How to SEARCH for HIDDEN files ?


Or you could use powershell: gci c:\temp\test -force

The -force option shows hidden files. Just point the GCI commend to the drive and directory you want to search for.
 

My Computer

System One

  • OS
    Windows 11 Pro
    Computer type
    PC/Desktop
    Manufacturer/Model
    Home Built
    CPU
    AMD Ryzen 7 5800X
    Motherboard
    GIGABYTE B550 AORUS ELITE AX V2
    Memory
    32GB
    Graphics Card(s)
    Nvidea??
    Sound Card
    MB Sound only
    Hard Drives
    m2.nvme
    PSU
    Seasonic Focus
    Case
    Cougar
    Cooling
    Enermax Liquid CPU
    Keyboard
    Logitech K800
    Mouse
    Logitech MX Master 3
    Internet Speed
    2.5 GB
    Browser
    BRAVE
    Antivirus
    Windows Defender
IanMosley said:
Please refer to post #3 in this thread
Click to expand...

Thanks Ian. That works very nice. Although after that the file handling is cumbersome.
 

My Computer

System One

  • OS
    Windows 11 Home 64-bit
    Computer type
    Laptop
    Manufacturer/Model
    ASUS Laptop Zenbook Pro 14
    CPU
    Intel Core i9-13900H 2.6 GHz, 24MB 14 cores 20 threads
    Memory
    32GB DDR5
    Graphics Card(s)
    NVIDIA GeForce RTX 4060 and Intel Iris Xe Graphics
    Monitor(s) Displays
    14.5" 2.8K OLED 16:10 120Hz 400nits
    Screen Resolution
    2880 x 1800 pixels
    Hard Drives
    1TB M.2 NVMe™ PCIe® 4.0 Performance SSD
    Mouse
    Bluetooth
    Browser
    Microsoft Edge
    Antivirus
    McAfee , Malwarebytes , Ccleaner
hdmi said:
  • Uncheck "Hide protected operating system files (Recommended)":
    • Open File Explorer.
    • Go to the "View" tab and click on "Options" (or "Folder Options").
    • In the "View" tab of the Folder Options window, uncheck "Hide protected operating system files (Recommended)".
    • Click "Yes" when prompted to confirm.
  • Select "Show hidden files, folders, and drives":
    • In the same "View" tab of Folder Options, select "Show hidden files, folders, and drives".
    • Click "Apply" and then "OK".
Next, just open a folder in File Explorer and paste the command
system.fileattributes:(2 OR 3 OR 6 OR 7 OR 34 OR 35 OR 38 OR 39) into the Search box. It will find all hidden files in that folder and its subfolders. It works on Windows Vista and later Windows versions. So no, AFAIK nothing has changed over the past 17 years and 9 1/2 months in this regard.
Click to expand...

Cool, works really great. Too bad it does not search in subdirectories. But still is very helpful.
 

My Computer

System One

  • OS
    Windows 11 Home 64-bit
    Computer type
    Laptop
    Manufacturer/Model
    ASUS Laptop Zenbook Pro 14
    CPU
    Intel Core i9-13900H 2.6 GHz, 24MB 14 cores 20 threads
    Memory
    32GB DDR5
    Graphics Card(s)
    NVIDIA GeForce RTX 4060 and Intel Iris Xe Graphics
    Monitor(s) Displays
    14.5" 2.8K OLED 16:10 120Hz 400nits
    Screen Resolution
    2880 x 1800 pixels
    Hard Drives
    1TB M.2 NVMe™ PCIe® 4.0 Performance SSD
    Mouse
    Bluetooth
    Browser
    Microsoft Edge
    Antivirus
    McAfee , Malwarebytes , Ccleaner
GeneralLee01 said:
Preferable with Win11 but if I have to third party software would also be an option.
Click to expand...

I use XYplorer Pro which will show all hidden folders/files as well as search for them.
Free version has been discontinued but still works in Win 11 and is available to download.


Scroll past installer and there are portable versions available to download.

Open program then Ctrl+F on keyboard to search for files.
 

My Computer

System One

  • OS
    Windows 11 Pro

My Computers

System One System Two

  • OS
    11 Home
    Computer type
    Laptop
    Manufacturer/Model
    Asus TUF Gaming F16 (2024)
    CPU
    i7 13650HX
    Memory
    16GB DDR5
    Graphics Card(s)
    GeForce RTX 4060 Mobile
    Sound Card
    Eastern Electric MiniMax DAC Supreme; Emotiva UMC-200; Astell & Kern AK240
    Monitor(s) Displays
    Sony Bravia XR-55X90J
    Screen Resolution
    3840×2160
    Hard Drives
    512GB SSD internal
    37TB external
    PSU
    Li-ion
    Cooling
    2× Arc Flow Fans, 4× exhaust vents, 5× heatpipes
    Keyboard
    Logitech K800
    Mouse
    Logitech G402
    Internet Speed
    20Mbit/s up, 250Mbit/s down
    Browser
    FF
  • Operating System
    11 Home
    Computer type
    Laptop
    Manufacturer/Model
    Medion S15450
    CPU
    i5 1135G7
    Memory
    16GB DDR4
    Graphics card(s)
    Intel Iris Xe
    Sound Card
    Eastern Electric MiniMax DAC Supreme; Emotiva UMC-200; Astell & Kern AK240
    Monitor(s) Displays
    Sony Bravia XR-55X90J
    Screen Resolution
    3840×2160
    Hard Drives
    2TB SSD internal
    37TB external
    PSU
    Li-ion
    Mouse
    Logitech G402
    Keyboard
    Logitech K800
    Internet Speed
    20Mbit/s up, 250Mbit/s down
    Browser
    FF
Show/Display the hidden files > Everything, UltraSearch, Agent Ransack (take your pick, all freeware versions)
 

