How to use EverythingToolbar: Instant search integrated into the taskbar

Do you often go crazy looking for files among thousands of Windows folders? If so, Everything and EverythingToolbar They can become your best alliesThis combination allows you to locate any document, photo, video, or program almost instantly, without having to open File Explorer or deal with the slow built-in Windows search.

Throughout this guide you will discover What is Everything, how does its ultra-fast index work, and how to take advantage of EverythingToolbar to bring that search engine directly to the taskbar. We'll cover everything from installation to advanced tricks, including filters, bookmarks, exporting results, and even how to access your files from other devices via a web server or ETP.

What is Everything and how does its ultra-fast search work?

Everything is a file search engine for Windows which stands out for its almost instantaneous speed. Unlike the Windows native searchWhich is usually slow and cumbersome, Everything creates its own index of your units and works with it in real time, with minimal resource consumption.

When you run Everything for the first time, the program Generates an index of all local volumes formatted with NTFSThis initial indexing process usually takes only a few seconds, even if you have many files, and is only done once unless you add new drives or change indexing options. If you need to adjust how indexing works in Windows, you can consult guides for activate search indexing or review other related options.

Once the index is created, The main window automatically displays all detected files and folders.From there, simply type in the search box to filter in real time, seeing how the list shrinks as you add more characters or apply advanced filters.

The application is designed to have minimal impact on system performanceIt takes advantage of moments when you're not using your PC intensively to update the index. That's why it's ideal for both powerful machines and older computers.

Everything focuses on the search by file name and folderThis explains its speed. If you need to search for text within files, you can combine it with other tools or use Windows' advanced search options, but for locating paths immediately, it's hard to find anything more effective.

Main elements of the Everything search window

The screen of Everything It's organized in a fairly simple way, but Each area of ​​the window serves a very specific purpose. so you can work quickly and without distractions.

At the top you will find the Classic menu with options for File, Edit, View, Search, Bookmarks, Tools, and HelpFrom there you can export results, change the appearance, access advanced search, manage filters, open the file list editor, configure ETP/HTTP servers, and much more.

Just below is the search boxwhere you can type the full or partial name of the file you want to locate. If you need something more sophisticated, you can open the Advanced search From the Search menu to combine conditions (by type, date, size, location, etc.), or consult Help. list of basic and advanced syntax available.

In the central area appears the hit listwhere you'll see routes, names, sizes, modification dates, and other data. You can sort the results by clicking on any column header and clicking again to reverse the ascending/descending order. Right-clicking on the header allows you to... show or hide columns depending on what you're interested in seeing.

To open a file or folder on my PC, enough with double-click or select it and press EnterYou can also drag and drop items into other applications (for example, a video editor, an email client, or a browser file upload window). Right-clicking will bring up a context menu with many available actions for the selected item.

At the bottom is the status barThis displays the number of results, active filters, and certain search options. Right-clicking on the status bar allows you to change search settings, and double-clicking on a specific option quickly disables it without having to go to the general settings.

Display and manage Everything windows

By default, Everything usually works with a single search windowWhen you open it from the shortcut or notification area, it restores that same window if it was already running, which helps keep resource consumption very well controlled.

If you prefer to have multiple independent searches, you can enable the option to create new windowsIn the preferences you will find settings such as “Create a new window from the notification area” or “Create a new window when running Everything”, which allow you to open multiple instances with different searches at the same time.

This is very practical when you are, for example, organizing projects on different disks or folders And you want to have one search focused on documents, another on images, and another on video files, without mixing it all up in the same view.

EverythingToolbar: Instant search from the taskbar

EverythingToolbar is a A plugin that integrates the power of Everything directly into the Windows taskbarInstead of opening the program window each time, you can launch searches on the fly from the bar itself, replacing (or complementing) the standard Windows search.

