tutorial

this tutorial covers the complete usage of rovr, from basic navigation to advanced file operations.

getting started

when you first launch rovr, you’ll see the main interface with three panels:

file list (center): displays files and folders in the current directory
sidebar (left): shows directory tree and pinned folders
preview (right): displays file content or metadata

your first keys

use the arrow keys or vim-style keys (hjkl) to navigate
press enter or l to enter a folder
press h or backspace to go back up
press ? to see the help screen with all keybindings

panel traversal

rovr uses a background-highlighted option to show your currently selected item, and switches to a different colored text when unfocused.

travelling in lists

move cursor right/select option: l or right arrow key
move cursor left: h or left arrow key
move cursor up: k or up
move cursor down: j or down
go to the first item: g or home
go to the last item: shift+g or end

unique to the main file list

go up the file tree: h or left arrow key
go down the file tree: l, right arrow key, or enter
go back in history: backspace or u
go forwards in history: space
pin the currently focused folder: shift+p
toggle hidden files visibility: . (period key)
reload file list: ctrl+r

file selection and operations

selecting files

rovr supports multiple selection modes for efficient file operations:

select range: use shift with arrow keys (only in visual mode)
select all: % or ctrl+a
visual mode: v for extended selection

basic file operations

once you have files selected, you may choose to use these operations or use the buttons available:

copy: y or ctrl+c
cut: x or ctrl+x
paste: p or ctrl+v
delete: d or delete key
rename: r or f2
create new entries: ctrl+n or o
compress to archive: E (uppercase E)
extract archive: ctrl+e
copy path: Y (uppercase Y)

search in current folder: ctrl+f or /
pin current folder: P (uppercase P)
_{no images again lol}
command palette: ctrl+p

tabs and workspaces

open new tab: n
close current tab: w
next tab: ctrl+j
previous tab: ctrl+k

toggle sidebar: S
toggle preview: I
toggle footer
toggle header

_{looks very similar to another file explorer…}
focus sidebar: s
focus file list: esc
focus preview: i
focus metadata: m
focus processes: #
focus clipboard: c

file preview

the preview panel shows different content based on file type:

text files: syntax-highlighted content (optionally bat is available as a plugin)
images: the image itself, using proper protocols (refer to image-previews)
archives: list of contained files
folders: file count and size information (if metadata panel is focused)

customization

configuration

rovr stores its configuration in your system’s standard config directory:

windows: %APPDATA%\rovr\config.toml
macos: ~/Library/Application Support/rovr/config.toml
linux: ~/.config/rovr/config.toml

rovr is designed similarly to ghostty where it should work with minimal configuration, but has a lot of customisable options.

here are some common changes

[interface]
# hide tooltips when hovering over buttons
tooltips = false
# make ui not change based on width/height
use_reactive_layout = false
# yazi uses scrolloff 5, but nnn is 3, mc is 0, vifm is 4
# so it really is up to you, default is 3
scrolloff = 5

[interface.clock]
# disable the clock
enabled = false

[interface.compact_mode]
# fit the big buttons into a single line
buttons = true

[settings]
# show hidden files (toggleable by `.`)
show_hidden_files = true

next steps

now that you know the basics, explore these other topics:

user interface guide - detailed interface explanation
file operations guide - comprehensive operations reference
keybindings reference - complete keyboard shortcuts
configuration guide - customize rovr to your needs
tips and tricks - efficiency tips and power user features

for more help, press ? in rovr to see all available keyboard shortcuts or visit the documentation.