My Computers

System One System Two

  • OS
    Windows 11 2xH2 (latest update ... forever anal)
    Computer type
    PC/Desktop
    Manufacturer/Model
    HP Slim S01
    CPU
    Intel i5-12400
    Memory
    8GB
    Graphics Card(s)
    NVIDIA GeForce GT730
    Sound Card
    OOBE
    Monitor(s) Displays
    Acer 32"
    Screen Resolution
    1920x1080
    Hard Drives
    512GB KIOXIA NVMe
    1TB SATA SSD
    PSU
    OOBE
    Case
    OOBE
    Cooling
    OOBE
    Keyboard
    BT
    Mouse
    BT
    Browser
    Brave FFox Chrome Opera
    Antivirus
    KIS
  • Operating System
    Windows 11 Pro 2xH2 (latest update ... 4ever anal)
    Computer type
    Laptop
    Manufacturer/Model
    HP Pavillion 15
    CPU
    i7-1165G7 @ 2.80GHz
    Graphics card(s)
    Intel Iris Xe Graphics
    Hard Drives
    Samsung NVMe 512GB
    + numerous/multiple SSD Type C USB enclosures
    Internet Speed
    NBN FTTN 50
    Browser
    Brave
    Antivirus
    KIS
idgat said:
Show/Display the hidden files > Everything, UltraSearch, Agent Ransack (take your pick, all freeware versions)
Click to expand...
lol

855_3246291a.gif
 

My Computers

System One System Two

  • OS
    11 Home
    Computer type
    Laptop
    Manufacturer/Model
    Asus TUF Gaming F16 (2024)
    CPU
    i7 13650HX
    Memory
    16GB DDR5
    Graphics Card(s)
    GeForce RTX 4060 Mobile
    Sound Card
    Eastern Electric MiniMax DAC Supreme; Emotiva UMC-200; Astell & Kern AK240
    Monitor(s) Displays
    Sony Bravia XR-55X90J
    Screen Resolution
    3840×2160
    Hard Drives
    512GB SSD internal
    37TB external
    PSU
    Li-ion
    Cooling
    2× Arc Flow Fans, 4× exhaust vents, 5× heatpipes
    Keyboard
    Logitech K800
    Mouse
    Logitech G402
    Internet Speed
    20Mbit/s up, 250Mbit/s down
    Browser
    FF
  • Operating System
    11 Home
    Computer type
    Laptop
    Manufacturer/Model
    Medion S15450
    CPU
    i5 1135G7
    Memory
    16GB DDR4
    Graphics card(s)
    Intel Iris Xe
    Sound Card
    Eastern Electric MiniMax DAC Supreme; Emotiva UMC-200; Astell & Kern AK240
    Monitor(s) Displays
    Sony Bravia XR-55X90J
    Screen Resolution
    3840×2160
    Hard Drives
    2TB SSD internal
    37TB external
    PSU
    Li-ion
    Mouse
    Logitech G402
    Keyboard
    Logitech K800
    Internet Speed
    20Mbit/s up, 250Mbit/s down
    Browser
    FF
Far Manager shows everything.

1.webp
 

My Computer

System One

  • OS
    Microsoft Windows 11 Home
    Computer type
    PC/Desktop
    Manufacturer/Model
    MSI MS-7D98
    CPU
    Intel Core i5-13490F
    Motherboard
    MSI B760 GAMING PLUS WIFI
    Memory
    2 x 16 Patriot Memory (PDP Systems) PSD516G560081
    Graphics Card(s)
    GIGABYTE GeForce RTX 4070 WINDFORCE OC 12G (GV-N4070WF3OC-12GD)
    Sound Card
    Bluetooth Аудио
    Monitor(s) Displays
    INNOCN 15K1F
    Screen Resolution
    1920 x 1080
    Hard Drives
    WD_BLACK SN770 250GB
    KINGSTON SNV2S1000G (ELFK0S.6)
    PSU
    Thermaltake Toughpower GF3 1000W
    Case
    CG560 - DeepCool
    Cooling
    ID-COOLING SE-224-XTS / 2 x 140Mm Fan - rear and top; 3 x 120Mm - front
    Keyboard
    Corsair K70 RGB TKL
    Mouse
    Corsair KATAR PRO XT
    Internet Speed
    100 Mbps
    Browser
    Firefox
    Antivirus
    Microsoft Defender Antivirus
    Other Info
    https://www.userbenchmark.com/UserRun/66553205
You must log in or register to reply here.

Similar threads

Solved How to search Media Player in Windows 11?
Replies
5
Views
403
polli
P
How to set up multiple computers with multiple users and multiple cloud service accounts
Replies
6
Views
2K
Rangoon
R
How to check USB Flash Drive Folders Side By Side for copied files
Replies
7
Views
2K
johnlgalt
johnlgalt
  • Article Article
How to prepare for Windows 10 end of support by moving to Windows 11 today
Replies
0
Views
712
Brink
Brink
Solved How can you keep 3rd party software vendor from using your Paid 365 OneDrive subscription for their files
Replies
7
Views
3K
GaryW
GaryW

Latest Support Threads

Latest Tutorials

Back
Top Bottom