It doesn’t matter if you are using Windows, Mac or Linux on your desktop; all of them come with a File Manager application for you to view and manage your files. It is an important part of the system. The same goes for your Android phone. Every Android phone will come with a default file manager, though not all of them are good enough. Aug 28, 2018 - Download Commander One - file manager for macOS 10.10 or later. Dual panel file manager that helps you manage your files in the best. Mount as many Google Drive accounts as needed and manage your files.
Introduction A file manager provides a convenient way for end users to work with file systems and perform various operations on files and folders such as create, edit, rename, copy, delete, modify file attributes, compare folders etc. While Windows Explorer provides a fair amount of simple file management activities, a dedicated file manager helps you to keep things unsophisticated and gives you various tools out of the box to manage a large number of files at a time. File managers give you faster and easier management of files and folders on your PC. The various special features that I'm looking forward to in a file manager are Dual panes, Tabbed interface, Bookmarks, History, Archive handling, Advanced File Search, MultiRename, Folder Size Enumeration, Folder Compare and Synchronize, FTP support, File viewer, File sorting, File splitter, Filtered view, Keyboard shortcuts, Easy access to system folders and more. So here are top 5 products that I've found after months of testing. Their interface, features and customization are among the best and curated accordingly in each of the products. Rated Products.
No extensive customization capabilities, Less powerful features. More File Managers Honourable Mentions If you aren't satisfied with any of the best products curated above, it doesn't hurt to know more options listed below. Modern interface - Probably the most modern and stylish interface that I've seen. Work Folder - If you set a folder as an work folder. You can go to that folder with shortcut key right away. Also copy/move/extract files/folders to an work folder with only two step keyboard shortcut. Innovative Folder Tree - The hierarchical representing let's you see all the sub-contents at a glance.
Colors - You can customize colors for file listings and folder free. Different colors for various file types lets you to easily distinguish files at a glance. Advanced Built-in text editor - One of the best text editors I've seen, with syntax highlighting. Shortcut menus for USB flash drives - Makes starting applications very easy right from your USB drive. Portable - No installation or uninstallation required.
Linux styled interface may not please everyone. Multifunctional address bar - Specifying folder names and visual filters and for running windows applications. Auto-completion - Paths and other frequently typed information. Dockable Thumbnail bar - To preview images, html and office applications. No hotkey customization and uses windows search. Free version limited. Ribbon styled tabbed explorer for Win 7 & 8.
Drive usage analysis chart. Conditional selecting - filtering, searching, selecting. Is just an enhancement to the Windows 8 explorer R.I.P File Managers These file managers were once great, but are no longer developed. They continue to work on latest versions of Windows, but won't be featured in the main review. (Last Update: Jul 27 '09) Not Recommended These file managers were tested but falls short in features and overall usability. They are either too simple or too restricted in features for daily use. (No longer featured on home site.).
(Not yet out of alpha stage, but a promising new file manager.). (Claims to be the fastest, but not really a file manager). (Too simple, not really a choice). (project dead). (project dead) Other File Managers to be reviewed These File Mangers were brought up in the user comments section. I'm currently reviewing them or have finished reviewing and waiting to be listed in the main article during the next review update.
Please be patient. Notes File managers that were written as 32-bit applications will generally work on 64-bit Windows, but functionality will be limited in three ways:. Shell extensions (i.e., file context menu entries) of 64-bit applications won't appear in a 32-bit file manager.
32-bit file managers will not be able to access the 'system32' directory of a 64-bit Windows installation; they will be deflected to the 'sysWOW64' directory instead. 32-bit programs have no full access to the control panel. Related Products and Links. Editor This software category is maintained by volunteer editor George.J. Registered members can contact the editor with any comments or questions they might have by. Please rate this article.
I am looking for a program to help organize my folders. They are already organized, but there are thousands of VB6 folders. I am 75 so my memory is crap. I am looking for a Bookmark manager where I can have a tree on the left, which I break up into Categories, and sub categories. If any of you have rolled your sleeves up, and fully utilized Firefox's web bookmarks(Favorites), you will find it is pretty close to perfect.
(I was a senior analyst in IT for 20 years, and I could not come up with a better favorite manager if my life depended on it). If I could find something similar to organize my (file manager) folder bookmarks, I would be a very happy (old) man. I just tried Explorer's Bookmarks, but it is too restrictive (difficult to create sub folders, and to correct them). If anyone knows of a file manager that has a decent bookmark manager built in, that would be ideal. (I assume that any standalone Bookmark manager, would be opening up Windows Explorer, which shortens my life every time I use it). Thanks, Rob.
or to post comments. EF Commander older FREE version is still available from Softpedia. All of my previous frustrations with file sharing between win XP and more recent Win OS's, have been solved by that (zippy light reliable) program. For those having problems with file sharing between Win OS's you may care to read my post here - Rob PS I have the latest version of your top rated program, and just tried it to do the same router thumb drive trick, and it stuttered, stalled, nearly froze my old XP Pro PC. (mind you that was on the router test, which practically all File Managers have failed to handle on my PC). or to post comments. Master Commander seems it is no longer being developed.
