Arranging Panels
Phials surrounds your file browsing with panels you can open, move, and split. The left, right, and bottom panels hold side features such as the Navigator, Preview, and terminal. Each panel shows one or more tabs you can drag, stack, or close. Your main file browser tab in the center can also split into several folder panes at once.
If you are new to tabs and folders in the center area, read Tabs and The File Explorer first.
Side and bottom panels
Open a feature in a panel
- Open Settings (or use the command bar) if you need to confirm what is available.
- In a panel tab bar, click the + button.
- Choose what to add, for example Navigator, Preview, or Terminal.
The list only shows features that are allowed in that panel position.
Switch between tabs in one panel
Click a tab to make it active. When several tabs share a panel, inactive tabs stay available until you close them.
Move a tab to another panel
- Drag the tab you want to move.
- Drop it on the left, right, or bottom panel tab bar where you want it.
You can also right-click a tab and use Move to → Left Panel, Right Panel, or Bottom Panel.
Split a panel into stacked tabs
While dragging a tab over a panel:
- Drop on the tab bar to add the tab beside existing ones.
- Drop on the top or bottom edge (bottom panel) or left or right edge (side panels) when the overlay says Split Panel to show two tab groups at once.
After a split, drag the divider between groups to resize them. Side panels can minimize one group with the chevron on the tab bar when two groups are visible.
Close tabs and panels
- Close a tab: click the tab’s close control, right-click the tab and choose Close, or middle-click the tab (same as Close).
- Close the bottom panel: use Close Panel on the bottom panel tab bar. The panel collapses until you open a tab there again.
- Bottom panel maximize: use the chevron control to expand the bottom panel; use it again to restore the previous size.
Left and right panels can be resized by dragging the inner edge of the panel. Phials remembers your layout between sessions.
Split the file browser into multiple folder panes
Inside an active file browser tab, you can show one folder or several at the same time. Layout commands live on the tab bar by default (you can move them in Editing the Path Bar and Tab Bar).
| Layout | What you get |
|---|---|
| Single Pane | One folder view |
| Split Vertical | Two panes side by side |
| Split Horizontal | Two panes stacked |
| Quad Panes | Four panes in a grid |
Cycle Layout moves through those layouts in order.
When you add a pane by splitting, the new pane opens the same folder as the pane you split from, with the same view settings, but with an empty selection and a fresh back/forward history (only the current folder).
Click inside a pane to focus it before using navigation or selection shortcuts.
Tips
- Inactive file browser tabs refresh their listings when you switch back, so you always see what is on disk now.
- Duplicating a tab (from the tab bar) creates a separate tab with its own folders and history; it does not share listings with the original.
- Center search and preview tabs are separate from panel tabs; they follow the main tab bar at the top.