind, select Other, and enable additional criteria. See http://www.thexlab.com/faqs/stopspotlightindex.html and http://homepage.mac.com/francines/articles/Leopard/leospot.html for starters.

  • Please help!  Safari does not start due to a plugin failure. How can I remove librooksbas.dylib. Without being able to open safari. Finder does not find the file.

    Please help.
    iSafari does not start up due to an error caused by plug in librooksbas.dylib.
    How can I remove this plugin without opening safari. Finder does not find the file, nor any other plugin.
    Eric

    For future reference, Safari Plugins are kept in Macintosh HD> Library> Internet Plugins.
    To unhide the Library folder, open up Terminal (just type"Terminal" into spotlight) and type:
    chflags nohidden ~/Library

  • YIKES! "Searching" & Spotlight not finding

    OK, I'm scared. I copy the name of a file. I do a Cmd + F and paste the name of the file into the "Search for" field. Nothing. I have only one criteria, "Kind" "Any" I ask to search the directory it's in. No response. I remove and add the directory to the parameters continually. No response.
    Spotlight not finding it either.
    I try others. Same thing. Spotlight preferences are factory default and include "Music."
    I have two files with the string I am looking for, one in a directory on my hard drive, not locked, I read and write to it daily. The other file is on a CD.
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    This string is "stoddard." The file on the drive is actually located in two different directories and is labeled "1.01_stoddard.mp3" The one that it does find on the CD is "AUGUST 6 STODDARD.mp3"
    Help me. This is scaring me. I've got tons of people I am converting to Mac. This is not going to go over well.
    I've been looking and I just can't find any options or parameters I should be checking that would affect this. This is pretty simple stuff.
    I tried looking for envelope.rtf which is in a completely different directory and Search did not find it though Spotlight did.
    -Wm

    My results are disturbing. My eMac G4 doesn't seem to have a problem with finding files. My G5 definitely does. And it has a few other funny glitches, like a couple of my Mail filters are wonky. I've set up hundreds of them and there are three that are just plain stuck and send the mail to unexpected places or don't filter at all.
    Since the Spotlight glitch is intermittent, I don't think we can set up any benchmarks between us. Because Spotlight might not find envelope.rtf on my system, doesn't mean it won't find the filename on yours.
    What you need to do is search for various files on your system and see if Spotlight finds them.
    I doubt this is a string recognition problem, it's likely a search program error at the processor level. Probably something to do with the logic that makes the search appear speedy. Likely there's something in that programming that "falls out" when G5 is processing.
    Apple is ****-bent on getting the G6 out there pronto. These anomalies may be why.
    -Wm
    Your results are strange.
    If I try using your "1.01_stoddard.mp3" filename I
    find the file with the Spotlight menu, the Spotlight
    window and a smart folder.
    If I delete the file, then search for it again
    "1.01_stoddard.mp3" it is, of course not found, then
    I create a new file and rename it to
    "1.01_stoddard.mp3" Spotlight finds it immediately.
    Do you want to try to debug this here in the
    discussion?
    multi  
    Mac OS X (10.4.3)  
    www.DiscoverYourMac.com
    iMac G5 iSight 20" 2g RAM   Mac OS X (10.4.3)   eMac 700, iMac slot, original iMac, PowerMac.
    iMac G5 iSight 20" 2g RAM   Mac OS X (10.4.3)   eMac 700, iMac slot, original iMac, PowerMac.
    iMac G5 iSight 20" 2g RAM   Mac OS X (10.4.3)   eMac 700, iMac slot, original iMac, PowerMac.

  • Finder can not  find and display certain files. Why? Any fix,please?

    I've discovered to my surprise that Finder can not  find and display certain files. Computer is Mac book OS X (10.6.8)
    No matter what Finder settings I use, there are files which it can not detect and display.
    Here are just some examples of files sitting in the HD but Finder can not display them:
    Located in  preference panes :
    fibre channel 1.7
    Located in :    /Library/StartupItems/BRESINKx86Monitoring
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    FxLicenseManager
    Located in    /Library/StartupItems/FxLicenseManager
    EAP8021X
    Located in    /System/Library/PrivateFrameworks/EAP8021X.framework
    The questions:
    What to make of this inability of Finder to ,well, find? (again - I tried all possible settings of Finder!)
    Is there any way to fix it?
    Thanks for any competent suggestion!

