How Do I Search and Find Files?

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With Faithlife’s Digital Asset Manager, you can quickly find any asset from the search bar. Search looks at asset names, metadata, PDF and Word document text, and more!

As soon as you start typing in the search bar, the digital asset manager starts a live search. Only files that match your search will show. To remove a search, click the cancel icon Close icon.

Search for files

Note: You can also filter your files or combine filters and searches to quickly find any file.

Search with Words and Symbols

For more detailed results, you can use a variety of symbols or words. Here are a few examples.

Exact Match

To search for an exact match, include the search term(s) in quotation marks. Note that terms separated with a space will run a combination search (i.e., a search that returns matches to both terms).

  • Example: “church picnic”
  • Result: any assets containing the exact phrase “church picnic” in the document, title, tag, etc.

Combination Searches

To search for assets that match two different search terms, include an AND between the terms. You can also simply separate the terms with a space.

  • Example: flower AND picnic
  • Result: any assets associated with both flower(s) and picnic(s)

To search for assets that match one of two search terms, include an OR between the terms.

  • Example: flower OR picnic
  • Result: any assets associated with either flower(s) or picnic(s)

Excluded Terms

To exclude a result from your search, include an exclamation point or a dash before the search term.

  • Example: flower !picnic
  • Result: any assets associated with flower(s) but not associated with picnic
  • Example: flower -picnic
  • Result: any assets associated with flower(s) but not associated with picnic

Bible Passages

To search for a Bible passage, surround the passage with less than (<) and greater than (>) signs.

  • Example:
  • Result: any asset with references intersecting the passage Hebrews 11

Wildcards or unknown words

Include an asterisk (*) in your word or phrase to indicate a wildcard or unknown word.

  • Example: "filename:*.svg"
  • Result: all files with the .svg file extension, regardless of the file’s name

Search with Fields

For even more advanced searching, you can include metadata fields in your search. For a full list of search fields, see search help.

Advanced Examples

Combining search fields with the search words and symbols above can produce powerful results.

Search term, but not in tag

  • Example: flower !tag:flower
  • Result: assets that have flower anywhere but not in a tag

Term AND term, but not this term

  • Example: priest AND church !office
  • Result: assets which contain priest and church anywhere but not associated with office

Uploader AND upload time

  • Example: uploader:"Patrick Fore" uploaded:2021-02
  • Result: any asset that was uploaded by Patrick Fore in February 2021

Search term, but not search term

  • Example: camera:5D !camera:"5D Mark II"
  • Result: any photo taken with 5D, but not the 5D Mark II

Specific file type but not by uploader

  • Example: VBS filename:*.eps !uploader:"Patrick Fore"
  • Result: any eps asset associated with VBS but not uploaded by Patrick Fore

Save Custom Searches

When searching and/or filtering, you can save your results in a custom filter. Click the arrow Arrow S - Down icon next to Filters and choose Save current filter. Provide a name in the popup and click Save.

Save a custom filter

You can access saved filters from the same dropdown menu.

Note: You can organize any files into either personal or group boards, which are collections of files that show in the sidebar and can hold any assets you choose. Learn more about organizing your files with boards.

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