Phials documentation
Developer docs

Editing the Path Bar and Tab Bar

Phials has two toolbars you can rearrange: the path bar above each folder listing, and the tab bar at the top of the window. Both are edited in Settings → Commands.

Path bar (Settings → Commands → Toolbar)

The path bar is the row above the files in each pane: navigation, breadcrumbs, View & arrange, search, and similar controls. Each pane has its own path bar.

What you can change

The Toolbar settings page has three areas:

  1. Layout preview: the path bar as a row of chips. This is what you edit.
  2. Item detail: options for the selected chip (when one is selected).
  3. Available items: commands and structural items you can add.

Add a button

  1. Open Settings → Commands → Toolbar.
  2. Find the command or item in Available items (use search if needed).
  3. Drag it into the layout preview, or click to add it to the end of the row.

Commands already on the path bar do not appear in the available list.

Reorder and remove

  • Reorder: drag chips in the layout preview.
  • Remove: select a chip and remove it from the layout, or use the remove control on the chip.

Removing a custom dropdown or custom sub-toolbar also removes its group definition.

View & arrange sub-toolbar

The View & arrange control opens a second row under the path bar with view mode, sort, filter, group, and saved views. Keep this button on the path bar if you use that row.

After a Reset to Defaults, path bar buttons return to the factory layout and View & arrange opens again on every pane (any per-pane “which sub-toolbar was open” choice is cleared).

Reset the path bar

Click Reset to Defaults at the bottom of the Toolbar page. Layout and sub-toolbar behavior return to Phials defaults immediately.

Tab bar (Settings → Commands → Tab Bar)

The tab bar is the top chrome: tabs, layout controls, search entry, and window controls. Items are organized in left, center, and right sections (window controls stay fixed on the right in the preview).

What you can change

The Tab Bar page works like the path bar editor:

  1. Layout preview with three sections.
  2. Item detail when a chip is selected.
  3. Available items to add.

Add, reorder, and remove

  • Add: drag or click an item from Available items into the left, center, or right section.
  • Reorder: drag chips within a section.
  • Remove: delete the selected chip; custom dropdowns remove their group as well.

Reset the tab bar

Click Reset to Defaults at the bottom of the Tab Bar page to restore the factory header layout.

Tips

  • Path bar changes apply to every path bar; tab bar changes apply to the main window header.
  • If a saved session references a sub-toolbar you removed, that pane simply starts with no sub-toolbar open until you toggle one again.
  • Pair toolbar edits with Keyboard Shortcuts so important actions stay reachable both ways.