Option to Single-click for Details/Sidebar and Double-click to open

[Wolverine]

I have no support/technical question and have seen the support category. (Be aware that direct support questions will be deleted.)

on

Which general topic do you have

Hi Nextcloud community!

First of all, thank you for a fantastic piece of software. I use Nextcloud daily and really appreciate the work you put into it.

I have a suggestion regarding the user experience (UX) in the Files app. Currently, clicking a filename opens the file immediately, and to see the file details, I need to click the three-dot menu and select “Details.”

I would love to see an option (perhaps in the settings) to change this behavior to match a traditional desktop workflow:

Single-click: Selects the file and opens the “Details” sidebar (Metadata, Sharing, etc.).

Double-click: Opens the file.

This would make it much faster to manage files, check sizes, or share items without accidentally opening them.

Is this something that could be considered for future releases?

Thanks in advance!

[tflidd]

@Wolverine

I need to click the three-dot menu and select “Details.”

You can as well use a right click on the files.

There is a feature request to define file actions manually:

Allow prioritizing default file actions for a mime type (per user)

(give the initial post a thumbs up if you want to support it)

@Wolverine

I would love to see an option (perhaps in the settings) to change this behavior to match a traditional desktop workflow

It’s still a web interface, and there you follow a link or open something with a single click. There already was a topic close as not planned:

Update click behavior in files

Checkout the comments where they see chances and problems with such a feature.

[Wolverine]

@tflidd

It’s still a web interface, and there you follow a link or open something with a single click.

I see your point about standard web behavior. However, I believe the line between traditional websites and complex Web Applications is blurring.

Since Nextcloud Files is essentially a file manager, adopting desktop patterns offers significant workflow advantages:

1. Selection: It allows for standard modifier-key selection (Shift+Click, Ctrl+Click) without relying on targeting small checkboxes.

2. Rapid Inspection: I can single-click to scan through files and immediately see metadata/previews in the sidebar, rather than opening and closing files repeatedly to find what I’m looking for.

My goal isn’t to change the default for everyone, but to have an option for those who prefer a unified workflow between their OS and their cloud storage.

[tflidd]

I get your point. You could try to open a topic on github for such an option. As they said in the topic, the feature wasn’t requested a lot. The best way to get it integrated soon as an option is probably having an app doing that. In the past there was a right-click app (which later was integrated into the core).

[Wolverine]

Thanks for the tip regarding the app approach! I have actually started digging into the source code (specifically the Vue components in the Files app) to assess if I can implement this myself. I’m currently investigating whether this requires a core change or if it can be handled via an app/extension.