X-AstroGrep

Files are your computer are easy to find, unless they’re not, in which case your computer might just be a mess. All hope is not lost though, because applications like X-AstroGrep help you find almost any file of interest, apply different filters, and even preview content to make sure that’s the file you’re looking for.

A major advantage is that the application doesn’t require installation in order to properly function, which means you can easily carry it around on a USB flash drive to use on other computers as well. You need to make sure that .NET Framework is installed on the target PC so you don’t encounter any issues.

The visual design quickly gets you up and running through its simplicity. All functions you need are in plain sight, with a side panel letting you go through all search parameters, and advanced options, while the rest of the space is split into two panes, one for the list of results, while the other to display content where possible.

You start off by specifying a location to initiate the search. There’s the possibility to enable a context menu integration so you don’t have to use the browse dialog for every run. A list of preset file masks allows you to quickly filter according to formats, but you’re free to write down any extension of interest.

Apart from simple text-based search, you can expand search options in order to narrow down results. As such, the application can use regular expressions, case sensitivity, look for a whole word, search subfolders, only display file names, count lines, define a change date range, as well as size-related rules.

An additional option can be used to configure a permanent list of exclusions, so no time is wasted taking them into consideration when searching. Moreover, you can save configurations to file, in case you want to quickly initiate different search types later on.

It doesn’t take too long for the application to retrieve results, and these are displayed in real time. The list shows path, date, size, and count, while selecting a file displays content with highlighted word matches. You can jump directly to the specific path, delete the file, or just copy location.

To sum it up, X-AstroGrep is a flexible search alternative to the default Windows engine. It comes with a simple, yet highly intuitive design, letting anyone accommodate in a jiffy. Defining rules is a walk in the park, and these can also be saved as different profiles. With results gathered in real time, and possibility to use on the go, this app is surely worth your while.