Links are all down. Version available from other reputable download sites that I could find is version 1.1. If anyone is interested in the latest Master Commander version 1.2.787.1 feel free to contact me I have clean copy. Personal note, if you search the web for 'Master Commander 1.2.787.1' you will get a hit to many sites but the procedure to get the file might be a bit questionable most are Russian.
I recommend caution, so be careful. Disclaimer- Not all Russian sites bad or questionable.
or to post comments. Q-Dir all the way for quick navigation. When I need to do some advanced things like searching and multi-renaming, then either of the TotalCommander clones (FreeCommander, MultiCommander, DoubleCommander, etc etc) do the job effectively. I really like Unreal Commander, but something this review didn't mention is that when using some tools like multi-rename it forces a nag screen for a few seconds, and requires the user to prompt out of it before showing the tool. Not a huge issue, but annoying when a large portion of the time spent using the program is for renaming file/folders. or to post comments. If you're just looking for a way around Windows Explorer's fixed black and white interface glare, boredom, i have bad news for you.
NONE of the apps on this page fix that. Nexus comes nearest: with tweaking you can get any color combo you like. No desktop link that i could find, and its help as usual!
is online only and NON-SEARCHABLE doh!. But that's trivial compared to all of their common omission: none of them even touch individual folder appearances. So while you can tweak Nexus to your taste, when you click on a folder from within it, you're back to black and white Microsh.t. CAN ANYBODY SHARE A WAY TO MODIFY THE COLORS OF INDIVIDUAL FOLDERS?
and please, don't tell me about Themes- few offer this particular feature, and those that do. Well, i've never managed to get them to actually work. The whole approach is a real mess. August 2015 postscript: Found one.
A43 probably won't please the Power Users as it looks simpler. And its top menu bar is fixed white. But its twin panes are easily color and font customizable.
That sounds simple but it's a feature most coders can't be bothered to include. Anyway- if you get sore eyes easily, A43 is probably about as eye-friendly as it gets. There is a major cavet, probably on all these file managers. If you start globally, say with A43 and drill down to an individual folder, it'll appear in A43 colored how you like, but if you reach an individual folder through something like RocketDock, or Launchy, or Search, you'll get the old black and white Windows Explorer window, even if A43 or? is still running. Less than perfect but that's Windows.
or to post comments.
When you think about your smartphone, apps and interfaces are probably the first things that come to mind. Beneath all that surface-level stuff, though, our modern mobile devices are filled with files — folders upon folders of 'em! — just like the clunky ol' computers we've relied upon for ages. We may not come face to face with our phones' file systems too often, but it's valuable to know they're there — and to know how they can work for us when the need arises.
After all, your Android device is. It can juggle everything from PDFs and PSDs to presentations and podcasts. It can even act as a portable hard drive and house any sort of important files you might need in your pocket (and not just on some far-away cloud). Your mobile device can carry an awful lot of data, and there may come a time when you want to dig in and deal directly with it. Here's everything you need to know to get under the hood and tap into your phone's file managing powers. Related: Managing files on your Android phone You might not realize it at a glance, but Android actually allows you to access a device's entire file system — even from the device itself. The operating system has had since 2015's release, and what started out as an experimental-seeming effort has evolved into a capable tool for basic data manipulation.
With Android 6.0 through 7.1, the system-level file manager is somewhat hidden: You have to look in the Storage section of your system settings, then scroll all the way to the bottom and tap the line labeled 'Explore' to find it. With Google's release, meanwhile, the file manager lives in Android's Downloads app. All you have to do is open that app and select the 'Show internal storage' option in its menu to browse through your phone's full internal storage.
You can then open, move, rename, copy, delete and share files as needed. And if you have the release on your phone, things get even easier: As of Pie, the file manager exists in its own sensibly named Files app. Open it up and tap the three-line menu icon in the upper-left corner to browse any area of your local storage or a connected Drive account. JR Raphael / IDG Android's native file manager (left) is fine for basics, but a fully featured app like Solid Explorer (right) can do much more. If you want to do more than the most basic on-device file management, a third-party file manager is the way to go. I like, which costs a meager $2 after a two-week trial.
