this concerns all of KDE, not just one program, so I'll just leave this here...

as the title says, it is possible to use commands to configure KDE.
I want to make a shell (or actually, bash) script that will make a computer to my liking by installing the software I want, and remove the software I don't.

but now I actually also want it to configure KDE(4.4) for me at the same time.

the idea is like this:
install my software.
remove unused software.
update the system.
configure KDE.
reboot the computer (so that all changes will take effect)


but I have no idea how I can configure KDE from the command line.
if that is possible in the first place.

so for example, I can use the cp command to copy a wallpaper image to /usr/share/wallpapers/
but can I also give a command to also apply that wallpaper I just copied?

and if I can configure KDE from the command line, what can I configure and how can I do so?

With the right set of parameters given to "kwriteconfig" it is possible to change the behaviour of virtually any KDE application ( for the graphical interface layouts themselves, you will need to take copies of the required *ui.rc files from $KDEHOME/share/apps/<application>/ )

Make sure no KDE applications are running though when you do this, since many will flush their configuration state to disk when closing, overwriting your changes.

is there a refereance for which options can be configured with which parameter?
I mean it would be some work to make it but after that it saves work since I can just run the script.


also it there a way to read current setings, put them in a text file, and use that text file with kwriteconfig to use settings I get from a existing KDE desktop?
the idea is mainly for my laptop when it arrives and I want to use the settings I have already on my desktop.


as for making sure no kde apps are running, after I login and go to tty1.
sudo service kdm stop
should be enough right? I mean since I only just logged in I didn't start any other programs and ending the kdm process should quit all graphical applications as well.

Wouldn't it be easier to copy your ~/.kde (or ~/.kde4 etc.) with the settings your want? For example, you could ship a tar of you preferred settings with the script. In the script, you just have to
1. Move the current ~/.kde somewhere as a backup
2. Extract your tar to ~/.kde

Outside of Plasma Desktop, of course.

well yes and no.
it would be a simple way but I don't know which file saves which settings and there a some settings I don't want to copy.

Unfortunately, the only documentation, unless the application uses KConfigXT ( which may apps do ) is inside the code of the application itself.

Is there any command line way to force KDE to apply changes after using kwriteconfig? I am trying to change the titlebar color, and the changes do get written in, and go in effect after I restart KDE, but is there any way to do that without a restart?

Maybe you can ask KWin to reread its settings:

Code: Select all

qdbus org.kde.kwin /KWin reconfigure


But I'm not sure whether this helps.

Thanks JanGerrit! This works like a charm.

I would really like to know if this is possible as well!

-Stefan Freyr.

The answer is yes - you can configure KDE from the command line - however, whether applications will apply this change at runtime is another fact altogether (some may need to be restarted for the configuration change to apply).

It is recommended to use kwriteconfig when interacting with KDE configuration files to avoid corruption. Please note that minimal documentation on the values themselves is available (although the KConfigXT description files may be helpful if the application uses it).