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Introduction
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Windows Explorer is a reasonable selection for simple file management activities. A question I ask myself is what happens when I want any customization, tabbed browsing panes, or simply more options. That is when I look at one of the great free explorer alternatives out there today. |
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Discussion
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The lite version supports for dual panes and folder tabs, and shares the same desktop browsing and file management engine as the Pro version. |
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XYplorerFree is packed with features including one of the best file-finders I've seen. It's one of those products that impresses more with use. In fact I suspect that if you use it for a month, you'll end up using it permanently. Unfortunately, the free version of this program has been discontinued, but the last free version that was released (v5.55) can still be found on various unofficial sites. |
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It's certainly powerful but I find the interface a little dated. However it's free for both private and commercial use and that's a big plus. |
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Note: File managers that were written as 32-bit applications will generally work on 64-bit Windows, but functionality will be limited in two ways:
I've also been checking out Q-Dir with "amazing Quadro-View technique" which allows you to have 4 panes. This might be an overkill for some, but some may end up liking and using it. It is useful at times but has yet to become the default application on my system. |
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Related Products and Links
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You might want to check out these articles too: |
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1.7.2.7 
Private Freeware (not free for commercial use) 
Windows 95 to Vista
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Editor
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This software category is maintained by volunteer editor moserw. |
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Tags
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file manager, windows explorer, file explorer, free software, freeware. |
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FreeCommander is most excellent. I've used independent file mangers for windows since Norton commander, and it hardly gets any better than FreeCommander. Very stable, reliable, no crashes, ever.
I found Mucommander to be what I need
You can get it here at:
http://www.mucommander.com/
Double Commander is a free and open-source file manager in the style of Total Commander. It has support for both 32 bit and 64 bit versions of Windows. Worth taking a look at.
http://doublecmd.sourceforge.net/
Nomad.NET is a .NET 2.0 based file manager, in the style of Total Commander and Free Commander. What sets him apart is its' implicit native support for both the 32 bit and 64 bit versions of Windows, due to the .NET 2.0 runtime availability as 32 bit and 64 bit versions.
Link: http://www.nomad-net.info/
Another option which benefits from executing on the JRE (Java Runtime Environment) and is, as such, implicitly runnable as a 32 bit or 64 bit process is muCommander. The downside of muCommander is that it is multi-platform, and, therefore, cannot target many specific Windows-only functionality, such as context menus.
Link: http://www.mucommander.com/
The improved presence of 64 bit operating systems, coupled with the lack of 64 bit compilers to recompile many older 32 bit applications (such as Delphi apps) makes managed programming languages truly shine. This is because the applications written in these languages (.NET or Java) inherently support a 32 to 64 bit switch using the same distributable packages, while offering the full advantages of the running platform.
Did anybody try FAR manager?
http://www.farmanager.com/
Looks like it's open source now
Thanks for the pointer. Will download and take it out for a spin ASAP (time permitting).
i agree with some of the others ultra explorer and unreal commander are da best
Thanks for pointing them out. I've used Unreal Commander in the past but I still prefer xplorer². I will take a look at your choices and use them for a while and see how it goes.
I am steel looking for a free file manager that can imitate the 20 years old Dos Xtree gold.
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/XTree
for example:
- Tagged files are kept tagged, so you can add / remove tags, unlike windows where you are limited to select files , and if you are not care full, the whole list is lost by an incidental click.
-listing all files of a branch including subdirectories, -listing of all files on a disk
-viewing a file's contents in text or hexadecimal format
ykantor
Have a look here;
http://www.xtreefanpage.org/
For more info on OFM managers;
http://www.softpanorama.org/OFM/Paradigm/Ofm_03.shtml
Moderator's comment : Links and mention of shareware software removed. Sorry, not permitted.
I interested in a feature that does not seem to be on the top of anyone else's list. The ability to print/save/export trees, directories, lists of files with sizes, dates, etc.
I know that you can shell out to DOS and do a dir >textfile.txt but that is getting pretty archaic. What do you recommend for this?
