Group files
Grouping divides the active File view into labeled sections. It changes presentation only: files stay in their original folders, and the active sort still controls their order inside each group.
Choose a grouping field
- Choose Group above the File view.
- Choose a field under File properties or Workspace properties.
Built-in choices are Extension, Kind, Created, and Modified. In a Workspace Folder, Phials also offers option, multi-option, tag, date, checkbox, and rating properties.
Files without a value appear in a final section such as No Extension, No Date, or No Status. Grouping by a multi-option or Tags property can place the same file in more than one group.
Change group order
Open Group, then choose Ascending or Descending under Direction. This changes the order of the group sections, not the order of files inside them. Option-backed groups follow the configured option order; date groups use periods such as Today, Yesterday, and This Week.
To change order inside every group, configure Sort files. For example, group by Kind and sort by Modified — Descending to show the newest items first within each kind.
Collapse or expand a group
Choose a group header to collapse its files, then choose it again to expand them. Details, Grid, and Columns views let you collapse each group independently.
When a saved view is active, collapsed groups save automatically as view state and do not mark the view as changed. The grouping field and direction are part of the view configuration; use Save view settings to keep those choices.
Remove grouping
Open Group and choose None. Phials returns to one continuous File view using the active sort order.