path: root/help/C/mail-search-folders.page

<page xmlns="http://projectmallard.org/1.0/" xmlns:its="http://www.w3.org/2005/11/its"
      type="guide" id="mail-search-folders">

  <info>
    <desc>Use search folders to see messages in one folder while still keeping them in their original folders.</desc>

    <link type="guide" xref="mail-organizing#advanced"/>

    <revision pkgversion="3.0.2" version="0.3" date="2011-07-30" status="final"/>
    <credit type="author">
      <name>Andre Klapper</name>
      <email>ak-47@gmx.net</email>
    </credit>
    <credit type="author">
      <name>Novell, Inc</name> <!-- Content partially from http://library.gnome.org/users/evolution/2.32/usage-mail-organize-vfolders.html.en -->
    </credit>
    <license>
      <p>Creative Commons Share Alike 3.0</p>
    </license>    
  </info>

  <title>Using Search folders</title>
  
<p>If <link xref="mail-filters">filters</link> are not flexible enough, or you find yourself performing the same <link xref="mail-searching">search</link> again and again, consider a search folder.</p>

<p>A search folder looks like a <link xref="mail-folders">folder</link>, it acts like a <link xref="mail-searching">search</link>, and you set it up like a <link xref="mail-filters">filter</link>. While a conventional folder actually contains messages, a search folder is a view of messages that might be in several different folders. The messages it contains are determined on the fly using a set of criteria that you have chosen when setting up the search folder.</p>

<p>Evolution automatically updates the search folder contents when new messages are received or message are deleted.</p>

<p>The <gui>Unmatched</gui> search folder is the opposite of other search folders: it displays all messages that do not appear in other search folders.</p>

<p>If you use remote email storage like IMAP, and have created search folders to search through them, the <gui>Unmatched</gui> search folder also searches the remote folders. If you do not create any search folders that search remote mail stores, the <gui>Unmatched</gui> search folder does not search in them either.</p>

</page>