Tern FilesOpen the palette
The command palette is the quickest way to everything Tern Files can do – every command, every tool and most settings, without looking through menus. It is free, also after the trial.
- Press Ctrl+Shift+P in any Tern Files window. Or type > as the first character in the field Search everywhere or run a command … (Ctrl+K) or in a search tab.
- Before you type anything, you see Recently used first and then All commands, sorted by category.
- Choose a command with ↑ ↓ and press Enter. Esc closes the palette.
Each row shows the category, the name and the shortcut, if the command has one. Switches carry On or Off, and after the trial without a licence, Pro commands carry Pro. A command always works on what you had in front of you when you opened the palette – the folder, the selected files or the tab.
The search field (Ctrl+K) lists matching commands next to your files, too. A > at the start leaves only the commands; if you came from the search field, Backspace in the empty palette takes you back there.
Find a command
Type a few letters of what you want to do. You don't need the exact name – the palette also looks at the category and at extra search words.
- Every word you type has to be found, in any order: tab new finds New tab.
- Starts of words count most, but scattered letters work too: dp finds Dual pane.
- Search words help when you think of another name: split or commander also find Dual pane.
- The English names always work, even when Tern Files is set to German.
The matching letters are highlighted. Commands you use often move up a little, but never above a clearly better match.
Commands that don't fit right now – for example Extract all while the selected file is no archive – stay in the list at the end, dimmed. When you select one, the footer tells you why, for example not available: Select an archive first.
Switches and two-step commands
Not every command simply runs. The palette treats each kind the way you'd expect:
- Switches such as Show hidden files or Restore tabs show On or Off and flip with Enter.
- Two-step commands end with “…”, for example Theme …, Switch workspace … or Recently closed tabs …. Enter shows their list right in the palette – the current choice is marked Current. Pick an entry and press Enter; Esc goes back to the first step.
- Settings with a bigger effect – such as Tern Files as default file manager, Start with Windows, the index service or the download of the AI model – open the right page of the settings with the row marked, so you decide there.
The palette also lists your own things: your workspaces, smart folders, tags, rules and quick actions each get a command, so tax can open the smart folder “Tax 2026” or the workspace of the same name.
Give a command a shortcut
Every command in the palette can get its own keyboard shortcut – also the ones that don't have one yet.
- Select the command in the palette.
- Press Ctrl+Enter or click Change shortcut in its row.
- Settings › Keyboard shortcuts opens with that command marked. Click its keys and press the new combination.
The new shortcut shows up in the palette, in the context menus and in the launcher right away. More under Keyboard shortcuts; the defaults are listed on the shortcuts page.
Recently used
To put the commands you need at the top, Tern Files remembers which ones you run and how often. This list stays on your PC; nothing is sent anywhere.
To start fresh, open Settings › Safety & history and click Clear next to Clear command history. Recently used is then empty until you run commands again.
The launcher (Alt+Space) shows the same commands with the same names and shortcuts – all those that also work without an open Tern Files window.