Not really a reply, but a reinforcement of the question / advice request. I have the same interest in file manager features as "Anonymous". Surely there is someone out there who can help us both out.
Anomymous #2
Unfortunately there are just too many category comments for the editors to check. This area of the forum has been specially setup for this type of request and will guarantee you a response. Please register and post your query there:
http://www.techsupportalert.com/freeware-forum/i-want-freeware-program-t...
Might also get you flamed or banned. Seems a lot of people get info from the comments sections of reviews.
A rather lame response to a legimate request.
Anomymous #2
We appreciate the request but can only agree to service it from the right location.
Some editors are able to spend 60+ hours a week in the site and others would struggle to find this free in a year. Consequently some editors can service support requests from their comments sections quite happily and others cannot. Considering the many 1,000's of pages here now this is a physical limitation and not a sign of bad service or inappropriate systems management. Also, the comments appear in whatever order they are posted in wheres in the forum everything stays in chronological order making tracking for staff and members alike much easier.
We are constantly seeking ways to improve the site but ultimately what we are able to achieve is limited by the numbers available to do it. Maybe you'd like to join the volunteers already contributing in which case please use the link at the top of the page.
It's worth pointing out that there is a commercial version of xplorer2 for 32 bit and 64 bit platforms. Many editors, myself included, use Directory Opus or xplorer2 for the extra features.
I don't see mention of Q-Dir. Did I miss it?
Rik Mayell - Category Editor, Best Free Windows 7 / Vista 64 bit Software
Best free file manager is Unreal Commander.
. . . and this one's in beta right now
I found another file manager called Windows Double Explorer
It is very recent
you can get it here
http://wde.codeplex.com/
This is alpha rated software and as such we would not recommend it's use except for testing purposes
very wise dude
While I wouldn't switch from xplorer2, Q-Dir is worth a look and there is a native 64 bit version.
Rik Mayell
A43, available here http://www.softpedia.com/get/File-managers/A43.shtml
Thanks Javelincts - or anyone ..
1. Can I close Explorer ( large memory allocation ) while running these apps.
2. I'm just after a bit better functionality - as I move a load of files around on a regular basis.
3. Plus need the right click to start everything that Explorer gives ( mainly antivirus on specific files and starting progs.
Thanks All
http://www.ultraexplorer.mustangpeak.net/
Ultraexplorer- they don't advertise this feature but it's the only file manager (that I know of) that let's you move among folders with mouse gestures. for example. drag your mouse to the left = goes back to last folder. drag mouse up goes up one level. Have to enable this feature in options. after awhile this is a must have feature if your constantly navigating folders (who isn't.) I think it has the best collection of features and useability.
I am looking for a true 64 bit file manager for Vista. thnx
Fileorganiser at https://sourceforge.net/projects/ffileorganiser/
Can be complex, but does quite a lot of jobs. 2 pane windows is good, but main that it remembers lots of file locations, as favorites
Hi everyone
Thanks a lot for your detailed comments and recommendations. I have used many from your recommendations and I'm suggesting two pieces here:
1 - FreeCommander
2 - UltraExplorer.
Both are great.
The most critical feature missing in freecommander is the unicode support.
If you use freeCommander to search a file, containing some string with characters outside the first 128 chars of the ASCII, freeCommander will not find it, because it does not support unicode.
If you search the same thing with Windows Explorer, it will find it.
check out TaggedFrog @ lunarfrog.com, its a great alternative to explorer-type file manager.
A very good program is TwoDirs.
Thanks for the recommendation. I have tried lots & lots of file managers over the years and still do. I agree with one reviewer who says its really a matter of what you want (kind of like browser's). I had never tried "TwoDirs" but it is very nice and certainly ranks up with the best. Thanks again!
Note that a newer version of xplorer² lite is available.
