Layout Templates - MorgenWM

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Layout Templates

Layout templates let you define a frame layout, including which programs to spawn into each frame, in a TOML file, then apply it with a single command or keybinding. They're useful for setting up a development workspace, a monitoring dashboard, or any repeatable multi-window arrangement.

Where templates live

Template files go in:

~/.config/morgenwm/templates/<name>.toml

setup.sh installs the example templates from example/templates/ into this directory. You can create your own or edit the examples.

Template format

A template is a flat list of [[frame]] entries. Each frame has an id and is either a leaf (holds windows) or a split (contains two child frames). Splits reference their children by left and right id.

Field	Type	Applies to	Description
id	string	all	Unique identifier for this frame
parent	string	all	Parent split id; empty for the root
type	string	all	"leaf" or "split"
direction	string	splits	"horizontal" (left-right) or "vertical" (top-bottom)
ratio	float	splits	First child's share, 0.0–1.0 (default 0.5)
left	string	splits	Id of the left/top child
right	string	splits	Id of the right/bottom child
command	string	leaves	Shell command(s) to spawn into this frame. Use \| to put multiple windows in the same frame
requires_filepath	bool	template	If true, prompt for a working directory via fuzzel before creating the layout. The path is available as $MOGENWM_TEMPLATE_DIR in commands

Example

┌─────────────────────┐
│                     │
│  editor (foot) │  70%
│                     │
├──────────┬──────────┤
│ terminal │ browser  │  30%
│ (htop)   │ (firefox)│
└──────────┴──────────┘

# ~/.config/morgenwm/templates/dev-layout.toml

[[frame]]
id = "root"
type = "split"
direction = "vertical"
ratio = 0.7
left = "editor"
right = "bottom"

[[frame]]
id = "editor"
type = "leaf"
command = "foot"

[[frame]]
id = "bottom"
type = "split"
direction = "horizontal"
ratio = 0.5
left = "terminal"
right = "browser"

[[frame]]
id = "terminal"
type = "leaf"
command = "foot -e htop"

[[frame]]
id = "browser"
type = "leaf"
command = "firefox"

Applying templates

Via IPC (command line)

morgenwm_msg action apply-template dev-layout

Via keybinding

In config.toml:

[[keybindings]]
key = "t"
modifiers = ["Mod"]
action = "template:dev-layout"

How it works

When a template is applied:

1. If requires_filepath = true, fuzzel prompts for a working directory. The path is exported as $MOGENWM_TEMPLATE_DIR.
2. The frame tree is built from the template and replaces the current workspace's root frame.
3. Each leaf with a command is queued, the next window that opens is placed into that leaf instead of the focused frame. Multiple commands in one leaf (separated by |) all go into the same frame.
4. Commands are spawned sequentially (300ms apart, via sh -c) so windows arrive in the order the template lists them.

Leaves without a command stay empty, you can manually move windows into them later.

Notes

• Applying a template replaces the current frame layout entirely. Existing windows in the old layout are not carried over.
• Use requires_filepath = true and $MOGENWM_TEMPLATE_DIR when programs need a shared working directory. The fuzzel prompt appears once, before any windows are created.