Directory Sheet
Directory Sheet (DirSheet)
Open any directory in VisiData to get a DirSheet: a browsable, editable view of the filesystem.
vd .
vd /path/to/directoryWithin VisiData, use open-dir-current to open the current working directory.
Columns
DirSheet shows these columns by default:
| Column | Description |
|---|---|
| directory | parent directory path |
| filename | file name (key column) |
| ext | file extension (/ for directories) |
| size | file size in bytes |
| modtime | last modification time |
These columns are available but hidden by default (unhide with -):
| Column | Description |
|---|---|
| abspath | absolute file path |
| owner | file owner (Unix) |
| group | file group (Unix) |
| mode | file permissions (octal) |
| filetype | output of file --brief (computed async) |
Files are sorted by modification time (newest first) by default.
Opening files
| Keystroke(s) | Command | Action |
|---|---|---|
Enter |
open-row-file |
open file at cursor as a new sheet |
g Enter |
open-rows |
open all selected files as new sheets |
z Enter |
open-row-filetype |
open file at cursor, prompting for filetype |
` |
open-dir-parent |
open parent directory |
VisiData detects the filetype from the file extension and opens the appropriate loader (csv, tsv, json, etc.). Directories open as nested DirSheets.
File preview
The open-preview command opens the file at the cursor in a split pane. As you navigate the file list, the preview updates automatically to show the current file.
- Tables (csv, tsv, json, etc.) display as proper table sheets
- Text files display as TextSheet
- Directories display as nested DirSheet
- Preview sheets for visible rows are preloaded in the background
open-preview is unbound by default; add a keybinding in .visidatarc:
DirSheet.addCommand('p', 'open-preview', 'sheet.previewFile(cursorRow)')Close the preview with g Shift+Z (close split).
External editors
| Keystroke(s) | Command | Action |
|---|---|---|
Ctrl+O |
sysopen-row |
open file in $EDITOR |
g Ctrl+O |
sysopen-rows |
open selected files in $EDITOR |
Editing the filesystem
DirSheet uses deferred mode: edits are staged and applied all at once with z Ctrl+S.
Renaming and moving files
Edit the filename column (e) to rename a file. Edit the directory column to move it to a different directory (the destination is created if it doesn't exist).
Deleting files
Mark rows for deletion with d. Commit with z Ctrl+S.
- By default (
options.safety_first), directory deletion usesos.rmdir(fails if not empty). - With
safety_firstdisabled, directory deletion usesshutil.rmtree.
Editing metadata
Edit the size, modtime, owner, group, or mode columns directly. Changes are applied on commit.
Copying files
| Keystroke(s) | Command | Action |
|---|---|---|
y |
copy-row |
copy file at cursor to a destination directory |
gy |
copy-selected |
copy selected files to a destination directory |
Shell integration
| Keystroke(s) | Command | Action |
|---|---|---|
z; |
addcol-shell |
add column from shell command, with $columnName variables |
Shell columns run a command for each row, interpolating $columnName references with column values. Both stdout and stderr are captured as separate columns.
Options
| Option | Default | Description |
|---|---|---|
dir_depth |
0 |
folder recursion depth (0 = only immediate children) |
dir_hidden |
False |
whether to show hidden files (dotfiles) |
Options must be set before loading; reload the sheet after changing them.
FileListSheet
Opening a .fdir file creates a FileListSheet: a DirSheet populated from a list of file paths (one per line) instead of a directory listing.