https://github.com/jkeresman01/active-files.nvim

A Neovim plugin that brings JetBrains-style Switcher or Visual Studio’s Active Files navigation to your workflow
https://github.com/jkeresman01/active-files.nvim

active-files jetbrains lua neovim nvim nvim-plugin nvim-plugins open-file open-files plugin switcher switcher-plugin vim vim-plugin visual-studio

Last synced: 9 months ago
JSON representation

A Neovim plugin that brings JetBrains-style Switcher or Visual Studio’s Active Files navigation to your workflow

• Host: GitHub
• URL: https://github.com/jkeresman01/active-files.nvim
• Owner: jkeresman01
• License: gpl-3.0
• Created: 2025-03-20T07:07:16.000Z (about 1 year ago)
• Default Branch: main
• Last Pushed: 2025-06-19T20:57:45.000Z (9 months ago)
• Last Synced: 2025-06-19T21:34:28.473Z (9 months ago)
• Topics: active-files, jetbrains, lua, neovim, nvim, nvim-plugin, nvim-plugins, open-file, open-files, plugin, switcher, switcher-plugin, vim, vim-plugin, visual-studio
• Language: Lua
• Homepage:
• Size: 34.2 KB
• Stars: 0
• Watchers: 1
• Forks: 0
• Open Issues: 0
• Metadata Files:
  • Readme: README.md
  • License: LICENSE

Awesome Lists containing this project

README

          


  
active-files.nvim

  
Neovim plugin that allows switching between recently used files — similar to Switcher in JetBrains or Active Files in Visual Studio.


[![Lua](https://img.shields.io/badge/Lua-blue.svg?style=for-the-badge&logo=lua)](http://www.lua.org)

[![Neovim 0.9+](https://img.shields.io/badge/Neovim%200.9+-green.svg?style=for-the-badge&logo=neovim)](https://neovim.io)

![Work In Progress](https://img.shields.io/badge/Work%20In%20Progress-orange?style=for-the-badge)



## Table of Contents

- [The problem](#problem)

- [The solution](#solution)

- [Repository structure](#repo)

- [Functionalities](#functionalities)

- [Installation](#installation)

    - [Vim-Plug](#vimplug)

    - [Packer](#packer)

- [Commands](#commands)

- [Setup](#setup)

---

## The problem :warning: 

In modern IDEs like Visual Studio and JetBrains products, there's always a fast way to jump between recently opened files. In Neovim, this often requires fuzzy finders or full buffer lists, which don’t reflect recency in a consistent way and may include irrelevant or closed buffers.

---

## The solution :trophy: 

**active-files.nvim** provides a clean, dedicated UI to quickly access the last N files you've worked on — sorted by recency of usage. With a popup window, non-intrusive indexing, and direct file switching, this gives you a workflow familiar to JetBrains and VS users — but native to Neovim.

[![asciicast](https://asciinema.org/a/1Gnp274hSDNpdkfnWerxj2sF0.svg)](https://asciinema.org/a/1Gnp274hSDNpdkfnWerxj2sF0)

---

## Repository structure :open_file_folder: 

```bash

active-files.nvim/

├── LICENSE

├── lua

│   └── active-files

│       ├── commands.lua    # Exposed commands

│       ├── init.lua        # Plugin entry point

│       ├── ui.lua          # UI and switching logic

│       └── util.lua        # Utility helpers

└── README.md

```

---

## Functionalities :pick: 

- [x] Automatically tracks most recently opened files

- [x] Floating window UI inspired by JetBrains and Visual Studio

- [x] Jump to file by number key (1–9)

- [x] Displays filenames with relative paths

- [ ] Configurable number of active files --planned

- [ ] Configurable active files sorting criteria -- planned

---

## Installation :star: 

Requires **Neovim v0.9+**. No external dependencies required.

### Vim-Plug 

```lua

Plug 'jkeresman01/active-files.nvim'

```

### Packer 

```lua

use 'jkeresman01/active-files.nvim'

```

---

## Commands :wrench: 

These are the available user commands:

| Command                | Description                                      |

|------------------------|--------------------------------------------------|

| `:ShowActiveFiles`     | Show floating popup with active files            |

| `:SelectActiveFile`    | Select a file from the floating window (internal)|

| `:SwitchToActiveFile n`| Immediately switch to file at index `n`          |

---

## Setup :hammer_and_wrench: 

Set the keybindings to match your workflow here is one example:

```lua

require("active-files").setup()

vim.keymap.set("n", "", "ShowActiveFiles", { desc = "Show active files" })

-- Optional 

for i = 1, 9 do

  vim.keymap.set("n", "" .. i, function()

    vim.cmd("SwitchToActiveFile " .. i)

  end, { noremap = true, silent = true, desc = "Switch to active file " .. i })

end

vim.api.nvim_create_autocmd("FileType", {

  pattern = "active-files",

  callback = function(args)

    vim.keymap.set("n", "", "SelectActiveFile", { buffer = args.buf, silent = true })

  end,

})

```

---

| Keybinding      | Mode | Description                                  |

|------------------|------|----------------------------------------------|

| ``          | `n`  | Show the active files floating popup         |

| `1`–`9`  | `n`  | Jump directly to the N-th most recent file   |

| ``           | `n`  | Inside popup: open the selected file         |