List and switch to open Niri windows from the launcher

Niri Windows Plugin for DMS Launcher

A launcher plugin that lists all open windows in the Niri window manager and allows quick switching between them.

Example: Type ! to list all open windows with their workspace locations

Grid Mode

List Mode

Features

• Window Listing: Displays all open windows from the Niri window manager
• Smart Search: Filter windows by application name, window title, or workspace
• Quick Switching: Click or press Enter to instantly switch to any window
• Workspace Info: Shows which workspace each window is on
• Smart Sorting: Focused windows appear first, then sorted by workspace
• Default Trigger: Uses ! as the default trigger prefix (configurable)
• Desktop Integration: Automatically fetches application icons from desktop entries

Installation

Via DMS

dms plugins install NiriWindows

Via DMS GUI

• Mod + ,
• Go to Plugins Tab
• Choose Browse
• Enable third party
• install NiriWindows

Manually

cd ~/.config/DankMaterialShell/plugins
git clone https://github.com/rochacbruno/DankNiriWindows NiriWindows

1. Open DMS Settings (Ctrl+,)
2. Navigate to Plugins tab
3. Click "Scan for Plugins"
4. Enable the "NiriWindow" plugin with the toggle switch

Requirements

• Niri Window Manager: This plugin only works when DMS is running on Niri WM
• DMS Version: Requires DMS version > 0.1.18

Usage

With Default Settings (! Trigger)

1. Open the launcher (Ctrl+Space)
2. Type ! followed by a search term: !firefox
3. All matching windows appear in the launcher
4. Press Enter to switch to the selected window

Searching for Windows

• By application: !firefox - Shows all Firefox windows
• By title: !document - Shows windows with "document" in the title
• By workspace: !Workspace 2 - Shows windows on Workspace 2
• All windows: ! - Shows all open windows

Customizing the Trigger

You can configure a different trigger prefix or disable it entirely in the settings:

1. Open Settings → Plugins → Niri Windows
2. Change the trigger to a custom value (e.g., win, @, w)
3. Or check "No trigger (always active)" to remove the prefix requirement
4. In the launcher, type your configured trigger: win firefox or just firefox (if no trigger)

Adding a keybinding (niri)

binds {
      Alt+Tab hotkey-overlay-title="Switch Windows" {
        spawn "dms" "ipc" "call" "spotlight" "openQuery" "!";
    }
}

Window Information Display

Each window item shows:

• Name: Window title (or application name if no title)
• Icon: Application icon from desktop entry
• Comment: Application ID and workspace location

Example:

Window Title
org.mozilla.firefox • Workspace 1

Sorting Behavior

Windows are sorted in the following order:

1. Currently focused window (appears first)
2. Workspace index (lower workspace numbers first)
3. Window name (alphabetically)

How It Works

The plugin integrates with DMS's NiriService to:

1. Monitor all open windows via Niri's event stream
2. Track window properties (app_id, title, workspace, focus state)
3. Use NiriService.focusWindow(windowId) to switch windows
4. Update the list in real-time when windows open/close

Configuration

Settings are stored in ~/.config/DankMaterialShell/plugin_settings.json under the niriWindows plugin key:

{
  "pluginSettings": {
    "niriWindows": {
      "trigger": "!",
      "noTrigger": false
    }
  }
}

Troubleshooting

No windows appear:

• Make sure you're running DMS on Niri window manager
• Check that the plugin is enabled in Settings → Plugins
• Verify you have open windows

Plugin doesn't work:

• This plugin only works on Niri WM, not Hyprland or other compositors
• Make sure DMS version is > 0.1.18

Wrong icons showing:

• Icons are fetched from desktop entries using heuristic lookup
• Some applications may not have proper desktop entries

Files

• plugin.json - Plugin manifest and metadata
• NiriWindowsLauncher.qml - Main launcher component
• NiriWindowsSettings.qml - Settings UI
• README.md - This documentation file
• screenshot.png - Plugin screenshot

Version

1.0.0

Author

DMS Team

License

Same as DankMaterialShell