Choose a workspace folder

Every workspace is a folder on your computer, and every chat works inside one. When a workspace needs its folder, Oda opens a folder chooser and you pick it: your operating system's folder dialog on the computer that runs Oda, or the in-app Select Workspace Directory dialog when a system dialog cannot be used. This page covers the picking itself. Workspaces, files and permissions covers what Oda may do inside the folder, and Open files and folders in other apps covers handing the picked folder to your own tools.

Pick a folder for a workspace

Open the chooser: choose Add workspace in the sidebar, or pick a folder when a chat asks for one.
Pick the folder: in the system dialog, select the folder and confirm it; in the in-app dialog, browse to the folder and choose Open.
The folder you confirm becomes the workspace's folder, and the chat works in it from then on.

Closing the chooser without confirming changes nothing: a cancelled pick is not an error, and you can open the chooser again at any time.

Inside the Select Workspace Directory dialog

The in-app dialog is a small folder browser of its own, shown when a system dialog cannot be used. It opens at the home folder of the computer that runs Oda and works one folder tree at a time.

The trail at the top shows the folders you walked through, starting at Home. Every crumb jumps back to that folder, and Edit path turns the trail into a path field you can type into.
Folders are listed in steps: choosing one opens it and shows what is inside beside it, so you can move from folder to folder.
Folders whose names start with a dot are treated as hidden. The Show hidden files switch reveals them; it starts off each time the dialog opens, and the dot rule is the same on every platform.
New folder creates one folder inside the folder you are viewing; the questions below cover the name rules.
Open takes the folder you selected, or the one you are viewing when nothing is selected; Cancel closes the dialog without picking.
If a folder takes a moment to list, a small Loading… pill appears. A folder that holds more folders than one listing carries (1,000 at a time by default) is listed by its first names in order and says Too many folders to list; only the beginning is shown.

How Oda chooses the folder dialog

Oda settles this when it starts, from how it was launched, and keeps the choice until it restarts. It is not a setting you can change.
At the computer that runs Oda, your operating system's folder dialog is used. On Linux that dialog needs a graphical session and a chooser tool such as zenity or kdialog; without one, Oda uses the in-app dialog.
In a browser or over a remote session, Oda uses the in-app Select Workspace Directory dialog, which works everywhere.
The same chooser serves every pick. If it cannot be used, Oda shows the failure and you can try again; Oda does not quietly move to the other dialog until it restarts.
When a setup cannot offer any folder chooser, the folder step is not shown at all, and no dialog opens.

When picking fails

A system folder dialog can fail to open or to finish. Oda reports the reason and lets you try again.
On Linux, when the chooser tool cannot be found, the reason reads no supported native directory picker found (install zenity or kdialog).
When a system dialog is stopped from Oda's side, the reason reads native directory picker aborted, and nothing is picked.
Closing a dialog yourself is never an error: a cancelled pick changes nothing.

Questions, answered

Which folder dialog will Oda show me?

Oda settles it when it starts and keeps it until a restart: at the computer that runs Oda, your operating system's folder dialog; in a browser or over a remote session, the in-app Select Workspace Directory dialog. On Linux the system dialog also needs a graphical session and a chooser tool such as zenity or kdialog; without one, the in-app dialog is used. The choice is not remade for each pick, and it is not a setting you can change.

Why did the dialog open on a different computer?

Oda judges from how it was launched, and it cannot always tell where you really are. A connection that looks local can put the system folder dialog on the computer that runs Oda, and that dialog must be answered there. If it opens where you are not, reopen Oda from the computer you are sitting at and try again.

Can I reach any folder on the computer?

Yes. The dialog can browse the whole computer, not just a preset area, and it works one folder tree at a time. On Windows it does not list your drives: type a drive's path, such as D:\, to reach folders on it.

Why are folders starting with a dot hidden?

Oda treats a folder whose name starts with a dot as hidden, and the dialog leaves those out until you switch on Show hidden files. The switch starts off each time the dialog opens. On Windows the folder's own hidden setting is not used; the dot rule counts on every platform.

How do I make a new folder from the dialog?

Choose New folder. A small dialog opens, titled New folder in "<name>" for the folder that will hold the new one; type the name in Folder name and choose Create. The name must be a single plain name: a blank name, a name with a path separator, and the names . and .. are refused ("<name>" is not a single path segment). One folder is created inside the folder you are viewing, and several levels cannot be created at once. A name that is already taken is refused too; the message names the existing folder and ends with already exists. The dialog then selects the folder it created.

Does closing the dialog without picking change anything?

No. Nothing is picked and nothing changes. Closing the chooser is a cancellation, not a failure, so no error appears, and you can open the chooser again whenever you are ready.

Why does the folder listing cut off?

A folder that holds more folders than one listing carries (1,000 at a time by default) is listed by the first names in order, and the rest are left out; the dialog says Too many folders to list; only the beginning is shown. Hidden folders count toward that limit. The other folders are still there: step into a folder or type a path to reach the one you want.

What does `no supported native directory picker found (install zenity or kdialog)` mean?

The system folder dialog on Linux needs the tool zenity or kdialog, and Oda could not find either when opening the dialog. Install one of them and try again. When Oda starts on Linux without such a tool, it serves the in-app dialog instead.

What does `native directory picker aborted` mean?

The system folder dialog stopped before it delivered an answer (for example, the request that opened it was cancelled), so nothing was picked. Open the chooser again and pick the folder.

Why don't I see a folder step?

Folder picking needs a chooser Oda can serve on the computer it runs on. When a setup cannot offer one, Oda does not show the folder step, and no dialog opens.