Files and folders¶

Find and open files by name from your configured directories, search the whole disk or inside documents through your computer's own file index, or browse folders by typing a path. Enter opens the file or folder. The file buffer collects several files so you can act on them together.

How to use it¶

The Files plugin works two ways: indexed search (fast, pre-built) and path browsing (live, as you type).

Indexed search¶

Type f followed by at least two characters of a filename:

Input	What you see	What `Enter` does
`f report`	All files/folders matching "report"	Open the selected file
`f config.toml`	Exact match for config.toml	Open config.toml
`f src/main`	Files in src/ matching "main"	Open the file
`report` (no keyword)	Files matching "report" + apps + other results	Open the file (if Files is global)

Matching is fuzzy: fsrc finds File System (C:), fmain.rs finds src/main.rs.

Path browsing¶

Type a path to browse its contents live. Tab and Shift+Tab navigate up and down folder levels:

Input	What you see	Action
`~/Doc`	Contents of ~/Documents (path-matched)	Press `Tab` to complete folder name
`~/Documents/`	Contents of Documents folder	`Enter` on a folder to open it
`C:\Users\`	Contents of C:\Users	Navigate folders with `Tab`
`/etc/`	Contents of /etc (Linux)	Press `Shift`+`Tab` to go up one level

Folders end with / (or \ on Windows), so Tab drills deeper. Path browsing shows contents live without waiting for the full index.

Network paths are off by default (Windows)

A path on another computer (\\server\share\..., //server/share/..., \\?\UNC\...) or on a mapped network drive is not listed, opened or checked: Sevak shows one row, Network paths are turned off (Settings → Files), before it touches the path. Windows signs in to a computer as soon as anything looks at its path, which can hand your Windows credentials to whoever runs that computer, and a path can reach Sevak from a pasted text or another program. Turn Allow network paths on (Settings → Files, or [files] allow_network_paths = true) if you keep files on a server you trust. While it is off, folders in directories that are on a network share are skipped (a line in the log says so), and the same rule applies to the file buffer's destination picker, workflows' open-file nodes and any other path Sevak is about to open. Device paths such as \\.\pipe\name are never used. Text you select in other apps is never checked as a network path, whatever this setting says.

Whole-disk and content search¶

f only knows the folders you chose. Two more keywords ask your computer's own file index, which covers the whole disk and can read inside documents:

Input	What you see	What `Enter` does
`ff report`	Files and folders anywhere the index looks whose name matches	Open the selected file
`in invoice 2026`	Files whose contents contain the words (at least three characters)	Open the selected file

Several words must all match. Results are ordinary file results: Enter opens, Ctrl+Enter shows in folder, Shift+Enter copies the path, Tab fills in the path. Names match from the start of each word (rep finds annual_report.docx). Hidden files, caches and generated folders are left out, as for f.

OS	Names	Inside files	Notes
Windows	Windows Search; "Everything" if `es.exe` is on `PATH` and Everything is running	Windows Search	Only indexed places are searched (by default your user folders and the Start menu). Add drives in Indexing Options. Reading PDFs and Office files depends on the installed search filters.
macOS	Spotlight (`mdfind`)	Spotlight	Honors Spotlight's Privacy list; app bundles and system folders are left out.
Linux	`plocate` or `locate`	Tracker 3 (`tracker3`), else Baloo (`baloosearch`)	Names need a `locate` database (`updatedb`, usually a daily timer). Contents need Tracker or Baloo to be installed and indexing.

Asking the index takes a moment, so it never holds up typing: for ff, matches from the f folder index appear immediately, and the index's results join the list when they arrive. A search that takes more than two seconds is given up. If there is no index to ask (the Windows Search service is stopped, locate is not installed), a "File index unavailable" row says what to do, and ff still shows the folder matches. Queries go only to that local index, never over the network.

How indexing vs. path-browsing is chosen¶

flowchart TD
    A["Input: 'f documents'"] --> B{"Does input<br/>end with<br/>/ or \\?"}
    B -->|Yes| C["Path browse:<br/>list that directory"]
    B -->|No| D{"Does it look like<br/>a path?<br/>~/ C:/ etc/"}
    D -->|Yes| E["Try path browse;<br/>fallback to<br/>indexed search"]
    D -->|No| F["Indexed search:<br/>fuzzy match<br/>on filenames"]
    C --> G["Show results"]
    E --> G
    F --> G

Actions¶

Key(s)	Action
`Enter`	Open the file or folder
`Ctrl`+`Enter`	Show the file in your file manager (reveal in folder)
`Shift`+`Enter`	Copy the full path to your clipboard
`Tab` (path browsing)	Complete or drill into a folder
`Shift`+`Tab` (path browsing)	Go up one folder level
`Alt`+`Up` / `Alt`+`Down`	Add the file to the file buffer and move on
`Shift` (tap) or `Ctrl`+`Y`	Preview the file or folder (preview pane); a PDF shows its first page

Use Ctrl+K to see all available actions.

File buffer¶

Search bar with a file buffer strip above the results: three collected items shown as chips, with Alt+Right for actions and Alt+Backspace to clear.

