Noodlesoft Forums

Hello

I've several rules that use "Contents contain" with an account number to read PDF versions of statements and sort them to their appropriate directory. These rules have all stopped working since migrating to a new M1 Mac running Monterey.

I've used the preview function to confirm that the account number is correct and still in the PDF but for some reason Hazel doesn't see it.

To further test, I changed what the contain rule looks for and Hazel doesn't seem to find anything inside of PDFs anymore.

I'm not sure what else to do or if there are configuration changes required to regain this capability.

Thanks for any ideas or pointers.

"Contents contain" uses Spotlight. Especially if you just updated to Monterey, chances are your Spotlight index is being rebuilt. To test, search for the text in Spotlight and see if your file shows up in the results or not.

You'll need to either fix your Spotlight index (which may consist of just waiting) or you can use "Contents contain match". The latter does a direct scan of the file. This is more reliable but at the expense of some performance.

Wow ... that was easy! I had looked into Spotlight based on other posts, and I thought I had tried the "Contents contain match" earlier but that was exactly what I needed.

I appreciate your response. Now my rules are back up and running!

I am having the same issue: after migrating to a new M1/Monterey Mac, Hazel won't recognize anything in the several PDFs I have tried.

MDS is quiet under Activity Monitor, so after a week I believe it should no longer be reindexing.

If I change one search criterion from 'Contents contain' to 'Contents contain match,' then the same content is found by Hazel. But changing all of my criteria in all of my rules would be quite labor intensive.

Is there something else I can check?

Thank you

I am only using my Downloads folder at present for Hazel. I have tried to add it to the 'Privacy' section of Spotlight, and then removing it. I do not see it in the 'Search Results' pane of Spotlight. Is it supposed to be there? How can I add it, or check that it has been indexed?

If it isn't showing up in results then there is some sort of Spotlight issue. Is it only Downloads? I'm wondering if there's a privacy issue. Launch System Preferences, go to Security & Privacy and click on the Privacy tab. There, go to Files & Folders. For any Hazel or Hazel-related processes you see there, make sure that you check any folders you want to give Hazel access too.

If it isn't showing up in results then there is some sort of Spotlight issue. Is it only Downloads? I'm wondering if there's a privacy issue. Launch System Preferences, go to Security & Privacy and click on the Privacy tab. There, go to Files & Folders. For any Hazel or Hazel-related processes you see there, make sure that you check any folders you want to give Hazel access too.

Thank you for the quick reply.

I only have Hazel working on my Downloads folder. Would you like me to create a new folder and a new Hazel rule for that folder to test?

When I go to the Files & Folders section, I see Hazel greyed out, with 'Full Disk Access' below it, also greyed out. I cannot edit these entries.

Under 'Full Disk Access,' I have Hazel checked, but there is another entry, '86Z3GCJ4MF.com.noodlesoft.HazelHelper' that is unchecked.

Finally, when I try one of the rules that fails under 'Preview' and doesn't work in real-time, I can change the 'Content contains' to 'Content Contains Match,' and I have to re-enter the specific content, and the Preview field turns to green.

I hope that is helpful.

To change the full disk access settings, click the lock in the lower left and enter your password when prompted. Make sure all Hazel processes are checked there.

Mr_Noodle wrote:To change the full disk access settings, click the lock in the lower left and enter your password when prompted. Make sure all Hazel processes are checked there.

Thank you. I had tried this previously, without resolving the issue. I have tried with multiple documents, including ones that had been recognized correctly previously.

Bumping this, because all of my actions and filing have come to a dead stop. Is there anything else I can try to find the source of this problem?

Thank you

If it helps, I can search for the file of interest in Spotlight, and it shows up. But when I try to preview the same file in Hazel, it doesn't recognize the file unless I use 'Contents Contains Match.'

I suspect some Spotlight flakiness here. Until it is resolved, "contain match" is probably your best bet.

Mr_Noodle wrote:I suspect some Spotlight flakiness here. Until it is resolved, "contain match" is probably your best bet.

Thank you. Is there any way I can get my Downloads folder to re-index? I don't even see it in Spotlight.

Also, how much is performance affected by switching recognition modes?

There are several methods. Sometimes adding the folder to Spotlight's privacy settings then removing it will trigger it.

Performance will depend on how big the files are and how many of them. If possible, you should precede that condition with other conditions that would reduce the number of files that would reach that point.

I can confirm that this is an error in Monterey. Hazel indexes everything but the Downloads folder, and rebuilding in Spotlight hasn't helped me. My solution, which I don't much like, is a Desktop folder called To File to which I've pointed Safari downloads. The rules I had for sorting files in Downloads work just fine there. Something in Spotlight isn't talking to Hazel, it seems, or vice versa.