Indexing network share locations

[ktulu05]

Hi,

I am running Win7 64-bit on my main PC. I also have a fileserver running Fedora 9/Samba that houses all our documents, video, music, and pictures. I have mapped network drives to these locations. I have no issues at all accessing the remote shares, either through UNC path, or through the networked drives.

When I go to the indexing configuration, the mapped drives do not appear as a target to pick for indexing. Also, I can't add these folders to the respective library folders, because I get an error indicating that the location is not indexed. So I'm hoping that if I can index these locations, I can then add them to my library.

Thoughts?
-Kevin

 

[limneos]

Hello Ktulu05

To index a network folder or drive, you must right-click on it first and select "Always Available offline".

Then it can be indexed, and added to libraries as well.

Simply right-click a folder, click "always available offline" and after sync finishes (or meanwhile) you can add it to the Libraries, no need to tamper with indexing options.

Hope it helps

 

[Barman58]

Hi ktulu05, and welcome to the Seven Forums,

The way I understand things with the library in the Beta of Windows 7 at present only those files indexed with MS's Search 4.0 will show as "indexed". This is available for XP, Vista, and Server 2003. I am certain that as windows 7 approaches release other systems will provide the correct indexing, but at the moment I am unaware of a workaround, (of course if anyone does know please post back)

 

[limneos]

Hello Ktulu05

To index a network folder or drive, you must right-click on it first and select "Always Available offline".

Then it can be indexed, and added to libraries as well.

Simply right-click a folder, click "always available offline" and after sync finishes (or meanwhile) you can add it to the Libraries, no need to tamper with indexing options.

Hope it helps

Hmm...then again, you might not want to synchronize the whole contents of your network files , otherwise you could just copy them locally

Another workaround is to simply index the network files...To do that, I found there's a patch that M$ has released for Windows Vista that does this and works for Windows 7 too.

However, I even found another easier how-to:

To add a non-indexed UNC as a library to Windows 7 Beta:

1. Create a folder on your hard drive for shares. i.e. c:\share
2. Create another folder in the above share. i.e. c:\share\music
2. Link the Library to this folder.
3. Delete the folder.
4. Use the mklink in an elevated command prompt to make a symbolic link. Name the link the same as the folder you created above.
i.e - mklink /d c:\share\music \\server\music
5. Done. Now you have non-indexed UNC path as a library.

Hope it helps even better

 

[ktulu05]

Hmm...then again, you might now want to synchronize the whole contents of your network files , otherwise you could just copy them locally

Another workaround is to simply index the network files...To do that, I found there's a patch that M$ has released for Windows Vista that does this and works for Windows 7 too.

However, I even found another easier how-to:

To add a non-indexed UNC as a library to Windows 7 Beta:



Hope it helps even better

I found the UNC patch that is supposed to allow indexing to extend to UNC paths, installed it, and rebooted. The indexing options module in the Control Panel doesn't show any new options. I'll try the symbolic link suggestion mentioned.

Thanks,
Kevin

 

[edform]

Limneos posted a solution...

1. Create a folder on your hard drive for shares. i.e. c:\share
2. Create another folder in the above share. i.e. c:\share\music
2. Link the Library to this folder.
3. Delete the folder.
4. Use the mklink in an elevated command prompt to make a symbolic link. Name the link the same as the folder you created above.
i.e - mklink /d c:\share\music \\[URL="http://www.sevenforums.com/#"]server\music[/URL]
5. Done. Now you have non-indexed UNC path as a library.
​

... and it works, but there are problems. Try double clicking on a phto stored in Pictures behind one of these symlinks and it will open in Windows Photo Viewer. Then click the print button. You'll get the message: 'Windows cannot find this picture. Check the location, and then try again.'

Copying the picture to the desktop, and repeating the print works normally.

 

[zigzag3143]

Edform

Hi and welcome to sevenforums

Limneos post is two away in the same thread. Did you miss that? btw you clipped the color tags as well. If you want you can go and edit the post. Just a heads up

Again welcome to SF

Ken

 

[edform]

Edform

Hi and welcome to sevenforums

Limneos post is two away in the same thread. Did you miss that? btw you clipped the color tags as well. If you want you can go and edit the post. Just a heads up

Again welcome to SF

Ken

I'm not sure why you told me these things; I quoted the Limneos post!

I tried to use the quote button but it didn't include the quote that Limneos gave, and that was what I wanted to comment on, so I just used cut and paste and trimmed out the HTML.

I've just realised that my post didn't give the right information, so I'd better explain again.

If you use the method Limneos posted to link a photos folder on a Samba share to a Windows 7 library, in a situation where your photos folder is actually inside an already linked documents folder, the Windows 7 photo viewer software displays photos, but can't print them.

If you move your photos folder so that it is not contained within your documents folder, the Windows 7 photo viewer can print photos perfectly.

So I suppose the rule is, don't use the symlinks process to link a folder within an already linked folder or you will have problems.

 

[StuBarrett]

limneos,

while the mklink technique does appear to work, the folder contents appears to not be indexed so that it can be found using W7 search.

