Omarchy Skill

Manage Omarchy Linux systems - a beautiful, fun, agentic Arch Linux distribution with Hyprland.

This skill is for end-user customization on installed systems. It is not for contributing to Omarchy source code.

When This Skill MUST Be Used

ALWAYS invoke this skill for end-user requests involving ANY of these:

Editing ANY file in
```
~/.config/hypr/
```
(window rules, animations, keybindings, monitors, etc.)
Editing
```
~/.config/omarchy/shell.json
```
(status bar layout, widgets)
Editing terminal configs (alacritty, foot, kitty, ghostty)
Editing ANY file in
```
~/.config/omarchy/
```
Window behavior, animations, opacity, blur, gaps, borders
Layer rules, workspace settings, display/monitor configuration
Themes, backgrounds, fonts, appearance changes

User-facing

omarchy

commands (

omarchy theme ...

omarchy refresh ...

omarchy restart ...

, etc.)

Screenshots, screen recording, reminders, night light, idle behavior, lock screen

If you're about to edit a config file in ~/.config/ on this system, STOP and use this skill first.

Do NOT use this skill for Omarchy development tasks (editing the Omarchy source tree, creating migrations, or running

omarchy dev ...

workflows).

Topic Guides

Deeper instructions for common areas live next to this file. Read the matching guide before starting:

```
hyprland.md
```
- keybindings, monitors, window rules, and other Hyprland config
```
plugins.md
```
- the Omarchy shell: bar layout, widgets, plugins, idle behavior
```
theming.md
```
- themes, backgrounds, and fonts
```
hooks.md
```
- automation hooks that run on system events
```
capture.md
```
- screenshots, screen recordings, OCR text capture, and file sharing
```
contributing.md
```
- reporting Omarchy bugs and submitting fixes upstream

Critical Safety Rules

For privileged commands, follow the Privilege Escalation rules below:

sudo

when a terminal is available for the password prompt,

pkexec

when it is not. Do not wrap commands that already manage privilege elevation themselves.

For end-user customization tasks, NEVER modify anything in
/usr/share/omarchy/
- but READING is safe and encouraged.

This directory is owned by the omarchy package. Any local changes will be overwritten on the next

omarchy update

/usr/share/omarchy/     # READ-ONLY - NEVER EDIT (reading is OK)
├── bin/                    # Command source (packaged binaries are on PATH)
├── config/                 # Default config templates
├── themes/                 # Stock themes
├── default/                # System defaults
├── shell/                  # Omarchy shell source and defaults
├── migrations/             # Update migrations
└── install/                # Installation scripts

Reading
/usr/share/omarchy/
is SAFE and useful - do it freely to:

Understand how omarchy commands work:

omarchy theme set --help

cat $(which omarchy-theme-set)

See default configs before customizing:

cat "$OMARCHY_PATH/config/omarchy/shell.json"

Check stock theme files to copy for customization
Reference default hyprland settings:
```
cat /usr/share/omarchy/default/hypr/*
```

Always use these safe locations instead:

```
~/.config/
```
- User configuration (safe to edit)
```
~/.config/omarchy/themes/<custom-name>/
```
- Custom themes
```
~/.config/omarchy/hooks/
```
- Custom automation hooks

If the request is to develop Omarchy itself, this skill is out of scope. Follow repository development instructions instead of this skill.

Privilege Escalation

For an interactive script or command run in a visible terminal, use

sudo

for privileged work. Omarchy may grant passwordless

sudo

access to particular commands, and the terminal is the appropriate place to request a password when one is needed.

Use

pkexec

only when the caller cannot interact with a terminal or cannot enter a password there, such as a command launched by an agent or a graphical background process. Do not replace

sudo

with

pkexec

merely because a command changes system state.

