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Enlightenment
Enlightenment is an eye-candy, compositing and stacking window manager that is released under the permissive BSD License. It was first released in 1997 by Carsten Haitzler (Rasterman) and this original release was dubbed Enlightenment DR16 (or E16 for short). In 2012 a new version of Enlightenment was released, which was called Enlightenment DR17 (or E17). Since then many further major releases of Enlightenment have been made: E18, E19, E20, E21 and E22. E20, E21 and E22 are all presently in the Portage Tree.
There has been some confusion over Enlightenment versions. E16, despite being an older release of Enlightenment, has its releases numbered 1.x, while the later releases of Enlightenment (E17-E22) all have decimal release numbers. E17 is numbered 0.17.x, E18 is numbered 0.18.x, E19 is numbered 0.19.x while E20 is numbered 0.20.x and so on. Consequently, it is advised that users are careful as to which version of Enlightenment they are installing. While the version numbers reflect actual versions of the upstream tar archives, they can be confusing.
Installation
USE flags
USE flags for x11-wm/enlightenment Enlightenment window manager
acpi
|
Add support for Advanced Configuration and Power Interface |
bluetooth
|
Enable Bluetooth Support |
connman
|
Add support for net-misc/connman |
doc
|
Add extra documentation (API, Javadoc, etc). It is recommended to enable per package instead of globally |
exif
|
Add support for reading EXIF headers from JPEG and TIFF images |
geolocation
|
Enable physical position determination |
nls
|
Add Native Language Support (using gettext - GNU locale utilities) |
pam
|
Add support for PAM (Pluggable Authentication Modules) - DANGEROUS to arbitrarily flip |
policykit
|
Enable PolicyKit (polkit) authentication support |
systemd
|
Enable use of systemd-specific libraries and features like socket activation or session tracking |
udisks
|
Enable storage management support (automounting, volume monitoring, etc) |
wayland
|
Enable dev-libs/wayland backend |
xwayland
|
Enable XWayland application support |
All wayland-related modules should be either disabled or enabled, depending on your wayland USE flag status.
For a working Enlightenment installation, USE flags with EFL are important.
USE flags for dev-libs/efl Enlightenment Foundation Libraries all-in-one package
+X
|
Add support for X11 |
+eet
|
Enable Eet image loader |
+fontconfig
|
Support for configuring and customizing font access via media-libs/fontconfig |
+gstreamer
|
Add support for media-libs/gstreamer (Streaming media) |
+pdf
|
Add general support for PDF (Portable Document Format), this replaces the pdflib and cpdflib flags |
+sound
|
Enable sound support |
+svg
|
Add support for SVG (Scalable Vector Graphics) |
+system-lz4
|
Use system liblz4 instead of bundled one |
avif
|
Add AV1 Image Format (AVIF) support |
bmp
|
Enable WBMP image loader |
connman
|
Add support for net-misc/connman |
dds
|
Enable DDS image loader |
debug
|
Enable extra debug codepaths, like asserts and extra output. If you want to get meaningful backtraces see https://wiki.gentoo.org/wiki/Project:Quality_Assurance/Backtraces |
doc
|
Add extra documentation (API, Javadoc, etc). It is recommended to enable per package instead of globally |
drm
|
Enable DRM engine |
efl-one
|
Combine multiple core libraries into one libefl.so |
elogind
|
Enable session tracking via sys-auth/elogind |
examples
|
Install examples, usually source code |
fbcon
|
Add framebuffer support for the console, via the kernel |
fribidi
|
Enable bidirectional text support |
gif
|
Add GIF image support |
glib
|
Enable dev-libs/glib support |
harfbuzz
|
Enable complex text shaping and layout support |
heif
|
Enable support for ISO/IEC 23008-12:2017 HEIF/HEIC image format |
hyphen
|
Enable text hyphenation support |
ibus
|
Enable Intelligent Input Bus |
ico
|
Enable Ico image loader |
jpeg2k
|
Support for JPEG 2000, a wavelet-based image compression format |
jpegxl
|
Add JPEG XL image support |
json
|
Enable lottie animation support |
mono
|
Enable mono bindings |
nls
|
Add Native Language Support (using gettext - GNU locale utilities) |
opengl
|
Add support for OpenGL (3D graphics) |
physics
|
Enable Bullet physics effects and support |
pmaps
|
Enable PMAPS image loader |
postscript
|
Enable support for the PostScript language (often with ghostscript-gpl or libspectre) |
psd
|
Enable PSD image loader |
pulseaudio
|
Add sound server support via media-libs/libpulse (may be PulseAudio or PipeWire) |
raw
|
Add support for raw image formats |
scim
|
Enable Smart Common Input Method |
