Index doesn't find my files, although the location is indexed

I have Vista ultimate on a laptop with 2 hard drives. I keep all my user
files on D:, which is indexed. When I search for a file that I know is there
it doesn't show up in the search results. I have tried moving the entire
index to D: and I have tried rebuilding the index several times without any
improvement. Why won't the index search through D:?

 

Did you try "Advanced Search" within your D: drive, and using "Include
non-indexed, hidden, and system files"?" This might reveal the file if, for
example, it has simply not yet made it into the index. At any rate, might
give some clues as to what is going on.

 

Standard search as well as advanced search will find the files, although when
I just hit the windows button and type a few letters of the filename I will
not find the file in question. I might add that I had no problems like this
on my other laptop with only 1 hard drive and all my user files were under
users/documents etc. It seems that files on D: are either ignored by the
idex, or they are way down in the list and therefore not shown in the search
result.
Also, if I open a file located in one of the indexed folders on D: it will
be found by the indexed next time i search.

 

Make sure you take "ownership" of the files (security tab in properties for
the drive or folder).
Index search will only return files that the current user "owns". Wouldn't
be very secure if it did.

Kurt

 

The Start Menu search doesn't search for exactly the same things as the full
Search window.

If you right-click on the Start Button, select Properties and then
Customize, and scroll down under Search Files you can select either "Search
entire index" or "Search this users files". If you select "Search entire
index" you might get the behavior you want.

 

Thanks for help and suggestions.

I am owner of the files.

"The Start Menu search doesn't search for exactly the same things as the full
Search window."

But on my other computer where all files are in the "my docs" folder my
files pop up directly.

Any more suggestions? Also, is there a way to change the priority of the
serach results in the start menu search so that files are always listed
before outlook messages?

 

Right. The Start Menu search I think searches just "Documents" for the
current user {c:\users\<username>} by default. The Search explorer searches
all indexed location by default. So I think that would explain why something
in Documents would appear in the start menu, but something on some other
folder on another drive would not. Is that not the behavior you are seeing?

 

I get all kinds of hits in the start menu search, emails and such, but not
the file I'm actually after. I would like the start menu search to display
files and folders only and not outlook items.

 

This is all customizable by right-clicking on the start button, selecting
"personalize", and then "customize". There are options to turn off "Search
communications" {e-mail}, and then "Search entire index" or "Search this
user's files".

Dave

 

Hi Dave,
thanks for the tip. I checked "search entire index" and now it works as I
want it to.