nViPER file manager
Dual panel · SFTP/FTP/SCP
Only for Mac
Free · In‑App Purchases
nViPER is a fast, keyboard-driven dual-panel file manager for macOS — the modern revival of nViPER@bOX (NEXT17, 2001).
KEY FEATURES
• Two-panel layout with tabs, history, breadcrumbs, and bookmarks
• Full keyboard control with familiar F-key shortcuts (F3 View, F4 Edit, F5 Copy, F6 Move, F7 MkDir, F8 Delete)
• Built-in F3 file viewer — text, hex, image, PDF, syntax-highlighted JSON / HTML / source code, streaming hex for 2GB+ files
• Built-in F4 editor with live save-back to remote SFTP/FTP/SCP
• ZIP / TAR / GZ / BZ2 read and write — browse archives as folders, extract or compress
• Self-extracting archives that unpack on any Mac with nothing installed
• SFTP / FTP / FTPS / SCP / WebDAV clients with WinSCP / TotalCommander session import
• Network discovery — finds Macs and NAS boxes on your local network and the protocols they offer
• Disk usage map and Reclaim disk space — see what is eating your drive, then work on it in the panel
• Command palette, fuzzy folder jump, undo and redo
• Multi-rename tool — search & replace, RegEx, case-sensitive
• Split & combine, Encode / Decode, CRC32 file manifests
• Content search, file comparer, checksum (MD5/SHA-256), batch operations
• Light / Dark, Norton, One Dark and In the Dark themes; interface in 20 languages
PRO — One-time in-app purchase, lifetime license, Family Sharing
Unlock unlimited saved SFTP / FTP / FTPS / SCP / WebDAV connections, remote compare and folder sync, file & directory comparer, TotalCommander-style multi-rename placeholders ([N], [C], [YMD]), batch checksum, Finder color tags, and the custom shortcut editor.
nViPER is sandboxed for the Mac App Store and complies with App Sandbox restrictions. Passwords are stored securely in your macOS Keychain.
Built by NEXT176 in Slovakia. Contact: nviper@next176.sk
more Fixed: Copy/Move now report what happened and clear source selection when a full operation completes (configurable in Edit menu). Rename, symlink, and single-file compress now correctly preserve file extensions instead of including them in the selected text. Added Enter/Escape keyboard support to five dialogs that previously required the mouse (multi-rename, custom commands, folder sync, SFTP connection editors). Fixed a bug where pressing Enter on a folder outside the allowed sandbox scope could silently switch to a different folder. The app now remembers your last-used selection mask, search text, split size, archive format, and rename pattern. Fixed a double-click issue that could create a duplicate archive or rename operation.
4.7.2 3d ago
Six releases in one. Everything below landed since the version currently on the store.
Finding and freeing space
- Disk usage map: a DaisyDisk style treemap of any folder. Click to drill in, right-click to reveal in the panel or move to Trash.
- Reclaim disk space: scans caches, build folders, duplicates and oversized media, and one click turns any result list into a normal file panel.
Getting around faster
- Fuzzy folder jump (Cmd+P) learns the folders you actually use, and also lists your bookmarks and saved server connections.
- Shortcut cheatsheet (Cmd+?) - and it shows your own remapped keys, not the defaults.
- Custom keyboard shortcuts (PRO): remap 21 commands; the menu bar accelerators follow.
- Named tab layouts you can save and restore.
- The panel status bar shows the git branch of the folder you are standing in.
- The back and forward arrows open the full history list on a long press.
- Large folders were measured on a directory of 100,000 files and rebuilt around it, so typing in the filter no longer stutters.
Copying and files
- The copy dialog now takes a file mask (*.jpg, IMG_????.png) and an overwrite policy up front: ask, replace, replace if newer, skip or auto-rename. It applies to archive extraction and uploads too.
- The conflict dialog shows source and target side by side, each with its size and date - "replace if newer" is finally a decision you can make.
- Undo now has Redo (Cmd+Shift+Z).
- Optional automatic folder sizes, so directories show their real size without pressing Space.
- Symbolic links carry a small arrow badge instead of looking exactly like the folder they point at.
- The selection mask understands Finder tags: tag:red, tag:blue and the rest.
- Self-extracting archives: SFX writes a .command that unpacks on any Mac with nothing installed.
- Always on Top, in the View menu.
Servers
- WebDAV joins SFTP, FTP and SCP (PRO) - Nextcloud, NAS boxes and hosting without SSH, with resumable downloads.
- FTPS now really encrypts the data channel, not just the login.
- Network discovery finds Macs and NAS boxes on your local network and shows which protocols each one offers - SMB, SFTP, AFP, WebDAV, FTP or NFS. Enter opens SFTP, FTP and WebDAV straight in the panel; SMB, AFP and NFS go through the system mount.
- Remote compare: diff a local folder against a server and sync only what differs. A connection can be paired with a local mirror folder that opens in the other panel.
- F4 on a remote file can hand it to your external editor and upload again on every save.
- FTP transfers resume after a dropped connection, the way SFTP already did, and they now run in binary mode - the old ASCII default quietly damaged binary files.