It's nicely designed and intuitive to use, yet jam-packed with advanced features like near-instant device-wide searching, support for creating and extracting common archive formats (such as ZIP, 7ZIP and RAR), and the ability to encrypt files and folders so they're accessible only with a fingerprint or password. Solid Explorer can connect to almost any cloud storage service as well as to a personal or corporate FTP server for hassle-free transferring of local and remote files. Be sure to turn your phone horizontally, too, as that'll cause the app to expand into a multi-window mode in which you can easily drag and drop files between two different folders or destinations. Supplementing your phone's local storage One little-known feature of Android is its ability to connect with external storage devices like USB memory sticks and even larger-capacity portable hard drives. A phone just has to support something known as, or USB OTG, in order for the connection to work. A fair number of devices, including Google's Pixel phones and many Samsung Galaxy products, offer such support.
If you aren't sure if your phone does, your best bet is to Google its name along with 'USB OTG'; odds are, you'll find the answer fairly quickly. Provided your device supports USB OTG, all you need is a USB-A to USB-C adapter like. (If you have an older device that doesn't have USB-C, you'll need a USB-A to micro-USB adapter instead; you can find plenty such options or at pretty much any electronics retailer.) Use the adapter to plug the external drive into your phone, then look for a notification confirming the drive is connected.
![Iphone Iphone](/uploads/1/2/5/4/125428576/580481671.jpg)
Google A notification will appear when an external drive is connected to your Android device and ready to be accessed. Tap the 'Explore' option within the notification, and that's it: You can now browse and access all the files on your external drive. If you want to do even more, just open up a third-party file manager like the aforementioned Solid Explorer. You'll be able to find the USB drive there and perform most any imaginable function on its contents. When you're finished, don't forget to go back to the notification and tap 'Eject' before disconnecting the drive.
Transferring files between your phone and computer In addition to supporting external hard drives, your Android phone can act as an external hard drive. Just plug your device into any Windows or Mac computer, and you can access its entire file system and drag and drop files between it and your desktop with ease. With a Windows system, it's essentially as simple as plug and play. With a Mac, you'll first need to install before the connection can be established. For step-by-step instructions on either front, click over to my comprehensive. Transferring files wirelessly between devices Want to transfer files between your Android phone and a computer (or another Android phone, iPhone, etc.) without the need for wires? Your most basic option is to embrace a middleman — specifically, a cloud storage service like Google Drive, Dropbox or Microsoft OneDrive.
![Manager Manager](/uploads/1/2/5/4/125428576/894938943.jpg)
Just upload the files to a folder within the respective app on your Android phone, then find the folder within the same app on the receiving device (or vice versa). You can get more advanced than that, though — and make your life significantly easier as a result. One handy tool worth considering is a multiplatform app called. Install and then install either the or on any other device with which you want to share files. (You can also access the service via on any desktop computer — if, for instance, you use a Mac along with a browser other than Chrome.) Once you've signed into the apps on both ends, you're ready to initiate hassle-free file transfers in either direction.
On Android, just share a file from any app — a file manager, an image gallery or any other sort of file-using utility — and select Join as the destination. The file will appear on your desktop within seconds. On a computer, meanwhile, sending a file is as simple as opening the Join app or extension, selecting your phone as the receiving device and then dragging the file into the window.
JR Raphael / IDG Drop a file into Join on your desktop (left), and it'll appear on your Android device a second later (right). Join has a bunch of other functions, including the ability to create a common clipboard for your desktop and mobile device — so you can copy text on one system and then, without any additional effort, paste it anywhere on the other — but even if you just use it for wireless file transfers, it's well worth keeping around. The app comes with a free (ad-supported) one-month trial and then requires a one-time $5 purchase if you want to keep using it. Syncing your Android phone's storage with a computer Maybe you like having certain files stored locally on your Android phone, but you also want those files to be backed up and saved on your computer. The best of both worlds, right?
Believe it or not, this is actually quite easy to pull off. Just grab a $3 app called.
It'll let you create pairings between a local folder on your phone and a cloud-based folder — with support for a huge array of cloud storage services, including Dropbox, Google Drive, OneDrive and Amazon Cloud Drive. Install the appropriate computer-side app for whichever service you prefer, make sure it's set to sync with your computer's hard drive — and there ya have it: Your Android device's folder is now effectively part of your PC. You can even have the folders stay constantly synced in both directions — so if you add or update a file on the computer, the same changes will appear on your phone as well. That's a wrap! Congratulations: You've officially earned the title of Android file master. (For real — you can even type it into a document, print it out and tape it to your desk so everyone knows.) Next up: Make sure you understand.
They're ultimately made up of files, too, after all — and pretty important ones, at that.