You can make a difference in the Apple Support Community!

When you sign up with your Apple Account, you can provide valuable feedback to other community members by upvoting helpful replies and User Tips.

Looks like no one’s replied in a while. To start the conversation again, simply ask a new question.

Files not showing up via finder search

Hi there --


I have a lot of files on an external drive. When I open the folder, I can see the files. However, if I do a finder search, only .html and .pdf files are displayed. The other files (mostly .epub and .mobi) aren't found via the search.


What gives? This problem just showed up.


a.

MacBook Air 13″, macOS 10.13

Posted on Aug 27, 2020 10:27 PM

Reply
Question marked as Top-ranking reply

Posted on Aug 28, 2020 12:27 AM

runtoto Said:

"Files not showing up via finder search: thanks much. i tried it a couple of times, but it doesn't seem to work.[...]"

-------


You are Welcome. Try this...


Add the Hard Drive to your Spotlight Search:

Use these links...


It should then be searchable.

7 replies
Question marked as Top-ranking reply

Aug 28, 2020 12:27 AM in response to runtoto

runtoto Said:

"Files not showing up via finder search: thanks much. i tried it a couple of times, but it doesn't seem to work.[...]"

-------


You are Welcome. Try this...


Add the Hard Drive to your Spotlight Search:

Use these links...


It should then be searchable.

Aug 27, 2020 11:06 PM in response to runtoto

runtoto Said:

"Files not showing up via finder search Hi there -- I have a lot of files on an external drive. When I open the folder, I can see the files. However, if I do a finder search, only .html and .pdf files are displayed. The other files (mostly .epub and .mobi) aren't found via the search. What gives? This problem just showed up."

-------


A Couple of Thoughts:


  • Have you Ever Searched for these?

By your wording, it seems you have searched for these in the past, yet they are no longer showing up. Exclude the extensions, seeing if they are seen. I'm mot so sure that would make a difference, though.


Reset your SMC and your NVRAM:

Sometimes changes (i.e. Hardware) are made to the system and then settings (i.e. Spotlight Search) become corrupted, technically. So, reset both on your Mac. So, reset the SMC and reset the NVRAM or PRAM. It might take three tries. to fix this. So, be certain you have the time to do so.

Start With This:


Aug 29, 2020 10:12 PM in response to runtoto

runtoto Said:

"hi there. this helped a litle, but didn't solve the problem fully. still very slow... additional information: when i'm trying to delete a bunch of files, not every file gets deleted. it's all very strange to me..."

-------


Try This:

Reinstall the macOS, Backing Up First

1. First, Back up your Mac:

Create a Time Machine backup of your Mac, so that you can have something to restore your Mac from, should anything go wrong with the reinstall. Use an external hard drive that is at least 1.5 times the size of the internal hard drive.


2. Then, Reinstall the macOS:

Nothing would be deleted. It's just that items that have become corrupted or deleted, would be replaced or reinstalled back to where they should be. Go Here: How to reinstall macOS from macOS Recovery - Apple Support

Aug 29, 2020 6:29 PM in response to runtoto

runtoto Said:

"This seem to work! Thanks so much. The search function, now, is incredibly slow. Any suggestions for how to get it back to normal?"

-------


You are welcome.


Try This:

Delete: com.apple.finder.plist

  1. Open: Spotlight Search
  2. Type This: ~/Library/Preferences/
  3. Locate: com.apple.finder.plist
  4. Drag: com.apple.finder.plist to the Trash
  5. Restart: The Mac


Note: After the reboot, this is recreated. So, no worries there.

Aug 28, 2020 12:04 AM in response to TheLittles

thanks much.


i tried it a couple of times, but it doesn't seem to work.


some additional information...


yes, in the past i have been able to find the files.


this seems to only be impacting the files on my external drives - not on my internal drive.


on my external drives, i can see the files when i open the folders. however, when i do a search, they don't show up.


i believe my mac updated recently. i'm running macOS catalina 10.15.16.


any further thoughts would be appreciated.


a.

Files not showing up via finder search

Welcome to Apple Support Community
A forum where Apple customers help each other with their products. Get started with your Apple Account.