watch-xfce-xfconf - Automate XFCE Configuration!

Introduction

The watch-xfce-xfconf command-line tool allows displaying and watching the xfconf-query commands of all the XFCE 4 Xfconf settings that are being changed by XFCE programs like xfce4-settings-manager, thunar, catfish, ristretto, among others. The xfconf-query commands displayed by watch-xfce-xfconf allow modifying and creating XFCE 4 Xfconf settings, such as the desktop background, panel preferences, window decorations, window manager settings, and more.

By displaying the xfconf-query commands, watch-xfce-xfconf allows to easily create a Shell script that can be used to automate the configuration of XFCE 4, which provides several benefits:

It saves time and effort by eliminating the need to manually adjust settings on each individual machine,
It reduces the risk of errors and inconsistencies that may arise from manually configuring settings on different machines,
Finally, it allows focusing on other important tasks rather than spending time configuring XFCE 4 manually.

The watch-xfce-xfconf tool is particularly useful for users who want to replicate XFCE 4 settings across different users or computers.

Installation

The watch-xfce-xfconf command-line tool can be installed locally, in ~/.local/bin/watch-xfce-xfconf, using pip:

pip install --user watch-xfce-xfconf

Usage

Run xfce4-settings-manager in the background:

xfce4-settings-manager &

After that, execute watch-xfce-xfconf:

~/.local/bin/watch-xfce-xfconf

Once you begin modifying XFCE 4 settings using xfce4-settings-manager, watch-xfce-xfconf will automatically display the corresponding xfconf-query commands in the terminal. These xfconf-query commands can be easily copied and pasted into a Shell script, allowing for quick and efficient automation of XFCE 4 configuration across multiple machines.

Author and License

The watch-xfce-xfconf tool has been written by James Cherti and is distributed under terms of the MIT license.

Features

Parses XML files that are located in the directory: ~/.config/xfce4/xfconf/xfce-perchannel-xml/,
Monitors changes in XFCE 4 settings / Xfconf,
Displays xfconf-query commands with correctly escaped special characters in their arguments.
Reloads Xfconf when it is necessary.