Microsoft is planning to release Windows Search 4.0 (KB940157) via Windows Update sometime in late July. Windows Search 4.0 updates previous versions of Search in Windows Vista SP1, Windows XP SP2 and Windows XP SP3, Windows Server 2003 SP2, Windows Server 2008, and Windows Home Server. Windows Vista users with SP1 installed will see the update as a Recommended update. This means that, if a Windows Vista user has set their machine to automatically install updates, Windows Search 4.0 will automatically install on PCs running Windows Vista SP1. The release of Windows Search 4.0 to Windows Update will be gradual for these users. If you’re running Windows Vista SP1, and you would like to install it right away, you can go to the Windows Update control panel and install it manually once it is made available.
Link: TechNetBlogs
You have to go to the SOURCE (i.e. NOT the blogspam) to get this info, http://support.microsoft.com/kb/940157
"Windows Search 4.0 includes the following improvements:
• Support for indexing encrypted documents of local file systems
• Reduced affect on Microsoft Exchange when you index e-mail in online mode, and there is no local cache (.ost)
• Support for indexing online delegate mailboxes
• Support for client-to-client remote query to shared indexed locations
• Improved indexing performance
• Faster previewer updates for Windows XP
• Per-user Group Policy settings
• Windows software updates for Watson errors
• Support for the following new enterprise Group Policy objects..."
yada yada yada for admins only.
IMPORTANT CAVEATS, from the article...
#1 "One thing you should note: In order to make search functionality more efficient and reliable, the Windows Search team updated the structure of the search index in this release. This requires re-indexing users� data. The re-indexing occurs in the background after the installation is completed and a reboot has been performed."
That's a pretty important caveat for those of us with a million+ files to index...ahem.
Also FTA, #2, "Windows Search will release most of the requested resources and slow down the indexing process as soon as it detects mouse or keyboard activity, or when another application requires computer resources."
Um, it does that now, albeit VERY poorly. Because the indexer NEVER stops (it just "slows down a little"), the current version of Search continues to ping your drive during any and all video games, etc. affecting frame rates, lag, smoothness of play, etc. etc. I hope there are improvements in the handling of this in the new v4.
In other words, YOUR STUPID DESKTOP SEARCH INDEXER NEEDS TO LEARN HOW TO FULLY AND COMPLETELY AND UTTERLY *PAUSE*, MICROSOFT, not just "slow down a little".
my two cents
please don't say bullsh1t
please don't say bullsh1t
Hello?! This is THE major complaint of Vista gamers (after driver based frame rates of last year). We have to disable to the Windows Search service for any competitive online play.
The search service DOES NOT STOP/PAUSE...it just slows down. It's lame and it's WELL documented.
So before you call BS on something, you might want to get your facts straight.
It does stop. It stops once it has finished indexing the contents of the folders you've selected. From then on, when you add files to an indexed folder, it quickly indexes the new files as they're added, and then stops again.
Last edited by jmc777 on 20 Jul 2008 - 15:13
It does stop. It stops once it has finished indexing the contents of the folders you've selected. From then on, when you add files to an indexed folder, it quickly indexes the new files as they're added, and then stops again.
But if you say, log off your main account (filled with Aero stuff, etc.) to say log on to a windows basic interface account for gaming, you'll see that it goes over some of the same territory, again and again, for many minutes.
Or if you reboot, restart, log off/on to the same account, etc.
Regardless, you keep saying "it stops when it finishes" and I keep saying "I needs to fully pause/stop when a full screen application runs". I am not saying you are incorrect. I'm saying it needs to be smarter to cover the situations GAMERS run into, etc. because sometimes Search NEVER seems to finish. And because it hits the hard drive in some retarded way, even those of us who game with Quad Cores with 4+ gb of RAM, etc. etc. have to manually STOP THE SEARCH SERVICE in order to get guaranteed frame rates for competitive online play.
You can keep saying it works just fine and dandy all you want. The rest of us are just going to keep running scripts to stop and start the service until Microsoft learns the difference between STOP/PAUSE and "activity reduced"...but still annoying as hell.
Seriously, I never have to "search" my hard drives with a search tool. I just browse my way there.
Also if you exclude all folders except the start menu shortcuts the "Start Search" becomes a nice way to start programs just by typing a few letters of the program name instead of "All Programs" -> Program folder(s) - > Program name. This will give you a small footprint on your drive (236 total items index for me).
Last edited by Doli on 19 Jul 2008 - 16:25
I index only about 700+ files. And yes, I could browse to the file using Windows explorer, but doing a search is much faster
Yes it's nice to organize your stuff in folders and so forth, but not everyone does.
Look for the 'Install it' link on the left.
I've never seen lagging due to the indexer because the indexer is never running on my machine, because I may create new documents or files once in a while, but most of the new files created (program files) aren't indexed.
Watch your task manager during this and see...
Then imagine trying to game during this crap.
And sometimes it just kinda randomly decides that this is the time, in the middle of your game, that it needs to go check to see if there are any journaling updates. Those hard drive hits gets you killed...online speaking.
All MS needed to do is have the stupid service/task run at IDLE priority. That is a proven method for dealing with this in MS own OS's for the past friggin umpteen years. Some wisenheimer at MS decided to "try something new and different", just because...and we get, the hardcore gamers, get stuck having to manually enable/disable their stupid service.
Ahem.
Commenting has either been disabled on this article or you are not logged in. Click here to login or register, its free!
Note: Anonymous commenting is disabled in order to keep the quality of responses to a high standard.