Detail view

pls can stat the nodes to derive more information, called metadata, about them, which it can then present in a tabular format. This is called the detail view.

Arguments

--det/-d can be used to select the detail columns the user wants to see, and indirectly turn the detail view on or off. The detail view is considered to be turned off if no detail field is chosen.

The --det/-d flag can be specified multiple times to enable multiple fields. Each time it can take one of these values.

Value	Description	Standard
`dev`	device ID
`ino`	inode number
`nlink`	number of hard links	Yes
`typ`	node type	Yes
`perm`	symbolic permissions	Yes
`oct`	octal permissions
`user`	owner user name	Yes
`uid`	owner user ID
`group`	owner group name	Yes
`gid`	owner group ID
`size`	storage space	Yes
`blocks`	number of blocks
`btime`	created at; "b" for birth
`ctime`	changed at; originally meant "created at"
`mtime`	modified at	Yes
`atime`	accessed at
`git`	Git status
`none`	shorthand: no details
`std`	shorthand: the standard set of details
`all`	shorthand: all details

The column headers for the detail view can be toggled using the --header/-H flag.

Mechanism

When parsing the --det/-d argument, values are read from the CLI, in order, and added to a vector of fields till we encounter a shorthand value. If the shorthand value is none, the vector is cleared. The other two shorthands are expanded and added to the vector.

std can be used to show the fields shown by ls(1) with the -l flag
all can be used to show every available metadata field

For example, consider the pls invocation below.

pls --det=dev --det=ino --det=none --det=std --det=git

dev is added to the list.
ino is added to the list.
All entries so far are dropped when none is encountered.
nlink, typ, perm, user, group, size and mtime are added to the list when std is encountered
git is added to the list.

The final set is thus nlink, typ, perm, user, group, size, mtime and git. Since this is more than zero, pls will activate the detail view.

Examples

pls # or --det=none or -d=none

  dir/
󰌹  block_dev@ 󱞣 /dev/disk0
󰌹  char_dev@ 󰁔 /dev/null
󰟥  fifo|
   file
󰟨  socket=
󰌹  sym@ 󰁔 ./dir

pls --det=user --det=group # or -d=user -d=group

User   Group  Name
runner runner   dir/
runner runner 󰌹  block_dev@ 󱞣 /dev/disk0
runner runner 󰌹  char_dev@ 󰁔 /dev/null
runner runner 󰟥  fifo|
runner runner    file
runner runner 󰟨  socket=
runner runner 󰌹  sym@ 󰁔 ./dir

pls --det=std # or -d=std

Link# T Permissions User   Group      Size Modified            Name
    2 d rwx r-x r-x runner runner          2026-Jul-11 04:27pm   dir/
    1 l rwx rwx rwx runner runner 10.0   B 2026-Jul-11 04:27pm 󰌹  block_dev@ 󱞣 /dev/disk0
    1 l rwx rwx rwx runner runner  9.0   B 2026-Jul-11 04:27pm 󰌹  char_dev@ 󰁔 /dev/null
    1 p rw- r-- r-- runner runner  0.0   B 2026-Jul-11 04:27pm 󰟥  fifo|
    1 f rw- r-- r-- runner runner  1.0 MiB 2026-Jul-11 04:27pm    file
    1 s rwx r-x r-x runner runner  0.0   B 2026-Jul-11 04:27pm 󰟨  socket=
    1 l rwx rwx rwx runner runner  5.0   B 2026-Jul-11 04:27pm 󰌹  sym@ 󰁔 ./dir

pls --det=all # or -d=all

Device   inode Link# T Permissions SUGO User    UID Group   GID     Size Blocks Created             Changed             Modified            Accessed            Git Name
  2049 8427042     2 d rwx r-x r-x  755 runner 1001 runner 1001                 2026-Jul-11 04:27pm 2026-Jul-11 04:27pm 2026-Jul-11 04:27pm 2026-Jul-11 04:27pm       dir/
  2049 8427047     1 l rwx rwx rwx  777 runner 1001 runner 1001 10.0   B      0 2026-Jul-11 04:27pm 2026-Jul-11 04:27pm 2026-Jul-11 04:27pm 2026-Jul-11 04:27pm     󰌹  block_dev@ 󱞣 /dev/disk0
  2049 8427046     1 l rwx rwx rwx  777 runner 1001 runner 1001  9.0   B      0 2026-Jul-11 04:27pm 2026-Jul-11 04:27pm 2026-Jul-11 04:27pm 2026-Jul-11 04:27pm     󰌹  char_dev@ 󰁔 /dev/null
  2049 8427044     1 p rw- r-- r--  644 runner 1001 runner 1001  0.0   B      0 2026-Jul-11 04:27pm 2026-Jul-11 04:27pm 2026-Jul-11 04:27pm 2026-Jul-11 04:27pm     󰟥  fifo|
  2049 8427048     1 f rw- r-- r--  644 runner 1001 runner 1001  1.0 MiB      8 2026-Jul-11 04:27pm 2026-Jul-11 04:27pm 2026-Jul-11 04:27pm 2026-Jul-11 04:27pm        file
  2049 8427045     1 s rwx r-x r-x  755 runner 1001 runner 1001  0.0   B      0 2026-Jul-11 04:27pm 2026-Jul-11 04:27pm 2026-Jul-11 04:27pm 2026-Jul-11 04:27pm     󰟨  socket=
  2049 8427043     1 l rwx rwx rwx  777 runner 1001 runner 1001  5.0   B      0 2026-Jul-11 04:27pm 2026-Jul-11 04:27pm 2026-Jul-11 04:27pm 2026-Jul-11 04:27pm     󰌹  sym@ 󰁔 ./dir

