An apparatus and method for performing search and replace operations at a storage controller of a storage device are disclosed. The storage controller can receive a search command with one or more parameters that instructs the storage controller to search for a data pattern in data stored in a memory of the apparatus. The storage controller can locally search the data in the memory for the data pattern according to the parameters without transferring the data to a processor to perform the search. The parameters can include, but are not limited to, the data pattern or template to be searched, a data pattern length, a bit-mask, a logical block address (LBA) range, a byte offset, and an alignment parameter. Verdict bits can be provided to indicate data chunks in the memory that match the data pattern. Flags may define potential outputs to provide after searching, such as location and number of matches. A replace command with a set of parameters, including a write mask, can instruct the storage controller to replace the data pattern with a replacement or substitute pattern.