sdl
|
Add support for Simple Direct Layer (media library) |
systemd
|
Enable use of systemd-specific libraries and features like socket activation or session tracking |
tga
|
Enable Tga image loader |
tgv
|
Enable Tgv image loader |
tiff
|
Add support for the TIFF image format |
tslib
|
Enable x11-libs/tslib for touchscreen events |
unwind
|
Enable debug support via sys-libs/libunwind |
v4l
|
Enable support for video4linux (using linux-headers or userspace libv4l libraries) |
vnc
|
Enable VNC (remote desktop viewer) support |
wayland
|
Enable dev-libs/wayland backend |
webp
|
Add support for the WebP image format |
xcf
|
Enable XCF image loader |
xim
|
Enable X Input Method |
xpm
|
Add support for XPM graphics format |
xpresent
|
Enable x11-libs/libXpresent support |
zeroconf
|
Support for DNS Service Discovery (DNS-SD) |
Latest Enlightenment
For installing the latest Enlightenment WM and the needed libraries, just issue the following command:
root #emerge --ask enlightenmentFor SVG support e.g. for previews or menu entries, you can additionally install dev-libs/efl with the svg USE flag enabled.
Addition to /etc/portage/package.use (unless you already have the svg USE flag globally enabled) and install the package:
root #euse -p dev-libs/efl -E svgroot #emerge --ask eflEnabling at least these USE flags for efl is recommended when running Enlightenment: X bmp drm eet fontconfig gif gstreamer harfbuzz ico jpeg2k opengl pulseaudio sound svg system-lz4 systemd
Stable Enlightenment
Because upstream only provides support for the latest Enlightenment, Gentoo will try to follow upstream's release cycles closely. If you prefer older releases of Enlightenment WM, you might have to set up a local overlay to store ebuilds for x11-wm/enlightenment and dev-libs/efl. You can find all the older ebuilds by utilizing Git history.
On stable systems, to get the latest stable version, type
root #emerge --ask enlightenmentYou can utilize /etc/portage/package.mask to block incoming updates.
Enlightenment live ebuilds
The process is a little different because it's recommended to always rebuild all of the components using their current state in Git. Make sure you have installed Layman or Eselect/Repository. Now you can add the enlightenment-live overlay.
root #layman -a enlightenment-liveor
root #eselect repository enable enlightenment-liveMake sure to install all core enlightenment packages using live ebuilds. You can update using the exact same command to ensure that all core packages are updated.
root #emerge --ask --autounmask-write @enlightenment-core-9999The overlay contains masked package even for latest stable enlightenment releases.
Be aware that they are currently masked for ~amd64, so you need to unmask them.
root #emerge --ask --autounmask-write efl enlightenmentThe ebuilds are currently tested for X and not for Wayland. Further investigation and feedback is needed for Enlightenment with Wayland and Systemd
The ebuilds for the latest stable packages may be moved to the official repository once tested and stable.
If anything goes wrong, file a ticket on GitHub or contact User:Rafspiny. Those are live ebuilds and therefore they can occasionally need updating. I'm also considering starting a separate overlay just for Enlightenment, let me know if that would help you.
Enlightenment e16
Old Enlightenment-e16 is still maintained. It was removed from Gentoo's portage tree because it caused a lot of confusion and made later Enlightenment releases harder to handle due to wrongly slotted packages. You can install e16 from e16-overlay. Please report any issues you find with e16 to the maintainer of that overlay via Github issues.
Update this section when the overlay gets added to public layman / eselect-repository list.
Configuration
Enlightenment
Enlightenment's configuration is all handled through the settings editor from within enlightenment. You can access some "under-the-hood" config options with
user $elementary_configAnd there's also a command line tool called vieet which especially useful in emergency. In many cases, if your Enlightenment's configuration gets broken, moving ~/.e and ~/.elementary to a temporary place, then re-starting Enlightenment usually helps.
Launching enlightenment with startx
~/.xinitrcexec dbus-launch --exit-with-session enlightenment_start
Tips and tricks
Adding Gadgets to desktop
Open up menu and navigate to "Desktop -> Add Gadgets".
Disabling desktop application icons
The option to disable application icons in desktop is a bit hidden. Open Settings Panel then go to "Files" tab, navigate to "File Manager -> Display" and uncheck "Icons On Desktop".
