FanFolder is a free Windows taskbar utility. Click its icon to open recent documents from Windows Jump Lists or files from any folder you choose, including folders available through OneDrive, Dropbox, or Google Drive. Open, drag, and manage items without searching through Explorer.
Open recent documents from Windows Jump Lists, or choose any folder available on your PC.
By default, FanFolder shows recent documents collected from Windows Jump Lists. You can also point it at Downloads, Documents, OneDrive, Dropbox, Google Drive, or any other folder available on your PC.
Pick whichever vibe fits your desktop — each one is tuned to feel snappy and alive.
Right-click any file for the real Windows context menu. Drag files straight into other apps with a ghost preview.
Icons are pre-loaded in the background so the fan opens the moment you click — zero wait.
Sort by date modified, created, or name. Regex filter so you only see what you want.
The UI adapts automatically to your Windows display language — no setup needed.
FanFolder is a small native Win32 application with x64 and ARM64 builds. It has no .NET runtime dependency.
Install the free Windows taskbar file launcher with winget, or download the per-user installer. Releases are built automatically from source.
Install FanFolder from the Windows Package Manager with one command. No administrator rights required.
Prefer a direct download? Run the per-user installer — no admin rights needed. It starts with Windows automatically.
Download FanFolderEverything you need to know about this Windows taskbar file launcher.
FanFolder is a free Windows 10/11 taskbar utility that shows recent documents collected from Windows Jump Lists, or files and folders from a location you select. Click the FanFolder icon in the taskbar to open items quickly.
Open Windows Terminal or PowerShell and run winget install OleBhartvigsen.FanFolder. The Windows Package Manager installs the current version for your user.
No. FanFolder installs per user and does not require administrator privileges or elevation.
FanFolder supports Windows 10 version 1809 and later, and Windows 11. Release packages are available for both x64 and ARM64 computers.
Yes. Point FanFolder at any folder that is available on your computer, including locally synchronised OneDrive, Dropbox, and Google Drive folders.
By default FanFolder shows recent documents collected from Windows Jump Lists. The tray-icon Folder submenu also offers Recent files (the Windows Jump List recent list) and Recent Office 365 documents (recent Office/Microsoft 365 files ordered by last-opened time) as one-click choices. A third recent-docs source, ::RecentFiles:: (Explorer's own Recent list), is registry-only — set FolderPath to that value with regedit or PowerShell's Set-ItemProperty.
Yes. The tray menu covers folder, sort order, item count, showing folders, and file extensions. Two options are only available in the registry under HKCU\SOFTWARE\FanFolder: FilterRegex (a case-insensitive regular expression matched against filenames — for example \.(pdf|docx?)$ shows only PDF and Word files; leave it empty to show everything) and AnimationStyle (Spring, Fan, Glide, Fade, or None). Edit them with regedit or PowerShell's Set-ItemProperty. See the README on GitHub for the full list of registry settings and PowerShell examples.
Once, after a successful install, FanFolder sends a single anonymous app_installed event to the FanFolder Aptabase project in the EU. It carries only a random per-user id, the app version, CPU architecture, and the platform "Windows" — never filenames, folder paths, or account details. It is sent in the background with a short timeout and is ignored when offline. To opt out before launching, set HKCU\SOFTWARE\FanFolder\TelemetryEnabled (DWORD) to 0. See the Privacy page for full details.
Yes. FanFolder is free for personal and commercial use forever. Optional support is appreciated but never required.
If FanFolder saves you time, consider supporting its development.