dunst

Start dunst

$ dunst

$ dunst -startup_notification

$ dunst -print

$ dunst [[-conf|-config]] [path/to/file]

dunst [-c FILE] [-confdir DIR] [-h] [-L LEVEL] [-P FILE] [-q] [-reload] [-v] ...

-c FILE, --config FILE
    Path to configuration file

-confdir DIR
    Directory for config files (default: ~/.config/dunst)

-h, --help
    Show help and exit

-L LEVEL, --loglevel LEVEL
    Log level: 1=debug, 2=info, 3=warn, 4=error

-list-monitors
    List available monitors

-P FILE, --pidfile FILE
    Write PID to file

-print-history
    Print notification history and exit

-q, --quiet
    Suppress stdout notification prints

-reload
    Reload configuration file

-v, -V, --version
    Print version info

-a
    Direct mode: notification action invoked

-t TIMEOUT
    Direct mode: timeout in ms (0=never)

-u URGENCY
    Direct mode: low/normal/critical

-i ICON
    Direct mode: icon path

-h HEIGHT
    Direct mode: notification height

Dunst is a highly configurable notification daemon for Linux X11 desktops, implementing the FreeDesktop Notifications Specification. Popular in tiling window managers like i3 and bspwm, it provides stacked notifications with thumbnails, mouse interactions, and history browsing.

Key features include per-urgency styling (low, normal, critical), customizable timeouts, icons, categories, and scripting hooks. Notifications are sent via D-Bus using tools like notify-send(1). Dunst supports frame decorations, separators, padding, and monitor-specific geometry.

The daemon runs in the background, reloading config on signal. Configuration via ~/.config/dunst/dunstrc allows theme-like rules based on app, urgency, or regex. Lightweight with minimal dependencies (Pango, libX11, dbus), it's ideal for minimal setups. Use dunstctl for runtime control like closing notifications or toggling pause.

Direct invocation displays single notifications for testing.

Primarily for X11; Wayland via XWayland only (experimental). Requires running WM. No native multi-monitor icon scaling in older versions.

Edit ~/.config/dunst/dunstrc: [global], [urgency_low/normal/critical], [frame], rules= for app/script matching.

SIGHUP: reload config; SIGUSR2: show history; SIGTERM: quit.

Companion tool: dunstctl close [id], history, info, reload, toggle-pause.

Developed by Knopwob starting 2013 as dwm/i3-focused rewrite of xfce4-notifyd. Forked from early notify-osd ports. Actively maintained on GitHub (devdd/dunst), v1.10+ adds Wayland tweaks, JSON history export.

notify-send(1), dunstctl(1), pango(1), dbus(1)