Using
on the menu, you can locate files on your computer using any number of search criteria.Figure 16 Search for Files Dialog
Search for Files uses the find, grep, and locate UNIX commands, and all searches are case insensitive.
You can also open the Search for Files dialog by entering the following command in a terminal window:
gnome-search-tool
Click
.Type the search text in the
field.The search text can be a filename or partial filename, with or without wildcards, as shown in the following table:
In the
field, type the path to the directory where you want Search for Files to begin the search.Click
.Search for Files searches in the directory that you specify (and any subdirectories of the directory) and displays the results of the search in the Search Results list. If Search for Files does not find any files that match the search criteria, the application displays the message No files found in the Search results list.
Use
to search by file content, dates, owner, or file size.Click
.Type the search text in the
field.In the
field, type the path to the directory where you want Search for Files to begin the search.Click
, then clickSelect a search option that you want to apply, then click
.The following options are available:
Option |
Description |
---|---|
Searches for a file by filename. Typea full filename or a partial filename with wildcards in the fieldprovided. Use an asterisk (*) to indicate a sequence ofcharacters. Use a question mark (?) to indicate a single character.The search is case sensitive. |
|
Searches for files that were modifiedwithin the period specified (in days). |
|
Searches for files that were modifiedbefore the period specified (in days). |
|
Searches for files that are equal toor larger than the size specified (in kilobytes). |
|
Searches for files that are smaller thanor equal to the size specified (in kilobytes). |
|
Searches for empty files. |
|
Searches for files that are owned bythe user specified. Type the name of the user in the text box provided. |
|
Searches for files that are owned bythe group specified. Type the name of the group in the text boxprovided. |
|
Searches for files that are owned bya user or group that is unknown to the system. |
|
Searches for filenames that do not containthe string that you enter. Enter a full filename or a partial filenamewith wildcards in the field provided. Use an asterisk (*)to indicate a sequence of characters. Use a question mark (?) to indicatea single character. The search is case sensitive. |
|
Searches for files that contain the specifiedregular expression in their directory path or filename. Type the regularexpression in the text box provided. Regular expressions are special text strings used to describe asearch pattern. For more information, see Regular-Expressions.info. |
|
Includes hidden and backup files in thesearch. |
|
|
Follows symbolic links when searchingfor files. |
Searches in directories that are notin the same file system as the start directory. |
Specify the required search information for the search option.
Repeat Step 5 and Step 6 for each search option you want to apply.
To remove a search option from the current search, click the
button next to the option.Click
.You can use the Search Results list to open or delete a file found during a search, or you can save the search results to a file.
Figure 17 Search Results List
To open a file displayed in the Search Results list, right-click the file and then click
or double-click the file. To open the folder that contains a file displayed in the Search Results list, right-click the file and then click .To delete a file displayed in the Search Results list, right-click the file and then click
.To save the results of the last search that Search for Files performed, right-click anywhere in the Search results list and then click
. Type a name for the file the results are saved to, then click .By default, Search for Files tries to speed up some searches by using the locate command. locate provides a secure way to index and quickly search for files. Because locate relies on a file index, the Search Results list might not be up to date. To disable quick searches, run the following command in a terminal window:
# gconftool-2 --type=bool --set /apps/gnome-search-tool/disable_quick_search 1