Minimal Image Viewer

A High-Performance, Secure, and Featherweight Image Viewer for Windows

Minimal Image Viewer is an open-source, C++-based image viewing application engineered for Windows, prioritizing performance and minimalism. With a compiled size of only ~360KB. Leveraging native Windows APIs and the Windows Imaging Component (WIC), it ensures accurate functionality.

Comprehensive Image Format Support:

• Supports a wide array of formats via WIC, including JPEG, PNG, BMP, GIF, TIFF, ICO, WebP, HEIF, AVIF, and RAW formats (e.g., .cr2, .cr3, .nef, .dng, .arw, .orf, .rw2) with appropriate codecs installed.
• format without hardcoding extensions.
• Preserves original file formats during save operations, ensuring fidelity for formats like TIFF and GIF.

Image Management:

• Saves rotated images (Ctrl+S or context menu) in their original WIC-supported format, using temporary files to ensure atomic operations.
• Deletes images to the Recycle Bin (Delete key or context menu) for recoverable deletions.
• Opens images with a comprehensive filter for common image formats, falling back to WIC for validation.

Minimalist Interface:

• Borderless window for a distraction-free experience, with dynamic cursor feedback for resizing.
• Displays "Right click to see hotkeys" when no image is loaded, using GDI text rendering.

Security and Privacy

• No network activity or telemetry, ensuring complete data privacy and suitability for air-gapped systems. Ideal for forensic, archival, or secure photography workflows.
• Compact codebase (~700 lines) facilitates manual audits and reduces vulnerability risks.
• Relies exclusively on hardened Windows APIs and WIC, avoiding third-party library dependencies.
• Strict memory management mitigates buffer overflows and leaks, validated with static analysis tools.
• Opens files with shared access (FILE_SHARE_READ | FILE_SHARE_WRITE) to prevent lock-based exploits.
• Saves via temporary files to ensure atomic writes, minimizing data loss risks.
• Deletes to Recycle Bin with user confirmation, preventing accidental permanent data loss.
• Operates without persistent system changes (i.e. registry), leaving no forensic footprint beyond the executable.

Comparison with Alternatives Executable Size: ~0.36 KB. (Windows Photos: ~50 MB; IrfanView: ~3 MB; XnView: ~5 MB). Telemetry: None(Windows Photos: Yes; IrfanView: optional; XnView: optional). Open-Source: Yes (Windows Photos: No; IrfanView: no; XnView: no). Footprint (RAM): <10 MB (Windows Photos: ~100 MB; IrfanView ~20 MB; XnView: ~30 MB).

Controls:

Open: Ctrl+O Navigate: Left/Right arrows Zoom: Ctrl +/-, mouse wheel; Ctrl+0 or double-click to fit. Rotate: Up/Down arrows Save: Ctrl+S Delete: Delete Full-Screen: F11 Move/Resize: Drag window or edges Exit: Esc