How to Search for Files in Ubuntu Using Terminal: A Simple Guide

How to Search for Files in Ubuntu Using Terminal: Using the terminal in Ubuntu can feel a bit difficult when you use it for the first time, especially when it comes to searching for files. But don’t worry, Once you get the hang of it, you’ll see how easy and powerful the terminal can be for finding what you need quickly. Let’s learn step by step, and by the end, you’ll feel confident using the terminal to search for files in Ubuntu.

So are you ready now?

Why Use the Terminal to Search for Files?

You might be wondering, “Why not just use the file explorer?” Well, the terminal is often faster, especially when you’re dealing with lots of files or you want to search in specific folders. It’s also more flexible, you can customize your searches in ways that the file explorer doesn’t allow.

Ready to get started? Let’s dive in.

Step 1: Open the Terminal

The first thing you need to do is open the terminal. Here’s how you can do it:

• Press Ctrl + Alt + T on your keyboard.
• Or, click on the “Show Applications” button (bottom-left corner of your screen) and type “Terminal” in the search bar. Click on the terminal icon when it appears.

See? That was easy.

Step 2: Using the find Command

The main command we’ll use to search for files in Ubuntu is called find. This command is like a detective, it searches through directories (folders) to find what you’re looking for.

Here’s a basic example of how to use it:

find /path/to/search -name "filename"

Let’s break that down:

• find is the command that tells Ubuntu you want to search for something.
• /path/to/search is where you want to look. You can search your whole computer by using / or just one folder (like your home folder) by using /home/username.
• -name tells find you’re looking for a specific file name.
• "filename" is the name of the file you want to find.

Example:

Let’s say you’re looking for a file called notes.txt in your home folder. Here’s how you’d do it:

find /home/username -name "notes.txt"

If the file is there, the terminal will show you the path where it’s located. If not, don’t worry; there are other ways to refine your search.

Step 3: Making Your Search Case-Insensitive

By default, the find command is case-sensitive. This means if you search for notes.txt, it won’t find Notes.txt or NOTES.TXT. To make your search case-insensitive, you can use the -iname option instead of -name.

Here’s an example:

find /home/username -iname "notes.txt"

Now, whether the file is called notes.txt, Notes.txt, or anything similar, it’ll be found.

Step 4: Searching for Files by Type

What if you’re not looking for a specific file but instead want to find all the text files in a folder? You can use the -type option with find to search by file type.

Here’s an example:

find /home/username -type f -name "*.txt"

This will find all .txt files in your home folder. Let’s break it down:

• -type f tells find you’re looking for files (not folders).
• -name "*.txt" tells it to look for any file that ends with .txt.

Step 5: Searching for Files in Subdirectories

By default, find searches in all subdirectories (folders within folders). But sometimes, you might only want to search in one folder without going deeper. You can use the -maxdepth option to control how deep the search goes.

Example:

find /home/username -maxdepth 1 -name "*.txt"

This will only search the top level of your home folder for .txt files, ignoring any subdirectories.

Step 6: Searching by File Size

Another powerful feature of find is searching by file size. Let’s say you want to find all files larger than 1MB. Here’s how:

find /home/username -size +1M

• -size +1M tells find to look for files larger than 1 megabyte.

If you want files smaller than 1MB, use -size -1M.

Step 7: Using the locate Command (An Alternative)

If the find command feels a bit slow or complex, Ubuntu also has a faster command called locate. It’s quicker because it searches a database of files instead of going through your system in real-time. Here’s how to use it:

locate filename

For example:

locate notes.txt

The only catch is that the database needs to be updated regularly. You can update it by running:

sudo updatedb

Now, locate will be even faster at finding your files.

Quick Tips:

• Double-check your path: Make sure you’re searching in the right folder. If you’re not sure, you can always start with / to search your entire system, but this might take longer.
• Use wildcards: Don’t remember the full name of the file? Use * as a wildcard. For example, find /home/username -name "*.docx" will find all Word documents.
• Don’t forget permissions: Sometimes, the terminal won’t show you files because you don’t have permission to access them. You can use sudo before the command to search with administrator privileges.

FAQs

Conclusion

Searching for files in Ubuntu using the terminal might seem a bit tricky at first, but with a few basic commands, it becomes a powerful tool. Whether you’re looking for a specific file or searching by type or size, the terminal has you covered. Give it a try, you’ll be surprised how much easier it can be than clicking through folders!