Living with Linux windows

Linux app windows are drawn by mslgd, MSL's own display server, as real Mac windows. This is the most experimental part of MSL — here's what to expect.

Each app is its own Mac app#

• Its own Dock tile, with its own icon.
• Its own name in the menu bar when it's in front.
• Its own place in Mission Control and ⌘-Tab.

That works because each Linux app runs in its own small helper process on your Mac: macOS gives exactly one Dock tile per process.

Input#

Keyboard, clicking, dragging, the scroll wheel and trackpad scrolling, and middle-click all reach the app.

Closing#

Clicking a window's close button asks the app to close that window, the same as its own close button would on Linux — so an app with unsaved work gets its chance to ask "Save changes?".

Copy and paste#

While apps are open#

An instance with a Linux app open stays awake — it isn't suspended for being idle while an app is running.

When the Mac shuts down#

Things that affect windows#

• The Graphics gate on the Sandbox tab stops new windows opening; open ones keep drawing.
• The Keyboard & mouse gate stops input reaching them; they keep drawing.