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regex search to find a string when it repeats X number of times

If you want to run a regular expression for a string which appears at least X times successively, you can run this search:


^(?!(.*?x){4})(?=.*x).*$


This search will find the string 'X', entered after the first ? and then at the end of the second parentheses, whenever it appears Y number of times successively, Y being one less than the number entered in the curly brackets.



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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