[Did You Know] Windows 8 “Search Everywhere” Feature Still Works in Windows 10

When Microsoft released Windows 8 operating system, they introduced "Metro UI" (also known as Modern UI) features such as Charms Bar, Start Screen and other new features specially developed for touch-enabled devices.

Since Microsoft removed Start Menu from Windows 8 and replaced it with new Start Screen, they added "Search Everywhere" feature in Windows 8 which allowed users to search for files, etc using a sidebar. On Start Screen or other apps, users could directly access Search sidebar and search for desired things.

But in the latest Windows version i.e. Windows 10, Microsoft re-added Start Menu and introduced "Cortana" digital personal assistant which helps users in searching for stuff. Cortana search box can be found on Taskbar and you can also access it by typing in the Start Menu. The previous keyboard shortcuts WIN+S and WIN+Q to launch "Search Everywhere" feature in Windows 8 now launch Cortana search in Windows 10.

Many Windows 10 users still prefer Windows 8 style "Search Everywhere" sidebar. In fact, many Windows 10 users have disabled or uninstalled the Cortana app in their computers. If you uninstall Cortana, it also removes the "Search" functionality of Start Menu so you can't search for files/folder/apps after removing or disabling Cortana search.

Now there is a good news for Windows 10 users! Although Microsoft replaced Windows 8 style "Search Everywhere" feature with the new Cortana search in Windows 10, but the company kept files related to the "Search Everywhere" feature in Windows 10. So using a simple and easy trick you can bring back Windows 8 "Search Everywhere" feature in Windows 10.

If you are also using Windows 10 and want to enjoy Windows 8 "Search Everywhere" feature, following steps will help you in enabling "Search Everywhere" in Windows 10 operating system:

Actually the main DLL file related to "Search Everywhere" feature in Windows 8 wasWindows.UI.Search.dll present in C:\Windows\System32 folder. You can also find other resources related to "Search Everywhere" feature inC:\Windows\SystemResources\Windows.UI.Search folder. These files and folders are still present in Windows 10, so we can use Windows 8 "Search Everywhere" feature in Windows 10.

The actual command to launch "Search Everywhere" feature is as following:

%windir%\system32\rundll32.exe -sta {C90FB8CA-3295-4462-A721-2935E83694BA}

Try to launch the above command in RUN dialog box and it'll immediately activate "Search Everywhere" sidebar on right-side of the screen.

Now you can create a direct shortcut for the above mentioned command to launch "Search Everywhere" sidebar anytime you want and then you can pin the shortcut to Start Menu, Taskbar or put it on Desktop or Quick Launch toolbar for easy access.

1. Just right-click on Desktop and select "New -> Shortcut" option. It'll launch "Create Shortcut" wizard.

2. Now enter following string in location box:

%windir%\system32\rundll32.exe -sta {C90FB8CA-3295-4462-A721-2935E83694BA}

3. After entering the location, click on "Next" button. Now type Search or any other desired name in name box and click on "Finish" button.

It'll create the new shortcut on Desktop. You can change its icon using shortcut's properties. If you want, you can pin the shortcut to Taskbar or Start Menu for quick access.

PS: You can also find a ready-made shortcut of the "Search Everywhere" feature in following directory:

C:\ProgramData\Microsoft\Windows\Start Menu\Programs\

You'll find a shortcut "Search.lnk" in the above mentioned directory as shown in following screenshot:

If you open "Search" shortcut's properties, you'll find the above mentioned command in its Target field:

So either use the ready-made Search shortcut present in "C:\ProgramData\Microsoft\Windows\Start Menu\Programs\" folder to launch "Search Everywhere" sidebar in Windows 8 or Windows 10 or manually create a new shortcut using %windir%\system32\rundll32.exe -sta {C90FB8CA-3295-4462-A721-2935E83694BA} string and then put it on Desktop, Start Menu or Taskbar.

This trick to create direct shortcut for "Search Everywhere" feature will work in Windows 8, Windows 8.1, Windows 10 and all Windows 10 Insider Preview builds.