Thio's SVG Thumbnail Extension ThioJoe

explorer file-explorer shell-extension svg svgz thumbnail thumbnails windows-explorer

Use this command to install Thio's SVG Thumbnail Extension:

winget install --id=ThioJoe.SvgThumbnailExtension -e

A native hardware-accelerated Windows SVG thumbnail handler for Windows.

Thio's SVG Thumbnail Extension is a native Windows thumbnail handler designed to display high-quality previews of .svg and .svgz files directly in File Explorer. Built with Rust, this extension leverages the Windows API for hardware-accelerated rendering, ensuring smooth performance and minimal resource usage.

Key Features:

Hardware-accelerated SVG rendering using Direct2D.
Support for .svg and .svgz files without third-party dependencies.
Pre-processing of CSS styles to ensure accurate rendering in File Explorer.
High-performance thumbnail generation optimized for Windows.
Signed via Azure Trusted Signing for enhanced security.
Easy installation through winget or MSI.

Audience & Benefit: Ideal for developers, designers, and users who work with SVG files, this extension provides a seamless way to visualize and organize vector graphics directly within File Explorer. By eliminating the need for external software, it enhances workflow efficiency and improves file management capabilities.

Thio's SVG Thumbnail Extension for Windows Explorer

A high-performance thumbnail provider for Windows that generates explorer thumbnails for .svg and .svgz files, written in Rust, with no third party dependencies.

Why Use This One?

  <b>No Third-Party Dependencies</b>
  
    Built using only official Microsoft-published Rust crates (found in the <a href="https://github.com/microsoft/windows-rs">windows‑rs</a> repo)
    
      ↳ No unknown code pulled in from an endless tree of dependencies
    
  


  <b>Renders Purely Via the Windows API</b>
  
    No separate third party library files that may go out of date or add overhead
  


  <b>Trusted Certificate Signed</b>
  
    Signed via Azure Trusted Signing, which requires rigorous verification of real-world identity.
    
      ↳ Proves it's not made by an unaccountable/unknown developer

Note: Also see current limitations section

Screenshot

How To Install

Option 1 (Easiest): Install With WinGet

Open command prompt and run this command, which will automatically download and run the installer.

winget install ThioJoe.SvgThumbnailExtension

Option 2: Download the Installer

Go to the Releases page.
For the latest release, look under Assets and download the .msi installer and run it.
Windows Explorer will now automatically use this provider to display thumbnails for .svg and .svgz files.

How To Uninstall:

It can be uninstalled like any other app in Windows' Installed Apps list

Current Limitations:

Currently, a small fraction of SVGs may render as black squares or as being filled completely black
- Such SVGs contain properties not supported by the Direct2D API which this extension uses
- There is also no support for text glyphs
Overall, a vast majority of SVGs should render correctly. If you notice any from a particular program that consistently don't render, you can create an issue and I can see if anything can be done.