Apple keyboard layout breaks when combining altwin:swap_alt_win with lv3:*_switch

[joaopmpinheiro]

Apple keyboard layout breaks when combining altwin:swap_alt_win with lv3:*_switch

Environment

• Omarchy (Hyprland)
• kb_layout = pt, kb_variant = mac, kb_model = apple

Expected behavior

Right Option key should act as pure AltGr (Mod5 / ISO_Level3_Shift) to type brackets, @, #, etc. — matching real macOS keyboard behavior:

ALT - SUPER - SPACE - SUPER - ALT GR

Actual behavior

Combining altwin:swap_alt_win,lv3:ralt_switch (or lv3:rwin_switch) in kb_options causes the right Option key to emit both Mod1 (Alt) and Mod5 (Level3) simultaneously. Confirmed via wev:

key: ... keycode: 134, state: 1 (pressed)
sym: ISO_Level3_Shift (65027), utf8: ''
modifiers:
  depressed: 00000088: Mod1 Mod5

Because xkb_options are additive rather than a clean override, altwin:swap_alt_win already claims that keycode for Alt_R/Mod1, and the lv3:*_switch option just layers Mod5 on top instead of replacing it. This double-modifier state causes AltGr combos to misfire — either triggering unrelated app shortcuts (e.g. browser Alt-accelerators) or firing unrelated Hyprland keybinds (e.g. a clipboard/paste bind) instead of producing the intended character.

Workaround

Define a custom xkb symbols file that explicitly remaps all 4 modifier keycodes in one pass, instead of stacking altwin:swap_alt_win + lv3:*_switch:

1. Create /usr/share/X11/xkb/symbols/macmods:

partial modifier_keys
xkb_symbols "applealtgr" {
    key <LALT> { [ Super_L ] };
    key <LWIN> { [ Alt_L ] };
    key <RALT> { [ Super_R ] };
    key <RWIN> { [ ISO_Level3_Shift ] };
    modifier_map Mod4 { <LALT>, <RALT> };
    modifier_map Mod1 { <LWIN> };
    modifier_map Mod5 { <RWIN> };
};

2. Register it in /usr/share/X11/xkb/rules/evdev, alongside the existing lv3:* option lines:

  macmods:applealtgr	=	+macmods(applealtgr)

3. In Hyprland's input.conf:

input {
  kb_layout  = pt
  kb_variant = mac
  kb_model   = apple
  kb_options = macmods:applealtgr
  ...
}

4. hyprctl reload (or full logout/login to be safe).

After this, wev confirms the right Option key produces Mod5 only (no leftover Mod1), and AltGr combos (brackets, @, #, etc.) work correctly in both native Wayland and XWayland apps.

Suggestion

It would be great if Omarchy shipped a built-in preset (e.g. kb_options = macmods:applealtgr, or equivalent bundled xkb rule) for people using real Apple keyboards or mac-layout emulation, since the altwin:swap_alt_win + lv3:*_switch combination is likely to silently break AltGr for anyone using kb_model=apple alongside a non-US layout that relies on AltGr for common characters (brackets, @, #, etc.).