System Architecture

Omarchy is built on:

Component	Purpose	Config Location
Arch Linux	Base OS	`/etc/` , `~/.config/`
Hyprland	Wayland compositor/WM	`~/.config/hypr/`
Omarchy shell	Status bar + notifications (Quickshell)	`~/.config/omarchy/shell.json`
Launcher/menus	Quickshell menu	`~/.config/omarchy/extensions/omarchy-menu.jsonc`
Alacritty/Foot/Kitty/Ghostty	Terminals	`~/.config/<terminal>/`
Omarchy OSD	On-screen display	Quickshell plugin

Command Discovery

Omarchy ships a single

omarchy

CLI that dispatches to all

omarchy-*

binaries via

omarchy <group> <action>

. Always prefer this form — it is self-documenting and stable. The underlying

omarchy-*

binaries still exist on

PATH

and remain safe to read for source.

bash

# List every documented command and its summary (--all includes hidden commands)
omarchy commands

# Show the commands inside a group
omarchy theme --help
omarchy refresh --help
omarchy restart --help

# Show help for a specific command (does not execute it)
omarchy theme set --help

# Machine-readable listing (binary, route, summary, args, aliases)
omarchy commands --json

# Read a command's source to understand it
cat $(which omarchy-theme-set)

Command Groups

Run

omarchy --help

for the full list. The most common groups:

Group	Purpose	Example
`omarchy refresh`	Reset config to defaults (backs up first)	`omarchy refresh shell`
`omarchy restart`	Restart a service/app	`omarchy restart shell`
`omarchy toggle`	Toggle feature on/off	`omarchy toggle nightlight`
`omarchy theme`	Theme management	`omarchy theme set <name>`
`omarchy bar`	Bar layout and widgets	`omarchy bar move omarchy.clock --section right`
`omarchy plugin`	Manage/clone shell plugins	`omarchy plugin clone omarchy.clock`
`omarchy hook`	Install automation hooks	`omarchy hook install theme-set <script>`
`omarchy install`	Install optional software / packages	`omarchy install docker dbs`
`omarchy launch`	Launch apps	`omarchy launch browser`
`omarchy capture`	Screenshots and recordings	`omarchy capture screenshot`
`omarchy reminder`	Desktop notification reminders	`omarchy reminder 15 "Pickup Jack"`
`omarchy pkg`	Package management	`omarchy pkg add <pkg>`
`omarchy setup`	Interactive setup wizards	`omarchy setup security fingerprint`
`omarchy update`	System updates	`omarchy update`

Configuration Locations

Hyprland config lives in

~/.config/hypr/

— see

hyprland.md

. The Omarchy shell (bar, notifications, plugins, idle) is configured in

~/.config/omarchy/shell.json

— see

plugins.md

Terminals

~/.config/alacritty/alacritty.toml
~/.config/foot/foot.ini
~/.config/kitty/kitty.conf
~/.config/ghostty/config

Command:

omarchy restart terminal

Other Configs

App	Location
btop	`~/.config/btop/btop.conf`
fastfetch	`/etc/fastfetch/config.jsonc` default; `~/.config/fastfetch/config.jsonc` user override
lazygit	`~/.config/lazygit/config.yml`
starship	`~/.config/starship.toml`
git	`~/.config/git/config`

Safe Customization Patterns

Edit User Config Directly

For simple changes, edit files in

~/.config/

bash

# 1. Read current config
cat ~/.config/hypr/bindings.lua

# 2. Backup before changes
cp ~/.config/hypr/bindings.lua ~/.config/hypr/bindings.lua.bak.$(date +%s)

# 3. Make changes with Edit tool

# 4. Apply changes
# - Hyprland: auto-reloads on save, but MUST validate with `hyprctl reload` and `hyprctl configerrors`
# - Omarchy shell: shell.json and user plugin code under ~/.config/omarchy/plugins/ hot-reload on save
# - Menus/launcher: ~/.config/omarchy/extensions/omarchy-menu.jsonc hot-reloads on save
# - Terminals: apply with `omarchy restart terminal` (reloads running terminals; foot picks changes up in new windows)

Reset to Defaults -- ALWAYS SEEK USER CONFIRMATION BEFORE RUNNING

When customizations go wrong:

bash

# Reset specific config (creates backup automatically)
omarchy refresh shell
omarchy refresh hyprland

# The refresh command:
# 1. Backs up current config with timestamp
# 2. Copies default from $OMARCHY_PATH/config/
# 3. Restarts the component where the refresh needs it (e.g. `refresh shell`)

System Commands

bash

omarchy update                  # Full system update
omarchy version                 # Show Omarchy version
omarchy debug --no-sudo --print # Debug info (ALWAYS use these flags)
omarchy system lock             # Lock screen
omarchy system shutdown         # Shutdown
omarchy system reboot           # Reboot

IMPORTANT: Always run

omarchy debug

with

--no-sudo --print

flags to avoid interactive sudo prompts that will hang the terminal.