    Well, guys,
    Interesting suggestions but the problem remains -Finder (aka Spotlight) is not capable to find certain files.Period.
    I consider it as a fault of the system because in comparison, a search facility of a plain Windows based machine is capable to dig out and display any file, no matter now deeply hidden...
    As far as the suggestion above by softwater  goes , well, I've used the additional foptions  extensively and nothing produced the result needed -that's why I created this discussion.
    If someone still believes that using Finder with all its options is good enough, here is a test for you to perform on your own Mac:
    -Open  /Library/StartupItems/ and have a look inside - most likely you have a bunch of items. Write down the names of one or two of them. For this test I've chosen
    FxLicenseManager  located in    /Library/StartupItems/. You can use any file you want grom this location...
    - Then go to  Finder and set it to display everything in Library of the HD. Remember - for this test you pretend you don't know any file name in this folders.
    If the Finder works properly it shall display  folders  of Library >Startup items with all stuff inside, including the FxLicenseManager file I used for this test.
    Finder displayed nothing. It is obvious that for Finder, certain locations are off limits. That's why I consider Finder as a faulty.
    Of course if someone can set the Finder's  options to do the above search and succeed, I'll be glad to try ...:-)
    At this point, what I gather from this discussion is that :
    1. Finder (Spotlight) feature is not to be trusted,despite number of fancy but rather useless options.
    2. If you need to really find everything usually not displayed by Finder you better get real  searching software.

  • Have Mac OS 10.7.4 installed on an iMac-3.1 GHz Intel Core i5...the Finder will not find file on Windows mounted volumes...what setting should we be using...tried the same settings as our iMac 10.6.8-did not work!

    Have Mac OS 10.7.4 installed on an iMac-3.1 GHz Intel Core i5...the Finder will not find files on Windows mounted volumes...what setting should we be using...tried the same/working settings as our iMac 10.6.8...did not work for 10.7.4!

    Added note: We are tring to find files on Windows 2008 Server Standard...

  • The find... command from finder does not find my documents

    Hi. I have searched this topic and found lots of posts, particularly from spotlight not finding anything.
    In my case, neither the find.. command nor spotlight can find my word documents while I can find them manually in their respective folders. I tried the re-indexing solution with no success. I did not have the problem of computer indexing continuosly as describbed in some posts, and in fact, did not notice any change even after restart.
    I saw another popular link about resizing (?) the finder window, or something like that, which involve typing some text and saving it in the desktop... but wasn't sure if that would apply to my problem and since I am not an expert was worry it could make things worst as it has happened to some...
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    Since I have the time now, assuming that yes, this will improve find... capabilities, here are the questions in between text.Thanks for your patience. Half of the article is chinese for me:
    ARTICLE
    Want to tailor the Finder's Find (Command-F) window? Copy the following into TextEdit, make it plain text, and save it to the Desktop as default_smart.plist:....
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    This version of Finder's search box shows the user's home folder as a place to search, includes all system files, is taller than the original window, and the cursor displays in the search box. Note that the ViewHeight field is the difference between bottom and top. So you can adjust it, and the window's width, to suit your needs.
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    $ sudo cp default_smart.plist default_smart.plist.bak
    The first command changes to the proper directory, and the second one saves the original default search file, so you can restore the current behavior. Enter your admin password at the Password prompt when asked.
    Q2: RUN IN TERMINAL, MEANS SIMPLY OPEN TERMINAL FROM UTILITIES, TYPE THIS AND CLOSE IT. RESTART?
    To activate your modified search box, use this command:
    $ sudo cp /Users/username/Desktop/default_smart.plist default_smart.plist
    Replace username with your user's short username. To return to the original file, cd to that same directory in Terminal, then use this command:
    $ sudo cp default_smart.plist.bak default_smart.plist
    Q3: BOTH OF THE ABOVE COMMANDS ARE ALSO IN TERMINAL? NEW WINDOW? OR ALL 4 COMMANDS AT THE SAME TIME PRESSING ENTER TO SEPARATE THEM?
    [robg adds: You'll need to kill the Finder for this change to take effect. We've covered this sort of edit before (1, 2), but this one adds the 10.5-specific ability to search system files.]
    WHAT IS KILL THE FINDER?
    Thanks

