Files (Nautilus)
The file manager on Ubuntu and Fedora. The Linux equivalent of File Explorer.
Our verdict
Files is the app you will use instead of File Explorer, and it is already sitting on the taskbar the first time you log in. The layout will look familiar: places down the left, folder contents on the right, tabs across the top, search in the corner.
The differences are small but real. There is no drive letter, so your documents live under a folder with your name on it. The right-click menu is shorter. There is no equivalent of the ribbon. Copying, renaming, zipping and searching all work the way you expect.
USB sticks and external drives from Windows mount when you plug them in and your files are there. On KDE systems the file manager is called Dolphin instead, and it is closer to File Explorer in how much it lets you configure.
What's good
- Already installed and already on the taskbar
- Same ideas as File Explorer, including a sidebar, starred folders and tabs
- Search finds files by name and by content
- Reads USB sticks and external drives formatted on Windows
What to know first
- The right-click menu has fewer options than the File Explorer one
- No built-in way to open two folders side by side in one window
- Network shares work but adding them is less obvious than mapping a drive letter
- The Flathub version is still being worked on, so use the one that came with your system
The details
- Cost
- Free
- Open source
- Yes (GPL-3.0)
- How you install it
- Built-in app store
Windows apps it can replace
Last checked . Sources: