i3wm Installition

Table of Contents

⚙️ i3wm Installation Guide for Ubuntu
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In this guide, we will walk you through installing and customizing the i3 Window Manager (i3wm) on Ubuntu. i3wm is a lightweight, flexible, and minimalist window manager, ideal for those who want performance without sacrificing efficiency.

1. Installing Required Packages
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To install i3wm on Ubuntu, open the terminal and run the following commands to update your system and install the necessary packages:

sudo apt update && sudo apt upgrade -y
sudo apt install i3 i3status i3lock dmenu feh lxappearance -y

Explanation of each package:

i3: The core window manager.
i3status: Displays system status on the status bar.
i3lock: Locks the screen.
dmenu: A simple application launcher.
feh: Image viewer and wallpaper setter.
lxappearance: Tool for managing GTK themes and icons.

2. Initial Setup of i3wm
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After installation, when you launch i3wm for the first time, it will ask if you want to create a configuration file. Approve the prompt to generate the default configuration.

The config file is usually located at:

~/.config/i3/config

Edit it using any text editor:

nano ~/.config/i3/config

3. Customization
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3.1. Keyboard Shortcuts
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You can modify or add new keyboard shortcuts. For example:

# Launch application
set $mod Mod4
bindsym $mod+d exec dmenu_run

# Open terminal
bindsym $mod+Return exec alacritty

# Lock screen
bindsym $mod+Shift+e exec i3lock

# Restart i3
bindsym $mod+Shift+r restart

3.2. Wallpaper Setup
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You can set a desktop wallpaper using feh. Run this command in the terminal:

feh --bg-scale /path/to/your/image.jpg

To make it persistent across restarts, add the following line to your config:

exec --no-startup-id feh --bg-scale /path/to/your/image.jpg

3.3. Status Bar (i3status)
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To configure the status bar, edit the i3status config file:

sudo nano /etc/i3status.conf

Example:

general {
        interval = 5
}

order += "disk /"
order += "cpu_usage"
order += "load"
order += "tztime local"

cpu_usage {
        format = "CPU: %usage%%"
}

tztime local {
        format = "%Y-%m-%d %H:%M:%S"
}

4. Additional Tools and Packages
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4.1. Application Menu: `rofi`
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rofi is a more visual and powerful alternative to dmenu:

sudo apt install rofi -y

Then, replace dmenu in your config:

bindsym $mod+d exec rofi -show drun

4.2. Terminal Emulator: `alacritty`
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To use a modern and faster terminal instead of the default one:

sudo apt install alacritty -y

And in your config:

bindsym $mod+Return exec alacritty

4.3. Volume Control: `pavucontrol`
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For easier audio control, install:

sudo apt install pavucontrol -y

Add the following keybindings to your config to control volume:

bindsym XF86AudioRaiseVolume exec "pactl set-sink-volume @DEFAULT_SINK@ +5%"
bindsym XF86AudioLowerVolume exec "pactl set-sink-volume @DEFAULT_SINK@ -5%"
bindsym XF86AudioMute exec "pactl set-sink-mute @DEFAULT_SINK@ toggle"

4.4. Network Manager: `nm-applet`
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For network management with GUI support:

sudo apt install network-manager-gnome -y

Add to your i3 config:

exec --no-startup-id nm-applet

5. Autostart Services
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To launch programs automatically at login, add them to the config file. Example:

exec --no-startup-id compton --config ~/.config/compton.conf
exec --no-startup-id pavucontrol
exec --no-startup-id xrandr --output HDMI-1 --primary --mode 1920x1080 --rate 60

6. Troubleshooting
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i3wm Not Starting: Make sure you’ve selected the i3 session from the login screen (LightDM or GDM).
Configuration Errors: i3wm will display an error message if something’s wrong with the config. Check ~/.config/i3/config.
Missing Applications: Ensure all required packages are installed.