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sysc-greet is a graphical console greeter for greetd, written in Go with the Bubble Tea framework.

sysc-greet preview

Features¶

Multiple Themes: Dracula, Gruvbox, Material, Nord, Tokyo Night, Catppuccin, Solarized, Monochrome, TransIsHardJob, Eldritch, RAMA, Dark (plus custom themes)
Background Effects: Fire (DOOM PSX), Matrix rain, ASCII rain, Fireworks, Aquarium
ASCII Effects: Typewriter, Print, Beams, and Pour effects for session text
Border Styles: Classic, Modern, Minimal, ASCII-1, ASCII-2, Wave, Pulse
Screensaver: Configurable idle timeout with ASCII art cycling
Video Wallpapers: Multi-monitor support via gSlapper
Security Features: Failed attempt counter with account lockout warnings, optional username caching

Installation¶

Quick Install Script¶

One-line install for most systems:

curl -fsSL https://raw.githubusercontent.com/Nomadcxx/sysc-greet/master/install.sh | sudo bash

Manual Build¶

The installer lets you choose your compositor and handles all configuration:

git clone https://github.com/Nomadcxx/sysc-greet
cd sysc-greet
go run ./cmd/installer/

Arch Linux (AUR)¶

sysc-greet provides four AUR packages for different greeter compositors:

# niri (default)
yay -S sysc-greet

# Cagebreak variant (the Hyprland replacement)
yay -S sysc-greet-cagebreak

# Sway variant
yay -S sysc-greet-sway

# Hyprland variant (deprecated, replaced by cagebreak)
yay -S sysc-greet-hyprland

The packages conflict with each other — install exactly one. sysc-greet-cagebreak pulls in cagebreak and socat from the AUR.

Pre-built Packages (.deb / .rpm)¶

Download from GitHub Releases:

Debian/Ubuntu:

wget https://github.com/Nomadcxx/sysc-greet/releases/download/v1.1.8/sysc-greet_1.1.8_amd64.deb
sudo apt install ./sysc-greet_1.1.8_amd64.deb

Fedora:

wget https://github.com/Nomadcxx/sysc-greet/releases/download/v1.1.8/sysc-greet-1.1.8-1.x86_64.rpm
sudo dnf install ./sysc-greet-1.1.8-1.x86_64.rpm

Package configs use conservative syntax for stable distro compatibility. For bleeding-edge compositor features, use the install script or AUR instead.

NixOS (Flake)¶

Add sysc-greet to your NixOS configuration using the flake:

flake.nix:

{
  inputs = {
    nixpkgs.url = "github:NixOS/nixpkgs/nixos-unstable";
    sysc-greet = {
      url = "github:Nomadcxx/sysc-greet";
      inputs.nixpkgs.follows = "nixpkgs";
    };
  };

  outputs = { self, nixpkgs, sysc-greet, ... }: {
    nixosConfigurations.your-hostname = nixpkgs.lib.nixosSystem {
      system = "x86_64-linux";
      modules = [
        ./configuration.nix
        sysc-greet.nixosModules.default
      ];
    };
  };
}

configuration.nix:

{
  services.sysc-greet = {
    enable = true;
    compositor = "niri";  # or "cagebreak", "sway", "hyprland" (deprecated)
  };

  # Optional: Set initial session for auto-login
  services.sysc-greet.settings.initial_session = {
    command = "Hyprland";
    user = "your-username";
  };
}

By default, the NixOS module does not install niri, cagebreak, hyprland, or sway. Install your chosen backend yourself, or set niriPackage, cagebreakPackage, hyprlandPackage, or swayPackage if you want the module to install and use a specific package. If your compositor is managed elsewhere, set compositorCommand to the exact command greetd should run.

Then rebuild your system:

sudo nixos-rebuild switch --flake .#your-hostname

Advanced: Manual Build from Source¶

Requirements: - Go 1.25+ - greetd - Wayland compositor: niri (default), cagebreak, sway, or hyprland (deprecated) - socat (cagebreak only — quits the compositor after login) - kitty (terminal) - gSlapper (wallpaper daemon) - swww (legacy wallpaper daemon, optional fallback)

Build and install:

git clone https://github.com/Nomadcxx/sysc-greet
cd sysc-greet
go build -o sysc-greet ./cmd/sysc-greet/
sudo install -Dm755 sysc-greet /usr/local/bin/sysc-greet

Install assets:

sudo mkdir -p /usr/share/sysc-greet/{ascii_configs,fonts,wallpapers}
sudo cp -r ascii_configs/* /usr/share/sysc-greet/ascii_configs/
sudo cp -r fonts/* /usr/share/sysc-greet/fonts/
sudo cp -r wallpapers/* /usr/share/sysc-greet/wallpapers/
sudo cp config/kitty-greeter.conf /etc/greetd/kitty.conf

Configure greetd (/etc/greetd/config.toml):

Choose your compositor and update the command below:

[terminal]
vt = 1

[default_session]
# Pick one:
command = "niri -c /etc/greetd/niri-greeter-config.kdl"
# command = "cagebreak -e -c /etc/greetd/cagebreak-greeter-config"
# command = "sway --unsupported-gpu -c /etc/greetd/sway-greeter-config"
# command = "start-hyprland -- -c /etc/greetd/hyprland-greeter-config.conf"
user = "greeter"

Create compositor config:

Copy the appropriate config file to /etc/greetd/:

