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How to Search in Windows 10

This wikiHow teaches you how to search for files, apps, and media in Windows 10 using the Windows search box, Cortana (Microsoft's digital voice search assistant), and the Windows File Explorer. Open the search box. You can use the Windows...
Method 1 of 3:

Typing into the Windows Search Box

  1. How to Search in Windows 10 Picture 1How to Search in Windows 10 Picture 1
    Open the search box. You can use the Windows search box to find anything in Windows, including documents, apps, and photos. Here are all of the ways you can open the search box:[1]
    1. If you see a long box next to the Start
      How to Search in Windows 10 Picture 2How to Search in Windows 10 Picture 2
      menu that says ″Type here to search,″ your search box is already open.
    2. Click the circle icon or magnifying glass to the right of the Start menu to open the search box.
    3. Using the keyboard shortcut ⊞ Win+S will also open the search box.
    4. In some versions of windows, clicking the Start menu opens the search box.
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    Start typing the name of what you want to find. As you type, a list of matching results will appear.
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    Refine your results (optional). Click the Filters menu at the top-right corner of the search panel to display filters you can use to specify which type of results you want to see (e.g., All, Apps, Documents, etc). Select All to search all file types, or choose a more specific filter option.
    1. If you don't see Filters, look for ″Find results in,″ or a row of icons or words at the top of the panel. If you have a row of icons, hover the mouse over each icon to find out which filter it represents, then click one to filter the results.
  4. How to Search in Windows 10 Picture 5How to Search in Windows 10 Picture 5
    Click a search result to open the app or file. If you click an app, the app will open. Clicking a file will open it in the default file viewer or editor.
Method 2 of 3:

Using your Voice with Cortana

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    Enable voice searching with Cortana. You can search files, apps, and the web using voice commands with Cortana, Microsoft's digital voice assistant. After turning on this feature, you can search for anything you wish by saying "Hey Cortana," followed by the item you're searching for. Here's how to enable this feature:[2]
    1. Click the circle icon or magnifying glass to the right of the Start
      How to Search in Windows 10 Picture 7How to Search in Windows 10 Picture 7
      menu. If you see a search box that says ″Type here to search,″ click that instead.
    2. Type cortana settings and press ↵ Enter.
    3. Slide the ″Hey Cortana″ switch to the On
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      position. A new panel will expand on the left, asking for your permission to enable this feature.
    4. Click Sure. If the switch does not automatically turn on, slide it to the On position now.
    5. If you don't want Cortana to respond to any voice except your own, click Learn how I say Cortana, and then follow the on-screen instructions to teach it your voice. Once it learns your voice, you can select Try to respond only to me.
    6. If you want to conserve your notebook's battery, you can slide the ″Keyboard shortcut″ switch to the On
      How to Search in Windows 10 Picture 9How to Search in Windows 10 Picture 9
      position. If you leave this switch off, Cortana will always be listening for ″Hey Cortana.″
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    Say ″Hey Cortana″ when you want to search with your voice. If you enabled the ″Keyboard shortcut″ option, press ⊞ Win+C before you speak. Cortana will display a throbbing circle to indicate that it's listening.
  3. How to Search in Windows 10 Picture 11How to Search in Windows 10 Picture 11
    Say what you'd like to find. Here are a few examples for ways you can use Cortana to search:[3]
    1. To search for files, use this format: ″Find documents from today,″ ″Find photos of cats,″ ″Find a document named (document name),″ ″Find videos from June 1.″
    2. To search the web, use this format: ″Search the web for wikiHow,″ ″Search the web for cat photos.″
    3. To find an app, just say the app's name. If the app is not already installed on your computer, Cortana will search for it on the Windows Store and on the web.
  4. How to Search in Windows 10 Picture 12How to Search in Windows 10 Picture 12
    Click a search result to open the app or file. If you click an app, the app will open. Clicking a file will open it in the default file viewer or editor.
Method 3 of 3:

Searching Files with File Explorer

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    Press ⊞ Win+E to open the File Explorer. If you want to search your computer for a specific file by title, date, size, or type, you can do so in the File Explorer.
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    Click This PC. It's in the left panel. You may have to scroll down to find it.
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    Click the Search This PC box. It's at the top-right corner of the File Explorer. The ″Search″ tab will now appear at the top of the app.
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    Select your search options. You can tell the File Explorer which files to search and which results to display by selecting your preferences on the Search tab.
    1. If you want to find a file based on file type, date modified, size, or other properties, choose your desired options from the ″Refine″ panel near the center of the ″Search″ tab.
    2. The File Explorer searches the Start menu, apps and app data, and your personal files by default. This is usually enough for most people. If you're an advanced user and want to add additional folders to search, click Advanced options on the ″Options″ panel, click Change indexed locations at the top of the menu, and then click Modify. You can then choose other folders or drives to search.
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    Type your search word(s). Now that you've set your options, type what you're looking for into the search bar near the top-right corner of the File Explorer. The search will start immediately.
    1. Depending on the number of indexed files and what you're searching for, it may take several minutes for all results to appear.
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    Sort your results. If you have a lot of search results, it can be helpful to view the results in a more detailed format. Click the View tab at the top of the File Explorer, and then click Details in the ″Layout″ tab (near the top-center).
    1. To re-order the results based on name, date modified, size, or other information, click the column headers (Name, Date Modified, etc) above each column in the results.
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    Double-click a file in the results to open it. Clicking a file will open it in the default file viewer or editor
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