MetaTable

A modern WPF desktop application for Windows that scans files in a directory and exports comprehensive metadata to Excel.

Note: The screenshot shows MSU (Mississippi State University) branding. The branding can be easily removed or customized by replacing the icon and color scheme in the source code.

Features

• 🔍 Recursive File Scanning - Scans all files in selected folder and subfolders
• 📊 Excel Export - Exports detailed metadata to .xlsx format
• 🎨 Modern UI - Clean, user-friendly interface with smooth animations
• ⚡ Real-time Progress - Live progress tracking during file scanning
• 🛑 Cancellable Operations - Stop scanning at any time
• 📁 Smart File Management - Automatically opens output location after export

Metadata Captured

MetaTable extracts the following information for each file:

• File name and extension
• Full file path
• File size
• Creation date and time
• Last modified date and time
• Last accessed date and time
• File attributes (Read-only, Hidden, System, Archive)

System Requirements

• OS: Windows 10 (version 1809 or later) / Windows 11
• Runtime: .NET 9.0 Runtime (or use the self-contained executable)
• Disk Space: ~100 MB for installation
• Memory: 512 MB RAM minimum

Installation

Option 1: Self-Contained Executable (Recommended)

1. Download the latest release from the Releases page
2. Extract the ZIP file to your desired location
3. Run MetaTable.exe - no .NET installation required!

Option 2: Build from Source

See the Building from Source section below.

Usage

1. Select Folder - Click "📁 Select Folder to Scan" to choose the directory
2. Choose Output - Click "📄 Select Output Excel File" to specify where to save results
3. Scan - Click "🔍 Scan Files and Export Data to Excel" to start scanning
4. View Results - The Excel file will open automatically when complete

Tips

• Double-click the folder path to open the folder in Explorer
• Double-click the output path to open the Excel file location
• Click the scan button during operation to cancel the scan
• Hover over any control to see helpful tooltips

Building from Source

Prerequisites

• .NET 9.0 SDK
• Visual Studio 2022 (optional, but recommended)

Build Steps

# Clone the repository
git clone https://github.com/bt1142msstate/MetaTable.git
cd MetaTable

# Restore dependencies
dotnet restore

# Build the project
dotnet build -c Release

# Run the application
dotnet run --project MetaTable/MetaTable.csproj

Publishing a Release Build

Create a self-contained, single-file executable for distribution:

dotnet publish MetaTable/MetaTable.csproj `
  -c Release `
  -r win-x64 `
  --self-contained true `
  -p:PublishSingleFile=true `
  -p:IncludeNativeLibrariesForSelfExtract=true `
  -o publish

The executable will be in the publish folder.

Technology Stack

• Framework: .NET 9.0
• UI: WPF (Windows Presentation Foundation)
• Excel Export: EPPlus
• Language: C# 12

Project Structure

MetaTable/
├── MetaTable/              # Main application project
│   ├── MainWindow.xaml     # UI layout
│   ├── MainWindow.xaml.cs  # Application logic
│   ├── App.xaml            # Application resources
│   ├── Logo.ico            # Application icon
│   └── MetaTable.csproj    # Project file
├── screenshots/            # Application screenshots
├── Standalone/             # Batch launchers
├── LICENSE                 # MIT License
├── README.md               # This file
├── CONTRIBUTING.md         # Contribution guidelines
└── CHANGELOG.md            # Version history

Customization

Changing the Branding

To customize the MSU branding:

1. Icon: Replace MetaTable/Logo.ico with your own icon
2. Colors: Edit the color values in MainWindow.xaml:
   • Primary color: #660000 (maroon)
   • Accent color: #4A9EFF (blue)
   • Background: #1E1E1E (dark gray)
3. Window Title: Change Title property in MainWindow.xaml

Troubleshooting

Application won't start

• Ensure you have .NET 9.0 Runtime installed (or use the self-contained version)
• Try running as administrator
• Check Windows Event Viewer for error details

Excel file won't open

• Ensure you have Microsoft Excel or a compatible spreadsheet application installed
• Check that the output path is writable
• Verify the file isn't open in another application

Scan is very slow

• Large directories with many files will take time
• Network drives are slower than local drives
• Consider scanning smaller subdirectories

Frequently Asked Questions

Q: Can I scan network drives?
A: Yes, but performance may be slower depending on network speed.

Q: What's the maximum number of files it can handle?
A: There's no hard limit, but very large scans (100,000+ files) may take significant time and memory.

Q: Can I customize what metadata is captured?
A: Yes! Modify the scanning logic in MainWindow.xaml.cs to add or remove metadata fields.

Q: Does it work with Excel Online or Google Sheets?
A: The output is a standard .xlsx file that can be opened in Excel Online, Google Sheets, LibreOffice, etc.

License

This project is open source and available under the MIT License.

Author

Created by Brandon Temple

Contributing

Contributions, issues, and feature requests are welcome! See CONTRIBUTING.md for details.

Feel free to check the issues page for open issues or to submit new ones.

Changelog

See CHANGELOG.md for a detailed version history.

Acknowledgments

• Built with WPF
• Excel export powered by EPPlus
• Inspired by the need for simple, efficient file metadata analysis

Support

If you find this project helpful, please consider:

• ⭐ Starring the repository
• 🐛 Reporting bugs
• 💡 Suggesting new features
• 🔀 Contributing code

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Made with ❤️ for the file management community