A XML-aware file system exploits attributes encoded in a XML document. The file system presents a dynamic directory structure to the user, and breaks the conventional tight linkage between sets of files and the physical directory structure, thus allowing different users to see files organized in a different fashion. The dynamic structure is based upon content, which is extracted using an inverted index according to attributes and values defined by the XML structure. In one application, a dynamically changing federated repository is searchable using a system of local and merged master indices, wherein query results are presented as virtual directory paths that are semantically organized.