Everything 1.4.1.1026 / 1.5.0 Build 1383a Alpha

★ Winner of Best Search Tool in 2017 and 2014.

Overview

Everything is a search app that launches when Windows starts and sits quietly in the system tray. It can index your drive for incredible quick search results.

Installation

The latest version requires 1.4 MB of space. The installer confirms what is available on your hard drive. During setup, the user gets to decide one of two set locations for settings and data location by choosing between two radio buttons. For Windows NTFS disk indexing, there is the choice of Installing the Everything service, the default option (where a port number is specified and one is added automatically if the user is not sure), to run as administrator or that no NTFS indexing is to be performed.

The next screen has many choices like whether the program should load at Windows startup, check for updates when starting, and more. The preset options are fine here. Then click Install.

There is no adware or spyware bundled with this software. The software will offer to load, then scan the Windows drive and once indexing is complete the files will display.

Interface

Everything primarly sits in the Windows system tray. It can be right-clicked to bring up a context menu where an existing search window or a new search window can be opened up. Once the main search window is open, the menus offer search choices like narrowing down files to certain types (audio, video, document, etc.). Searches can be bookmarked for quick access later which is a nice feature.

Pros

Searches can just be typed into the search box and it works instantly as each letter of the search is typed in. The path location column can be clicked on to organize the results by location which will group folders and drives together. This is another way to narrow down searches for file types that are stored in a specific location instead of creating a custom search.

Extremely fast indexed results that update in real time. Click on files and open them directly or send them to the Recycle bin. Connect to ETP, FTP and HTTP servers. Change the location of the file index. Lightweight package.

Cons

There are no negatives to using Everything.

Alternatives

SearchMyFiles is one alternative to Everything. Uses wildcard searches, portable for USB flash drives and doesn't index any files.

Conclusion

Everything is an excellent, lightweight search function to add to Windows. It produces instant results which makes finding any files on any connected hard drives very simple.