Troubleshooting

bash

# Get debug information (ALWAYS use these flags to avoid interactive prompts)
omarchy debug --no-sudo --print

# Reset specific config to defaults
omarchy refresh <app>

# Refresh specific config file
# config-file path is relative to ~/.config/
# eg. `omarchy refresh config hypr/hyprland.lua` will refresh ~/.config/hypr/hyprland.lua
omarchy refresh config <config-file>

# Full reinstall of configs (nuclear option)
omarchy reinstall

Decision Framework

When user requests system changes:

Is it a stock omarchy command? Use it directly
Is it a config edit? Edit in
```
~/.config/
```
, never
```
/usr/share/omarchy/
```
Is it a theme customization? Follow
```
theming.md
```
; create a NEW custom theme directory
Is it automation? Follow
```
hooks.md
```
; use
```
omarchy hook install
```
and the hook
```
.d
```
directories

Is it a package install? Use

omarchy pkg add <pkgs...>

(or

omarchy pkg aur add <pkgs...>

for AUR-only packages)

Is it built-in shell/plugin code? Follow
```
plugins.md
```
; clone it with
```
omarchy plugin clone
```
, never edit the packaged copy
Unsure if command exists? Run
```
omarchy commands
```
(or
```
omarchy <group> --help
```
for one group)

Reminder Requests

When the user asks to set a reminder, use

omarchy reminder <minutes> [message]

directly. Convert natural language durations to minutes and title-case short reminder labels when appropriate.

bash

omarchy reminder 15 "Pickup Jack"
omarchy reminder 60 "Check laundry"
omarchy reminder show
omarchy reminder clear

Out of Scope

This skill intentionally does not cover Omarchy source development. Do not use this skill for:

Editing files in

/usr/share/omarchy/

(

bin/

config/

default/

shell/

themes/

migrations/

, etc.)

Creating or editing migrations
Running
```
omarchy dev ...
```
commands

Example Requests

"Change my theme to catppuccin" ->
```
omarchy theme set catppuccin
```
"Add a keybinding for Super+E to open file manager" -> Check existing bindings first, then use
```
o.rebind
```
to replace one or
```
o.bind
```
to add one in
```
~/.config/hypr/bindings.lua
```
"Configure my external monitor" -> Edit
```
~/.config/hypr/monitors.lua
```
"Make the window gaps smaller" -> Edit
```
~/.config/hypr/looknfeel.lua
```

"Turn on night light" ->

omarchy toggle nightlight

(for time-based schedules, edit

~/.config/hypr/hyprsunset.conf

profiles, then

omarchy restart hyprsunset

)

"Set a reminder to pickup jack in 15 minutes" ->
```
omarchy reminder 15 "Pickup Jack"
```
"Show my reminders" ->
```
omarchy reminder show
```
"Clear all reminders" ->
```
omarchy reminder clear
```
"Customize the catppuccin theme colors" -> Overlay: put an edited
```
colors.toml
```
in
```
~/.config/omarchy/themes/catppuccin/
```
, then re-apply the theme (see
```
theming.md
```
)
"Run a script every time I change themes" -> Install it with
```
omarchy hook install theme-set <script>
```
"Change how workspace labels are rendered" -> Clone
```
omarchy.workspaces
```
, which switches the bar to
```
<username>.workspaces
```
, then edit the clone

"Lock after ten minutes" -> Set

idle.lock

~/.config/omarchy/shell.json

"Reset shell/bar to defaults" ->
```
omarchy refresh shell
```

"Record my screen" ->

omarchy screenrecord --fullscreen

, then

omarchy screenrecord --stop-recording

(see

capture.md

)

"Report this bug to Omarchy" -> Gather diagnostics and a capture of the problem, then file it (see
```
contributing.md
```
)

omarchy

NPX Install

Tags

SKILL.md Content

Omarchy Skill

When This Skill MUST Be Used

Topic Guides

Critical Safety Rules

Privilege Escalation

System Architecture

Command Discovery

Command Groups

Configuration Locations

Terminals

Other Configs

Safe Customization Patterns

Edit User Config Directly

Reset to Defaults -- ALWAYS SEEK USER CONFIRMATION BEFORE RUNNING

System Commands

Troubleshooting

Decision Framework

Reminder Requests

Out of Scope

Example Requests