Open any folder — git optional

Point Git Navigator at a directory that is not a git repository and it opens in folder mode. Every git-backed surface offers to initialize a repository, while the Files activity keeps working — so you can browse and search a scratch folder now and start tracking it the moment it matters.

Git Navigator open on a non-git directory, offering to initialize a repository — A plain project folder with no `.git`: the graph surface offers to initialize a repository instead of erroring.

What folder mode gives you

Initialize in place, when you are ready

Git-backed surfaces don't error on a non-repo — they show a clear Initialize repository offer. Accept it and the same folder becomes a real repo without reopening anything.

The Files activity stays fully usable

Browse the whole tree, open files in the CodeMirror viewer, and edit them — no repository required. Folder mode is a first-class way to use Git Navigator as a plain file explorer.

Search without an index

Filename filter and content search both work outside a repo: the search shells out to git grep --no-index --exclude-standard, so results honor your .gitignore even before git init.

Honors .gitignore and survives relaunch

The tree walk uses the same ignore rules a repo would, dimming ignored entries like dist/. Folder mode also refreshes on external changes and is restored when you relaunch — a folder is just never silently persisted as your default repository.

Folder mode, end to end

Step 1. Opening a directory with no .git boots Git Navigator in folder mode. The commit-graph surface replaces its history with a clear offer to initialize a repository — nothing errors, and the title bar still names the folder you opened.
Step 2. Switch to the Files activity and the folder is fully browsable. The tree walks the directory with the same ignore rules a repo would use, so dist/ shows dimmed as an ignored entry while your source files stay crisp.
Step 3. Select a file and it opens in the CodeMirror viewer (Markdown and HTML also offer a rendered preview) — read, search, and edit all work without a repository behind them.

Using a folder before it is a repo

Open the directory. Point Git Navigator at any folder. If it is not a git repository, the app opens it in folder mode automatically instead of refusing to open it.
Browse and search freely. The Files activity, filename filter, and git grep content search all work on the raw directory, honoring .gitignore rules as it walks the tree.
Initialize when it matters. When the work is worth tracking, take the Initialize repository offer on any git-backed surface. The folder becomes a real repo in place — no need to reopen it.

Frequently asked questions

What happens if I open a folder that is not a git repository?

Git Navigator opens it in folder mode. Instead of erroring, the commit graph and other git-backed surfaces show an "Initialize repository" offer, and the Files activity works normally so you can browse and edit right away.

Can I search a folder that is not under version control?

Yes. Both the filename filter and content search work in folder mode. Content search runs git grep --no-index --exclude-standard, which searches the directory and still honors .gitignore even though there is no repository yet.

Does folder mode remember the folder when I relaunch?

Folder mode is restored on relaunch so you get back what you had open, with the same initialize offer. A folder is intentionally never persisted as your default repository, so it won't be mistaken for a repo the next time you start fresh.

Is folder mode available in the VS Code extension too?

Both runtimes support opening non-git directories. In VS Code, manual open works and the panel returns the folder-mode state; in the desktop app the folder picker falls back to folder mode whenever the chosen path is not a repository.