DIR2HTML Tutorial — Create Searchable HTML Directory ViewsDIR2HTML is a lightweight tool for converting filesystem directories into clean, navigable HTML index pages. Whether you need a browsable file index for a static website, an internal archive, or a shareable snapshot of a folder, DIR2HTML automates directory traversal and generates HTML that’s easy to style and extend. This tutorial walks through installation, basic usage, customization, search integration, and deployment patterns so you can produce searchable HTML directory views quickly and reliably.
Who this is for
- Developers who want a static, client-side directory browser for file archives.
- System administrators who need to publish file listings without running a web application.
- Content creators who want simple, searchable indexes for downloads or collections.
Installation
DIR2HTML is commonly distributed as a small command-line utility. Typical installation methods:
-
Using pip (if distributed as a Python package):
pip install dir2html -
Download a prebuilt binary (Linux/macOS/Windows) from the project releases and place it in your PATH:
# Example for Linux wget https://example.com/dir2html-linux-amd64 -O /usr/local/bin/dir2html chmod +x /usr/local/bin/dir2html -
Clone from source and install:
git clone https://github.com/username/dir2html.git cd dir2html python setup.py install
Adjust the commands above to the actual distribution method used by the DIR2HTML project you have.
Basic usage
The simplest invocation generates an index.html for a directory and its subdirectories.
dir2html /path/to/target/folder Common flags/options you’ll encounter:
- –output, -o: specify an output file or directory for generated HTML.
- –title: set a custom page title.
- –recursive: include subdirectories (often default).
- –exclude: patterns to ignore (e.g., .git, node_modules).
- –sort: sort entries by name, size, or date.
- –size: display file sizes.
- –mtime: show last-modified timestamps.
- –template: supply a custom HTML template.
- –static-assets-dir: include JS/CSS assets alongside generated pages.
Example with options:
dir2html /srv/files -o /var/www/html/files --title "Company File Archive" --exclude ".git,node_modules" --sort date --size --mtime Output structure and anatomy
A typical DIR2HTML output folder contains:
- index.html — main entry page for that folder
- subdirectory/index.html — generated pages for each subfolder (if recursive)
- assets/ — CSS, JS, icons used by the generated pages (if not inlined)
- thumbs/ or icons/ — optional thumbnails or file-type icons
The generated index.html usually contains:
- A header with title and optional breadcrumb navigation.
- A table or list of directory entries (folders first, then files).
- Columns for name, size, modification date, and actions (download, preview).
- A client-side search box (if enabled) that filters entries using JavaScript.
Styling and templates
DIR2HTML often supports templating to change the look-and-feel.
- Bundled templates: Many distributions include a default template and one or two alternatives (minimal, bootstrap-based). Use the –template flag to pick one.
- Custom templates: Provide a custom HTML file with placeholders (e.g., {{title}}, {{entries}}) that DIR2HTML replaces at generation time.
- CSS overrides: Place a custom CSS file in the assets directory or point to an external stylesheet URL.
Example: using a custom template and stylesheet:
dir2html ./photos -o ./public/photos --template ./templates/mytemplate.html --static-assets-dir ./public/assets When editing templates, ensure placeholders for entry links and metadata remain intact so the generator can inject file lists.
Making the index searchable
Search can be client-side (JavaScript) or server-side. For most static use-cases, client-side search is simplest and fastest.
Client-side search approaches:
- Simple filter: A small script listens to keystrokes in a search input and hides non-matching rows. Works well for small-to-medium directories (hundreds–low thousands of entries).
- Fuzzy search with Fuse.js: For better UX and typo-tolerance, include Fuse.js and index file names and metadata.
- Indexed approach: For very large directories, generate a JSON index (entries.json) at build time and load it lazily; use that for fast searching and pagination.
Example: basic client-side filter (conceptual)
<input id="search" placeholder="Search files..."> <table id="listing"> ... </table> <script> document.getElementById('search').addEventListener('input', function(e) { const q = e.target.value.toLowerCase(); document.querySelectorAll('#listing tbody tr').forEach(row => { const text = row.innerText.toLowerCase(); row.style.display = text.includes(q) ? '' : 'none'; }); }); </script> Example: using Fuse.js for fuzzy search
- Include Fuse.js in assets.
