VeloFiler: Keyboard-first dual-pane file manager for macOS

VeloFiler is a keyboard-first, dual-pane file manager for macOS, built in Rust on GPUI for instant startup and smooth rendering. Navigate with Vim-style keys, preview images, code, Markdown, PDF, video and Office documents without opening another app, and manage remote servers over SSH/SFTP right next to your local files. Stop clicking through folders — fly through them.

Hi Product Hunt! 👋 I'm Kazuhiro, the maker of VeloFiler. I've always loved the speed of classic two-pane file managers, but I wanted one that feels truly native to today's macOS. So I built VeloFiler in Rust on GPUI (the UI framework behind the Zed editor) — it launches instantly and stays smooth no matter how big the folder is. What makes it different: ⌨️ Keyboard-first: Vim-style keys for moving, marking, copying — your hands never leave the home row 👀 Instant previews: images, code, Markdown, PDF, video, even Office documents, without opening another app 🌐 Built-in SSH/SFTP: remote servers show up as regular panes, so they feel like local folders ⚡ Native performance: no Electron, no web view — pure Rust It just landed on the Mac App Store today. I'd love to hear your feedback — especially from fellow keyboard addicts. Ask me anything!

Congrats on shipping! The Mac App Store part is what caught my eye tbh. A file manager needs to see everything and the sandbox really does not want you to, so getting a dual-pane manager through review sounds like the least fun part of the whole build haha.

What does that feel like for the person using it, do they get a permission prompt for every folder the first time or did you find a way around it? The Mac apps I work on go direct download partly to dodge exactly this, so I'm curious whether the App Store was worth the fight.