FindInside

FindInside is a free Windows tool for searching text in PDFs, Office documents, text files, source code, logs, configuration files, and many other formats. It displays matching files along with a built-in text preview that shows the exact location of the searched phrase.

The program is particularly useful in cases where the standard Windows search cannot find text hidden within mixed document collections. Once a match is found, FindInside displays the contents of the extracted document in the integrated text preview pane and automatically highlights the search phrase, so the user immediately understands why the file was included in the results. The Previous and Next Match buttons make it easy to navigate through repeated occurrences in the preview.

FindInside also includes handy filters to narrow down your search: file name masks, date range filtering by access/creation/modification dates, file size limits, recursive folder searches, and the option to include hidden files. Users can select one or more folders from the tree view, start a search, stop it if necessary, and view the matching files in a clear list of results.