Configuration

Each of the detail fields is deeply customisable. Read on to know more the customisation options supported by each field.

Fields

`dev` - Device ID

This field can by styled by specifying entry_const.dev_style. pls does not style this field by default, because a style would not add any meaning.

`ino` - Inode number

This field can by styled by specifying entry_const.ino_style. pls does not style this field by default, because a style would not add any meaning.

`nlink` - Number of hard links

This field can be styled different based on the type of the node and the number of hard links the node has. pls allows files with more than one hard link and directories with only one hard link to be styled differently because these are peculiar cases. The opposite scenario is more common.

Type	`nlink`	Style
file	1	`entry_const.nlink_styles.file_sing`
file	>1	`entry_const.nlink_styles.file_plur`
dir	1	`entry_const.nlink_styles.dir_sing`
dir	>1	`entry_const.nlink_styles.dir_plur`

`typ` - Node type character

pls allows you to completely change the type character to whatever makes you think of the node's type.

Type	Character
Dir	`entry_const.typ.dir.ch`
Symlink	`entry_const.typ.symlink.ch`
FIFO	`entry_const.typ.fifo.ch`
Socket	`entry_const.typ.socket.ch`
Block device	`entry_const.typ.block_device.ch`
Char device	`entry_const.typ.char_device.ch`
File	`entry_const.typ.file.ch`
Unknown	`entry_const.typ.unknown.ch`

`perm` - Symbolic permissions

This field can be styled by specifying entry_const.perm_styles. pls allows individual customisation of each of the permission characters for read (r), write (w), execute (x), special (s/S/t/T) and none (-).

Bit	Style
Read	`entry_const.perm_styles.read`
Write	`entry_const.perm_styles.write`
Execute	`entry_const.perm_styles.execute`
Special	`entry_const.perm_styles.special`
None	`entry_const.perm_styles.none`

`oct` - Octal permissions

An octal permission has either three (user, group, other) or four (special, plus the previous three) digits. pls allows customisation of each of these digits individually.

Digit	Style
Special	`entry_const.oct_styles.special`
User	`entry_const.oct_styles.user`
Group	`entry_const.oct_styles.group`
Other	`entry_const.oct_styles.other`

`user`/`uid` - Owner user name/UID

pls styles the name or UID of the user that owns the node differently based on whether the user is the current user or not. These styles apply identically to the user name and the UID.

User	Style
Current	`entry_const.user_styles.curr`
Other	`entry_const.user_styles.other`

`group`/`gid` - Owner group name/GID

pls styles the name or GID of the group that owns the node differently based on whether the current user belongs to the group or not. These styles apply identically to the group name and the GID.

Group	Style
Current	`entry_const.group_styles.curr`
Other	`entry_const.group_styles.other`

`size` - Storage space

pls shows the size of the node in human readable format by default, while allowing the user to choose between three unit systems. See units for more information about unit systems.

You can style the three components of a size value independently. Ideally, you want to emphasise magnitude and prefix and de-emphasise the base (which is always "B" for bytes).

Component	Style
Magnitude	`entry_const.size_styles.mag`
Prefix	`entry_const.size_styles.prefix`
Base unit	`entry_const.size_styles.base`

`blocks` - Storage blocks

pls shows the total number of physical blocks of size 512 bytes actually allocated on the disk for the node. This can be more than what the actual size on disk indicates if the node has "holes".

This field can by styled by specifying entry_const.blocks_style. pls does not style this field by default, because a style would not add any meaning.

`btime`/`ctime`/`mtime`/`atime` - Timestamps

pls can display the four common timestamps of a file. pls allows you to choose the exact format in which you prefer the timestamps to be.

Timestamp	Format
Created at	`entry_const.timestamp_formats.btime`
Changed at	`entry_const.timestamp_formats.ctime`
Modified at	`entry_const.timestamp_formats.mtime`
Accessed at	`entry_const.timestamp_formats.atime`

The timestamp can use components from the time crate's format description freely mixed with markup tags.

`git` - Git status

🚧 This feature is a work in progress and will be coming in a future version.

