What it does
In short: everything you do day to day with two file panes — no mouse acrobatics.
🏆 C:\, D:\ ... on Linux — one of a kind!
Drives and network shares get drive letters just like under Windows: C: is the Linux root drive, SMB/FTP/SFTP shares get letters of their own (ALT+F1/F2 switches via a list). No other Linux file manager can do this — exactly the migration pain the Hoffmann Commander takes away.
Two panels, full control
Tabs (Ctrl+T, ALT+1..9), directory tree, thumbnails, quick view with Ctrl+Q — even in its own window. The icon toolbar adapts dynamically to any window width.
Archive manager
Reads and writes ZIP/TAR/TAR.GZ, opens and edits 7z, can read RAR/CAB/ARJ, password archives, multi-volume archives, archive-inside-archive — archives are entered like folders: double-click in, .. out, F5 extracts into the other pane.
Compare & synchronize
Folder comparison by size/time or content, directory sync with directions and dry run, binary hex compare (8/16/24/32 bytes per line) with diff jumps via ALT+↑/↓.
FTP & SFTP built in
Ctrl+F connects; ftp:// and sftp:// behave like network drives: browse, mark, F5/F6 to upload/download right away — with a transfer queue for large files.
Bulk renaming
Multi-rename (Ctrl+M) with template placeholders, find/replace, counters, preview and collision checking. Plus checksums (MD5/SHA1/SHA256) and splitting files into volumes.
Finding instead of hunting
Searches names and content (ALT+F7/ALT+Shift+F7) with a results list and jump-to-hit; quick filter (Ctrl+F) and mark masks (NUM+, extension, size) speed everything up.
Tools
Recycle bin (F8), properties with hash and recursive size, file comments, encoders (Base64/URL/yEnc/BinHex), button bars in .bar format, custom commands with their own keys.
Your configuration
Everything in a single Total-Commander-style wincmd.ini in ~/.hoffmanncommander/ — colors, layout, column widths, each bar individually toggleable.
The keys that matter most
| Key | Action | Key | Action |
|---|---|---|---|
| F3 | View (text/hex) | F5 | Copy to target panel |
| F4 | Edit | F6 | Move / rename |
| F7 | New folder | F8 | Move to recycle bin |
| Tab | Switch panel | Space | Mark + move on |
| Ctrl+Q | Quick view | Ctrl+M | Multi-rename |
| ALT+F7 | Search | Shift+F2 | Compare folders |
| Ctrl+F | Connect FTP | ALT+F10 | Directory tree |
| Ctrl+D | Hotlist | ALT+ENTER | Properties |
Installation
For Linux Mint, Ubuntu and Debian (amd64). The .deb brings its menu entry and icon along:
sudo apt install ./hoffmanncommander_0.30_amd64.deb
# then in the application menu: "Hoffmann Commander"Without installing (e.g. from a USB stick): unpack the tar.gz and start ./app/bin/hoffmann. Requirements: GTK2 libraries (present on Mint anyway). Removes cleanly with sudo apt remove hoffmanncommander.
- Installation package —
hoffmanncommander_0.30_amd64.debin a .zip wrapper (7.3 MB, recommended; webspaces block direct .deb links). After unpacking:sudo apt install ./hoffmanncommander_0.30_amd64.deb - License text — using and passing on the program is free; source code and modifications only in consultation with the publisher
Source code: The project stays closed. Anyone wanting insight, contributions or special arrangements (club, company) should contact the publisher directly via the contact page — every request gets an answer.
Version history (excerpt)
- 0.30 (M4h) — network drives without the lag: listings and quick view are cached, thumbnails reload only when the folder changes — browsing smb:// drives now as snappy as the local disk
- 0.29 (M4g) — archives right in the panel: enter with a double-click like a folder; back out with
.., F5 extracts into the other window - 0.28 (M4f) — binary hex compare in the content window, dynamically sized toolbar, title bar reads "Hoffmann Commander"
- 0.24–0.27 (M4b–e) — search dialog with content search, directory sync dialog, quick view in its own window
- 0.23 (M4a) — FileSync with directions, dry run and content comparison
- 0.19–0.22 (M3) — FTP like a network drive, transfer queue, icon toolbar
- 0.7–0.18 (M2) — archives incl. 7z/password/multi-volume, recycle bin, comments, encoders, button bars, 447 tests
Quality
500 automated tests across 36 test suites all run green on every build — from mark masks to archive detection to sync logic. Built with Free Pascal 3.2.2 / Lazarus (gtk2). 100% own source code, own icons and own help texts; the operating logic is modeled on the classic two-pane managers, and nothing else.