watch-xfce-xfconf - Automate XFCE Configuration!

Introduction

The command-line tool watch-xfce-xfconf, written by James Cherti, 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 watch-xfce-xfconf command-line tool is especially useful for users who want to replicate XFCE 4 settings on several computers.

What is xfconf-query?

The xfconf-query command-line tool allows retrieving, modifying, and creating XFCE 4 Xfconf settings, such as the desktop background, panel preferences, window decorations, window manager settings, and more.

How can xfconf-query commands help automate the configuration of XFCE 4?

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.

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.

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,
• Supports the following Xfconf types: uint, int, string, bool, array, double.

Links

• watch-xfce-xfconf @PyPI
• watch-xfce-xfconf @GitHub
• General information about Xfconf