gtk-query-immodules-3.0

gtk-query-immodules-3.0 [OPTION...] [DIRECTORY...]

--update-cache
    Update or generate the immodules.cache file in standard locations

-h, --help
    Display help and exit

-V, --version
    Output version information and exit

DIRECTORY...
    Directories to scan (defaults to standard GTK module paths)

The gtk-query-immodules-3.0 command scans directories for GTK+ 3.0 input method modules (IM modules), which enable support for international text input in GTK applications, such as IBus, Fcitx, or SCIM. It outputs module information in a plain-text format suitable for building the immodules.cache file.

Without arguments, it scans default directories like /usr/lib/gtk-3.0/3.0.0/immodules. Specifying directories overrides defaults. This cache accelerates module loading at runtime, avoiding slow directory scans.

The --update-cache option generates or updates the system-wide cache file (e.g., /usr/lib/gtk-3.0/3.0.0/immodules.cache), essential after installing new IM modules. Run as root or with sudo for system caches; user-specific caches go in ~/.local/share/gtk-3.0.

Primarily used by package managers post-installation, but useful for developers testing IM support. Output includes module name, library path, and backend details (e.g., 'gtk-immodule-cache: "ibus" "libgtk3-immodule-ibus.so"').

Requires root privileges for system-wide --update-cache; cache paths vary by distro (e.g., /usr/lib/x86_64-linux-gnu/gtk-3.0/3.0.0/). Run after IM module installs to avoid input issues.

gtk-query-immodules-3.0 --update-cache
sudo gtk-query-immodules-3.0 /usr/lib/gtk-3.0/3.0.0/immodules

System: /usr/lib/gtk-3.0/3.0.0/immodules.cache
User: ~/.local/share/gtk-3.0/immodules.cache

Introduced in GTK+ 2.10 for dynamic IM module querying; gtk-query-immodules-3.0 specific to GTK 3.0 (2011), maintained by GNOME project for cross-desktop input support.

gtk-update-icon-cache(1), gdk-pixbuf-query-loaders(1), gtk-encode-symbolic-svg(1)