---
title: Search in Spaces
type: how-to
section: spaces
summary: Press Ctrl+K or Cmd+K to search everything you can read, or use the channel header's search box for one conversation.
applies_to:
  clients: [web]
sources:
  - evolve-front-end/components/team-chat/search/team-chat-search-panel.tsx
  - evolve-front-end/components/team-chat/chrome/team-chat-room-search.tsx
  - evolve-front-end/app/i18n/locales/en/team-chat.json
verified:
  at: 2026-09-04
  env: code
  by: content-lane-spaces
ttl_days: 45
related: [spaces/the-files-tab, spaces/threads-in-a-channel]
aliases: [team-chat/search, spaces/find-a-message]
---

1. Press Ctrl+K, or Cmd+K on a Mac. The panel is titled **Search Spaces**.
2. Type at least two characters in **Find a message, file, person, direct message, channel, or Space**.
3. Choose **Search**, then choose a result to open it.

Results are grouped as **Messages**, **Files**, **People**, **Direct messages and channels**, and **Spaces**. The **Result type** control narrows them to one group. **Search scope** limits the search to the current thread, the current conversation, or one Space instead of everything.

## Narrowing a search

Open **Filters** for:

- **Sender** and **Author**, with **Anyone**, **People**, **Agents**, or **People and agents**
- **From** and **To** dates
- **Exact phrase** and **Exclude words**
- **Has file** and **Has link**
- **Mentions me**
- **Order**, with **Most relevant** or **Newest**

## Searching one conversation

A wide window puts a search box in the channel header, labelled **Search in {{roomName}}**. It searches that conversation only, including history older than what is on screen. Its own help text says so, and names the filter tokens it takes.

Results come in two groups. **Loaded messages** matches what is already on screen, and takes the `from:`, `mentions:`, `has:link`, and `decision:true` tokens. **Earlier in this conversation** searches the stored history and needs at least two plain characters; the tokens do not apply there. A match from history opens in place rather than moving the timeline. **Show more results** loads the next ten.

This box searches messages only, never file names. It is only present on wide windows; on a narrow window, use the Spaces search panel.

## If it did not work

- **Enter at least two characters to search.** means the query is too short.
- **No matches** with **Try another phrase or widen the scope.** means nothing matched. Widen **Search scope** or clear the filters.
- **Search failed. Try again.** and **History search failed.** are service failures. Choose **Retry**.
- **History search is unavailable in this conversation.** means the stored history cannot be searched here. The **Loaded messages** group still works.
- Search never returns something you cannot already read, so a message in a channel you are not in will not appear.