I have been using the Cubic Explorer freeware that someone else mentioned the last couple of weeks. It is a fantastic little program. I have to access a lot of different directory structures. Windows Explorer XP was constantly losing my settings, also I had to open multiple instances for my different file locations. With Cubic Explorer it retains the settings I want. Having multiple tabs and being able to bookmark so I can access with one click is a great improvement. http://www.techsupportalert.com/best-free-windows-explorer-addons.htm
Everyone has different needs from a file manager. In my case, I have to needs: one for work and one for home. I'm an IT admin and one of the things I do a lot is copy and move files to and from various computers and servers. Having multiple panes visible at the same time is a great asset - in this respect Q-Dir is awesome. You can easily arrange panes in just about any configuration you might need and it's easy to go back and forth between layouts.
Another thing that I like about Q-Dir is that I can type in a UNC path into the address bar. That's a big help for me because it's almost always much faster for me to type in where I want to go rather than clicking through menus. Even using the Q-Dir's Favorites usually takes me longer than just typing in the UNC.
What really convinced me to use Q-Dir over any other file manager mentioned here is that it didn't choke or freeze when accessing remote systems. All of the other file managers listed here that I chose to try out either froze or took a very long time to show files on remote systems. That's totally unacceptable if you work with remote systems as much as I do. Q-Dir displays remote files and folders instantly (to be fair, Q-Dir will freeze up if you use the tree-view panel on remote systems).
If you need a file manager to primarily copy/move files to and from remote systems, you should definitely take a look at Q-Dir.
has anyone tried nomad.net?
There's an interesting new file manager called SurF: http://surf.svprogramming.net/
Although minimal, it's unique in that it offers "tree organized tabs".
I am just wondering - how do freeware-file-managers compare to the ubiquitous Total Commander? Are there any alternatives?
I grew up on Norton Commander, Volkov Commander [yes!], migrated to M602 [oh yes...], then when Windows3x became usable, the WinCommander (now TotalCommander) was an obvious choice: it does everything I need, I can operate it solely by keyboard and still I can only use a mere half of it's power. I only ever use other file applications for massive tasks like comparing thousands of files/duplicites, or long ftp sessions [why does totalcommander block other functions while *searching* disk?]
However, I secretly hope someone created something new, something intuitive, something beyond those two-directory-windows+buttons+keyboard... something I missed in those many years... or not?
sorry for a bit OT
FreeCommander
support two-directory-windows+buttons+keyboard+support of archives.Tabbed interface.
The most critical feature missing in freecommander is the unicode support.
If you use freeCommander to search a file, containing some string with characters outside the first 128 chars of the ASCII, freeCommander will not find it, because it does not support unicode.
If you search the same thing with Windows Explorer, it will find it.
Double Commander http://doublecmd.sourceforge.net/
I thought Directory Opus was the ubiquitous file manager!
UltraExplorer is my favorite freeware file manager, and it just recently got updated: http://www.mustangpeak.net/ultraexplorer.html
I just re-tested it too, but found it a little buggy. It crashed twice on my XP machine. I still think it has potential, especially for directory exploring and file management. What I particularly like is it's customizability and cascading menus (I'm a sucker for cascading menus). It seems less strong on graphics, previews and such.
Testing now, let you all know my impressions.
I think it really should be pointed out to the average user that Windows Explorer's functionality can be significantly increased by installing QTTabBar: a far less drastic solution to try out first!
An alternative would be to use Explorer++, which clones the interface of Windows Explorer but adds extra functions to improve usability.
If you decide that you want to dump the Windows Explorer interface then Cubic Explorer is the place to start, it's slick and very easy to use.
See:
http://www.techsupportalert.com/best-free-windows-explorer-addons.htm
I know about that there is a Windows explorer add on category. My point is that many users might not be aware of programs like QTTabBar, and after reading your article might jump into using a program like Free Commander, when all they wanted was a bit of increased usability, but within a familiar and easy to use environment.
I think a link to the windows explorer add on page should be included in this article, and Explorer++ should be recommended as a good alternative for the average user.
This is a great site, but all too often articles here encourage readers to jump straight into the deep end, when all they need is a little increased functionality.
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