- Failed transfers can be retried from the queue instead of restarting the whole batch.
- Walking a remote tree runs concurrently, so totals and ETA show up while the transfer is already going.
- Verify checksums (Cmd+Shift+K) against a manifest file.
Also: settings export and import, a short first-run tour, and In the Dark - a heritage theme rebuilt from the 2001 nViPER screenshots.
Fixed: the viewer and the editor ignored your language and always opened in English. The total progress bar during a copy no longer sits at 100 percent for the whole run, Pause now really pauses - including in the middle of a large file - and item counts use the correct plural form.
4.7.1 Aug 8
Four releases in one. Everything below landed since the version currently on the store.
Finding and freeing space
- Disk map: a DaisyDisk style treemap of any folder. Click to drill in, right-click to reveal in the panel or move to Trash.
- Reclaim disk space: scans caches, build folders, duplicates and oversized media, and sends what it finds straight into a panel.
Getting around faster
- Fuzzy folder jump (Cmd+P) learns the folders you actually use, and also lists your bookmarks and saved server connections.
- Shortcut cheatsheet (Cmd+?) - and it shows your own remapped keys, not the defaults.
- Custom keyboard shortcuts (PRO): remap 21 commands; the menu bar accelerators follow.
- Named tab layouts you can save and restore.
- The panel status bar shows the git branch of the folder you are standing in.
- The back and forward arrows open the full history list on a long press.
Files and archives
- Self-extracting archives: SFX writes a .command that unpacks on any Mac with nothing installed.
- 7z archives can be password protected, with the file list encrypted too.
- tar.zst compression and extraction.
- Undo now has Redo (Cmd+Shift+Z).
- Optional automatic folder sizes, so directories show their real size without pressing Space.
- Always on top, in the View menu.
Servers
- Remote compare: diff a local folder against an SFTP server and sync only what differs.
- FTP transfers resume after a dropped connection, the way SFTP already did.
- Failed transfers can be retried from the queue instead of restarting the whole batch.
- Verify checksums (Cmd+Shift+K) against a manifest file.
Also: settings export and import, Trash browsing and Empty Trash, a short first-run tour, and In the Dark - a heritage theme rebuilt from the 2001 nViPER screenshots.
Fixed: the total progress bar during a copy no longer sits at 100 percent for the whole run, and Pause now really pauses - including in the middle of a large file.
4.5.0 Aug 2
NEW
• Reclaim Disk Space (Commands menu) — scans for build junk, old installers, large & duplicate files, oversized photos and videos; send findings to a panel, export the list, or convert & shrink images
• Undo (Cmd+Z) — selectively revert copies, moves, renames, new folders and deletes
• Branch view (Cmd+B) — flatten a whole subtree into the panel
• Quick Look (Space), Spotlight comments and Finder tags
• Git status badges in listings and synchronized browsing of both panels
• Edit files directly inside ZIP archives (F4)
• SFTP transfer resume and system notifications on long operations
IMPROVED & FIXED
• Video quick view stability fix (native crash)
• Remote transfers: full protocol log, faster FTP deletes, always-cancellable progress
• Marked-folder sizes counted in the status bar
4.1.0 Jul 30
Video playback plus a major reliability and safety update (everything since 3.5.0):
VIDEO
- Play videos right in the F3 viewer and Quick View (Space): mp4, mov, m4v, avi, mpg, mpeg, mkv, webm, wmv and more
- Full playback controls: play/pause, seek, volume, fullscreen
COMPARE FILES
- Full two-pane merge editor (F4): free cursor, text selection across lines, live diff highlighting while you type
- Arrow-key line navigation, Shift+arrows multi-line block selection
- Freshly copied blocks stay highlighted so you can see what changed
- Save prompt when closing a compare window with unsaved changes
- Sync window: double-click a row to compare files
RELIABILITY AND SAFETY (76 fixes from a deep code audit)
- Safer copy/move: edge cases with same source and target, case-only renames, folder into its own subfolder
- Symlinks are preserved on copy/move and in archive extraction
- SFTP/FTP: safer downloads and uploads (temp file + atomic swap), conflict prompts, reliable cancel, SSH host key pinning
- Search: UTF-16 files are matched, background folder size calculation no longer blocks the UI
- Many smaller fixes: panel state, tabs, thumbnails, dialogs, translations
3.7.0 Jul 7
Faster, smoother, more reliable:
- Search runs in the background - no more freezing on large folders.
- Content search now scans large files too (over 2 MB were skipped before).
- Archives (ZIP/TAR/GZ) use far less memory.
- Esc leaves a search-results listing; a clear "Search results" header shows where you searched.
- New Futuristic skin: ambient disk-usage and scroll rails along panel edges.
- Window restores correctly on secondary monitors.
- Many stability fixes; now backed by 305 automated tests.
