gnome-extensions-cli 0.9.0

Command line tool to manage your Gnome Shell extensions

gnome-extensions-cli

Install, update and manage your Gnome Shell extensions from your terminal

Features

• You can install any extension available on Gnome website
• Use DBus to communicate with Gnome Shell like the Firefox addon does
  • Also support non-DBus installations if needed
• Automatically select the compatible version to install for your Gnome Shell
• Automatic Gnome Shell restart if needed
• Update all your extensions with one command: gnome-extensions-cli update
• You can also uninstall, enable or disable extensions and open preferences

Install

Install from PyPI

$ pip3 install -u gnome-extensions-cli

Install latest version from the repository

$ pip3 install -u git+https://github.com/essembeh/gnome-extensions-cli

Or setup a development environment

# dependencies to install PyGObject with pip
$ sudo apt install libgirepository1.0-dev gcc libcairo2-dev pkg-config python3-dev gir1.2-gtk-3.0

# clone the repository
$ git clone https://github.com/essembeh/gnome-extensions-cli
$ cd gnome-extensions-cli

# create the venv using poetry
$ poetry install
$ poetry shell
(venv) $ gnome-extensions-cli --help

Using

List your extensions

By default, the list command only display the enabled extensions, using -a|--all argument also displays disabled ones.

Show some details about extensions

The show command fetch details from Gnome website and print them.s.

Install, uninstall and update

# Install extension by its UUID
$ gnome-extensions-cli install [e-mail]

# or use its package number from https://extensions.gnome.org
$ gnome-extensions-cli install 1160

# You can also install multiple extensions at once
$ gnome-extensions-cli install 1160 [e-mail]

# Uninstall extensions
$ gnome-extensions-cli uninstall [e-mail]

# You can enable and disable extensions
$ gnome-extensions-cli enable [e-mail]
$ gnome-extensions-cli disable [e-mail] [e-mail]

The update command without arguments updates all enabled extensions. You can also update a specific extension by giving its uuid.

Note: the --install argument allow you to install extensions given to update command if they are not installed.

Backends: DBus vs Filesystem

gnome-extensions-cli can interact with Gnome Shell using two different implementations, using dbus or using a filesystem operations:

Note: By default, it uses dbus (as it is the official way), but switches to filesystem if dbus is not available)

DBus backend

Using --dbus, the application uses dbus messages to communicate with Gnome Shell directly.

Pros:

• You are using the exact same way to install extensions as the Firefox addon
• Automatically restart the Gnome Shell when needed
• Very stable
• You can open the extension preference dialog with gnome-extensions-cli edit EXTENSION_UUID

Cons:

• Installations are interactive, you are prompted with a Gnome Yes/No dialog before installing the extensions, so you need to have a running Gnome session

Filesystem backend

Using --filesystem, the application uses unzip packages from Gnome website directly in you ~/.local/share/gnome-shell/extensions/ folder, enable/disable them and restarting the Gnome Shell using subprocesses.

Pros:

• You can install extensions without any Gnome session running (usign ssh for example)
• Many gnome-extensions-cli alternatives use this method ... but

Cons:

• Some extensions are not installed well