How to Fix Indexing Not Running on Windows 11

If Windows Search is returning no results or taking forever, the indexing service may have stopped or gotten stuck. This guide walks you through restarting, rebuilding, and repairing the search index on Windows 11, so you can get fast, reliable file and app searches again.

What You’ll Need

Administrator access to your Windows 11 PC (to run services and commands).
A few minutes of patience—rebuilding the index can take time depending on how many files you have.

Step-by-Step

Check if the Windows Search service is running. Press Win + R, type services.msc, and press Enter. Scroll down to Windows Search. If its status is not “Running,” right-click it and select Start. If it’s already running, right-click and choose Restart.
Set the service to start automatically. Double-click Windows Search in the Services window. Under “Startup type,” select Automatic (or Automatic (Delayed Start) if you want to reduce boot impact). Click Apply, then OK.
Run the Search and Indexing troubleshooter. Go to Settings (Win + I) > System > Troubleshoot > Other troubleshooters. Find Search and Indexing and click Run. Follow the prompts—it will detect and fix common issues automatically.
Rebuild the search index. Open Control Panel (search for it in the Start menu). Go to Indexing Options. Click Advanced (you may need admin permission). Under the Index Settings tab, click Rebuild in the “Troubleshooting” section. Confirm when prompted. This will delete and recreate the entire index—it can take a while, but it often resolves corruption.
Adjust indexing locations. In the same Indexing Options window, click Modify. Make sure the folders you actually search (like your user folder, Documents, Desktop, and Outlook PST files) are checked. Uncheck folders you don’t need (e.g., system files or large media libraries) to speed up indexing.
Check for Windows updates. Go to Settings > Windows Update and click Check for updates. Install any pending updates, then restart your PC. Bugs in the search indexer are often fixed in cumulative updates.
Run DISM and SFC scans. Open Command Prompt as administrator (right-click Start > Terminal (Admin)). Run DISM /Online /Cleanup-Image /RestoreHealth and wait for it to finish. Then run sfc /scannow. These commands repair corrupted system files that may affect the indexing service. Restart after they complete.
Reset the Windows Search app. Go to Settings > Apps > Installed apps. Find Microsoft.Windows.Search (you may need to search for it or scroll). Click the three-dot menu and choose Advanced options. Click Reset. This clears the app’s data and settings without affecting your files.

Common Mistakes

Not running the service as administrator. Some steps require admin rights. If you don’t see the “Start” or “Rebuild” options, you’re not in an admin account.
Rebuilding too often. Rebuilding the index is a heavy operation. Doing it repeatedly without fixing the underlying cause (like a failing drive) will just waste time.
Ignoring disk errors. If your hard drive has bad sectors, indexing may fail. Run chkdsk /f in an admin terminal to check for errors.
Excluding the folder you need. If you exclude a folder from indexing, searches will not find files in it. Double-check your indexing locations.
Assuming the index is instant. After a rebuild, searching immediately may show incomplete results. Give it time to finish.

Tips

Use the “Indexing Options” status bar. It shows how many items remain. If it’s stuck at the same number for hours, something is wrong—try restarting the service.
Add file types you search often. In Indexing Options > Advanced > File Types, you can add extensions (like .txt, .md, .log) to ensure they are indexed.
Keep your system drive healthy. Indexing is faster on SSDs. If you’re on an HDD, defragmenting (optimizing) the drive can help.
Use the search bar in File Explorer. If the Start menu search fails, File Explorer’s search uses the same index, so test there too.
Consider a third-party search tool. If Windows Search continues to fail, tools like Everything or Voidtools (not affiliated) can search filenames instantly without the indexer. But that’s a workaround, not a fix.

Troubleshooting

If after following the steps search still doesn’t work, try these additional checks:

Check the Event Viewer. Open Event Viewer (Win + R, type eventvwr.msc). Go to Windows Logs > Application. Look for errors from “Search” or “Windows Search Service.” The details may point to a specific file or driver causing the failure.
Disable third-party antivirus temporarily. Some security software interferes with indexing. Pause protection for a few minutes and see if the index builds. If it does, add an exception for the search indexer (SearchIndexer.exe).
Check if the index database is corrupted. If rebuilding fails or the service crashes repeatedly, delete the index files manually. Stop the Windows Search service, then delete the contents of C:\ProgramData\Microsoft\Search\Data\Applications\Windows. Restart the service—it will create a fresh index from scratch.
Run the System File Checker again. If sfc /scannow reports that it found corrupted files but couldn’t fix them, run DISM again and then SFC again.
Create a new user account. If the problem only happens on your profile, a corrupted user profile may be the cause. Create a test account and see if search works there. If it does, you may need to migrate your files to the new profile.
Reset Windows as a last resort. If nothing else works, you can use Settings > System > Recovery > Reset this PC. Choose “Keep my files” to reinstall Windows without losing personal data. This is drastic, but it will fix any deep system corruption.

Frequently Asked Questions

Why did indexing stop running in the first place?
Common causes include system updates, corrupted index files, insufficient disk space, power outages, or third-party software interfering with the service.

How long does a rebuild take?
It depends on the number of files and your hardware. On a typical PC with 100,000 files, it can take 30 minutes to a few hours. You can continue using your PC, but search results may be incomplete until it finishes.

Will rebuilding the index affect my files?
No. The index is just a database of file properties and content. Your actual files are untouched.

Can I exclude certain folders to speed up indexing?
Yes. In Indexing Options > Modify, uncheck folders you don’t need to search. This reduces the workload and speeds up indexing.

Why is my search still slow after rebuilding?
If you have a large number of files, indexing may still be in progress. Also, check that the Windows Search service is running and that your drive has enough free space (at least 10% recommended).

Is it safe to disable Windows Search entirely?
You can disable the service, but then Start menu search and File Explorer search will not work. If you rely on search, it’s better to fix it than disable it.

General steps for current mainstream versions; menus can differ by device and version. See the disclaimer or report an error.

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