How To Search for Files and Folders in Windows XP

This article describes how to search for files or folders on a Windows XP-based computer.

How to Search for a File or Folder

To search for a file or folder:

1. Click Start, and then click Search.
2. In the Search Companion dialog box, click All files and folders.
3. Type part or all of the name of the file or folder, or type a word or phrase that is in the file.
4. In the Look in box, click the drive or drives, folder, or network location that you want to search.
5. Choose one of the following options:
   1. Click When was it modified to look for files that were created or modified on or between specific dates.
   2. Click What size is it to look for files that are specific size.
   3. Click More advanced options to specify additional search criteria.
6. Click Search.

Troubleshooting

You can scroll in the left pane to view all of the search options. If you receive too many results, use additional search criteria to make your search more specific.

If you do not see the All files and folders option, you may have changed your default search behavior. To configure the search companion, view the following article in the Microsoft Knowledge Base: