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Regex for lines that do not begin with X

You can run a regular expression search in a text file for any lines that do NOT begin with a particular string. In this example, we want to find any lines that do not begin with the string 'ins'. Structure your search this way:


^(?:(?!ins).)*$



The exclamation point looks for lines that do not begin with the string which follows.


The caret marks the beginning of a string.


This part: (?: indicates that the Regex search should not capture what follows.




Sean O'Shea has more than 20 years of experience in the litigation support field with major law firms in New York and San Francisco.   He is an ACEDS Certified eDiscovery Specialist and a Relativity Certified Administrator.

The views expressed in this blog are those of the owner and do not reflect the views or opinions of the owner’s employer.

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