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LinJHS edited this page Dec 22, 2025 · 5 revisions

Installation Guide

Prerequisites

  • Operating System: Windows 10 or Windows 11 is recommended.
    • Note: While the application can run on other OSs (like Linux via Docker), the core functionality of modifying Windows folder attributes requires a Windows environment or a shared file system accessed by Windows.
  • Python: Version 3.8 or higher.

Method 1: Download via GitHub Releases (Recommended)

This is the easiest way to use the application, no Python environment required.

  1. Visit the Releases page.
  2. Download the latest WinFolderManager.exe file.
  3. Double-click to run.

Method 2: Install via PyPI (Recommended)

The easiest way to install Win Folder Manager is using pip.

pip install win-folder-manager

Once installed, you can run it from anywhere in your terminal:

win-folder-manager

Method 3: Install from Source

If you want the latest development version or want to contribute:

  1. Clone the repository:

    git clone https://github.com/LinJHS/win-folder-manager.git
cd win-folder-manager

  2. Install dependencies:

    For Windows (Standard):

    pip install -r requirements.txt

    For Linux / Docker (Development):

    pip install -r requirements-docker.txt

  3. Run the application:

    python -m manager

Method 4: Docker (Not Recommended)

⚠️ Warning: The core functionality of this application (modifying folder icons and attributes) relies heavily on Windows System APIs and file system features (like the attrib command). Running in Docker (Linux container) will result in core features being unavailable, serving only as a file browser. Unless you know exactly what you are doing, it is strongly recommended to run natively on Windows.

You can run the application in a Docker container. This is useful if you want to isolate the environment or run it on a NAS/Server that manages a Windows share.

docker run -d \
  -p 6800:6800 \
  -v /path/to/your/folders:/data \
  -v win-folder-manager-config:/root/.config/win-folder-manager \
  linjhs/win-folder-manager

⚠️ Important Note for Docker Users

The application uses the Windows attrib command to set folders as "Read-Only" and desktop.ini as "System + Hidden".

  • If running on Linux: The attrib command is not available. The application might fail to set these attributes, meaning Windows Explorer might not recognize the customizations immediately.
  • Volume Mapping: Ensure the path you map to /data (or wherever you point the root path to) is the actual storage you want to customize.

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