Flow.Launcher.Plugin.SearchZones

A plugin for Flow Launcher that lets you create custom search spaces — bundles of folder searches, plugin commands, quick links, and shell commands — all accessible under a single shortcut.

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Features

Entry Type	What it does
Folder	Searches files inside a directory (supports %ENV_VARS%, subdirectory toggle, exclude patterns, file-type filters)
Plugin Command	Launches a Flow Launcher action keyword (e.g. calc) or starts an installed program (.exe / .lnk)
Quick Command	Opens a URL in the browser or runs a shell command

Search backend: Uses Everything for instant results when available, falls back to Windows Search Index automatically.

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Installation

From Flow Launcher (recommended)

pm install SearchZones

Manual

1. Download the latest release .zip from Releases
2. Extract to %APPDATA%\FlowLauncher\Plugins\SearchZones
3. Restart Flow Launcher

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Usage

All commands use the sz action keyword:

sz <shortcut> <search term>

Examples

Command	What it does
sz fh react	Search for "react" in all folders configured under the fh search space
sz fh	Show quick commands, plugin commands, and folder summary for fh
sz	List all search spaces
sz add proj Projekte D:\Projects;D:\Work	Create a new search space
sz del proj	Delete a search space
sz edit proj	Edit a search space inline
sz settings everything <path>	Configure the Everything DLL path

Context Menu

Right-click a file result to:

• Open the file or folder
• Open the parent folder (with file selected)
• Copy the full path
• Copy the filename

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Settings UI

Open Flow Launcher Settings → Plugins → SearchZones to:

• Add/remove search spaces and entries via the expander UI
• Configure the Everything DLL path (auto-detected if Everything is installed)
• Browse for folders and programs
• Pick Flow Launcher keywords or installed programs from a filterable dropdown
• Export all search spaces to a JSON file
• Import search spaces from a JSON file (merge or replace)

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Everything Integration

SearchZones uses Everything for fast file searches when available:

• Auto-detection: The plugin automatically finds Everything64.dll from common install locations, the Windows Registry, or a running Everything process
• Manual configuration: Set the path via sz settings everything <path> or in the settings UI
• Fallback: If Everything is not available, the plugin transparently falls back to the Windows Search Index

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Default Search Spaces

On first run, the plugin seeds these search spaces:

Shortcut	Name	Folders
ds	Default Search	Downloads, Desktop, Documents, Pictures, Music, Videos
dl	Downloads	Downloads
doc	Documents	Documents
pic	Pictures	Pictures
desk	Desktop	Desktop

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JSON Import / Export

You can create or edit search spaces by importing a JSON file. The file must be an array of search space objects.

Minimal Example

[
  {
    "Name": "My Project",
    "Shortcut": "mp",
    "Description": "Project files and links",
    "SearchSubdirectories": true,
    "ExcludePatterns": ["node_modules", ".git"],
    "FileTypeFilter": [],
    "Entries": [
      {
        "Type": "Folder",
        "Value": "C:\\Projects\\my-project",
        "Label": "Project Root"
      },
      {
        "Type": "QuickCommand",
        "Value": "https://github.com/my/repo",
        "Label": "GitHub"
      },
      {
        "Type": "PluginCommand",
        "Value": "calc",
        "Label": "Calculator"
      }
    ]
  }
]

Full Example (multiple search spaces)

[
  {
    "Name": "University",
    "Shortcut": "uni",
    "Description": "Lectures, links, and tools",
    "SearchSubdirectories": true,
    "ExcludePatterns": [],
    "FileTypeFilter": [".pdf", ".docx", ".pptx"],
    "Entries": [
      {
        "Type": "Folder",
        "Value": "D:\\University\\Semester6",
        "Label": "Current Semester"
      },
      {
        "Type": "Folder",
        "Value": "%USERPROFILE%\\Documents\\Uni",
        "Label": "Uni Docs"
      },
      {
        "Type": "QuickCommand",
        "Value": "https://moodle.university.edu",
        "Label": "Moodle"
      },
      {
        "Type": "QuickCommand",
        "Value": "https://mail.university.edu",
        "Label": "Webmail"
      },
      {
        "Type": "PluginCommand",
        "Value": "C:\\Program Files\\Notepad++\\notepad++.exe",
        "Label": "Notepad++"
      }
    ]
  },
  {
    "Name": "Downloads",
    "Shortcut": "dl",
    "Description": "Downloads folder",
    "SearchSubdirectories": true,
    "ExcludePatterns": [],
    "FileTypeFilter": [],
    "Entries": [
      {
        "Type": "Folder",
        "Value": "%USERPROFILE%\\Downloads",
        "Label": "Downloads"
      }
    ]
  }
]

Field Reference

Search space fields:

Field	Type	Required	Description
Name	string	yes	Display name of the search space
Shortcut	string	yes	Keyword used after sz to activate the search space
Description	string	no	Optional description shown in settings
SearchSubdirectories	bool	no	Search subdirectories in folder entries (default: true)
ExcludePatterns	string[]	no	Patterns to exclude from folder search results
FileTypeFilter	string[]	no	File extensions to include (e.g. [".pdf", ".docx"]). Empty = all files

Entry fields:

Field	Type	Required	Description
Type	string	yes	"Folder", "PluginCommand", or "QuickCommand"
Value	string	yes	Path, URL, keyword, or command (see below)
Label	string	no	Display name. Falls back to Value if empty

Value by entry type:

Type	Value examples
Folder	"C:\\MyFiles", "%USERPROFILE%\\Documents"
PluginCommand	"calc" (FL keyword), "C:\\Program Files\\app.exe" (program path)
QuickCommand	"https://example.com" (URL), "ping google.com" (shell command)

Import Behavior

When importing, you can choose to:

• Merge — imported search spaces are added alongside existing ones
• Replace — all existing search spaces are removed and replaced with the imported ones

IDs are automatically regenerated on import, so you don't need to include Id fields in your JSON.

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Building from Source

Requirements: .NET 9.0 SDK, Windows

# Debug build + deploy to Flow Launcher
.\debug.ps1

# Release build + create zip
.\release.ps1

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Tech Stack

Component	Technology
Language	C# / .NET 9.0 (Windows)
UI	WPF
Plugin SDK	Flow.Launcher.Plugin 4.4.0
File search	Everything SDK (primary) / Windows Search Index (fallback)
CI	AppVeyor

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License

See LICENSE for details.