Launch and Search

Launch & Search

CyberLauncher provides instant application launching with fuzzy search, system-wide file indexing, and multiple launch modes (Launcher / System / Terminal).

Search-box hints rotate automatically:

Mode	Placeholder	Hint
Launcher (normal)	`Search in CyberLauncher...`	`'>' Terminal • [Tab] System`
System (`Tab`)	`Search system-wide...`	`[Tab] Return to Launcher`
Terminal (`>`)	`Type a command... (dir, sys, help)`	`[Enter] Execute • [Esc] Exit`

Navigation: ↑↓ navigate · ←→ menu · Ctrl+←/→ filter · Enter open · Esc closes menu.

Fuzzy Search

How It Works

As you type in the search box:

Results filter instantly with fuzzy matching
No exact spelling required
Matches app names, descriptions, and file paths
Results ranked by relevance and usage frequency

Search Features

Feature	Description
Instant filtering	Results update with each keystroke
Fuzzy matching	"chr" matches "Chrome", "Chroma", etc.
Usage ranking	Frequently used apps appear higher (see Most Used / Most Recent)
Multi-field search	Searches name, description, path

Application Launch

Launching Apps

Click — Click any result to launch
Enter — Press Enter to launch the highlighted result
Arrow keys — ↑↓ navigate results, ←→ open the result menu, Enter to launch
Esc — Close open menu / clear search

Supported App Types

Type	Description
Executable (.exe)	Standard Windows applications
Shortcuts (.lnk)	Windows shortcuts and Start Menu items
UWP / MSIX Apps	Windows Store apps, launched via AUMID (see below)
URLs	Web links open in default browser
Files	Documents open with default program
Scripts	`.bat`, `.cmd`, `.ps1`, `.msi` can be launched from results

Run as Administrator

Launch apps with elevated privileges (executables only):

Context-menu action Run as administrator, shown only for executable types (.exe, .bat, .cmd, .ps1, .msi, .lnk), never for folders
Or configure per-app admin mode with the amber switch in the Add / Edit drawer
UAC prompt appears for confirmation

System-Wide File Search

Press Tab in the search box to enter System mode (Search system-wide...). Press Tab again to return to the Launcher.

Indexer

CyberLauncher includes a hybrid file indexing engine:

Crawls Start Menu, Desktop, Downloads, home directory
Configurable scan depth (deeper = more temp space on first run)
System drive indexing option
Authorized folder management
Engine status (SYSTEM ONLINE / DISABLED) + indexed-files counter

Indexer Settings (`Settings → SEARCH ENGINE`)

Setting	Description
INDEXED SEARCH SERVICE	Master toggle for file search
SCAN DEPTH LEVEL	How deep to crawl directories
DETECTED SYSTEM DRIVES	Drives available for whole-drive indexing
AUTHORIZED DIRECTORIES TO INDEX	Additional folders to index (`ADD DIRECTORY`)
INCLUDE HIDDEN FOLDERS (DOTFILES)	Show `.git`, `.codex`, etc. in results
INDEX INSIDE HIDDEN FOLDERS	Recursively scan inside them (higher resource usage)

File Search Results

System results are grouped with type filters and counts: MIXED / PROGRAMS / FOLDERS / FILES (Ctrl+←/→ cycles filter, unified sort button).

Each row shows file name, path, type icon, and folder location. Available actions:

Open folder in Explorer (for folders) vs Open file location (for files) — tooltips are differentiated
Add to CyberLauncher — imports the file into your library
Click opens with the default program

UWP / Windows Store Apps

Native Support

CyberLauncher scans for UWP / MSIX apps (Settings → WS SCANNER):

Automatic discovery of installed Store apps (e.g. WhatsApp, Xbox, Terminal)
App icons extracted from manifests, including VisualElementsManifest + companion icons
Clean icons without shortcut badges or generic-window fallback
AUMID-based launching

WS Scanner

Element	Description
SCAN WINDOWS STORE	Manually trigger discovery
Search box	`Search in the Windows Store...`
Results log	Full-height list with scan log feedback (`Starting Windows Store application scan...` / `Scan successfully completed`)

Tip: the Add-drawer banner Looking for Windows Store apps? / Auto-detect and import apps like WhatsApp, Xbox, Terminal, etc. (Open WS Scanner button) opens the scanner directly.

UWP Features

Full icon support via manifest extraction
Launch via Application User Model ID (AUMID)
MSIX packaged apps supported

Cyber Terminal (Console Mode)

Type > in the search box to enter Terminal mode (Type a command... (dir, sys, help)). Also available from More options (⋯) → Cyber Terminal.

Shell Commands

Persistent working directory (CWD) across commands
Dual shell engine: PowerShell / CMD switchable
Execute any shell command, batch script, or Windows system command
cd navigation fixed (cd .., cd C:\ruta, D:), prompt decoupled from output

Built-in Commands

Type help inside the terminal for the interactive list:

help     — Show interactive command help
clear    — Clear screen logs
cd       — Change folder (e.g. cd .., cd C:\ruta, D:)
explorer — Open Windows Explorer in current folder
wt       — Open external Windows Terminal / PowerShell in active path
sys      — Show system metrics (CPU, RAM, Uptime)
apps     — Show configured shortcut count and summary
dir      — List directory contents

Examples

> notepad
> calc
> dir
> sys
> help

Features

Command history with ↑/↓ arrows
COPY OUTPUT, CLEAR SCREEN, kill-process button
Open external terminal (wt) button
[Enter] Execute • [Esc] Exit (Backspace on empty input also exits)
Error handling with feedback

Search Results

Result Cards

Each search result displays:

App icon
App name
Description or file path
Category badge
Favorite indicator

Result Actions

Action	Description
Launch	Open the app/file
Run as admin	Executables only, with elevated privileges
Open location	Show file in Explorer
Add to favorites	Pin to favorites
Add to taskbar	Pin to bottom taskbar

Usage-Based Ranking

Learning

CyberLauncher learns from your usage:

Frequently launched apps rank higher (Most Used panel)
Recent launches get a boost (Most Recent panel)
Adapts to your workflow over time

Manual Override

Pin favorites to always appear at top
Custom categories for organization
Drag-to-reorder in taskbar
Context-menu reset: Reset most used / Reset most recent, or Remove from recents per item