A simple bash script to enable Windows-like toggle show desktop behavior in GNOME using wmctrl

toggle-desktop-gnome.md

GNOME Toggle Show Desktop Script

A simple script to enable Windows-like "toggle show desktop" behavior in GNOME.

Prerequisites

Install wmctrl:

# Debian/Ubuntu
sudo apt install wmctrl

# Fedora
sudo dnf install wmctrl

# Arch
sudo pacman -S wmctrl

Installation

1. Create the script directory and file:

mkdir -p ~/.local/bin
nano ~/.local/bin/toggle-desktop.sh

2. Copy the script content:

#!/bin/bash
if [ -f /tmp/desktop-shown ]; then
    wmctrl -k off
    rm /tmp/desktop-shown
else
    wmctrl -k on
    touch /tmp/desktop-shown
fi

3. Make it executable:

chmod +x ~/.local/bin/toggle-desktop.sh

Setting Up the Keyboard Shortcut

1. Open Settings → Keyboard
2. Scroll down and click "View and Customize Shortcuts" → "Custom Shortcuts"
3. Click the "+" button
4. Configure:
   • Name: Toggle Show Desktop
   • Command: /home/yourusername/.local/bin/toggle-desktop.sh (replace yourusername with your actual username)
   • Shortcut: Press Super + D (or your preferred combination)

Usage

Press Super + D (or what you chose) to minimize all windows and show desktop. Press it again to restore all windows.

How It Works

The script uses wmctrl to show/hide the desktop and maintains state using a temporary flag file (/tmp/desktop-shown) to track whether windows are currently minimized.