How to search for music files across an entire disk (or multiple disks) using Everything

Short answer: use Everything (VoidTools) to find music files across one or more drives (extremely fast because it indexes file names directly from the NTFS MFT). Then export the results to .m3u/.m3u8 or simply drag them into VLC media player.

This method is generally much faster than Windows Search, because Everything indexes only file names and paths and queries its own database instantly, while Windows Search indexes file contents and metadata, which makes it heavier and slower for large disks.

1) How to search for music files (entire disk or multiple disks)

Open Everything (search engine).
In the search box type:

audio:

This macro returns all audio files.

Alternatively search by extensions:

ext:mp3;flac;m4a;ogg;wav;wma

Everything supports multiple extensions separated by semicolons.

Searching only specific drives

If you want only certain drives:

ext:mp3;flac d:

or combine drives:

<ext:mp3;flac c:|ext:mp3;flac d:>

Explanation:

| = OR
< > = grouping

So the query means:

MP3 or FLAC files on drive C OR drive D.

2) Is it better than Windows Search?

Advantages of Everything

Instant file name search (milliseconds)
Very low RAM usage
Handles millions of files easily
Perfect for generating file lists

Limitations

Everything mainly indexes file names and paths.

If you want to search inside ID3 metadata (artist, album, genre, etc.), then a dedicated music manager like:

foobar2000
MusicBee
MediaMonkey

is usually better.

3) How to export results to .m3u or open them in VLC

1. GUI method (inside Everything)
  1. Perform the search (for example audio:).
  2. Go to:
```
File → Export...
```
  3. Choose file type:M3U Playlist (*.m3u)
    or
    M3U8 Playlist (*.m3u8)
  4. Save the playlist.

Double-clicking the playlist will open it in your default player (for example VLC).

Command line method (useful for scripts)Everything provides a CLI tool called es.exe.
Example:
```
cd "C:\Program Files\Everything"
es.exe "audio:" -export-m3u "C:\playlists\all_audio.m3u"
```
or UTF-8 playlist:
```
es.exe "ext:mp3;flac" -export-m3u8 "C:\playlists\music.m3u8"
```
This directly generates the playlist from search results.
Drag & drop method (fastest)
1. Select results in Everything
  (Ctrl + A for all results)
2. Drag them directly into VLC media player.
VLC will immediately add them to its playlist.

Practical tips

Use M3U8 if you have Unicode characters

If filenames contain:

Cyrillic
accented characters
special symbols

use:

.m3u8

because it uses UTF-8 encoding.

Filesystems

Everything indexes:

NTFS
ReFS

Other filesystems may require manual folder indexing.

Metadata searching

Everything is not designed as a music library manager.

For searching by:

artist
album
genre
year

a dedicated music library program is better.

Simple real-world workflow example

Open Everything.
Search:
```
audio:
```
Press Ctrl + A to select all results.
Click:
```
File → Export
```

Save as:
```
C:\playlists\all_audio.m3u8
```
Open the playlist in VLC media player.

The Functional Example

Below is a concrete, fully functional example for one imaginary system.

It:

1. searches only the drives
  C:\ D:\ E:\ H:\ P:\ M:\ R:\ S:\ T:\
2. searches for music extensions
3. creates a Unicode playlist .m3u8
4. automatically opens the playlist in VLC media player
5. uses the CLI tool Everything (search engine) → es.exe

1. Assumptions

It is assumed that Everything is installed in:

C:\Program Files\Everything\

and that there is:es.exe

If not, just change the path.

2. Everything search query

This is a specific query:

(ext:mp3;flac;wav;aac;m4a;ogg;wma;opus) (c:|d:|e:|h:|p:|m:|r:|s:|t:)

Explanation:

1. - ext: → filters extensions
  - ; → OR between extensions
  - (c:|d:…) → only those disks
  - | → OR operator

3. Command that creates playlist

CLI command:

"C:\Program Files\Everything\es.exe" "(ext:mp3;flac;wav;aac;m4a;ogg;wma;opus) (c:|d:|e:|h:|p:|m:|r:|s:|t:)" -export-m3u8 "C:\Temp\all_music.m3u8"

This generates:

C:\Temp\all_music.m3u8

4. VLC command to open playlist

If VLC media player is in the default path:

"C:\Program Files\VideoLAN\VLC\vlc.exe"

the command is:

"C:\Program Files\VideoLAN\VLC\vlc.exe" "C:\Temp\all_music.m3u8"

5. Complete .BAT script

Create a file:

make_music_playlist.bat

with this content:

@echo off

REM ----------------------------------------------------
REM Configuration
REM ----------------------------------------------------

set EVERYTHING="C:\Program Files\Everything\es.exe"
set VLC="C:\Program Files\VideoLAN\VLC\vlc.exe"
set PLAYLIST=C:\Temp\all_music.m3u8

REM ----------------------------------------------------
REM Create a playlist
REM ----------------------------------------------------

%EVERYTHING% "(ext:mp3;flac;wav;aac;m4a;ogg;wma;opus) (c:|d:|e:|h:|p:|m:|r:|s:|t:)" -export-m3u8 "%PLAYLIST%"

REM ----------------------------------------------------
REM Open playlist in VLC
REM ----------------------------------------------------

%VLC% "%PLAYLIST%"

echo.
echo Playlist created and opened in VLC.
pause

6. How to use

1. 1. Installed Everything (search engine)
  2. Create C:\Temp if it doesn’t exist
  3. Save .bat
  4. Double-click

The script will:

1. 1. Scan indexed drives
  2. Create .m3u8
  3. Automatically launch VLC media player

7. If you have a huge music collection (100k+ files)

I recommend adding sorting:

sort:path

Example:

(ext:mp3;flac;wav;aac;m4a;ogg;wma;opus) (c:|d:|e:|h:|p:|m:|r:|s:|t:) sort:path

This will create a playlist in folder/album order.