Create, maintain and search index file

Download File Search Assistant, a search utility with ability to create fixed and portable search-able index file.

This article is about creating, maintaining and searching index file with File Search Assistant. The most important is that Indexing allows File Search Assistant to perform a faster search of text within files.

Benefits of indexing

Indexing allows File Search Assistant to perform a faster search of text within files.
Indexing allows to put a custom search engine on your CD

Create index

Run File Search Assistant and select "Create new index..." command in a file menu. Files Search Assistant will ask you for a questions regarding new index:

Dynamic re-indexing (enable/ disable): If dynamic re-indexing is enable (by selecting the corresponding radio button) the index data is updated once it was changed (editing, renaming, replacing). Otherwise, if the dynamic re-indexing is disable the index data is updated by the Update index command only. Select the Disable dynamic re-indexing radio button when creating CDs with File Search Assistant used for search through, or if files and their location are not supposed to be changed.
Index content (Short index/ Full index): Full index contains full file text. In this case the speed of search is higher than the search through the Short index. Short index contains key words of the file only. In this case the index file size is reduced, but note that the search speed slows down as well.
Index type (Portable Index/ Fixed Index): Portable Index contains relative file path. The index file is located on the root directory of the folder indexed. Select the Portable Index radio button when creating CDs with File Search Assistant used for search through, or when the full path to the folder is unchangeable. Fixed Index contains full paths to files. In this case the index file may be located anywhere.
Index location: If the Portable Index is selected you need to specify the index file name only (as the index file will be located on the root directory of the folder indexed). If the Fixed Index is selected you also need to specify a drive and folder for locating the index file on.
Select folders opens a dialog box to select directories to be indexed. At first specify the root directory to be indexed. If you don’t want some folders in the directory to be included into the index, unselect them.
Select folders opens a dialog box to select files to be indexed. It contains two lists: Select file masks that will be INCLUDED in index and Select file masks that will be INCLUDED in index , where you need to specify the required masks (file extensions). In addition to the masks listed, you can also add your own masks.
Ready to index : This box displays summary about the index file created. You can return to the previous dialog windows to make changes by clicking Back. Click NEXT to start indexing.

Download File Search Assistant, a search utility with ability to create fixed and portable search-able index file.

Maintain index

Any time you can update an index file.

To update an index choose the Search index command from the File menu. In the Select file index search box choose the required index file. Then choose the Update index command from the File menu. When updating index file, you can enable the following options in the Update index options selection box: Update changed files updates changed files already included in the index, Add new files adds new files, Delete obsolete files deletes obsolete files that were removed from the drive, but the index still keeps information about them.

Search index

Select Search index command in File menu. Search index searches through the index file. It activates the Select file index box where you need to choose the required index file (with .fsi extension). In this case the File Search Assistant main window displays a name of index file chosen in the Search selection field.

Get File Search Assistant

You can get File Search Assistant right now. It's a file search tool that allows to search for popular file types on local hard disk and across a network.