  • Spotlight not finding files

    I just recently used ARD to send a Unix command to tar up some files on a bunch of lab computers and stick them into an administrative directory. I'm trying to use Spotlight to pull these files over to my computer, but I can't find them.
    I have set the Spotlight Search window to look only in the directory where I saved the files. I can SSH into the computers and see the files with ls. I can see them in the Finder if I log into the GUI. But Spotlight refuses to acknowledge the files' existence.
    What's wrong with Spotlight, and is there a way to fix it?

    I'm sorry. The above question was not clear. Here it is simpler: I recently transferred a number of files and folders from my Imac duo to my powerbook G4 laptop using firewire and terminal. The folders I have transferred cannot be found by spotlight. I have tried re-indexing the documents folder (which contains most of the additions) as well as the entire laptop hard disk -- spotlight indicates it is indexing but still does not find the folders.

  • Spotlight not finding files in folders that have been extracted from ZIPs

    I've got a folder, say 'test', with some images in it. It is located in ~/Pictures.
    I have just downloaded another folder as a ZIP file, which Safari put in /tmp and unzipped automatically. It contains some more images. Let's call it 'exif'. I have moved 'exif' into 'test'.
    Now, when I do a Spotlight search of images in the folder 'test', Spotlight does not list the images in 'exif'!
    (I do the search with CMD-F, 'test' folder only, Kind = Images.)
    However, when I create a different folder in 'test' and move the images from 'exif' to the new one, then a Spotlight search for images in 'test' does list those, too.
    Also, when I copy the originial unzipped folder 'exif' to 'test' (Alt + mouse drag), then the images in the new 'exif' folder show up in the Spotlight search.
    So it seems a folder that has been extracted from a ZIP archive does not get indexed by Spotlight -- only if its contents have been copied first.
    Is this a bug in Spotlight?
    Am I missing something?
    It's pretty bad, because I would always have to remember to copy unzipped folders to a new one, in order to make sure that Spotlight does find the stuff!
    Regards,
    Gabriel.

    Yeah the new search leaves something  to be desired (actually the old search wasn't so great either). You get better results using Google's advanced search and restricting the search domain to discussions.apple.com.
    Here's what the search in Google looks like:
    Anyway the old post is why doesn't spotlight search inside aperture library?  it explains why spotlight
    doesn't search the library and how to work around it.

  • Spotlight/Finder Search not finding files in search

    Hello everyone,
    When I do a search for a file, any file or folder in fact, that exists in any of the system folders or the /library and user/library folders, they NEVER appear in the search results.
    Could someone please explain to me, for example, why a simple seacrh, say for example, for a folder called "Desktop Pictures" which can be found in MacOS X/Library, never shows up in the search result. Is it just my mac that has this problem?
    I look forward to any responses volunteered!
    thanks!
    SB