3.5.0 Jun 17
Performance and reliability improvements:
- Archive extraction runs fully in background (no UI freeze on large archives)
- Directory listing runs in background (20 000+ item folders stay smooth)
- File copy no longer causes multi-GB memory spikes on fast-source / slow-target transfers
- Move (F6) on the same volume is now instant
- Navigating and selecting files no longer rebuilds the entire window
- Split/Combine/Encode/Decode operations no longer freeze the UI
- ZIP writes are now atomic (interrupted writes cannot corrupt the archive)
- Corrupted preferences only lose the affected section; the rest are preserved
- Fonts are bundled (work fully offline and in App Store sandbox; Medium/SemiBold now render correctly)
Fixes:
- Shift+F10 context menu now opens at the correct item in Brief and Thumbnails view modes
- Window position is now correctly restored on a secondary monitor (including monitors positioned above or to the left of the primary)
3.4.0 Jun 13
Improvements and fixes:
- Faster file list in large folders - sorting and filtering are now cached, so scrolling and selecting in folders with tens of thousands of items is noticeably smoother.
- The command palette (Cmd+Shift+P) now scrolls to follow the cursor, with PageUp/PageDown and Home/End.
- New View menu item "Window size (screenshot)" with preset sizes for clean screenshots.
- The Alt+F1 / Alt+F2 disk switcher reorders its sections (bookmarks, then virtual filesystems, then remote connections) and its rows now match the normal panel height.
- ZIP and GZ compression is now listed in the PRO overview.
- Reliability fixes: cancelling an SFTP/FTP/SCP transfer no longer shows a stray error, symbolic links display correctly, and corrupt saved settings no longer wipe your bookmarks and connections.
3.3.3 Jun 11
Fixes and improvements:
- Fixed a crash that could happen when a file operation failed - copy, move, delete and others now show an error in the status bar instead of quitting.
- File search shows a live progress line: the folder currently being scanned plus a running count of files and data checked.
- The search dialog's main button is now always "Search", and the results list is more compact so more matches fit on screen.
- Going up (..) from search results sent to a panel now returns to the folder the search started in.
- The Alt+F1 / Alt+F2 drive menu reorders its sections: bookmarks now come before the virtual filesystems (Processes, Network).
- Cancelling an SFTP, FTP or SCP transfer no longer pops a spurious error dialog.
- More reliability fixes: symbolic links shown correctly, archive extraction, and safer recovery of saved settings.
3.3.2 Jun 10
New features and improvements:
- Built-in editor now has syntax highlighting for many languages (Dart, JavaScript, Python, PHP, CSS, HTML, JSON, YAML, INI, Bash, SQL and more). Colors follow the active theme.
- Quick view: press Ctrl+Q to show a live preview of the file under the cursor in the opposite panel - images, PDF, SVG, text and code.
- Compress dialog now lets you pick the format (ZIP, TAR or TGZ) with a live preview of the result file, plus a new toolbar button.
- F7 can create a whole folder tree at once, for example aa/bb/cc.
- Switch the active tab from the keyboard: Alt or Cmd with Left/Right, plus Ctrl+Tab and Ctrl+Shift+Tab.
- Ctrl+O mirrors the current folder into the other panel.
- The selected file name now stands out in every view mode - yellow on dark themes, red on light themes.
- Right-button drag selection now paints a continuous range with no gaps, and what you painted stays selected.
- Wider, clearer copy and move dialogs with editable paths.
- File search: the Search button is now a clear primary button at the bottom of the dialog.
- More polish: tidier buttons and toolbar, and the right Control key now works for moving up a folder.
3.3.1 Jun 9
New look and usability improvements:
- New default theme "Total (bright)" - a clean light, Total Commander style look with square, non-rounded panels.
- More compact file rows so more items fit on screen.
- Folders now show a DIR marker in the size column.
- Brighter, higher-contrast text in the One theme.
- Quick view no longer opens for file types it cannot preview; pressing Space on those just selects the file.
- Cleaner toolbar: tighter icons, rounded hover highlight, and compact theme and shape menus.
- Ctrl+Alt+Up opens the folder under the cursor in a new tab.
3.2.4 Jun 8
Reliability and editor improvements:
• Viewer, Editor, Compare and Sync windows now reliably keep keyboard and mouse focus when you switch to another app and come back.
• The internal Viewer and Editor focus their content on open, so arrow keys and Page Up/Down work immediately.
• Editor: Page Up/Page Down, Home and End now move the cursor (and selection with Shift); Cmd-arrows jump to the start/end of the document.
• Hex/Binary viewer no longer clips the last bytes of a row at any window width.
• Find in Files (Alt+F7) results are more compact.
• Various localization and stability fixes.
3.2.3 May 30
Fixed: Copy/Move now report what happened and clear source selection when a full operation completes (configurable in Edit menu). Rename, symlink, and single-file compress now correctly preserve file extensions instead of including them in the selected text. Added Enter/Escape keyboard support to five dialogs that previously required the mouse (multi-rename, custom commands, folder sync, SFTP connection editors). Fixed a bug where pressing Enter on a folder outside the allowed sandbox scope could silently switch to a different folder. The app now remembers your last-used selection mask, search text, split size, archive format, and rename pattern. Fixed a double-click issue that could create a duplicate archive or rename operation.
more Version 4.7.2 3d ago
Data Not Collected The developer does not collect any data from this app.