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File Explorer Styler

File Explorer Element Targets

File Explorer Visual Tree Element Targets

Complete technical reference and living catalog of verified WinUI 3 XAML visual tree element names, types, control hierarchies, and visual state behaviors in explorer.exe (Windows 11 File Explorer).

Architecture & Visual Tree Topology

File Explorer on Windows 11 uses a hybrid architecture: modern top chrome (tabs, navigation bar, command bar, details pane) is rendered using WinUI 3 (Microsoft.UI.Xaml), while the inner file list and folder tree are classic Win32 (DirectUIHWND) controls.

flowchart TD
    Explorer["explorer.exe\n(Host Window)"] --> WinUI["WinUI 3 Modern Chrome Island\n(Microsoft.UI.Xaml)"]
    Explorer --> Win32["Classic Win32 DirectUIHWND\n(Folder File Grid & Navigation Tree)"]
    
    WinUI --> TabControl["FileExplorerExtensions.FileExplorerTabControl\n(Tab Strip & Add Button)"]
    WinUI --> NavControl["FileExplorerExtensions.NavigationBarControl\n(History Arrows & Address Bar)"]
    WinUI --> CmdBar["CommandBar#FileExplorerCommandBar\n(Action Buttons / Ribbon)"]
    WinUI --> DetailsPane["Grid#DetailsViewControlRootGrid\n(Right-Side Details Pane)"]
    
    TabControl --> TabItems["TabViewItem\n(Individual Folder Tabs)"]
    TabControl --> AddBtn["Button#AddButton\n(New Tab + Button)"]
    
    NavControl --> AddressGrid["Grid#FileExplorerAddressBarGrid\n(Breadcrumb & Text Input)"]
    NavControl --> SearchBox["AutoSuggestBox#FileExplorerSearchBox\n(Search Input Pill)"]

1. Tab Controls & Title Bar Targets

Controls managing open folder tabs, tab active/hover states, and new tab buttons.

Element Selector Class Type Verified Builds Behavior & Styling Notes
FileExplorerExtensions.FileExplorerTabControl FileExplorerTabControl Win11 22H2 – 24H2 Root tab control container hosting open folder tabs.
Grid#TabContainerGrid Windows.UI.Xaml.Controls.Grid Win11 22H2 – 24H2 Container grid holding the tab strip and “+” button.
TabViewItem TabViewItem Win11 22H2 – 24H2 Individual tab control.
TabViewItem > Grid#LayoutRoot@CommonStates Windows.UI.Xaml.Controls.Grid Win11 22H2 – 24H2 Tab layout root with interactive visual states (Normal, PointerOver, Selected, Pressed).
TabViewItem > Grid#LayoutRoot > Canvas > Path#SelectedBackgroundPath Windows.UI.Xaml.Shapes.Path Win11 22H2 – 24H2 Active selected tab shape background fill.
Grid#TabContainerGrid > Border > Button#AddButton Button Win11 22H2 – 24H2 New tab “+” button. Stylable: CornerRadius, Background; set Background:=Transparent to clear the fill.
Button#CloseButton Button Win11 22H2 – 24H2 Individual tab close (“X”) button. Stylable: CornerRadius.

2. Navigation Bar & Address Bar Targets

Controls managing back/forward/up arrows and the breadcrumb address bar.

Element Selector Class Type Verified Builds Behavior & Styling Notes
FileExplorerExtensions.NavigationBarControl#NavigationBarControl > Grid#NavigationBarControlGrid Grid Win11 22H2 – 24H2 History arrows and address bar row.
AppBarButton#backButton AppBarButton Win11 22H2 – 24H2 Back navigation arrow button. Stylable: CornerRadius.
AppBarButton#forwardButton AppBarButton Win11 22H2 – 24H2 Forward navigation arrow button. Stylable: CornerRadius.
AppBarButton#upButton AppBarButton Win11 22H2 – 24H2 Up to parent folder arrow button. Stylable: CornerRadius.
Grid#FileExplorerAddressBarGrid Grid Win11 22H2 – 24H2 Address bar outer pill container. Stylable: Background, BorderBrush, CornerRadius.
FileExplorerExtensions.AddressBarControl AddressBarControl Win11 22H2 – 24H2 Breadcrumb trail navigation control.
AutoSuggestBox#PART_AutoSuggestBox > Grid#LayoutRoot > TextBox#TextBox TextBox Win11 22H2 – 24H2 Editable address text field shown when clicked.

3. Search Box Targets

The search box embedded in the upper-right corner of File Explorer.

Element Selector Class Type Verified Builds Behavior & Styling Notes
AutoSuggestBox#FileExplorerSearchBox AutoSuggestBox Win11 22H2 – 24H2 File Explorer search bar container.
AutoSuggestBox#FileExplorerSearchBox > Grid#LayoutRoot > TextBox#TextBox TextBox Win11 22H2 – 24H2 Search input text box. Stylable: Background, BorderBrush, CornerRadius.
TextBlock#PlaceholderText TextBlock Win11 22H2 – 24H2 “Search " placeholder hint string.

4. Command Bar (Ribbon Replacement) Targets

The modern horizontal toolbar containing New, Cut, Copy, Paste, Rename, Share, and Delete actions.

Element Selector Class Type Verified Builds Behavior & Styling Notes
CommandBar#FileExplorerCommandBar CommandBar Win11 22H2 – 24H2 Modern command bar control.
Grid#CommandBarControlRootGrid Grid Win11 23H2 – 24H2 Command bar root layout grid on newer Windows builds.
AppBarButton[ToolTipService.ToolTip = Cut] AppBarButton Win11 22H2 – 24H2 Cut action button targeted by tooltip string.
AppBarButton[ToolTipService.ToolTip = Copy] AppBarButton Win11 22H2 – 24H2 Copy action button.
AppBarButton[ToolTipService.ToolTip = Paste] AppBarButton Win11 22H2 – 24H2 Paste action button.
AppBarButton[ToolTipService.ToolTip = Rename] AppBarButton Win11 22H2 – 24H2 Rename action button.
Button#MoreButton Button Win11 22H2 – 24H2 “…” overflow menu button.

5. Details Pane, Home View & Popups

Panes, metadata sidebars, and popup context flyouts.

Element Selector Class Type Verified Builds Behavior & Styling Notes
Grid#DetailsViewControlRootGrid Grid Win11 22H2 – 24H2 Right-side details and metadata pane. Stylable: Background, BorderBrush.
Grid#HomeViewRootGrid Grid Win11 22H2 – 24H2 File Explorer Home landing page root grid.
FileExplorerExtensions.GalleryViewControl#GalleryViewControl GalleryViewControl Win11 23H2 – 24H2 Windows Photos/Gallery view container.
MenuFlyoutPresenter > Border Border Win11 22H2 – 24H2 Modern context menu popup border card. Stylable: Background, BorderBrush, CornerRadius.
ToolTip > ContentPresenter#LayoutRoot ContentPresenter Win11 22H2 – 24H2 Hover tooltip background pill. Stylable: Background, CornerRadius.