    As baltwo eventually explained, you have to add the search criteria "System files" to your search, with the option "Include" selected, to find many items Spotlight otherwise excludes from search results. Alternately (& quite ridiculously), if your search is restricted to the parent folder containing the item, you don't need to add this.
    For example, if you open /Library in the Finder, enter "Desktop Pictures" in the search box, you won't get it in the results with the default "This Mac" location, but if you click "Library" for the location, you will. (Yes, many users think this is bizarre, "what were they thinking?" behavior.)
    What Spotlight considers "system files" is only slightly less bizarre, as you will probably discover once you start using it to broaden searches. For instance, Safari history items & Mail.app messages are not found unless you include system files, but many files like C Header Source files (in System/Library/Frameworks) are found without including system files in the search.
    When it was introduced in Tiger, Spotlight was supposed to be a next-generation search engine, capable of accurately guessing what you were looking for (& filtering out what you weren't) with near-sentient intelligence. I think almost anyone who used that version will agree it did not achieve that lofty goal. Apple apparently agreed, or at least listened to the complaints enough to realize it needed rethinking. Unfortunately, what its designers came up with for the Leopard rethink feels like an early beta version, full of hastily implemented, quirky features that never got sorted out before it was released.
    We can only hope that we won't have to wait for OS 10.6 for a more mature, less quirky version.

  • Spotlight not finding files in time machine

    I Have this problem where spolight is not finding the files present on my back-up drive using time machine. The files are there, I can find them manually but when searching for the using spotlight, 0 results show up. Does anyone have any exeprience with this?

    The correct search method is to do a Smart Folder search and then enter Time Machine with that as the active window. Of course this searches separately in every backup. You can't, for instance (at least so far as I know), do a global search to tell you which backup a particular file is present in (wouldn't be all that clear what you were finding anyway since similarly named files or folders in different backups might have different contents).
    Is this what you were doing?

  • Spotlight not finding text in Powerpoint files

    When searching for text in .ppt files, Spotlight seems to find some, but not all text content.
    I can't see anything different about the text it is not finding.
    Anyone else had this problem?

    I think the problem is only with Powerpoint 2008 (both ppt and pptx formats).
    There is no obvious pattern: I just created a copy of a file, and Spotlight found a word in the copy but not the original (or previous copies). This word was in a heading text field, but words in the main text field on the same page are still not found.

  • Why is spotlight not finding files in a folder (I know the files are there)

    I've been having trouble with spotlight. I've done all the possible means of resetting spotlight folders via pref pane and via command line. Either way I go about it spotlight is not working properly.
    My test for this is to search in folder for a file I know is in there. But, spotlight in finder isn't finding the file. Why? What prevents SPotlight in FInder from seeing files that are there? None of my drives are in the privacy section of the spotlight preferences.
    Leopard 10.5.6 Mac Pro

    this is certainly not normal. it looks like spotlight indexing is choking on something. if this continues you should probably stop it. look in the console log. there may be a record of what it's choking on. you can try deleting the hidden spotlight folder at the top of the drive. this will restart indexing and delete all the current spotlight data. if it keeps doing this I don't really know what to suggest. you can try excluding various folders on the drive from spotlight to see if you can isolate where the problem is.

  • Spotlight not finding files on Mountain Lion

    My Spotlight and Finder searches don't find most files/folders/applications on ML 10.8. The files are there if I browse to them manually, and I'm hoping I can fix this without a clean install.
    Some things I have tried:
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    I've checked Spotlight Preferences and everything is checked under Search Results.
    Any ideas? Thanks for any suggestions.

    Agreed, definitely something screwed up :-)
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    Regardless, after that, I redid the recreation steps (i.e. adding / removing mac HD via spotlight prefs, the 3 mdutil commands above etc) and still nothing. AFAICT, there is basically no indexing or no search going on in spotligh, I think this because when I try to search via spotlight, it does nothing (i.e. not even the usual spinning wheel) and immediately returns no results, so either it is not searching or is searching an empty/tiny index I think.
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  • Spotlight Not finding files Re indexing does not work

    As the title says really, but there is more.
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    The File title is Su Birth Cert.jpg
    If I am logged in as that user, I have to type the filename and include the  (.)  full stop at the end just before the  'jpg'  I don't need to type as far as jpg, Just the Full stop  (.)
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    used the command from other threads tp reset user folder permissions.
    Disk Utility does not give the option to Repair Permissions on the User Folders HDD.....yes the user Folders are 'moved' via the Sys prefer /Users/ Advanced options, to a separate HDD.
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    Spotlight does just not seem to want to find some files.

    Spotlight won’t work

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