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ES Command-Line Interface for Everything

repository·main·Indexed 42 days ago

https://github.com/voidtools/es

A command-line interface for the Everything search engine that enables high-speed file searches, file system change monitoring via a journal (requires Everything 1.5), and result exports in formats including CSV, JSON, TSV, and TXT.

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What's inside ES CLI

  2. Basic Usage of ES CLI

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    The basic syntax for the ES command line interface is:

    es.exe [options] search text

    Example: Searching for all files with .exe or .ini extensions: es everything ext:exe;ini

    es everything ext:exe;ini

  3. Install ES CLI

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    To use es.exe from any directory in Command Prompt or PowerShell, extract the executable to the following location which is included in the Windows PATH environment variable:

    %LOCALAPPDATA%\Microsoft\WindowsApps

    es.exe

  4. General Options Reference

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    Commonly used utility flags:

    • -h, -help: Display help.
    • -instance <name>: Connect to a specific Everything instance.
    • -ipc1, -ipc2: Use IPC version 1 or 2.
    • -timeout <milliseconds>: Wait time for database load before querying.
    • -get-result-count: Display the result count.
    • -get-total-size: Display the total result size.
    • -reindex: Force Everything to reindex.
    • -exit: Exit Everything.

  5. Export Options

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    Export search results to specific file formats:

    • -export-csv <out.csv>
    • -export-efu <out.efu>
    • -export-json <out.json>
    • -export-m3u <out.m3u>
    • -export-m3u8 <out.m3u8>
    • -export-tsv <out.txt>
    • -export-txt <out.txt>

    Additional flags:

    • -no-header: Do not output a column header (for CSV, EFU, TSV).
    • -utf8-bom: Store a UTF-8 byte order mark at the start of the file.

  6. Search Options Reference

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    Use these flags to modify how the search is performed:

    | Flag | Description | | :--- | :| | -r, -regex | Search using regular expressions | | -i, -case | Match case | | -w, -ww, -whole-word, -whole-words | Match whole words | | -p, -match-path | Match full path and file name | | -a, -diacritics | Match diacritical marks | | -o <offset>, -offset <offset> | Show results starting from offset | | -n <num>, -max-results <num> | Limit the number of results shown to <num> | | -path <path> | Search for subfolders and files in path | | -parent-path <path> | Search for subfolders and files in the parent of path | | -parent <path> | Search for files with the specified parent path | | /ad | Folders only | | /a-d | Files only | | /a[RHSDAVNTPLCOIE] | DIR style attributes search (e.g., H for Hidden, S for System, D for Directory). Prefix a flag with - to exclude. |

    -r, -regex
-i, -case
-w, -ww, -whole-word, -whole-words
-p, -match-path
-a, -diacritics
-o <offset>, -offset <offset>
-n <num>, -max-results <num>
-path <path>
-parent-path <path>
-parent <path>
/ad
/a-d
/a[RHSDAVNTPLCOIE]

  7. Sort Options Reference

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    Control the order of search results using these flags:

    | Flag | Description | | :--- |:| | -s | Sort by full path | | -sort <name[-ascending|-descending]> | Set sort by name, path, size, extension, date-created, date-modified, date-accessed, attributes, file-list-file-name, run-count, date-recently-changed, or date-run | | -sort-ascending, -sort-descending | Set sort order | | /on, /o-n, /os, /o-s, /oe, /o-e, /od, /o-d | DIR style sorts (N=Name, S=Size, E=Extension, D=Date modified). Use - prefix for descending. |

    -s
-sort <name[-ascending|-descending]>
-sort-ascending
-sort-descending
/on, /o-n, /os, /o-s, /oe, /o-e, /od, /o-d

  8. Display and Formatting Options

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    Customize the output columns, format, and appearance:

    Columns:

    • -name, -path-column, -full-path-and-name, -extension, -size, -date-created, -date-modified, -date-accessed, -attributes, -file-list-file-name, -run-count, -date-run, -date-recently-changed

    Formats:

    • -csv, -efu, -json, -m3u, -m3u8, -tsv, -txt

    Other:

    • -highlight: Highlight results.
    • -highlight-color <color>: Set color (0x00-0xFF).
    • -size-format <format>: 0=auto, 1=Bytes, 2=KB, 3=MB.
    • -date-format <format>: 0=auto, 1=ISO-8601, 2=FILETIME, 3=ISO-8601(UTC).

  9. ES CLI Error Codes

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    The following return codes are used by es.exe:

    | Code | Description | | :--- |:| | 0 | No known error, search successful | | 1 | Failed to register window class | | 2 | Failed to create listening window | | 3 | Out of memory | | 4 | Expected an additional command line option | | 5 | Failed to create export output file | | 6 | Unknown switch | | 7 | Failed to send Everything IPC a query | | 8 | No Everything IPC window (ensure client is running) | | 9 | No results found (when used with -no-result-error) |

  10. Journal Options (Requires Everything 1.5)

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    Monitor index journal changes using these flags. Wildcards are supported in the filename-filter. Both the filename before and after the change are searched. Use \ to match full paths.

    • -journal [filename-filter], -j [filename-filter]: Show index journal changes.
    • -get-journal-id: Return current journal ID.
    • -get-journal-pos: Return current journal ID and next change ID.
    • -action-filter <actions>: Filter by actions (e.g., file-create;file-delete).
    • -watch: Return when a matching journal change is found.
    • -from-date <date>: Show changes starting from ISO-8601 date.
    • -changed-today: Show changes from start of today until start of tomorrow.