XFile - File manager for Unix/X11

XFile is a compact file manager for Unix and alike systems running X11. It presents the file system as is, without imaginary locations, trashcans etc. XFile uses its own file type association database written in typical Unix/RC file syntax. Mounting support for file systems defined in fstab, and integration with mount daemons that manage a dedicated media directory is also included.

XFile is easily configurable and customizable with X resources. The Tools dropdown menu can be populated with user defined commands, which may be run with selected files, current directory and user specified parameters as arguments.

The application has no dependencies, save for X and Motif, and is built using simple Makefiles. It's written in C, and the source code is freely available under the terms of the X/MIT license.

Downloads

Latest stable: xfile-src-1.0.tar.xz (Aug 02 2025).

See the included README file for build instructions. The application is usually tested on FreeBSD and Debian GNU/Linux. If you have a question that isn't answered in the manpage, feel free to contact me (Alex): mail@fastestcode.org

See the XFile FAQ/Guide for hints on setting up XFile, and the Motif/EMWM FAQ on setting up Motif based applications in general.

You can contribute by making a one-time donation via Stripe, or supporting further development via Liberapay.

Addons

xfile-addon.tar.xz (Updated Jul 09 2025)
Additional (mostly application specific) icons and file type definitions. To install, simply untar contents into ~/.xfile/, also see the README file inside the tarball.

xfile-xdgsvc-src.tar.xz (Updated Dec 26 2024)
A shim that allows xfile to act as xdg/freedesktop default file manager and be launched over dbus (such interface is used by some GTK programs, notably firefox and gimp). See the README file included.

xfind-src.tar.xz (Updated Aug 22 2025)
A simple, graphical file search utility (see screenshot) that interfaces with XFile. See the README file included, for installation instructions.

xfile-slanted-icons.tar.xz (Updated Dec 26 2024)
Alternate (indigo magic inspired) set of directory icons for xfile (to install, just copy *.xpm files into ~/.xfile/icons)

Screenshots

Click for a larger picture.

Trivia

Git repositories and distfiles archived/mirrored on SourceForge and Github.

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See also: EMWM • XImaging • Misc. X Stuff • Homepage About