Windows will always index everything that is stored in any location on your computer system. This process will help you quickly find any files or applications via the Windows Search box or the Cortana box. But in case you want to stop some files or applications from displaying in the search result whenever you conduct a search you will need to change the indexing options. It’s a very simple step and in this guide, I will show you how to hide Folders and Files from Search Results in Windows. You can also check How to hide or stop Apps such as OneDrive from opening automatically upon login on Macbook Pro, How to Hide or Remove the Search Button from Windows 10 Taskbar and How to run apps as an administrator on Windows 10 and Windows 11 and How to Hide or Remove the Search Button from Windows 11 Taskbar
1. Open ControlPanel and Index
Open the Control Panel and in the view at the top right select Large icons and then click Indexing Options. Please see how DNS uses TCP and UDP, and how to Set Up and Use ChatGPT in Linux Terminal.
2. Modify the Index
The Indexing Options will list locations that you can include or exclude from being indexed. To hide any files and folders from Windows Search or Cortana click the Modify button.
3. Changing Selected Locations
Navigate to the folder you want to hide and uncheck it and click OK. Any folder on the tree unchecked will be hidden and will not be indexed during a search.
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When you want to hide certain file types from being indexed during search then click on the Advanced button.
5. Changing the File Types
Click the File Types tab and check the file type you do not want Windows to index during the search then uncheck it and click OK. You can also select how you want the file to be indexed whether Index Properties Only or Index Properties and File Contents.
6. Rebuilding the Index
Click on the Index Settings tab and click Rebuild. This will help override/delete previous settings and rebuild the current settings.
After configuring these settings then you will start seeing the folders/files you chose to unhide in the search results while those hidden will not be displayed during the search.
I hope you found this blog post on How to hide Folders and Files from Search Results in Windows Interesting and helpful. In case you have any questions do not hesitate to ask in the comment section.