- Generate a JSON array of entries with fields: name, path, size, mtime, type.
- Initialize Fuse with keys you want to search (e.g., name, path).
- Render search results dynamically into the listing container.
Handling large directories
Large directories (thousands+ entries) need special care:
- Pagination: Generate paged HTML (page1.html, page2.html) or implement client-side lazy loading.
- Pre-generated JSON index: Create entries.json and query it in the browser to avoid loading huge HTML pages.
- Throttled rendering: When rendering search results client-side, batch DOM updates (requestAnimationFrame or virtualized lists) to avoid jank.
- Server-side search endpoint: If you control a server, expose a simple API to query the index and return results; the static pages can call this endpoint.
File previews and type handling
Common preview patterns:
- Images: show thumbnails linking to full-size images. Generate thumbnails during the build using ImageMagick or a thumbnailer.
- Text/Markdown: render first N lines or convert Markdown to HTML at build time.
- PDFs: embed via
- Video/Audio: use HTML5
- Archives: show extracted listing or provide download link only.
Generate appropriate icons or badges for file types to make scanning easier.
Security and privacy considerations
- Avoid exposing sensitive directories — use –exclude and verify target paths.
- If serving over HTTP, prefer HTTPS and set appropriate headers (Content-Security-Policy, X-Content-Type-Options).
- Disable directory generation for symlinked or world-writable folders if that could leak content.
- Sanitize filenames in templates to prevent injection (DIR2HTML should do this; verify in source if security is a concern).
Automation and CI
Automate generation with cronjobs or CI pipelines:
- Cron example: regenerate nightly
0 2 * * * cd /srv && dir2html /srv/files -o /var/www/html/files --exclude ".git,node_modules" - CI example (GitHub Actions): regenerate on push to a docs branch and deploy to GitHub Pages or an S3 bucket.
Deployment options
- Static web host (GitHub Pages, Netlify, Vercel) — push the generated directory to the hosting repo.
- Object storage (S3, Google Cloud Storage) served via CDN — sync generated files to a bucket and enable website hosting or CloudFront.
- Serve from an existing web server (Nginx, Apache) by placing output in document root and setting correct MIME types.
Example S3 sync:
aws s3 sync ./public s3://my-bucket --acl public-read Advanced tips and examples
- Add breadcrumbs to templates for easy navigation between nested index pages.
- Use human-readable sizes (KB/MB) and relative dates (2 days ago) for usability.
- Include a “copy link” button next to entries for quick sharing.
- Support sorting in the client with clickable column headers using simple JS.
Snippet: client-side sort for table columns (conceptual)
document.querySelectorAll('th.sortable').forEach(th => { th.addEventListener('click', () => { // read rows, sort by column, re-attach rows }); }); Example workflow: generate searchable gallery for photos
- Organize photos in /photos/yyyy-mm-dd/ folders.
- Run dir2html with image thumbnailing and JSON index enabled:
dir2html ./photos -o ./public/photos --template ./templates/gallery.html --generate-json --thumbnails ./public/photos/thumbs - Include Fuse.js and custom JS in gallery.html to search names, tags, and dates using entries.json.
- Deploy ./public/photos to S3 + CloudFront for global access.
Troubleshooting
- Missing assets: check –static-assets-dir or ensure relative paths in templates are correct.
- Incorrect timestamps or sizes: ensure dir2html runs on the same filesystem and with permissions to read file metadata.
- Slow page load with many entries: enable JSON indexing and pagination or switch to server-side search.
Conclusion
DIR2HTML provides a fast path to generate clean, static HTML views of filesystem directories with optional search, preview, and pagination. With templating and client-side search (or prebuilt JSON indices), you can build a user-friendly, searchable file index suitable for static hosting or internal portals. Start with the default template, then incrementally add search, thumbnails, and custom styling to match your needs.
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