Instant filename search
Across all drives or one folder, with ready-made filters: documents, pictures, audio, video, archives, programs, folders. Often-opened files come first.
Free · Open source · For Windows
Fast file search for Windows, in Arabic and English
Find any file on Windows as you type, even inside documents. InstaFind indexes all your drives once and shows results while you type, even with millions of files. And it understands Arabic the way people actually type it.
Version 0.7.0 · a single bahth.exe, nothing to install · Windows 10 or 11 (64-bit, ARM64 and 32-bit) · MIT license
Everything you need to find your files
A file search tool for Windows written in Rust. The index keeps itself current as files are added, deleted or renamed.
Inside documents
PDF, Word, Excel, PowerPoint, e-mail and epub, with a snippet of the matching text. Images and archives too.
Rich query syntax
Phrases, OR, NOT, extensions, size, date modified, regex, whole word and word proximity, e.g. ext:pdf size:>10mb dm:thismonth.
From anywhere
Ctrl+Alt+F shows the app from anywhere; Ctrl+Alt+G in any program's Save or Open dialog jumps the dialog to the folder of a result.
Handy tools
Duplicate finder, folder sizes, thumbnail view, find & replace in text files with undo, CSV export, drag & drop into WhatsApp or mail, a command line and a Flow Launcher plugin.
English or Arabic interface
Follows the Windows display language; switch any time in Options → Language / اللغة. Starts with Windows in the background and updates itself with one click.
Arabic file search that understands how people type
Hamza forms, ta marbuta, alef maqsura, diacritics, tatweel and the ال prefix are ignored; Arabic-Indic digits and Persian letters are accepted. When nothing matches, it retries with the other keyboard layout, then Arabizi, then near spellings.
- احمد→أحمدHamza forms don't matter
- التقرير→تقرير.pdfThe ال prefix doesn't block a match
- hgjrvdv→التقريرTyped on the wrong keyboard layout? Still found
- 3abd→عبدArabizi (Franco-Arabic) is read as Arabic
- fuzzy: reprot→reportTolerates one or two typos
- root: كتاب→مكتبة، الكاتب، كتاباتWords sharing the Arabic root
Search inside PDF, Word and more
Tick Also search inside documents and press Enter: every file that contains your words is listed with a snippet of the matching text. Size and date filters work here too.
- docx
- doc
- xlsx
- xls
- pptx
- odt
- ods
- rtf
- txt
- csv
- eml
- msg
- epub
- zip
- 7z
- tar
- tar.gz
- Persistent content index: each document's text is extracted once in the background, so later content searches are near-instant.
- Images and scanned PDFs through the OCR engine built into Windows, with no download.
- Archives are read in memory without extracting, with zip-bomb limits.
- Reversed Arabic text in PDFs is repaired, and F4 lists all matches in a file with line numbers.
Speed comparison
Every release is run on real Windows before it is published: it indexes the whole drive and searches in Arabic, and it is not released if anything fails.
| Search | InstaFind | dir /s | Get-ChildItem |
|---|---|---|---|
report | 1 s | 73–108 s | 29–51 s |
احمد (files named أحمد) | 1 s, finds both | 19–33 s, finds none | 29–50 s, finds none |
The second includes starting the command-line tool and loading the index from disk. In the open window, results appear as you type, in milliseconds. Raw results
Your files stay on your PC
InstaFind works offline. The index and every search live on your computer; nothing is uploaded anywhere.
- The only internet connection is the daily update check against GitHub.
- Search from your phone over the home network is off by default; when on, it is PIN-protected and read-only.
- No telemetry. Feedback and crash reports are optional and reach GitHub only when you press Submit yourself.
- Open source under the MIT license: anyone can read the code on GitHub.
- Its data lives in
%LOCALAPPDATA%\BahthSari\and can be deleted at any time.
Download and install
Pick whichever way suits you. The current version is 0.7.0.
Direct download Recommended
A single file; nothing to install. Put it in a permanent folder, for example %LOCALAPPDATA%\Programs\Bahth\, and run it.
For most PCs (64-bit). Other PCs: ARM64 (e.g. Snapdragon) · 32-bit
With Scoop
If you use the Scoop package manager:
scoop bucket add instafind https://github.com/sarmadiq9090-coder/arabic-file-search
scoop install instafindWith winget Coming soon
Coming soon to the official winget repository:
winget install InstaFindThe first run indexes your drives in the background (a minute or more, depending on the number of files); after that the app opens instantly. If SmartScreen warns because the file is not code-signed: More info → Run anyway. Updates are automatic from then on.
Frequently asked questions
Is InstaFind free?
Yes. It is free and open source under the MIT license.
Can it search inside PDF and Word files?
Yes. Tick Also search inside documents and press Enter. It reads docx, xlsx, xls, pptx, pdf, odt, ods, rtf, doc, txt, csv, e-mail (eml, msg), epub and source code, and repairs reversed Arabic text in PDFs. Images and scanned PDFs are read with the OCR engine built into Windows 10 and 11.
Is it an alternative to Everything?
If you want instant filename search across all drives, like Everything, plus real Arabic matching and search inside documents, that is what InstaFind is built for.
Does it need an internet connection?
No. Indexing and search run on your PC. The only connection is the update check against GitHub.
What are the requirements?
Windows 10 or 11, 64-bit. Text recognition in images needs the Windows language pack for each OCR language.
Why does SmartScreen warn me?
Because the file is not code-signed. Click More info, then Run anyway. All the source code is on GitHub.
How do I uninstall it?
Turn off Start with Windows in Options…, then delete bahth.exe and the %LOCALAPPDATA%\BahthSari\ folder.
Try it now, for free
One file, nothing to install, and it finds any file as you type.