Result Filtering
Duplicate search report results can be filtered, so that you see only a specific set of duplicate files that match the specified filter text.
Once the duplicate search process completes (or results are imported), the Results Filtering section of the application ribbon bar (contained within the View tab) will become enabled.
To filter the on-screen duplicate results, type some text into the filter input box and press enter (or select a previously used entry, if applicable, using the adjacent drop arrow). The duplicate results report will be updated to show only entries that match the filter you entered.
By default, the filter text entered in the step above will be compared to the filenames of the duplicates in the search results report. But you can elect to filter by other duplicate file properties as well (such as folder, extension, owner, size, dates, etc.). Use the drop-down box adjacent to the filter input box to choose how filtering will be applied.
Whenever a results filter is active, a notification bar is displayed above the results report. It describes the current filter, shows how many of the total items remain visible, and provides a convenient Clear Filter button.
Text Filtering
By default, filtering matches any entry whose property value contains the filter text you entered. Matching is not case sensitive.
For more control, you can include wildcard characters in your filter text. When wildcards are present, the property value must match the full filter pattern:
- * - Matches any sequence of characters (including none).
- ? - Matches exactly one character.
For example, a filename filter of report*.xlsx matches files whose names begin with "report" and end with ".xlsx", while budget-200? matches "budget-2004" but not "budget-20040".
Range and Comparison Expressions
Properties that hold sizes, dates, or numbers can also be filtered using comparison and range expressions. An expression begins with a comparison operator, or consists of two values separated by two periods:
- >value - Matches entries greater than the specified value.
- >=value - Matches entries greater than or equal to the specified value.
- <value - Matches entries less than the specified value.
- <=value - Matches entries less than or equal to the specified value.
- =value - Matches entries equal to the specified value.
- low..high - Matches entries within the specified range (inclusive of both ends).
Expressions are supported when filtering by the following properties:
- Size properties - Size, allocated size, and group size. Values may include a unit suffix of B, KB, MB, GB, or TB (for example >100MB, <=1.5GB, or 1MB..5MB). Values without a suffix are interpreted as bytes.
- Date properties - Date created, date modified, and date accessed. Dates can be entered in international format (for example 2024-01-15) or in your Windows locale format. A date without a time component covers that entire day - for example, =2024-01-15 matches everything dated that day, >2024-01-15 matches everything dated after that day, and 2024-01-01..2024-06-30 matches the first half of 2024 inclusive.
- Numeric properties - Group, group count, track, year, duration (in seconds), and bitrate. For example, =3 shows only duplicate group 3, >2 shows groups containing more than two files, and 1995..1999 shows music from the late nineties.
Filter text that is not a comparison or range expression is treated as ordinary text filtering, even for the properties listed above. This means you can still type a fragment such as 1.5 MB to match the size column's displayed text.
If an expression cannot be understood (for example, >100XB), no results will match, and the filter notification bar will explain the problem along with example syntax for the selected property.
Filter Modes
Filtering offers two separate modes of operation, one that shows duplicate file group siblings and another that does not. Use the Filter Mode button to choose which mode you prefer.
Click the Clear button in the Results Filtering section of the application Ribbon Bar (in the View tab) to remove the currently applied filter.
Filtering and Marking
While a results filter is active, marking operations - including SmartMark and Mark All Files - apply only to the files currently visible in the report. Files hidden by the filter are never altered. This makes filtering a powerful way to scope marking operations: filter down to the files you care about, mark them, then clear the filter.
See also: