FileFox FTP Client is a modern, native Windows desktop client for FTP, FTPS, and SFTP, built with WinUI 3, Windows App SDK, and .NET 8.
Designed from the ground up for Windows 11 and Windows 10, FileFox delivers a clean, Fluent Design experience with Mica material backdrops, seamless dark/light modes, and a multi-tabbed interface for managing multiple remote connections side by side.
The quickest way to try FileFox:
- Grab
FileFox-vX.Y.Z-win-x64.zipfrom the latest release - Right-click → Extract All…
- Double-click
FileFox.exe— that's it. Portable, no installer, no admin rights, and no .NET download required (the runtime is bundled).
First launch? Windows SmartScreen may show "Windows protected your PC" because the app isn't code-signed — click More info → Run anyway. SFTP connections also need the WebView2 Runtime, which comes pre-installed on Windows 11 and with Edge on Windows 10.
- Multi-Protocol Support:
- Standard FTP
- FTPS Explicit TLS
- FTPS Implicit TLS
- SFTP (SSH File Transfer Protocol)
- Tabbed Multi-Session Interface:
- Connect to multiple servers concurrently in separate tabs using native WinUI 3
TabView. - Dedicated Connection Dashboard tab for quick-connect and profile management.
- Connect to multiple servers concurrently in separate tabs using native WinUI 3
- Connection Dashboard & Site Manager:
- Save server profiles (host, port, protocol, credentials) for one-click access.
- Searchable list of saved connections.
- Credentials securely handled without plain-text password persistence.
- Dual-Pane File Explorer:
- Side-by-side local and remote filesystem navigation.
- Create, rename, and delete remote directories.
- Real-time directory refresh and path navigation.
- Sequential Transfer Queue:
- Background multi-file upload and download queue.
- Real-time progress monitoring and transfer cancellation.
- Built-in Remote File Editor:
- View, inspect, and modify remote text and source code files directly without external software.
- Security & Validation:
- Strict certificate validation for FTPS sessions.
- Trust-on-First-Use (TOFU) host-key confirmation and SHA-256 fingerprint pinning for SFTP.
- System Integration:
- Native Windows 11 Mica backdrop and Fluent Design System styling.
- Full support for Windows Light and Dark themes.
- Notification area (system tray) support with single-instance restoration.
- Close-to-tray and optional launch-on-startup options.
- Session activity logging in local app data.
FileFox is a 100% clean C# implementation built on modern open-source foundations:
| Component | Technology | Purpose |
|---|---|---|
| Runtime | .NET 8 | Modern, high-performance C# runtime |
| UI Framework | WinUI 3 / Windows App SDK | Native Windows UI with Mica & Fluent styling |
| FTP / FTPS Engine | FluentFTP | Robust, feature-rich FTP and FTPS client |
| SFTP Engine | SSH.NET | Secure SSH / SFTP communication |
| System Tray | H.NotifyIcon | Windows notification area icon & tray management |
FileFox/
├── Assets/ # Application icons, tiles, and splash screen assets
├── Helpers/ # Win32 window management, paths, and commands
├── Models/ # Connection profiles, file items, transfer data structures
├── Properties/ # Launch profiles and platform publish configurations
├── Services/ # Core remote file systems (FTP, SFTP), site manager, queue, logging
├── Views/ # WinUI controls (DashboardView, ConnectionSessionView, FileEditorView)
├── App.xaml / .cs # Application lifecycle, single-instance mutex, tray init
├── MainWindow.xaml / .cs # Main application window, tab view container, backdrop
├── FileFox.csproj # .NET 8 / WinUI 3 project definition (Unpackaged)
├── FileFox.sln # Visual Studio solution file
└── app.manifest # Per-monitor V2 DPI awareness and OS compatibility manifest
- Operating System: Windows 10 version 1809 (Build 17763) or newer / Windows 11.
- .NET 8 SDK: Download the latest .NET 8 SDK.
- IDE / Tools:
- Visual Studio 2022 (v17.8 or later) with the following workloads:
- .NET Desktop Development
- Windows application development (Single-project MSIX Packaging Tools)
- OR Visual Studio Code / JetBrains Rider with .NET 8 and Windows App SDK build tools.
- Visual Studio 2022 (v17.8 or later) with the following workloads:
-
Clone the repository:
git clone https://github.com/uponatime2019/FileFox.git cd FileFox -
Restore NuGet dependencies and build:
dotnet restore FileFox.csproj dotnet build FileFox.csproj -c Debug -p:Platform=x64
-
Run the application:
dotnet run --project FileFox.csproj -p:Platform=x64
Note
WinUI 3 requires specifying an architecture-specific platform such as x64 or ARM64. Building for AnyCPU is not supported by the Windows App SDK.
- Initial milestone: FTP, FTPS (Explicit & Implicit), SFTP
- WinUI 3 TabView multi-session browsing
- Connection dashboard & saved site profiles
- Remote and local dual-pane file management
- Sequential transfer queue (upload & download)
- Built-in remote file editor
- Close-to-tray & background transfers
- Recursive folder transfers
- Transfer resume policies & file integrity checks (checksums)
- Directory comparison and synchronization
- File search and filtering
- Speed limits & proxy support
- Private key file authentication (.ppk, OpenSSH)
- FileFox FTP Client is distributed under the MIT License.
- Inspiration: The workflow and reference source is inspired by FileZilla 3.70.6 (copyright its respective contributors, licensed under GPL). FileZilla is a registered trademark of Tim Kosse; FileFox is an independent C# clean-room implementation.
- Third-Party Libraries:
- FluentFTP (MIT License)
- SSH.NET (MIT License)
- H.NotifyIcon (MIT License)
- Microsoft Windows App SDK (MIT License)
Contributions, bug reports, and suggestions are warmly welcomed!
- Fork the repository.
- Create your feature branch (
git checkout -b feature/amazing-feature). - Commit your changes (
git commit -m "Add amazing feature"). - Push to the branch (
git push origin feature/amazing-feature). - Open a Pull Request.