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Adding I3Lock to Config File

Chloe Bennett • • 2 min read
Adding I3Lock to Config File

I want to created a shortcut for locking my screen. Normally I lock my screen by typing the following in the terminal

i3lock -c 000000

I try adding to my config file by doing following but nothing works

  1. copy copy /etc/i3/config to ~/.i3/config
  2. $ vim .i3/config
  3. scroll down and add following line to file: bindsym Mod1+l i3lock -c 000000. I also tried variants such as bindsym Mod1+l exec i3lock -c 000000 and bindsym Mod1+l exec "i3lock -c 000000"
  4. Save file
  5. Reload i3 with Mod1+Shift+R
  6. Try login out with shortcut Mod1+l but it doesn't work. In fact Mod1+l simply change focus of my window to another window.
1

1 Answer

It turns out in addition to having the ~/.i3/config file, I also had a ~/.config/i3/config file. So even though I was editing ~/.i3/config, the system was not seeing my changes. So I went ahead and deleted ~/.config/i3/config. Now it works fine.

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Chloe Bennett
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Chloe Bennett

Chloe Bennett explores the intersection of pop culture, streaming entertainment, digital trends, and contemporary lifestyle. Her weekly commentary reaches thousands of culture enthusiasts.