The File Explorer in Home windows 11 has been by way of a tough time. The redesign displaced acquainted options; the right-click menu was truncated, and so have been the choices within the ribbons menu. A couple of updates later, issues have improved and Home windows 11 lastly added tab assist in File Explorer. However in the event you’re irritated by the dearth of consistency within the Home windows 11 app, there’s a free, open-source and community-supported various to the File Explorer merely referred to as the Information app.
The place to obtain the Information app at no cost
You should buy the Information app from the official Microsoft Retailer (additionally obtainable at no cost from their web site), and you need to use it as a substitute for the Information Explorer. However earlier than you do this, we advise you create a backup of your pc and necessary information to be protected, given that is an app with permissions to straight edit all information in your pc.
The Information app has some great points going for it, beginning with a darkish mode that works impartial of your Home windows 11 theme. Like we talked about above, the app has tabbed shopping built-in, and you’ll be able to allow a characteristic that robotically opens all folders in new tabs.
The interface, by default, seems to be like a extra polished model of the Home windows 11 File Explorer app, however there’s loads hiding beneath. You may allow a column view that appears much like macOS Finder, and you may have a dual-pane view as nicely for fast file motion. The Information app additionally has fast file preview (one thing that required a specialised third-party app) so you’ll be able to preview a photograph with out opening it in an app.
The Information app works with OneDrive and Google Drive by default, you’ll be able to see all of the information saved in your cloud storage account, and it might preview and unzip information. You may add assist for different providers like iCloud Drive and Dropbox.
It’s best to spend a while poking round each nook of the Preferences, the place you’ll discover loads of choices for customizing Information—one thing that’s simply not attainable within the File Explorer app. You may select precisely what exhibits up within the sidebar (hiding further gadgets and sections you don’t want), and that if you’re keen to get a bit nerdy, you’ll be able to outline the colours for every part of the app and flip the Information app into one thing just like the Finder in macOS (directions right here).