Member Avatar for Member #1162018

I don't like the way my Win10 file search results are displayed and I can't find out how to change the settings. I've made changes to the 'Sort by' and 'Group by' options but can't seem to get the results I want.

An example: I type a search word in the Search bar on any given Windows 10 page and the results are shown. I may have 50 files in the A-H group, 50 in the I-P group, and 50 in the Q-Z group.

Only 10 (more or less) files in the A-H group are displayed with an option to 'Show all 50'. It's the same with groups I-P and Q-Z.

I had rather have all 150 files shown in one continuous A-Z grouping as this would make the particular file I'm looking for much easier to find. How do I go about changing the Sort by and/or Group by options settings to get the search results to display asI have described?

  • 2 Contributors
  • 4 Replies
  • 361 Views
  • 6 Hours Discussion Span
  • Latest Post Latest Post by Member #1162018

Dani AI

Generated

The A–H / I–P / Q–Z layout is Explorer doing a "Group by" on a property (name, date, type, etc.). Explorer shows only a few items per group with a "Show all" link when groups are collapsed. To get one continuous A–Z list, turn grouping off and sort by name:

  • In the Search results window choose the View ribbon, set Sort by -> Name (Ascending) and Group by -> (None).
  • Or right‑click an empty area in the results pane and pick Group by -> (None).

That will immediately list results continuously instead of in collapsed ranges. (learn.microsoft.com)

To make the setting behave more like a default: switch to List or Details view (shows more rows), then in View -> Options -> Change folder and search options -> View tab use Apply to Folders while viewing a folder that’s using the same template (General items). Note: Search results are a virtual view and some special folder templates (for example the Downloads template) can revert to a grouped layout in certain Windows builds, so you may need to set the same view in the underlying folder type first. (howtogeek.com)

If Explorer keeps reverting or grouping remains stubborn, clear Explorer’s saved folder‑view cache. Back up the registry or create a restore point first, then run the following as administrator (save as .bat and run elevated or execute each reg delete in an elevated command prompt):

Reg Delete "HKCU\SOFTWARE\Microsoft\Windows\Shell\BagMRU" /F
Reg Delete "HKCU\SOFTWARE\Microsoft\Windows\Shell\Bags" /F

Reg Delete "HKCU\SOFTWARE\Microsoft\Windows\ShellNoRoam\Bags" /F
Reg Delete "HKCU\SOFTWARE\Microsoft\Windows\ShellNoRoam\BagMRU" /F

Reg Delete "HKCU\SOFTWARE\Classes\Local Settings\Software\Microsoft\Windows\Shell\BagMRU" /F
Reg Delete "HKCU\SOFTWARE\Classes\Local Settings\Software\Microsoft\Windows\Shell\Bags" /F

Restart Explorer or reboot so Windows rebuilds the cache. This resets per‑folder view memory and lets you reapply the no‑grouping view. (tenforums.com)

If a quick fix is needed or Explorer’s behavior remains inconvenient, consider the third‑party search options mentioned earlier in the thread by and ; they avoid Explorer view quirks.

Recommended Answers

All 4 Replies

Member Avatar for rproffitt

As folks explore Windows File Explorer they eventually agree it's one size fits all doesn't work for specific things.

Why not try other file search apps like EVERYTHING and others?

commented: EVERYTHING is awesome +14
Member Avatar for Member #1162018

I have a free software named Quick Search. It is much better than the built in search app. It is much faster, particularly when searching over several drives at one time. It finds files Windows can't find. And it shows you a preview of the file. I will be using Quick Search more often, I suppose.

I bought my first computer when Vista came out. I thought Windows Media Player was the best thing I had ever seen. I couldn't understand why so many people on the Internet were complaining about it.

I was nieve. I soon learned why they were complaining. For starters, WMP would play only the few file types MS wanted you to play. I couldn't even import flac or png. Then I learned I had to download codecs as a workaround. And the list goes on. I found most free media players would play most any type file you threw at it.

To this day, Notepad doesnt have Spellcheck. The better and free Notepads do have it. Every third party app I have is free and everyone of them is better than its MS counterpart.

If I start a file search from the folder within which the file resides, it should be much faster than calling up and using a third party app. With Windows, I find that isn't true much of the time.

Thanks

Member Avatar for rproffitt

As to speed, I may be wrong but at the office and home we may have removed our very last spinning rust mechanism (AKA HDD) so with that a lot of the delays are gone.

Member Avatar for Member #1162018

Yes, EVERYTHING is good. I have used it.

Be a part of the DaniWeb community

We're a friendly, industry-focused community of developers, IT pros, digital marketers, and technology enthusiasts meeting, networking, learning, and sharing knowledge.