[Feature Request]: "Show Folder" next to drop down menus.

[spiritparticle]

Is there an existing issue for this?

• I have searched the existing issues and checked the recent builds/commits

What would your feature do ?

When I was a new user. Knowing which folder to put Upscalers, Ultralytics models etc etc. Was confusing and also at times unknown since for example I was following along with a youtuber who was doing a tutorial. Told you what node to use. Put a link to a model in the description but completely glossed over where it needed to be placed. I would love an option or some toggle for users who want to use it where if there is a node that is referencing... well anything that requires a drop down where files are placed. The feature simply examines what folder that particular drop down is referenced to and pops it open so you can put the model file in there.

Proposed workflow

Picture this... You are a new user. You are watching a youtube video about "Face Detailer" You maybe install the custom node the way the youtuber said. You downloaded the Yolo model from the link in the description. But the youtuber completely missed telling you where to actually put the file. So you add the Ultralytics node. But you are a new user and have no idea where you need to put that yolo file. So next to the dropdown for the ultralytics model dropdown is a little button to pop up the folder where those models are stored. And you can then just drag the model in there. Close the windows explorer window and go back to comfy. "Refresh" and the model shows up.

And this could work for anything where files need to be placed in specific folders. New users trying FLUX who have downloaded Clip or Unet models but have no idea where they go just click the little button and the folder pops up for them. Or they use an upscaler node and again they can pop up the folder. In essence all the feature does is look at what target folder is being referenced by that particular drop down and pops up an explorer window to that folder.

But I feel like this could be a time saver for people who have lots of experience with comfy too. If you are working in comfy and you want to try a new upscaler or something and you goto a site and download it you can then quickly goto comfy and click the pop open folder button next to the drop down and it goes straight to the folder where you just drag it out from your downloads in your browser to the folder instead of having to double click your way all the way into the folder saving you PRECIOUS time you could be spending making waifus.

Additional information

No response

┆Issue is synchronized with this Notion page by Unito

[huchenlei]

We will have open directory models in the desktop version.

Maybe we can also support you drag the file to the input widget, and it does the move.

[spiritparticle]

Oh that looks cool. But yes to your next suggestion also. I would LOVE some way to be able to just get files I have into a folder quickly rather than open up explorer and double click my way all the way into the folder. Or perhaps trying a new node I don't really know where a particular drop down for stuff is referencing. Sometimes the dev will have their own folder in the custom node folder. Sometimes they pull from the comfy model folders. Or perhaps the folder isn't listed in the "Open Folder" options you have in the screenshot. Like Unets, Upscalers, Ultralytics and much more.

The other benefit is a situation where I have a whole bunch of files I want to put in there. Even for example if I do a fresh install and then want to just put all my loras I have stored in a backup into that folder. Again instead of opening explorer and making the journey to the folder I can just drag all the files like you suggest into the dropdown or however you want to do it. Or click a little button to pop open an explorer window and I can just paste it in there and close it out and refresh.

It would be SUCH a time saver.

[webfiltered]

Or perhaps trying a new node I don't really know where a particular drop down for stuff is referencing. Sometimes the dev will have their own folder in the custom node folder. Sometimes they pull from the comfy model folders. Or perhaps the folder isn't listed in the "Open Folder" options you have in the screenshot. Like Unets, Upscalers, Ultralytics and much more.

The unfortunate thing here is that ComfyUI can't just detect which folder the node using. Node developers implement all this in their own code, and in their own style. Some nodes are easy to figure out, and some are... not.

Node authors are given control of all this - but that also means it's up to them to make sure that users aren't left wondering how their creation works. The only thing ComfyUI really knows about that drop down is "list of strings".

What could be done is adding a simple API - e.g. provide a built-in widget for selecting a model file, so that there's a standard UX. Node authors would still have to change their nodes to use this, but it could be a start.

[spiritparticle]

A strange quirk but I guess it makes sense since people code the way they want to. I thought comfy might be able to see in the code for that drop down where the "path_name" or something (I am not a coder obviously) and use that to know where the folder is.

I guess the way you put it. Having some standardized unified protocol for anyone making comfy nodes to use when they have a folder where models, files or things you must download could be simply referenced for opening using a command or some method would be hugely beneficial.

I have even run into a situation where I was following along a youtube tutorial. The youtuber gives the link to the node, a link to the model needed. And completely glosses over where to put it. And then there is time spent googling. Reading the github and perhaps the info is there perhaps it isn't and then off to discord I go to ask about it then wait for someone to reply and then put the file where it needs to be and finally it works.

To have a system in place that could remedy all that and other possible situations... Even standardizing it could open up new ways for developers to write nodes that could grab paths from other nodes to know where things are stored and do some really cool innovative things would be a definite improvement.