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December 19, 2023
Question

Does Adobe support Microsoft Windows 11 search indexing for PDF file contents (e.g., IFilter)?

  • December 19, 2023
  • 1 reply
  • 2755 views

Does Adobe provide support for the Microsoft Windows 11 search indexer to index file contents?

 

Background

Microsoft Windows 11 provides search indexing of file contents. This is typically referred to as full-text indexing. See "Search indexing in Windows 10: FAQ" for documentation on the feature. Note that Microsoft has not updated the documentation for Windows 11. The documentation link provided is the same as the "How does indexing affect searches?" link in the Windows 11 "Indexing Options" Control Panel dialog, indicating that Microsoft has failed to update their own documentation since Windows 10.

 

The Microsoft Windows 11, Indexing Options Control Panel, Advanced Options dialog, File Types tab, has an entry for the "pdf" Extension that defaults to "File Properties filter." When changing "How should this file be indexed?" to "Index Properties and File Contents" the "Filter Description" changes to "Plain Text Filer." This change is shown in the screenshot below.

 

 

Since PDF files are not text files, a "Plain Text Filter" would not be expected to generate a useful full-text/file contents index.

 

I expected an installation of Adobe Acrobat Pro or Adobe Acrobat Reader to provide a Filter Handler for the PDF file type. This would presumably implement the IFilter interface for Windows Search. However, with Adobe Acrobat Pro installed, there is still no capability for Windows Search to include the content of PDF files in the index.

 

Test System

Microsoft Windows 11 Pro 23H2. Adobe Acrobat Pro Continuous Release Version 2023.008.20421 64-bit.

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1 reply

JR Boulay
Community Expert
Community Expert
December 19, 2023

Mine is a different, default is "Reader Search Handler"

Microsoft Windows 11 Pro 22H2. Adobe Acrobat Pro Continuous Release Version 2023.008.20421 64-bit.

 

Acrobate du PDF, InDesigner et Photoshopographe