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Arch Linux

You may set up Arch Linux with sway, Hyprland and nwg-shell from scratch by installing from the nwg-iso.

Or you can just do everything the old way, by following the steps below.

NOTE: this guide does not cover all the Arch Linux installation and post-installation steps. That's why we have the Arch Wiki.

Install Arch Linux

1. Download Arch Linux ISO, boot from it.
2. Run guided installation with archinstall.
3. Select profile -> Minimal.
4. Select audio -> pipewire or pulseaudio.
5. Additional packages -> install wget.
6. Configure network -> Use NetworkManager.
7. Reboot & and login as the user you created.
8. Run the installer script. It will perform further installation steps for you. It will also ask whether to install Hyprland.

NOTE: This script overwrites hyprland.conf in ~/.config/hypr/. Use cp ~/.config/hypr/hyprland.conf ~/.config/hypr/hyprland.conf.bac to make a quick backup if you already have a hyprland config.

wget https://raw.github.com/nwg-piotr/nwg-shell/main/install/arch.sh && chmod u+x arch.sh && ./arch.sh && rm arch.sh

9. Reboot. Type sway (or Hyprland, if you installed Hyprland support) at the command prompt. You should see the nwg-shell settings window now:

10. Check the settings, e.g. your location, keyboard layout, applications. Don't forget to press the "Apply" button, or your text editor, file manager and web browser key bindings won't work.

NOTE: To speed up updates, you may want to install go and python-wheel (build dependencies) on your system.

NOTE: You may use whatever AUR helper you like, but the Arch update tray notifier relies on baph by Nate Maia. Baph is cool, anyway.

Fedora

Installation steps & script by @kuba3351.

Nwg-shell in Fedora is fully packaged in the Copr repository: https://copr.fedorainfracloud.org/coprs/tofik/nwg-shell/

Copr is not official repository, it is similar to AUR in Arch Linux. So, before installing nwg-shell in Fedora, the Copr repo must be enabled in the system. Then, the nwg-shell package should be installed, and then, the nwg-shell-installer -a should be executed to install necesary configuration files. We provide an automated instalation scripts that will do everything automatically for you.

Fedora will soon introduce an Sway Spin: https://fedoraproject.org/wiki/Changes/Fedora_Sway_Spin.

So, it is recommend to install the Sway Spin if you plan to install nwg-shell. But installing Sway and nwg-shell on another Fedora Spin should also work, but was not tested.

Fedora Sway Spin is not yet released but install images of Rawhide (development version of Fedora 38) are available, and install scripts was tested on it.

• Live ISO images (select Sway version): https://dl.fedoraproject.org/pub/fedora/linux/development/rawhide/Spins/x86_64/iso
• Fedora Sericea (Sway Spin based on ostree): https://dl.fedoraproject.org/pub/fedora/linux/development/rawhide/Sericea/x86_64/iso/

Install on Fedora

1. Boot Live installer linked above
2. Press Win+d or Win+Enter and type liveinst
3. Follow on screen instructions to install the system
4. After installation do a reboot
5. After first login, execute the installer script and follow instructions to select default apps

wget https://raw.github.com/nwg-piotr/nwg-shell/main/install/fedora.sh && chmod u+x fedora.sh && ./fedora.sh && rm fedora.sh

6. Reboot the system

Install on Fedora Sericea (ostree variant)

1. Boot the installer linked above
2. Follow on screen instructions to install the system
3. After installation do a reboot
4. After first login, execute the installer script and follow instructions to select default apps

wget https://raw.github.com/nwg-piotr/nwg-shell/main/install/fedora-ostree.sh && chmod u+x fedora-ostree.sh && ./fedora-ostree.sh && rm fedora-ostree.sh

5. Reboot the system

Gentoo

nwg-shell and its subprojects are available in Gentoo's user repository GURU.

1. Add the GURU to the systems package repositories with sudo eselect repository enable guru
2. Update the local package index sudo emerge --sync guru
3. Install sway or hyprland with sudo emerge -a gui-wm/sway / sudo emerge -a gui-wm/hyprland
4. If nwg should be installed for hyprland, set the hyprland USE-flag for the package gui-apps/nwg. Then install the meta package gui-apps/nwg with sudo emerge -a gui-apps/nwg. This will pull in all the dependencies of nwg-shell like nwg-panel, nwg-drawer... But be aware the nwg project has more to offer which is not a hard dependency of nwg-shell but can be installed additionally.
5. Run the nwg installer nwg-shell-installer -a to update the configs in the users repository
6. Reboot the system

Note that gui-apps/nwg can only be installed for sway or hyprland. However, if it is installed for hyprland, it just pulls in gui-apps/nwg-dock-hyprland instead of gui-apps/nwg-dock. If nwg-shell should be used with both, sway and hyprland, do not set the hyprland USE-flag for gui-apps/nwg and install gui-apps/nwg-dock-hyprlandmanually usingsudo emerge -a gui-apps/nwg-dock-hyprland`.

Further information on how to setup sway or hyprland on Gentoo is available in the respective pages in the Gentoo wiki.

Slackware

Slackware 15.0 (x86, x86_64)

1. Download the nwg-shell scripts manually or use a TUI tool such as sbopkg or sboui to auto-install deps from SBo.
2. After building and install, ensure your user account is added to the video group, and run xdg-user-dirs-update.
3. As root run /usr/sbin/pipewire-enable.sh.
4. Afterwards, run the nwg-installer script to setup your environment, nwg-shell-installer -a.
5. Execute sway to load nwg-shell.

Slackware64-current (x86_64-development)

1. Download & install slackpkg+ to add custom repositories to the distro.
2. Edit /etc/slackpkg/slackpkgplus.conf adding this information to the configuration file: MIRRORPLUS['nwg-shell']=https://slackware.lngn.net/pub/x86_64/slackware64-current/nwg-shell/ also ensure you add nwg-shell to the PKGS_PRIORITY and REPOPLUS fields.
3. Run slackpkg update && slackpkg install nwg-shell as root. This will install binary packages (you will not have to build anything).
4. Then follow Steps 2-5 for Slackware 15.0 above.

Work in progress by mac-a-r0ni.

Venom

1. Nwg-shell is packaged in main repo.
2. Also sway and Hyprland.
3. By default nwg-shell have sway as part of it's meta-package.
4. Installation: run scratch install nwg-shell .
5. Initial configuration : run nwg-shell-installer -a.
6. Session: run dbus-run-session sway.
7. Configure your desktop: run nwg-config-sway.

Adding Hyprland support to your pre-0.5.x installation

As the updater in its current state does not support optional updates, you need to do it manually.

1. Install hyprland and wlr-randr;
2. Run nwg-shell-installer -r -hypr to add missing Hyprland presets.

Installing / restoring default presets

From scratch

Run nwg-shell-installer -a [-hypr] to overwrite all default presets w/ default files (use -hypr argument to include Hyprland presets).

Selectively

Remove preset files you want to restore manually, then run nwg-shell-installer -r [-hypr].