This utility takes advantage of the same index and the same search technology as Everythingso the results appear instantly as you type. From there you can locate files, folders, and even installed applications simply by typing their name without manually navigating through Explorer; if you're interested in how to locate applications using the Windows index, you can find guides on find apps in Windows 11.

It's important to know that EverythingToolbar does not include the Everything program.You need to have Everything installed on your system beforehand so the plugin can use its index. Once that requirement is met, the integration is quite seamless.

EverythingToolbar is usually installed by downloading the package, extracting its contents and running the install.cmd file as administratorNext, you need to enable the item from the context menu of the Windows taskbar, where it is added as an additional bar or item.

Once activated, EverythingToolbar effectively replaces the standard search function, allowing you to Open files, folders, or programs directly from the toolbar by simply typing a few letters. This saves many clicks and makes the daily workflow more efficient.

Download, install and start-up of Everything

To start using Everything, the first thing to do is go to the official VoidTools websiteThe program's developer. From there you can download either the installable or portable version, depending on what's more convenient for you.

The installable edition behaves like any other Windows program: Run the installer and follow the wizard's stepsIt's usually the best option if you're going to use Everything daily, because it integrates better with the system, the Start menu, and the notification area.

If you prefer not to modify the system too much or want to carry the program on a USB drive, you can opt for the portable versionIn this case, you only need to extract the downloaded file and run the executable from the folder. It doesn't require traditional installation, and you can move the folder wherever you want.

When you open Everything for the first time, the program will take care of Create an index of all your files and folders on your local NTFS drivesThis process takes place in the background and is usually very fast. From that point on, the index is automatically updated.

If the program is displayed in English, you can easily change the language from Tools> Optionsby looking for the language section and choosing “Spanish (Spain)” or the one you prefer from the available list.

How to search with Everything: from basics to advanced

The easiest way to use Everything is typing the file name in the search boxAs you type, the results are filtered instantly. You don't need to press Enter to start the search; the filtering is completely dynamic.

If you don't remember the exact name, you can use wildcards and patternsFor example, if you only remember that the file had the word "report" somewhere in the name, you can search for that string and Everything will show you all the files and folders that contain it.

Wildcards like asterisks are very useful in fuzzy searches: typing something like *video*project* It will return any file whose name includes those two words in any position. This is very helpful when the name is long or not very descriptive.

For those who need to fine-tune things, Everything supports filters and advanced syntaxA classic example is the command dm:todayThis feature lets you display only the files whose modification date is today. It's ideal for finding what you've recently been working on without having to remember file paths.

The list of advanced filters is quite extensive (by type, date, size, etc.), and you can consult it in Help or access the Advanced search From the Search menu. There you can build complex queries without memorizing all the expressions.

Sort and manipulate search results

Everything that appears in the Everything results list can sort by the column of your choiceIf, for example, you are looking for a set of files and you are interested in seeing the most recent ones, you just have to click on "Date modified" to reorder the list.

A second click on the header of the same column reverses the ordermoving from ascending to descending or vice versa. This way you can quickly switch from viewing "oldest first" to "newest first", depending on what interests you at any given time.

If you right-click on the table header you can activate or deactivate columns such as Path, Size, Creation Date, etc. This way you adapt the view to your needs: more minimalist if you only care about the name or more detailed if you want to thoroughly inspect the information.

To open a result, simply double-click it or select it and press Enter, but you can also drag and drop files directly into other programssuch as image editors, project managers, FTP clients, or browser upload forms.

The context menu that appears when you right-click on a result includes specific actions depending on the file type and very convenient shortcuts, such as opening the folder location, copying the path, renaming, etc. This significantly reduces the time you spend navigating with the traditional Explorer.

View recent changes in real time

Everything is also very useful for monitor files that are being created or modified in the systemFor example, if you want to see which documents have been edited today, you can use the filter. dm:today to focus only on that day.

Once you have the filtered results, you can do Right-click on an empty space in the list, select “Sort by > Date modified” And that way you'll see how Everything updates the changes in real time. Files that are modified will appear or change position in that list.