Using 'bryce' instead of old-fashioned panel
With recent versions, users can opt to use experimental new "bryce" instead of old panel. Open desktop menu menu and navigate to "Desktop -> Add Bryce". Bryces are experimental in Enlightenment's versions below 0.23.
Wayland session
At the time of writing (19 Aug 2018) Enlightenment with Wayland session is not considered stable for everyday use.
Easiest way to start a wayland session is to use a wayland-compliant login manager, like GDM or SDDM. Wayland session can be started from TTY also, by exporting
user $ECORE_EVAS_ENGINE=wayland_egl ELM_DISPLAY=wl ELM_ACCEL=gl enlightenment_startwhere ECORE_EVAS_ENGINE is set to wayland_egl or wayland_shm depending on whether you wish to use the SHM based software rendering or EGL.
When using software rendering, also export ELM_ACCEL=none.
EFL-based applications
EFL and python-efl offer developers everything needed to develop eye-candy applications that integrate into Enlightenment WM. Here are few of them,
- Edi An EFL-based IDE
- Ephoto Enlightenment image viewer written with EFL
- Econnman ConnMan User Interface for Enlightenment
- Evisum System and process monitor written with EFL
- enlightenment-extra An app for downloading themes and add-ons to Enlightenment WM
- terminology Feature rich terminal emulator
- e-gtk-theme A GTK theme to match Enlightenment WM's default theme
Anyone can add software they use via the proxy-maint project. Please do so. A short list of external applications. And some python-efl applications.
Troubleshooting
Applications requiring system tray not working properly
Older applications still using xembed systray instead of appindicator may not work properly (Dropbox for example). Solution is to install a stand-alone system tray program, such as stalonetray.
Black window contents
If you get windows with completely black contents (most likely with the nvidia proprietary driver and Enlightenment 0.20.5 or 0.20.6), follow these steps:
- log out from Xorg.
- set E_COMP_ENGINE=sw, for example in .xinitrc:
~/.xinitrcexport E_COMP_ENGINE=sw exec dbus-launch --exit-with-session enlightenment_start
Alternatively, you can set the variable in /etc/environment.
- start X.
- Go to Settings->Composite->Advanced->Rendering and disable "Texture from pixmap".
- Then you can remove "export E_COMP_ENGINE=sw" from .xinitrc and log out/in to get accelerated rendering again.
For more information see this bug report.
"build error: undefined symbol: _EFL_GFX_PATH_CHANGED"
An unfortunate build error that's caused by existing libraries. There is usually a more detailed error, like: "/usr/lib64/libector.so.1: undefined symbol: _EFL_GFX_PATH_CHANGED". In this case, remove any existing installation of dev-libs/efl and the offending library.
It's wise to log out from Enlightenment before removing efl. Removing efl while using Enlightenment might cause Enlightenment to act weirdly and in the worst case lock up. If that happens, you won't see if the build fails. Log in to TTY or some other WM/DE while re-installing efl.
root #emerge -C --nodeps dev-libs/eflroot #rm /usr/lib64/libector.so.1root #emerge --ask dev-libs/eflSee more in #651890.
Debugging
If you've tried to move your config files away and Enlightenment still doesn't work, you can debug the problem by typing
user $enlightenment_start 2>&1 | tee logthing.txtand reading the log file. It is useful when making a bug report to bugs.gentoo.org or upstream's Phabricator. If the log file doesn't imply clear errors, you might have to install and run it it with debugging tools like gdb, strace or valgrind.
user $E_START=1 strace enlightenment_start 2>&1 | tee logthing.txt"No opengl engines found" with nvidia-drivers
With latest releases of mesa and xorg-1.20, efl can look for libGL.so from a wrong place. This results in Enlightenment's gl-engine not using opengl backend. This can be fixed with patchelf utility.
Identify where your libGL.so is installed, usually /usr/lib/opengl/nvidia/lib/libGL.so. Then use patchelf to modify efl's gl engine,
user $patchelf --set-rpath /usr/lib/opengl/nvidia/lib/ /usr/lib64/evas/modules/engines/gl_x11/v-1.20/module.soAnd relog. Paths depend on your architechture. This needs to be done once, or everytime efl is re-installed.
Screenshots
- Error creating thumbnail: File missing
- Error creating thumbnail: File missing
- Error creating thumbnail: File missing
- Error creating thumbnail: File missing
- Error creating thumbnail: File missing
- Error creating thumbnail: File missing