Score:12

How can I tell if an application is using XWayland?

bd flag

I'm troubleshooting some issues to do with multiple monitors and HiDPI on Wayland. I've learnt from online resources that applications on XWayland may not handle this use-case as expected. So now I want to know which applications are using XWayland, and which aren't.

How can I tell if an application is using XWayland or not?

Score:18
my flag

xlsclients

Running xlsclients in a terminal will list all the apps currently running which are using XWayland.


Use xeyes!

enter image description here

xeyes - a follow the mouse X demo

When you launch xeyes, it connects to the XWayland server and asks for the mouse position. If the mouse is currently over a window of an app that uses XWayland, XWayland knows the mouse position and can report it back to xeyes via the X11 protocol. But if the mouse is over a native Wayland client, XWayland can't get that — so the eyes will remain still even if you move your mouse.


xwininfo

Run xwininfo in a terminal window — when you hover over an xwayland window the mouse pointer will turn into a + sign. If you click the window it'll display some information and end, but it won't do anything with native Wayland windows.You can use Ctrl + C to end it.

mw flag
When running OBS Studio 29.0.2, xeyes and xwininfo indicate it uses XWayland but xlsclients doesn't list it.
marcelm avatar
cn flag
Okay, I officially love that `xeyes` hack!
mangohost

Post an answer

Most people don’t grasp that asking a lot of questions unlocks learning and improves interpersonal bonding. In Alison’s studies, for example, though people could accurately recall how many questions had been asked in their conversations, they didn’t intuit the link between questions and liking. Across four studies, in which participants were engaged in conversations themselves or read transcripts of others’ conversations, people tended not to realize that question asking would influence—or had influenced—the level of amity between the conversationalists.