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[Feature request] Provide an API to set the directory for the next FileOpen / FileSave #401

Description

@fml2

This issue stems from the discussion on the forum: https://community.notepad-plus-plus.org/topic/27270/set-current-directory-to-default-if-no-real-file-is-open

I'd like to have an API to set the directory that will be used on the next launch of the "Open File" or "Save File" dialog. This should overwrite the value that is internally tracked and set by Notepad++ because e.g. of the setting "Default Open/Save file Directory".

This should allow for me to better handle the following situation:

  1. The setting "Default Open/Save file Directory" is set to "Follow current document"
  2. I have a tab with new contents (not yet saved as a file)
  3. In another tab, I have a file from a network folder, which is the active tab now.
  4. I close the tab with the network file. Only the untitled tab remains
  5. Now I want to save this untitled tab to a "standard" folder. The standard folder is the one used after Notepad++ is started without any files. It's "Desktop" for me.

As of now, when I press Ctrl+S in the step 5, the dialog opens in the network directory. I'd like it to open in the "Standard" directory. But this should only be for untitled tabs. For real files, the dialog should still open in the directory of the file.


Disclaimer: I also submitted this as an issue in Notepad++ for the case that this feature is better implemented there.

Activity

  1. alankilborn commented on Nov 28, 2025

    @alankilborn

    Not a reasonable feature for PythonScript, IMO.

  2. fml2 commented on Nov 29, 2025

    @fml2
    Author

    Maybe just an API for opening the dialog in the folder passed in as a parameter?

  3. alankilborn commented on Nov 29, 2025

    @alankilborn

    Maybe just an API for opening the dialog in the folder passed in as a parameter?

    Not needed. You can do your own "save" dialog in Python code, customizing it however you want.

  4. fml2 commented on Nov 29, 2025

    @fml2
    Author

    I thought that all the GUI actions have to happen under the umbrella of the main application (Notepad++) so that the GUI does not get confused. I'm not a GUI expert but heard that there are some gotchas.

    Do you have an example of a Python script opening dialogs from within NP++ by any chance? If that works, I agree that exxtending the plugin or NP++ is not necessary.

  5. alankilborn commented on Nov 29, 2025

    @alankilborn

    Do you have an example of a Python script opening dialogs from within NP++ by any chance?

    THIS library can do it.

  6. chcg commented on Dec 1, 2025

    @chcg
    Collaborator

    I think to work on this it would require an extension of N++ plugin API. Unlikely that this feature gets implemented by me but if someone volunteers I would be open to integrate it.

  7. alankilborn commented on Dec 1, 2025

    @alankilborn

    @chcg No need for that; I'll write this person a script to show how to do it.

  8. alankilborn commented on Dec 5, 2025

    @alankilborn

    There's actually already a script I wrote for something like this, HERE.

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