Windows 7 / Getting Started

Configuring Indexing of Encrypted Files Using Control Panel

To enable indexing of encrypted files using Indexing Options in Control Panel, follow these steps:

  1. Click Advanced to open the Advanced Options properties dialog box.
  2. Select the Index Encrypted Files check box.
  3. If the disk volume where the index resides is not yet protected by Windows BitLocker, the following warning dialog box is displayed:

    Index Encrypted Files
  4. Click Continue to enable the indexing of encrypted content on your computer.
  5. If you use a smart card to access encrypted files, a balloon notification appears above the notification area, indicating that EFS needs your smart card personal identification number (PIN). Clicking this notification opens a Windows Security dialog box in which you can type the PIN for your smart card.

Important Selecting or clearing the Index Encrypted Files check box rebuilds the index immediately. Depending on how many files you have, this can take up to several hours to complete, and searches might be incomplete while the index is being rebuilt.

Configuring Indexing of Encrypted Files Using Group Policy

To enable indexing of encrypted files using Group Policy, enable the following policy setting for targeted computers:

Computer Configuration\Policies\Administrative Templates\Windows Components\Search \Allow Indexing Of Encrypted Files

If you enable this policy setting, indexing disregards encryption flags (although access restrictions still apply) and attempts to decrypt and index the content. If you disable this setting, the Windows Search service (including third-party features) should not index encrypted items, such as files or e-mails, to avoid indexing encrypted stores.

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In this tutorial:

  1. Managing Search
  2. Search and Indexing Enhancements
  3. Search in Windows XP
  4. Search in Windows Vista
  5. Search in Windows 7
  6. Understanding the Windows Search Versions
  7. Search Versions Included in Windows 7 and Windows Vista
  8. Search Versions Included in Windows Server 2008
  9. Search Versions Available for Earlier Versions of Windows
  10. How Windows Search Works
  11. Understanding Search Engine Terminology
  12. Windows Search Engine Processes
  13. Enabling the Indexing Service
  14. Windows Search Engine Architecture
  15. Understanding the Catalog
  16. Default System Exclusion Rules
  17. Understanding the FANCI Attribute
  18. Default Indexing Scopes
  19. Initial Configuration
  20. Understanding the Indexing Process
  21. Modifying IFilter Behavior
  22. How Indexing Works
  23. Rebuilding the index
  24. Viewing Indexing Progress
  25. Understanding Remote Search
  26. Managing Indexin
  27. Configuring the Index
  28. Configuring the Index Location Using Group Policy
  29. Configuring Indexing Scopes and Exclusions Using Group Policy
  30. Configuring Offline Files Indexing
  31. Configuring Indexing of Encrypted Files
  32. Configuring Indexing of Encrypted Files Using Control Panel
  33. Configuring Indexing of Similar Words
  34. Configuring Indexing of Text in TIFF Image Documents
  35. Other Index Policy Settings
  36. Using Search
  37. Configuring Search Using Folder Options
  38. Configuring What to Search
  39. Configuring How To Search
  40. Using Start Menu Search
  41. Searching Libraries
  42. Advanced Query Syntax
  43. Using Federated Search
  44. Deploying Search Connectors
  45. Troubleshooting Search and Indexing Using the Built-in Troubleshooter