Start menu search not searching .exe files

[trenzterra]

Is it just me or is this 'feature' gone in Windows 10? I used to be able to search .exe files quickly from the Windows 8.1 start menu. Now even if I pin exe files to Start, I can't use search to locate it.

[Anibal P]

Seems to be working for me, are you getting any errors?  What did you disable? 

[Syanide]

The new search is really weird, and it got broken for me twice in three days. Today I installed a new app, and couldn't find it in the start menu,

My suggestion is you make sure the locations are properly indexed (Indexing Options in Control Panel). Maybe rebuild the search index either way.

[Sean B. Veteran]

Look in the Indexing Options and ensure that .exe files are being indexed:

Control Panel -> Indexing Options -> Select drive the files are located -> Advanced -> File Types

If they are set to be indexed, I would rebuild recommend rebuilding as mentioned above.

[AeonicVision]

I had this problem as well after a clean install -- it simply wasn't finding any of my .exe files.

I did a second clean install to see if that would correct it to no avail, but the problem eventually went away after about a week.  I'm not sure if the fix came from a patch or just something hooking together.  I did not fiddle with any options.

[iron2000]

Been having this problem since Windows 8.
Windows 7 had the best search to me.

I think Windows 10 can only find programs that have a shortcut in the Start Menu.
Even if you have the whole Program Files folders indexed, it will not find any programs in there which has no shortcut in the Start Menu.
Even if you indexed some other folder with program shortcuts other than the Start Menu folder, it will not find those shortcuts.

Tried confirming the correct locations, and correct file types are in the index and rebuilding the index but it still don't find the files and shortcuts.
I think Windows Search has some undisclosed rules or something.

In the end I've been using Launchy since Windows 8 and now 10.

Edited August 14, 2015 by iron2000

[Sekyal]

I searched for programs and found them just fine, it doesn't show the exe extension but I know that's what it is. When I try searching for *.exe well then it is going to see a search box. I'm not sure why you are searching for exe, I've never done anything like that, but seems to work as intended.

[JaredFrost]

I had this problem as well after a clean install -- it simply wasn't finding any of my .exe files.

I did a second clean install to see if that would correct it to no avail, but the problem eventually went away after about a week.  I'm not sure if the fix came from a patch or just something hooking together.  I did not fiddle with any options.

Almost the same happened to me, I'd install programs but Start->typing the name didn't find it, I had to go to All Apps and click it, even stuff I pinned to the start menu it couldn't find, it would find the files
but not the shortcut to run it, I tried checking the index locations, rebuilding it countless times, I eventually gave up and it sorted itself out. (This was a clean installed)

[trenzterra]

Well it's been a week but it still hasn't gone away on its own

I am pretty sure my files are indexed. I can, for example, search for the file from File Explorer.

Putty as far as I know doesn't come in an installation file, and I use start menu search to find it. I've pinned it to the Start Menu but it doesn't work too.

[trenzterra]

Seems like I'm not the only one: http://answers.microsoft.com/en-us/windows/forum/windows_10-win_cortana/windows-10-search-does-not-index-exe-files/2b451f16-6a0e-49b4-a245-ebfeadf0d82e

[Aergan]

I've had similar. As a work around, it seems to cope better with shortcuts (.lnk) to your executables in the start menu directory than listing EXE's in your PATH.