Examples

Here is a custom config that approximately matches the output of eza or exa at least for the columns that they have in common with pls (pls has more, in case you were wondering).

entry_const:
  dev_style: magenta
  ino_style: magenta
  nlink_styles:
    file_sing: red bold
    file_plur: red bold
    dir_sing: red bold
    dir_plur: red bold
  typ:
    dir:
      ch: <bold cyan>d</>
    symlink:
      ch: <magenta>l</>
    fifo:
      ch: <yellow>|</>
    socket:
      ch: <green>s</>
    char_device:
      ch: <blue bg:green>b</>
    block_device:
      ch: <blue bg:yellow>c</>
    file:
      ch: "."
  oct_styles:
    special: magenta
    user: magenta
    group: magenta
    other: magenta
  user_styles:
    curr: bold yellow
    other: ""
  group_styles:
    curr: bold yellow
    other: ""
  size_styles:
    mag: green bold
    prefix: green
    base: hidden
  blocks_style: cyan
  timestamp_formats:
    btime: <blue>[day] [month repr:short] [hour repr:24]:[minute]</>
    ctime: <blue>[day] [month repr:short] [hour repr:24]:[minute]</>
    mtime: <blue>[day] [month repr:short] [hour repr:24]:[minute]</>
    atime: <blue>[day] [month repr:short] [hour repr:24]:[minute]</>
app_const:
  table:
    header_style: clear
    column_names:
      dev: <underline>Device</>
      ino: <underline>inode</>
      nlink: <underline>Links</>
      perm: <underline>Permissions</>
      oct: <underline>Octal</>
      user: <underline>User</>
      uid: <underline>UID</>
      group: <underline>Group</>
      gid: <underline>GID</>
      size: <underline>Size</>
      blocks: <underline>Blocks</>
      btime: <underline>Date Created</>
      ctime: <underline>Date Changed</>
      mtime: <underline>Date Modified</>
      atime: <underline>Date Accessed</>
      git: <underline>Git</>
      name: <underline>Name</>

Device   inode Links T Permissions Octal User    UID Group   GID    Size Blocks Date Created Date Changed Date Modified Date Accessed Git Name
  2049 8427042     2 d rwx r-x r-x   755 runner 1001 runner 1001                11 Jul 16:27 11 Jul 16:27 11 Jul 16:27  11 Jul 16:27        dir/
  2049 8427047     1 l rwx rwx rwx   777 runner 1001 runner 1001 10.0         0 11 Jul 16:27 11 Jul 16:27 11 Jul 16:27  11 Jul 16:27      󰌹  block_dev@ 󱞣 /dev/disk0
  2049 8427046     1 l rwx rwx rwx   777 runner 1001 runner 1001  9.0         0 11 Jul 16:27 11 Jul 16:27 11 Jul 16:27  11 Jul 16:27      󰌹  char_dev@ 󰁔 /dev/null
  2049 8427044     1 | rw- r-- r--   644 runner 1001 runner 1001  0.0         0 11 Jul 16:27 11 Jul 16:27 11 Jul 16:27  11 Jul 16:27      󰟥  fifo|
  2049 8427048     1 . rw- r-- r--   644 runner 1001 runner 1001  1.0 Mi      8 11 Jul 16:27 11 Jul 16:27 11 Jul 16:27  11 Jul 16:27         file
  2049 8427055     1 . rw- r-- r--   644 runner 1001 runner 1001  1.6 Ki      8 11 Jul 16:27 11 Jul 16:27 11 Jul 16:27  11 Jul 16:27       .pls.yml
  2049 8427045     1 s rwx r-x r-x   755 runner 1001 runner 1001  0.0         0 11 Jul 16:27 11 Jul 16:27 11 Jul 16:27  11 Jul 16:27      󰟨  socket=
  2049 8427043     1 l rwx rwx rwx   777 runner 1001 runner 1001  5.0         0 11 Jul 16:27 11 Jul 16:27 11 Jul 16:27  11 Jul 16:27      󰌹  sym@ 󰁔 ./dir

Detail view

Arguments

Mechanism

Examples

Configuration

Fields

dev - Device ID

ino - Inode number

nlink - Number of hard links

typ - Node type character

perm - Symbolic permissions

oct - Octal permissions

user/uid - Owner user name/UID

group/gid - Owner group name/GID

size - Storage space

blocks - Storage blocks

btime/ctime/mtime/atime - Timestamps

git - Git status

Examples

`dev` - Device ID

`ino` - Inode number

`nlink` - Number of hard links

`typ` - Node type character

`perm` - Symbolic permissions

`oct` - Octal permissions

`user`/`uid` - Owner user name/UID

`group`/`gid` - Owner group name/GID

`size` - Storage space

`blocks` - Storage blocks

`btime`/`ctime`/`mtime`/`atime` - Timestamps

`git` - Git status