File Operations

Copy, move, rename, delete, compress, extract, and undo any of it — all with progress, conflict handling, and a full history stack.

What is it?
Basic operations
1. Progress, pause, cancel
2. Virtual file paste
Rename
Delete
Duplicate
Compress and extract
Undo and Redo
Conflict resolution
Drag and drop
Action log
Tips & gotchas
Shortcut files (.lnk)
See also

What is it?

Span Finder handles every common file operation you expect from a file manager plus a few power features Windows Explorer lacks: batch rename with patterns, ZIP compression from the context menu, and a full Undo/Redo stack that covers copy, move, delete, rename, compress, and extract.

Basic operations

Shortcut	Action
`Ctrl` + `C`	Copy
`Ctrl` + `X`	Cut
`Ctrl` + `V`	Paste
`Ctrl` + `Shift` + `V`	Paste as shortcut (.lnk) — see Shortcut files
`Ctrl` + `D`	Duplicate selected items (appends “ copy”)
`F2`	Rename
`Delete`	Move to Recycle Bin
`Shift` + `Delete`	Permanent delete
`Ctrl` + `Shift` + `N`	New folder
`Alt` + `Enter`	Properties
`Ctrl` + `Z`	Undo
`Ctrl` + `Y`	Redo

Progress, pause, cancel

Long-running copies and moves show a progress dialog with pause, resume, and cancel buttons. Multiple operations run concurrently — you can queue up several copies and they will all make progress in parallel without blocking the UI.

Virtual file paste

Ctrl + V handles virtual files too. You can paste attachments dragged from Outlook or files copied from a Remote Desktop session directly into a Span Finder folder.

Rename

Single rename

Press F2 to enter inline rename mode. Press Enter to confirm or Esc to cancel.

Pressing F2 repeatedly cycles the selection through three useful presets:

File name only (everything before the last dot)
Full name (including extension)
Extension only

This is a shortcut for users who rename files constantly — you don’t need to manually select the part you want to edit.

Batch rename

Select multiple files and press F2 to open the Batch Rename dialog. It supports:

Find and replace with optional regex and case sensitivity
Prefix / suffix — add text to the start or end of every name
Sequential numbering — {n} placeholder with configurable start and padding
Template patterns — {name}, {n}, {ext} placeholders to rebuild names from scratch
Live preview — see the new names before you commit
Conflict detection — duplicate target names are highlighted before you apply

Extension toggle

Press Ctrl + Shift + H to toggle file extension visibility everywhere in the app.

Delete

Move to Recycle Bin — Delete. Recoverable from the Recycle Bin tab.
Permanent delete — Shift + Delete. Skips the Recycle Bin entirely.
Delete confirmation dialog — Configurable in Settings (on by default).

The Recycle Bin appears as a dedicated tab where you can browse, restore, or empty it from the toolbar.

Duplicate

Ctrl + D creates a copy in the same folder with “ copy” appended. Select multiple files and Span Finder duplicates each one in a single operation that can be undone as a unit.

Compress and extract

ZIP compression and extraction are available from the context menu on selected items:

Compress to ZIP — Bundles the current selection into a new .zip in the same folder
Extract here — Unpacks a ZIP into the current folder
Extract to folder — Unpacks into a new subfolder named after the archive

Both operations are covered by Undo/Redo.

Undo and Redo

Span Finder tracks every file operation in a per-window history stack. Ctrl + Z undoes the last operation; Ctrl + Y redoes it.

Supported operations:

Copy
Move
Rename (single and batch)
Delete (Recycle Bin only — permanent delete cannot be undone)
Duplicate
ZIP compression
ZIP extraction

The default history depth is 50 operations and is configurable in Settings (range: 1–100).

Undo and Redo themselves are recorded in the Action Log so you can audit exactly what happened.

Conflict resolution

When a copy or move would overwrite an existing file, Span Finder prompts you per conflict:

Skip — Leave the existing file alone
Replace — Overwrite the existing file
Rename — Append " (n)" to the incoming file name

Choose Apply to all to reuse the same decision for every remaining conflict in the operation.

For duplicates within the same folder (for example, Ctrl + D), Span Finder automatically appends " (2)", " (3)", etc. to avoid overwriting anything.

Drag and drop

Drag-and-drop is just another way to invoke copy/move:

No modifier — Move within the same drive, copy across drives (Windows convention)
Hold Ctrl — Force copy
Hold Shift — Force move
Spring-loaded folders — Hover a folder for 800 ms while dragging to open it automatically

Drag targets include Span’s own panes (including Split View), the sidebar Favorites section, Windows Explorer, and the Desktop.

Action log

Every file operation is written to the Action Log (JSON, up to 1,000 entries, FIFO). The log viewer shows timestamp, operation type, status, and affected paths. You can filter for errors only, sort by any column, and clear the history.

Tips & gotchas

Tip: If a copy fails partway through, the Action Log captures the exact error. Filter by “errors only” to review what went wrong.

Tip: Batch rename with {n:03} creates zero-padded numbers (001, 002, 003), perfect for photo sequences.

Gotcha: Permanent delete (Shift + Delete) is not undoable. Only Recycle Bin deletes can be restored with Ctrl + Z.

Gotcha: Conflict resolution does not apply to system-locked files — Windows will still refuse to overwrite in-use files and Span Finder will report the error.

Shortcut files (.lnk)

Ctrl + Shift + V pastes the clipboard contents as a Windows shortcut (.lnk) instead of copying the actual file.

Clicking a .lnk file in SPAN Finder resolves the target automatically:

Folder target → next Miller Column shows the target folder’s contents
File target → preview panel shows the target file’s content
Double-click / Enter → navigates into the target folder, or opens the target file with the default app

See Preview Panel — Shortcuts for details on how .lnk previews work.