Windows - Search for folders containing "@" in their names

Question

I use a system of folders to track tasks and projects, and my projects are represented by folders whose names start with the "@" character. I'd like a way to populate a list of my projects, that is, to search for all subfolders containing "@" in their name. However, it appears that the search function in Explorer ignores "@" since when I search for it I get no results. Does anyone know how to force Windows to search for the @ character?

Answer 1

How do I Search for folders containing “@” in their names

You can find all filenames containing @ using ~=@ for the search string.

~= is a special keyword that means contains.

---

Using keywords to refine a search

If you want to filter on a property that doesn't appear when you click in the search box, you can use special keywords. This typically involves typing a property name followed by a colon, sometimes an operator, and then a value. The keywords aren't case sensitive.

Example search terms

System.FileName:~<"notes"

Files whose names begin with "notes." The ~< means "begins with."

System.FileName:="quarterly report"

Files named "quarterly report." The = means "matches exactly."

System.FileName:~="pro"

Files whose names contain the word "pro" or the characters pro as part of another word (such as "process" or "procedure"). The ~= means "contains."

System.Kind:<>picture

Files that aren't pictures. The <> means "is not."

System.DateModified:05/25/2010

Files that were modified on that date. You can also type "System.DateModified:2010" to find files changed at any time during that year.

System.Author:~!"herb"

Files whose authors don't have "herb" in their name. The ~! means "doesn't contain."

System.Keywords:"sunset"

Files that are tagged with the word sunset.

System.Size:<1mb

Files that are less than 1 MB in size.

System.Size:>1mb

Files that are more than 1 MB in size.

Note:

You can use a question mark (?) as a wildcard for a single character and an asterisk (*) as a wildcard for any number of characters.

Source Advanced tips for searching in Windows

Answer 2

Shift & right click over top folder holding them all, then pick:

Then type the following line, followed by Enter:

dir /s/b/ad *@*

or

dir /s/b/ad *@* > @list.txt

to save results.