# For niri:
sudo cp config/niri-greeter-config.kdl /etc/greetd/

# For cagebreak:
sudo cp config/cagebreak-greeter-config /etc/greetd/

# For sway:
sudo cp config/sway-greeter-config /etc/greetd/

# For hyprland (deprecated):
sudo cp config/hyprland-greeter-config.conf /etc/greetd/

Create greeter user:

sudo useradd -M -d /var/lib/greeter -G video,render,input -s /usr/bin/nologin greeter
sudo mkdir -p /var/cache/sysc-greet /var/lib/greeter/Pictures/wallpapers \
    /var/lib/greeter/.cache /var/lib/greeter/.config /var/lib/greeter/.local/state
sudo chown -R greeter:greeter /var/cache/sysc-greet /var/lib/greeter
sudo chmod 755 /var/lib/greeter

Enable service:

sudo systemctl enable greetd.service

Usage¶

Key Bindings¶

F1 - Settings menu (themes, borders, backgrounds)
F2 - Session selection
F3 - Release notes
F4 - Power menu (shutdown/reboot)
Page Up/Down - Cycle ASCII variants
Tab - Navigate fields
Enter - Submit/Continue
Esc - Cancel/Return to previous screen

Test Mode¶

Test the greeter without locking your session:

sysc-greet --test

# Test in fullscreen (recommended for accurate preview)
kitty --start-as=fullscreen sysc-greet --test

Additional Options¶

sysc-greet --theme dracula          # Start with specific theme
sysc-greet --screensaver            # Enable screensaver in test mode
sysc-greet --remember-username      # Cache username across sessions
sysc-greet --debug                  # Enable debug logging
sysc-greet --version                # Show version information

Configuration¶

sysc-greet stores user preferences in /var/cache/sysc-greet/. The following settings are cached:

Theme - Selected color theme
Background - Selected background effect or video wallpaper
Border Style - Selected border style
Session - Last selected session
Username - Last entered username (if --remember-username enabled)
ASCII Index - Last selected ASCII variant

Themes¶

sysc-greet includes multiple built-in themes:

Theme	Primary Color	Description
Dracula	#bd93f9	Dark purple-blue theme
Gruvbox	#fe8019	Warm dark theme
Material	#80cbc4	Material Design dark theme
Nord	#81a1c1	Arctic blue-toned dark theme
Tokyo Night	#7aa2f7	Modern dark theme
Catppuccin	#cba6f7	Soft pastel dark theme
Solarized	#268bd2	Solarized dark theme
Monochrome	#ffffff	Black and white minimal theme
TransIsHardJob	#5BCEFA	Transgender flag colors
Eldritch	#37f499	Purple and green theme
RAMA	#ef233c	RAMA keyboard aesthetics
Dark	#ffffff	True black and white minimal theme

Custom themes can be added via TOML files in /usr/share/sysc-greet/themes/ or ~/.config/sysc-greet/themes/. See Themes Configuration for details.

Background Effects¶

sysc-greet supports several background effects:

Fire - DOOM PSX fire effect
Matrix - Matrix rain effect
ASCII Rain - Falling ASCII characters
Fireworks - Firework explosions
Aquarium - Swimming fish animation

Wallpapers¶

sysc-greet supports two types of wallpapers:

Themed Wallpapers - Static images that match selected theme (stored in /usr/share/sysc-greet/wallpapers/)
Video Wallpapers - Video backgrounds managed by gSlapper (stored in /var/lib/greeter/Pictures/wallpapers/)

For detailed configuration, see Wallpapers Feature.

ASCII Art¶

Each session can have custom ASCII art with multiple variants. Press Page Up/Down at the greeter to cycle through variants.

ASCII art configurations are stored in /usr/share/sysc-greet/ascii_configs/. Each session has a .conf file containing:

name - Display name for the session
ascii_1, ascii_2, etc. - Multiple ASCII art variants
colors - Optional hex colors for rainbow effect
roasts - Custom roast messages separated by │ character

For more details, see ASCII Art Feature.

Screensaver¶

The screensaver activates after a configurable idle timeout and displays:

Current time and date
ASCII art cycling
Optional print animation effect

Screensaver configuration is in /usr/share/sysc-greet/ascii_configs/screensaver.conf.

Compositor Setup¶

sysc-greet runs its greeter session under niri (default), cagebreak, Sway, or Hyprland (deprecated — support ends in ~3 months, migrate to cagebreak). This only affects the boot greeter; your desktop session is unrelated. For detailed setup instructions, see:

Niri Setup — default
Cagebreak Setup — the Hyprland replacement
Sway Setup
Hyprland Setup — deprecated

Development¶

Building¶

make build

Testing¶

make test

Running in Test Mode¶

./sysc-greet --test --debug

For development details, see Development Guide.

Troubleshooting¶

Greeter won't start:

sudo systemctl status greetd
journalctl -u greetd -n 50

Check gSlapper status:

# Check if gSlapper is running
ps aux | grep gslapper

# View gSlapper debug log
cat /tmp/sysc-greet-wallpaper.log

Debug logging:

# Run with debug flag
sysc-greet --debug

# View debug log
cat /tmp/sysc-greet-debug.log

For more troubleshooting, see Troubleshooting Guide.

If you like ASCII animations, CLI and TUI terminal aesthetics check out these projects:

sysc-Go - Terminal animation library for Go
sysc-walls - Terminal-based screensaver for Wayland/X11
gSlapper - Video wallpaper manager for Wayland

Acknowledgments¶

tuigreet by apognu - Original inspiration and base
Bubble Tea by Charm - TUI framework
Lipgloss by Charm - Terminal styling
greetd by kennylevinsen - Login manager

License¶

GPL-3.0