Backdrop

Different walls for every display.

Backdrop is a multi-display wallpaper service for the Omarchy Quattro shell. It replaces Omarchy's stock background renderer while preserving the standard background IPC target and global wallpaper fallback.

Current features

• Manage every connected display from an Omarchy bar widget.
• Assign a different image to each connected display.
• Browse backgrounds from every installed stock and user theme.
• Pick custom image files outside the Omarchy theme library.
• Assign solid colors using presets, custom hex values, or an on-screen color picker.
• Use any of the 382 uiGradients presets with a custom angle.
• Remember displays by manufacturer, model, and serial number when available.
• Fall back to the connector name and Omarchy's current global background.
• React to monitor hotplug through Quickshell.screens.

Install

omarchy plugin add https://github.com/lgse/backdrop.git --enable

Plugins run as unsandboxed code inside omarchy-shell. Review third-party plugin code before enabling it.

Use

Click the Backdrop icon in the Omarchy bar. Its panel lists every connected display with five actions:

• Themes browses backgrounds from all installed Omarchy themes.
• File opens an isolated native GTK file picker with filesystem navigation and image previews.
• Solid color offers presets, custom hex colors, and a screen picker powered by hyprpicker.
• Gradient provides an in-panel, scrollable gallery of all 382 uiGradients, common angle presets, and a custom-angle fallback.
• Reset returns that display to Omarchy's global background.

Assignments are stored in:

~/.config/omarchy/backdrop/assignments.json

The plugin never modifies files under /usr/share/omarchy.

IPC

Backdrop retains Omarchy's background IPC target and adds these methods:

omarchy-shell -q background setForScreen DP-3 /path/to/wallpaper.png
omarchy-shell -q background setColorForScreen DP-4 '#111318'
omarchy-shell -q background clearForScreen DP-3
omarchy-shell -q background assignments

A serial-backed key shown by assignments is preferred over a connector such as DP-3 because connector names may change.

Compatibility behavior

• omarchy theme bg set changes the fallback used by displays without an explicit assignment.
• Theme changes preserve explicit per-display assignments.
• The lock screen continues to use Omarchy's global current background.
• Disabling or removing Backdrop restores the stock omarchy.background service.

Roadmap

• A spatial display-map editor.
• Group wallpaper results by theme.
• Optional hyprmoncfg profile and hotplug integration.
• Profile-specific wallpaper sets.
• Animated background transitions.

Development

Requirements: Node.js and an installed Omarchy system for QML integration testing.

npm test
omarchy plugin validate .

License

MIT. Gradient names and colors are sourced from the MIT-licensed uiGradients project; see third-party notices.