xkbprint

xkbprint [options] [filename]

-help
    Displays usage information and exits.

-version
    Prints the version number of the xkbprint utility and exits.

-o <file>
    Specifies the output file where the keymap representation will be written. If this option is omitted, the output is directed to standard output (stdout).

-color
    Enables colorized output, which can significantly improve readability and differentiate various components of the keymap description.

-level <level>
    Sets the detail level for the output. The <level> typically ranges from 0 (for a very brief summary) to 10 (for maximum detail, including internal XKB structures). A higher level provides more comprehensive information.

-format <format>
    Specifies the output format. Common formats include text (the default) and html. Not all installations may support all formats.

-raw
    Prints the raw XKB components as they are defined, without much interpretation or user-friendly formatting. This is useful for detailed debugging.

-brief
    Prints a concise summary of the keymap, focusing on essential information and omitting verbose details. This is equivalent to using -level 0.

-layout <layout>
    Selects a specific keyboard layout to print from the server's configuration, particularly useful when multiple layouts are defined.

<filename>
    An optional argument specifying the path to an XKB keymap definition file (e.g., a .xkb file) to be processed. If no <filename> is provided, xkbprint reads the current XKB configuration directly from the X server.

xkbprint is a utility designed to generate a human-readable, textual representation of an XKB (X Keyboard Extension) keymap. It can read a keymap description either from a specified file or directly from the current X server's active configuration. The output provides a detailed view of the keyboard layout, including symbol mappings, modifier definitions, and other XKB components. This tool is invaluable for debugging complex XKB configurations, documenting current keyboard setups, or simply understanding how a particular keymap is structured. It essentially serves as the inverse of xkbcomp, allowing users to inspect the compiled XKB configuration in a structured format. Users can control the level of detail and output format to suit their specific needs.

xkbprint may not be installed by default on all Linux distributions, typically requiring the installation of the xorg-xkb-utils or similar package.
The output can be extremely verbose, especially at higher detail levels, which might be overwhelming for casual inspection.
It reflects the compiled XKB map, not necessarily the exact runtime state if temporary key remappings were made by other utilities like xmodmap without recompiling the XKB map.

Here are a few common ways to use xkbprint:

To print a brief summary of the current XKB keymap from the active X server:
xkbprint -brief

To get a highly detailed and colorized output of an XKB definition file, saving it to a specific file:
xkbprint -level 10 -color -o my_keyboard_layout.txt /usr/share/X11/xkb/symbols/us

To print the raw XKB components of the current server configuration:
xkbprint -raw

xkbprint is an integral part of the X Keyboard Extension (XKB) utilities, developed to support the advanced keyboard configuration capabilities of the X Window System. XKB was introduced to overcome the limitations of older keyboard mapping tools like xmodmap, providing a more robust and flexible framework for handling diverse keyboard layouts and behaviors. As XKB configurations grew in complexity, tools like xkbprint became essential for developers and users to inspect, debug, and understand the intricate details of their keyboard setups. Its development has paralleled the evolution of X.Org Server and its input handling mechanisms.

xkbcomp(1), setxkbmap(1), xmodmap(1)