Find Any File
2.0Search your disks for files using various criteria.
Overview
Find Any File searches your local and network disks for files by name, creation or modification date, size or kind.
As there are other tools with a similar search operation, here are the special features unique to Find Any File:
- Has a new hierarchical view of the found items, making it much easier to browse 100s of items (see the screenshot).
- Can run as root user, finding really any file on your disk, even those that are hidden from normal users.
- Can save queries and run them again later.
Unlike Spotlight (i.e., the Finder's Find command), it does not access a pre-built database but searches the chosen volume directly. This allows you to find any file, even those inside packages and others excluded from Spotlight search. Hence it is great for finding system files, for example.
On the other hand, it may take a little longer than Spotlight, and it is only fast on HFS(+) volumes. But even on mounted network volumes of a Mac OS X server it can still be surprisingly fast.
Hence, this is not an entire replacement for Spotlight but it can come handy in certain, if not many, situations.
What's new in Find Any File
- Is now a 64 bit application, ready for macOS 10.15 Catalina.
- Rewritten from scratch for better overall performance.
- Can now show results as soon as they're found.
- New search rule for "Kind", i.e. to find images, audio, video or plain text files.
- Can now search with regex (regular expressions).
Find Any File Screenshots
- Intel 64
- OS X 10.11.0 or later
Install with MacUpdateDownloaded & Installed 146,162 times
161 Find Any File Reviews
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Howevver, in all of my about 10 tests in which I ran EasyFind and Find Any File next to each other both applications finished almost simultaneously, being not even a second apart.
And, guess what - Easyfind found in ALL searches exactly one file more than Find Any File. Why? Because Find Any File does not include the little "faf" files that it creates for each search in its results. I don't know about anybody else but in my book that clearly and indisputably means that it does not find "any" file, just "almost any" file.
One other thing: Although I had in my searches defined that I do NOT want to have package contents included in the results Find Any File showed them initially in its results, making me initially belief that it had indeed found more files than EasyFind. I actually would not rule out that the Find Any File maker wants this to happen so that his (not free) applications looks better than the (free) EasyFind.
Here some of my search terms: teamviewer, indesign, carbon, splashtop, lazy, solar, nzb, xls. All searches were done on a "Mac OS Extended (Journaled)" hard drive; I can not say how the applications compare on APFS drives.
Conclusion: The free utility EasyFind finds as many files as as the not so free utility Find Any File; both utilities search with the same speed.
My FAF/EF tests were made in Mojave, and if I remember correctly, High Sierra, and I went looking for an EF alternative only after I got tired of waiting for it to complete its interminable searches.
EF hasn't been updated since Mavericks (July 2014), doesn't promise 64 bit support as does FAF, and is like lightening on my APFS volume despite the dev's statement that " it is only fast on HFS(+) volumes".
In addition, I believe there has been a recent change in the OS that enables FAF to be faster than EF, and EF reviews other than mine mention the same slowness I've seen.
In which versions of macOS have you tested FAF?
Your one star review is out of order, because FAF is a 5 star app under any circumstances; a comment would have been appropriate.
On the other hand - who are you to decide for me for which files on my (!) hard drive "there's no need" to find them? And why do you think you can trash EasyFind (with your words and from your hard drive) while I should not give a one-star review for this application?
I don't question that Find Any File is faster than EasyFind on APFS drives but for me completeness is many times more important than speed, and in that category EasyFind is better than Find Any File.
My response to your comment about .faf files is a paraphrase of the developer's response when I questioned him about FAF not finding them while EF does; it's he who sees no need for FAF to find them.
If you've got a problem with that, I suggest that you email him and explain that it compromises the credibility of his app.
Oh, and you've overlooked telling us in which version of OS X/macOS you found FAF and EF to be equally fast. (If it was in the same versions in which I"ve found EF to be considerably slower than FAF I'd like to rerun my tests with your search terms.)
My trashing EF was in conjunction with giving it its own 2 star review, which it's new slowness and having fallen so far behind the times warrant.
On the other hand, though, while you're certainly entitled to hang your hat on your complaint, it's not a "1 star" deal breaker; 4 stars - i.e. "1 star off for not finding itself" - would have made your point.
"Alternative: Feel free to have a look at Thomas Tempelmann's Find Any File. In contrast to EasyFind you'll get a hierarchical result list, you can search as "root" user, search after date ranges and file sizes, and save searches and re-run them later."