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Overview

DCommander is a powerful, keyboard-centric dual-pane file manager for macOS. It is designed for efficient file operations, making large copy/move jobs transparent and predictable, while remaining fast for everyday tasks.

Who is DCommander for?

DCommander is ideal for power users, developers, photographers, anyone who manages large numbers of files, and those who prefer a keyboard-driven workflow.

How DCommander works​

  • Two panes; one focus. Each pane has its own file list. The highlighted pane is active (source); the other is inactive (destination).
    F5 Copy and F6 Move always flow active → inactive. Press ⇥ to switch panes.
  • Observable operations. A Transfer Queue tracks copy/move with pause/resume, progress, and conflict prompts (Skip, Overwrite, Cancel).
  • Keyboard first. Every core action has a shortcut. You can work mouse-free if you want.

See also: Keyboard Shortcuts and File Operations.

The main window at a glance​

Overview of DCommander user interface
  • Dual panels with a resizable splitter (double-click to reset 50/50).
  • Left sidebar:
    • Drag & Drop Storage — temporarily park items, navigate elsewhere, then drag them out.
    • Favorites and Drives for quick access.
  • Right sidebar: toggle between a Favorites clone or an Information bar (kind, size, created/modified, full path, permissions, extended attributes, mini Quick Look).
  • Drive bar (per pane): choose a drive; right-click to Unmount or Scan for new drives.
  • Drive info bar: shows name, free/total space, plus shortcuts to root and parent.
  • Tabs bar: open multiple locations per pane; right-click to Duplicate, Close, Copy to other panel, Lock, or Lock (allow folder changes).
  • Breadcrumbs: visual path; click segments to jump. The Folder Hotlist button opens your jump list.
  • File list: sortable, resizable columns (icon, name, extension, size, date, kind, permissions/attr). First item is usually .. (parent).
  • Context menu: Open, Open With, Show in Finder, Rename, View, Quick Look, Edit, Delete, Compress, Duplicate, Make Alias, Copy Full Path, Copy/Paste, New empty document, New folder, New file from clipboard, Get Info, View checksums, Color tags.
  • Inline rename: click Name or Extension, or press ⌥⏎ (then ⇥ to switch between name/extension).
  • Command line bar: shows current path + an input box; ⏎ runs the command at that path.
  • Function keys bar: mouseable shortcuts mirroring keys — F3 View, F4 Edit, F5 Copy, F6 Move, F7 New Folder, F8 Delete.
  • Main toolbar: Back/Forward (long-press for history), sidebar toggles, Info-bar toggle, Refresh, Quick Look, Batch Rename, Synchronize, Swap panes, Equalize, Terminal/Console/Activity Monitor/Disk Utility, Connection Manager, Transfer Manager, Search.
tip

Prefer arrow-key navigation? Enable Lynx-like navigation so ← goes to parent and → opens the selection.

Key Features​

  • Search & filtering: find by name patterns (*Screenshot*), attributes, or content; act directly on results.
    See Search & Filtering.
  • Archives: browse archives like folders; extract quickly, or recompress after edits.
    See Archives.
  • Compare & sync: preview folder differences, then reconcile safely.
    See Compare & Sync.
  • Batch rename: apply patterns, numbering, and case rules with live preview.
    See Batch Rename.
  • Remote connections: SMB, FTP/SFTP, AFP, WebDAV via Connection Manager.
    See Remote Connections.

Safety & trust​

  • Permissions aware: prompts for Files & Folders/Full Disk Access only when needed.
    See First-run Setup.

Next: Install DCommander — App Store vs DMG, notarization, and the first-launch checklist.