This feature is especially interesting for track active work folders, monitor downloads, or see what files a specific application generates while it is running.

Export results to CSV, TXT or EFU

Another interesting feature of Everything is the ability to Export the results list to CSV, TXT, or EFU files.This is very useful when you need to document what files are in a folder, share a list with someone else, or process that information in another tool.

To do this, you just have to go to Go to the File menu and choose “Export…”Next, select your preferred format (for example, CSV to open it in Excel) and the location where you want to save the file. Everything visible in the list will be included in the export.

Predefined filters and filter bar

Everything's filters are preconfigured searches that can be activated with one clickFor example, you can have filters to show only audio files, only video, only images, etc., without having to write advanced expressions each time.

From the In the Search menu, you can select the filter that interests you. and will be applied immediately to the results list. The active filter is indicated in the status bar, and double-clicking its name will instantly deactivate it.

If you want to keep the filters always visible, you can Activate the filter bar from the View menuThis adds an area to the window from which you can quickly switch between filters without going into menus.

In addition, Everything allows customize and create new filterstailored to your specific needs (for example, "work projects", "temporary files", "backups", etc.). All of this is managed through the advanced filter options.

Bookmarks: Save custom searches and views

Everything's markers function as search favoritesThey allow you to save not only the search text, but also the activated filter, the sorting type, and the index used, so that you can return to that view exactly as it was.

This comes in handy when you have very specific recurring searches, such as a project folder with certain extensions, recent files in a specific path, or work lists that you consult several times a day.

Once you save a bookmark, you can return to it at any time from the Bookmarks menuwithout needing to manually rebuild the query. It's a very powerful tool for creating custom work "panels" within Everything.

Remote access: HTTP server and ETP server

Everything goes a step further, allowing that launch a small web server from your own PCUsing the HTTP server function, you can access the file index from your mobile phone or other devices, simply by using a browser.

This means that, being on the same network, you can search and access your files from your phone without having to turn on the computer or even sit down in front of it. This is especially useful if you use your PC as a home document or multimedia server.

In addition to the HTTP server, Everything can also function as ETP (Everything Transfer Protocol) serverThis method is designed to allow access to the file index from another computer on the network using the Everything client itself.

In both cases, the configuration options allow Control access, shared folders, and securityso that only authorized people can view or download your files.

Customize fonts, colors, and file manager

Everything's appearance can be customized to your liking. From the options you can Modify the fonts and colors used in the results list, adjusting font size, font type and background or text tones.

If you want an even greater level of customization, you can edit the file Everything.iniThis is where many of the program's internal preferences are stored. This allows you to change virtually any aesthetic aspect if you know what you're doing.

Another interesting feature is that you can define an external file managerIn other words, instead of opening folders with the default Windows Explorer, you can configure Everything to use an alternative file manager (such as Total Commander, Directory Opus, etc.).

This way, when you open a route from Everything, your preferred external manager will be launched directly. better integrating the program into your regular workflow.

Indexes, file lists, and exclusions

The heart of Everything is its index systemIn addition to automatically including local NTFS volumes, you can add additional folders and file lists so that they too can be part of the search database.

File lists allow, for example, Create snapshots of the contents of a NAS, CD, DVD, or Blu-ray and add them to the index. This way, even if the device isn't connected, you can still search its file list as if it were.

To manage these lists there is a File list editor Accessible from the Tools menu. From there you can create, modify, and delete lists, as well as decide exactly what is included in each one.

It is also possible in the general options exclude folders or file types of the index. This prevents Everything from considering irrelevant paths (such as system temporary files) or extensions you don't want to see in searches.

Combining Everything with EverythingToolbar, filters, bookmarks, file lists, and shortcut customization, The way you search for and open files in Windows changes completelyYou go from wasting time navigating through folders to locating any resource in a matter of seconds, from the taskbar or from the program window, with a much more agile and organized workflow.