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Find Files

DCommander’s Find Files is a focused, fast file search. It allows you to:

  • search by name (full or partial; wildcards not required),
  • optionally switch to regular expressions,
  • choose case sensitivity,
  • set a search location (defaults to the active pane’s path),
  • recurse into sub-folders,
  • and optionally find plain-text inside files.

Results appear in a list you can act on immediately.

Legend: ⌘ Command · ⌥ Option · ⌃ Control · ⇧ Shift · ⏎ Return

Open the Find Files window​

Open Find Files from the toolbar searchfield or menu (or ⌥ + F7).
It contains two independent matchers: Name and Content.

Find Files
  • Search for:
    Type the full or partial file/folder name.
    • Wildcards are not required (e.g., type report to match Q4_report_final.pdf).
    • RegEx: enable to interpret the field as a regular expression.
    • Case sensitive: match letter case exactly when enabled.

Examples (without RegEx):

  • invoice → matches invoice_2025.xlsx, my-invoice.pdf
  • 2025 → matches anything containing 2025

Examples (with RegEx enabled):

  • ^IMG_\d{4}\.jpg$ → IMG_0001.jpg, IMG_2048.jpg
  • (?i)screenshot.*\.png → case-insensitive “screenshot*.png”

Location & depth​

  • Search location:
    Defaults to the active pane’s current path (you can change it).
  • Search in sub-folders:
    Enable to search recursively. Disable to search only the selected folder.
tip

Start narrow (e.g., a project or drive) and expand only if needed.

Content search (plain-text)​

  • Find text inside file:
    Searches for a plain-text string within files.
  • Case sensitive:
    Match letter case exactly when enabled.
note
  • This is plain-text matching, not full-text indexing. Large binaries are scanned as byte streams and may be slower.
  • For best performance, limit the scope and enable Search in sub-folders only when necessary.

Start, cancel​

  • Start Search begins the search operation.
  • Cancel stops the current search and closes the window.

You can adjust criteria and run again; the list will refresh.

Results & actions​

Each result behaves like a file entry and offers quick actions:

  • Open — open with the default application
  • View — preview using Viewer
  • Get Info — view file information
  • Show in filelist — jump to the item in the main pane

Practical examples​

  • Find a design export by partial name:

    • Search for: hero
    • Location: ~/Projects/Website/Exports
    • (Optional) Sub-folders: On
    • Click Start Search, then Show in filelist on the match you need.

  • Use RegEx for camera dumps:

    • Search for: ^DSC_\d{4}\.(jpg|arw)$ with RegEx enabled
    • Location: SD card in /Volumes
    • Sub-folders: On (if your camera nests folders)

  • Find a config line across a repo:

    • Search for: (leave empty)
    • Find text inside file: API_BASE_URL= (case sensitive off)
    • Location: repo root; Sub-folders: On
    • Open the right file with Open or View.

Performance tips​

  • Prefer Name search first; enable Content only when you need in-file matches.
  • Keep Location tight. Searching your entire Home or / is slower.
  • RegEx is powerful but more resource-intensive than plain name contains.
  • On network shares, search closer to the target folder to reduce round-trips.

Permissions​

Searching protected locations may trigger macOS prompts.
If a path is blocked or returns “operation not permitted,” either:

  • add the folder/volume in Preferences → Permissions, or
  • enable Full Disk Access for DCommander (optional).
    See First-run Setup.

Troubleshooting​

  • No results: Verify the Search location, relax case sensitivity, or toggle RegEx off if you entered a literal string.
  • Too many results: Disable Sub-folders or narrow the Location.
  • Content search is slow: Limit scope and avoid massive folders (e.g., node_modules, large archives).
  • Can’t open from results: The item may have moved. Click Start Search again to refresh.