Win8.1 search for files in File explorer

To search for files in File Explorer, open File Explorer and use the search box in the upper-right corner.

Open "This computer" from the right edge of the screen to the middle. Click "Search" (if you use the mouse, point to the upper-right corner of the screen, then move the mouse pointer down, click Search), enter the computer in the search box, and then click or click "This computer".

The search feature will be found in all folders and subfolders of your viewing location. When you click or click in the search box, the Search Tools tab appears. When you enter a search term, the results are displayed and the search terms are highlighted.

Search results in File explorer

You can also do the following by using the search box and the Search Tools tab:

To search for all files that contain a specific file name extension (such as. txt), you can enter a search term similar to *.txt.

You can search by attributes such as the file's last modified date or file type (such as "picture"). After you enter your search terms, click or click the Search Tools tab, use the options in the Optimize group, and then enter your search terms in the search box. For example, if you only want to search for a file name instead of the contents of the file, click or click More properties, select Name, and then enter a search term.

If you can't find what you're looking for in a particular library or folder, you can extend the search to include other locations. After the search results appear, click or click the Search Tools tab, and then select an option under Search again in the following location. (Some options may not apply in Windows RT.) )

If the search results do not contain any file content matches, it means that the location you are searching for is not in the search index. To include the contents of the file in a single search, click or click the Search Tools tab, click or click Advanced Options, and then select File contents. To add the location to the index so that the contents of the file are always included in the search, click or click the Search Tools tab, click or click Advanced Options, and then select Change index location.