# Windows integration — Explorer menu, clipboard, drag, tray

> Open in Cwdio from Explorer, Ctrl+C/X/V that work with Explorer, real OS drag and drop, live drives and WSL roots, a tray with a hotkey, Recycle Bin by default.

- Canonical: https://cwdio.com/features/windows-integration/
- Updated: 2026-08-15
- Product: Cwdio File Manager (cwdio) — https://cwdio.com

A file manager lives or dies by how well it gets on with the operating system around it. cwdio installs
for your user only, asks for no administrator rights, and still plugs into the parts of Windows that matter:
the clipboard, drag and drop, the right-click menu, the drives, the tray, and the Recycle Bin.

## What it does

- **Explorer's right-click menu.** *Open in Cwdio File Manager* on folders, folder backgrounds and drives —
  registered per user (`HKCU`, no admin) by the installer, or toggled under **Tools ▸ Explorer integration**
  on the portable build.
- **The Windows clipboard is the file clipboard.** <kbd>Ctrl+C</kbd> / <kbd>Ctrl+X</kbd> here paste in
  Explorer and any other app that takes files; Explorer's copy or cut pastes here — as a copy or a **move**.
  Remote and in-archive rows keep their richer in-app payload so they still paste within cwdio.
- **Real drag and drop.** Dragging rows is a native OS drag whenever the files have real paths: the same
  gesture drops onto the other panel, another cwdio window, Explorer, or any application that accepts files.
  A drop *from* Explorer imports; a drop from cwdio's own rows onto a panel keeps cwdio's semantics —
  drop guards, <kbd>Shift</kbd> to move, undo.
- **Drives, live.** Removable drives appear and disappear as you plug them (Windows device-change events),
  mapped network drives are listed as Explorer lists them, and each installed **WSL 2 distribution** is a
  root beside your disks. A bare `\\server` lists that server's shares.
- **Tray and summon hotkey.** A tray icon with Show / Hide / Quit; a global hotkey (default
  <kbd>Ctrl+Alt+F</kbd>, set under **Tools ▸ Set summon hotkey…**) brings the window up from anywhere;
  **Tools ▸ Minimize to tray on close** keeps it running out of the way.
- **One instance, many windows.** `cwdio <path>` opens a folder in the running window (or a new one, per
  **Tools ▸ Open folders in a new window**); `cwdio -n <path>` always opens a new window; a taskbar
  <kbd>Shift</kbd>-click or <kbd>Ctrl+Shift+N</kbd> opens another window on the same running instance.
- **Recycle Bin by default.** <kbd>Del</kbd> and <kbd>F8</kbd> go to the Recycle Bin; only
  <kbd>Shift+Del</kbd> deletes permanently, and it is confirmed and danger-styled.
- **Small courtesies.** Taskbar progress during a transfer; *Open with…* for the OS chooser; **Copy path**
  in Windows form, with forward slashes for git-bash/WSL/JSON, or **relative to the git repo**.

## How to use it

1. Install once (per user) — or unzip the portable build. Nothing else to configure.
2. In Explorer, right-click a folder → **Open in Cwdio File Manager**. It lands in the left panel of the
   running window.
3. Copy something in cwdio, paste it in Explorer; copy in Explorer, paste in cwdio. Drag a row onto your
   editor, a chat window, or the desktop.
4. Press <kbd>Ctrl+Alt+F</kbd> from any application to summon cwdio.

## What it deliberately does not do

- It never holds the clipboard open. Writing the file clipboard runs through a one-shot helper that exits
  immediately, and reading the clipboard's status spawns nothing — a stuck helper would wedge the clipboard
  for the whole machine, so there is no "empty the clipboard" call anywhere.
- It does not install a shell extension DLL, change file associations, or register anything under
  `HKLM`. Uninstalling removes the one context-menu entry it made.
- It does not run elevated, and does not offer to. Elevated processes cannot even see your normal-session
  network drives, which is one reason a file manager should not live there.
- The Windows 11 top-level context menu needs a signed sparse package; until cwdio is code-signed the entry
  is under *Show more options*.

## Related

- [Undo and the safety net](/features/undo-and-safety-net/) — the Recycle Bin, the overwrite stash, Ctrl+Z.
- [Dual panes, tabs and the workspace](/features/dual-pane-and-tabs/) — windows, layout, drives in the picker.
- [Install and update](/docs/install-and-update/) — installer vs portable, and what each registers.

## Frequently asked questions

**Can I paste files copied in cwdio into Explorer, and the other way round?** Yes. Ctrl+C and Ctrl+X in cwdio write the standard Windows file clipboard (CF_HDROP with the Preferred DropEffect), so Explorer pastes them as a copy or a move; and files copied or cut in Explorer paste into a cwdio panel the same way. A completed cut is retired on both sides, so a spent cut cannot be pasted twice.

**How do I open a folder in cwdio from Explorer?** Right-click a folder, a folder background or a drive and choose Open in Cwdio File Manager. The installer registers it for your user only, without administrator rights; the portable build turns it on under Tools ▸ Explorer integration. On Windows 11 it sits under Show more options until the app is code-signed.

**Do WSL and network drives show up?** Yes. Each installed WSL 2 distribution appears beside your drives as a root you can browse, search and transfer to like any folder, and mapped network drives are listed exactly as Explorer lists them. Typing a bare \\server address lists the server's shares. Removable drives appear and disappear live.

**Does cwdio replace Explorer or take over file associations?** No. It adds one opt-in context-menu entry and touches nothing else — no file associations, no default-app changes, no shell extension. Explorer stays exactly as it was.