dunstctl

Pause/Unpause/Toggle desktop notifications

$ dunstctl set-paused [true|false|toggle]

$ dunstctl close-all

$ dunstctl history-clear

$ dunstctl history-pop

$ dunstctl reload

$ dunstctl [[-h|--help]]

dunstctl [COMMAND] [ARG …]

close [ID]
    Close specific notification by ID or all if no ID given.

close-all
    Close all visible notifications.

context-info
    Print current context information (geometry, monitor, etc.).

debug-logging [BOOL]
    Enable/disable debug logging (true|false).

emergency-mode [BOOL]
    Toggle emergency mode for grayscale notifications.

help [COMMAND]
    Show general or subcommand help.

history [COUNT]
    Print recent notifications from history (default 5).

history-pop [COUNT]
    Remove COUNT most recent from history (default 1).

is-paused
    Print if notifications are paused (true/false).

reload
    Reload Dunst configuration file.

set-paused [BOOL]
    Pause/unpause notifications (true|false).

update
    Update internal caches (geometry, etc.).

version
    Print dunstctl version.

wait-for-hyper
    Block until Hyper modifier key is pressed.

--help, -h
    Show help and exit.

--version
    Show version and exit.

Dunstctl is the command-line tool for managing the Dunst notification daemon, a lightweight, customizable notifier for Linux desktops, especially suited for tiling window managers like i3 or sway. Dunst handles notifications via the Desktop Notifications specification over D-Bus, rendering them in a customizable stack with support for urgency levels, timeouts, history, and scripting hooks.

Dunstctl allows runtime control without restarting Dunst. Key features include closing notifications by ID or all at once, pausing/unpausing to suppress alerts temporarily, viewing and popping from notification history, reloading config files for live changes, and toggling modes like emergency (grayscale notifications) or debug logging. It queries Dunst's state via D-Bus, providing output like JSON for scripting or plain text for humans.

Ideal for power users, it integrates into keybindings (e.g., close-all on a hotkey) or status bars. Supports both X11 and Wayland (experimental). Always check dunst(1) for daemon setup. Usage assumes a running Dunst instance; errors occur otherwise.

dunstctl close-all
dunstctl set-paused toggle
dunstctl history 10
dunstctl reload

dunst(1), notify-send(1), dbus-send(1)