Collect several files and folders, then act on all of them. With a file or folder result selected (from file search or a browsed path; not bookmarks or apps):

Key	What it does
`Alt`+`Up` / `Alt`+`Down`	Add the selected result to the buffer and move the selection up / down (`Option` on macOS)
`Alt`+`Left`	Remove the last item
`Alt`+`Backspace` / `Alt`+`Del`	Empty the buffer
`Alt`+`Right`	Open the buffer's actions

The buffer is a strip of chips above the results (click the x on a chip to drop it). It stays while you search for other things, and is emptied when the launcher hides, unless you set [file_buffer] keep_between_shows. The same actions are in the action panel of a file result (Add to file buffer, and File buffer actions once something is collected). The Alt+Left, Alt+Right and Alt+Backspace keys only act while the buffer holds something, so on macOS Option+Left and Option+Backspace keep their text-editing meaning when it is empty.

Buffer action	What it does
Open all	Opens each item with its default application (asks above 10 items)
Show in folder	Opens a file manager window for each folder the items are in (asks above 3)
Copy paths	Copies the paths, one per line
Copy files to clipboard	Puts the files on the clipboard as a file list, so pasting in Explorer, Finder or a file manager copies them
Move to… / Copy to…	Asks for a folder, then moves or copies the items there
Move to Trash	Sends the items to the Recycle Bin, Trash or freedesktop trash
Compress to .zip	Writes `Archive.zip` (one item: `<name>.zip`) into the folder the items share
Open in terminal	Opens a terminal in each folder, or in the folder of each file (asks above 3)
More file actions…	The Universal Actions for files, over the collected items

Move to… and Copy to… turn the search bar into a folder picker, starting at ~/. Type a path or browse it as usual: Tab opens the highlighted folder, Shift+Tab goes up, Enter uses the highlighted folder, Ctrl+Enter uses the path exactly as typed, and Esc cancels. Only folders are listed; the path browsing needs [files] global or the f prefix.

What to expect:

Moving and trashing ask first, naming the items. Nothing is overwritten: a name that is taken becomes report (2).docx (photos (2), a (2).tar.gz).
Move, copy, trash and zip run in the background with a progress line under the chips; you can keep typing. When done, a line says what happened. If some items failed it says how many worked and why the first one did not, and the failed ones stay in the buffer. Moved and trashed items leave the buffer; copied and zipped ones stay for the next action.
A folder is never moved or copied into itself. Items inside a collected folder are handled with the folder, not twice. Moving to another drive copies first and removes the original only if the copy worked.
Zip archives skip symbolic links, and files that cannot be read (the line says how many).
There is no undo, and no way to cancel a running operation. Trashed items can be restored from the Recycle Bin or Trash.
On Linux, trashing needs gio (part of GLib), and "Copy files to clipboard" works with file managers that read text/uri-list; some (Nautilus) only accept their own format and may ignore it.

Options¶

Setting	Default	What it does	Config section
Directories	`~/Desktop`, `~/Documents`, `~/Downloads`	Folders whose contents are indexed	`[files] directories`
Max depth	`4`	How many folder levels below each directory are indexed	`[files] max_depth`
Include hidden	`false`	Whether to index dot-files and dot-folders (`.gitignore`, `.config/`)	`[files] include_hidden`
Allow network paths	`false`	Windows: use `\\server\share` paths and mapped network drives (see Path browsing)	`[files] allow_network_paths`
Keyword	`f`	Keyword to search only files	`[files] keyword`
Global	`true`	Also show file results in ordinary searches without the keyword	`[files] global`
Use the OS index	`true`	Turn whole-disk (`ff`) and content (`in`) search on or off	`[files] use_os_index`
Whole-disk keyword	`ff`	Keyword for names anywhere; `""` turns that search off	`[files] index_keyword`
Contents keyword	`in`	Keyword for words inside files; `""` turns that search off	`[files] content_keyword`
Keep the buffer	`false`	Keep the file buffer when the launcher hides	`[file_buffer] keep_between_shows`

How indexing works¶

At startup and every few minutes, Sevak scans your configured directories and builds an index. Results from indexed search come back instantly.

Pruned directories (always skipped to save time): - node_modules, .git, target, __pycache__, .cache, venv, .venv, appdata

To search inside one of these, use path browsing or configure them as a separate directory with a small depth.

Limits: The index is capped at 100,000 entries to bound memory. If you exceed this, older or less-used files drop out.

Platform notes¶

WindowsmacOSLinux

Paths use backslashes: C:\Users\Name\Documents\. Type ~ to expand to your home directory. Hidden files have the hidden attribute set; they appear in path browsing only if you explicitly type ..

Paths use forward slashes: /Users/Name/Documents/. The index includes system directories but respects macOS privacy settings (it cannot read files in ~/Library without permission).

Paths use forward slashes: /home/name/documents/. The ~ shortcut expands to your home. Root directories like /etc/ and /usr/ are not automatically indexed; add them to [files] directories if you need to search them.

Tips and troubleshooting¶

Slow indexing: The first index scan takes longer than refreshes. It runs in the background; you can keep using Sevak while it builds.

ff or in says "File index unavailable": Start the Windows Search service (WSearch), install plocate and run updatedb, or install Tracker or Baloo, as the row explains. The OS only finds what it has indexed, so a file created seconds ago may take a moment to appear.

Index doesn't include files I added: Refresh the index by choosing Reload index from the tray menu, or wait a few minutes for the automatic refresh.

Hidden files not showing: Path browsing respects [files] include_hidden; if it's false, hidden files appear only when the filter itself starts with a dot (e.g., .git).

Path completion is slow: Path browsing reads the filesystem live, so large directories (like node_modules) can take a moment. The indexed search is faster for large collections.

Symlinks: Sevak follows symlinks when indexing, so the same file can appear under different paths. If this is unwanted, add the symlinked directory to the pruned list in the code and recompile, or use path browsing to navigate directly.