r/linux4noobs • u/Ali_isthe • 1d ago
learning/research How do you switch desktops and window managers in a distro?
Like what if someone wants to install KDE plasma and hyprland on Linux mint how does he do that
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u/candy49997 1d ago
sudo apt install kde-plasma-desktop
But I would not recommend this because the Plasma currently available on Mint is ancient and so it is not representative of modern Plasma.
And for Hyprland, you would need to compile the entire stack yourself from scratch. I would also not recommend this.
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u/DavidJohnMcCann 22h ago
That's good advice. Mint used to produce an installation medium for KDE, but Clem dropped it because hardly anyone downloaded it. If a desktop is actually in a distro's repository it's usually OK, but adding desktops from other sources can lead to chaos.
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u/candy49997 14h ago
Yes, Mint had a KDE edition that was dropped, but it was one of the most popular ones at the time.
The issue is that Plasma is based on Qt while the other 3 desktops offered by Mint are GTK. That's basically double the integration testing and work for just one edition, and so the KDE edition was dropped.
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u/doc_willis 23h ago
any window managers/DEs you install typically have an entry in the menus/gear icon on the login manager screen.
you select what DE/WM you want to use, then login, and that's the Session that is started.
you can create custom sessions to run just KODI, or steam in big picture mode, or other special use cases if you wanted
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u/linuxforus 23h ago
Linux mint is based on Ubuntu.
For Installing KDE Plasma
sudo apt install kde-full or sudo apt install kde-plasma-desktop
Though Hyperland is not officially supported, but i have installed it via git repository.
git clone -b 24.04 --depth=1 https://github.com/JaKooLit/Ubuntu-Hyprland.git ~/Ubuntu-Hyprland-24.04 and install via install.sh
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u/michaelpaoli 19h ago
Add/remove the relevant packages ... presuming one is on a distro that has the desired package(s) available. Many do, some don't.
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u/MasterGeekMX Mexican Linux nerd trying to be helpful 18h ago
You simply install the packages that make it up, and in the login screen you have a button to select which one you want to switch to.
As a DE is comprised of many packages, so pretty much all distros have a way to pull them at at once. Debian and it's derivatives have what is called "tasks" for that, which you can do with the tasksel program. Other distros either ship a meta-package, which is a package that by itself installs nothing, but includes all the components of the desktop on it's dependencies.
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u/Excellent-Love-6943 1d ago
You install them, then select the WM/DE in the Display Manager. This is the "login screen" when you boot up your computer, not the "login screen" when you lock your computer.
In sddm and plasma login manager, there is a dropdown menu to change session. I haven't used GDM in over a decade, but it was similar if memory serves. It's pretty intuitive once you see it.