The library does show the content on the network folder but I can't find any of that content using W7 search.

Has search actually been tried, or did the "we linked a network folder into a library" is all that was tested?

I have terabytes of content on my RAID boxes that I need to search. This was possible using XP and Windows Search 4.0. Heck, I would just like a version of WS4 that would run on my W7-64 box!

Stu

 

[deejay22]

Hi, I could not get the mklink to work. What could I be doing wrong? Does it matter that I put a mapped drive in front of \\ of the second bit? If it's a sub directory must I create and delete folders to the same level?

Thanks

 

[StuBarrett]

Deejay, the mechanism uses window's UNC format.

Check out this: How to connect to network resources in Windows XP without mapping a drive or a port

Good luck, I just wish that something could be done to allow W7 to support search at least as well as XP does :-(

 

[edform]

limneos,

while the mklink technique does appear to work, the folder contents appears to not be indexed so that it can be found using W7 search.

The library does show the content on the network folder but I can't find any of that content using W7 search.

Has search actually been tried, or did the "we linked a network folder into a library" is all that was tested?

I have terabytes of content on my RAID boxes that I need to search. This was possible using XP and Windows Search 4.0. Heck, I would just like a version of WS4 that would run on my W7-64 box!

Stu

You're right that the content of folders tricked into libraries using the mlink technique is not indexed. I get round this by using a third party indexing program anyway. I suppose the indexing system Microsoft has built into Win7 may be an improvement on previous versions which have been all but useless, but I want to use Win7 desktops outside of the Microsoft server regime and the built in indexing system is never going to index foreign servers anyway.

I've used several indexing systems over the last few years and the best three are X1 search, Isys Search and Copernic - X1 is probably the best of the lot. None of these tools is free, but they all work beautifully and don't care where or how the files are stored.

Ed Form

 

[faxedhead]

A much easier way to add un-indexed network locations to Windows 7 libraries is to use this free tool:

Win7 Library Tool Zorn Software

 

[baten]

Win7 network indexing

I had the same problem - the answer is to add the network location in Media Center as a library and it will be indexed. It still doesn't show in the Control Panel Indexed locations but it allows networked loactions to be used for Task Bar Pictures/Music/Documents etc

 

[vinzzz]

I had the same problem - the answer is to add the network location in Media Center as a library and it will be indexed. It still doesn't show in the Control Panel Indexed locations but it allows networked loactions to be used for Task Bar Pictures/Music/Documents etc

Could you explain how you did this? Are you able to open up Windows Explorer and search for meta data (lets say a picture label) that is on a network share?

 

[Evil Turnip]

Hi,

Has anyone tried that Zorn Software Util ..cos I have one question...

So if I add my network drives to the library and re build the index my windows search should (when index is complete) find any document I search for on my network drives in my domain..

The folders on these drives which I have added to my lib aint that big ... so Im hoping this works if so its a cracking util and been able to search network drives would be very very handy...

Cheers
ET

It doesnt work so now installed Search 4.0 on the server to see if that will help !

 

[craigman86]

Index and Search Network Files and Folders

== This is how to search network files and index network files without having to store a copy on your own dam computer. ==

So after a long hard search i have found the answer to my own problem. (putting up with this for 3 months)

This patch allows you to add network files to the index without having to make them "always available offline".

It will add a tab in the Indexing Options menu called "Add UNC Location" this is where you add the path of the network folder.



UNCFATPHInstaller.msi

Download details: Windows Desktop Search: Add-in for Files on Microsoft Networks



always available offline is not a real solution for network storage, you can't make 2TB available offline if you have a 200GB hard drive

 

[vinzzz]

Does this really work? Cause this solutions is mentioned all over the internet. It only add's the ability to add those shares. But are they really indexed? Can you confirm that?

 

[StuBarrett]

Bummer it appears that this approach is not for W7 nor 64bit

 

[Tulsaboyw]

not to sure.

Hello Ktulu05

To index a network folder or drive, you must right-click on it first and select "Always Available offline".

Then it can be indexed, and added to libraries as well.

Simply right-click a folder, click "always available offline" and after sync finishes (or meanwhile) you can add it to the Libraries, no need to tamper with indexing options.

Hope it helps

Hmm...then again, you might not want to synchronize the whole contents of your network files , otherwise you could just copy them locally

Another workaround is to simply index the network files...To do that, I found there's a patch that M$ has released for Windows Vista that does this and works for Windows 7 too.

However, I even found another easier how-to:

To add a non-indexed UNC as a library to Windows 7 Beta:

1. Create a folder on your hard drive for shares. i.e. c:\share
2. Create another folder in the above share. i.e. c:\share\music
2. Link the Library to this folder.
3. Delete the folder.
4. Use the mklink in an elevated command prompt to make a symbolic link. Name the link the same as the folder you created above.
i.e - mklink /d c:\share\music \\server\music
5. Done. Now you have non-indexed UNC path as a library.

Hope it helps even better

doing the mklink as described... I get litterally a C:share folder that is not what I would want.

I still want a real share on the network... anything else makes libraries a waste of time..

Hopefully will read more on this site and find the answer.