Keyboard Layout

Keyboard Layout

sysc-greet runs inside a compositor, so keyboard layout is set there.

niri

Edit /etc/greetd/niri-greeter-config.kdl:

input {
    keyboard {
        xkb {
            layout "de"
        }
    }
}

cagebreak

Cagebreak has no layout directive; it reads the standard XKB environment variables. Set them on the greetd command in /etc/greetd/config.toml:

command = "env XKB_DEFAULT_LAYOUT=de cagebreak -e -c /etc/greetd/cagebreak-greeter-config"

This also covers Kitty — processes launched by cagebreak inherit the environment, so no separate exec-line change is needed for non-US layouts or Dvorak (add XKB_DEFAULT_VARIANT=... to the same command).

sway

Edit /etc/greetd/sway-greeter-config:

input * {
    xkb_layout "de"
}

hyprland

Edit /etc/greetd/hyprland-greeter-config.conf:

input {
    kb_layout = de
}

Replace de with your layout (us, fr, es, uk, etc). Full list in /usr/share/X11/xkb/rules/base.lst.

Non-US Layouts with Kitty

If your layout doesn't work correctly in Kitty (e.g., Shift key reverts to QWERTY), set XKB environment variables in the compositor config's Kitty exec line.

Thanks to @morganorix for discovering this solution!

niri (/etc/greetd/niri-greeter-config.kdl):

spawn-sh-at-startup "XDG_CACHE_HOME=/tmp/greeter-cache HOME=/var/lib/greeter XKB_DEFAULT_LAYOUT=fr XKB_DEFAULT_VARIANT=oss kitty --start-as=fullscreen --config=/etc/greetd/kitty.conf /usr/local/bin/sysc-greet; niri msg action quit --skip-confirmation"

sway (/etc/greetd/sway-greeter-config):

exec "XDG_CACHE_HOME=/tmp/greeter-cache HOME=/var/lib/greeter XKB_DEFAULT_LAYOUT=fr XKB_DEFAULT_VARIANT=oss kitty --start-as=fullscreen --config=/etc/greetd/kitty.conf /usr/local/bin/sysc-greet; swaymsg exit"

hyprland (/etc/greetd/hyprland-greeter-config.conf):

exec-once = XDG_CACHE_HOME=/tmp/greeter-cache HOME=/var/lib/greeter XKB_DEFAULT_LAYOUT=fr XKB_DEFAULT_VARIANT=oss kitty --start-as=fullscreen --config=/etc/greetd/kitty.conf /usr/local/bin/sysc-greet && hyprctl dispatch exit

cagebreak: not affected — the XKB variables set on the greetd command (see cagebreak above) are inherited by Kitty.

Replace fr with your layout and oss with your variant (or omit XKB_DEFAULT_VARIANT if not needed).

Restart greetd after changes: sudo systemctl restart greetd

Dvorak

Dvorak is a common case where users find their password is rejected at the greeter even though the compositor layout is set correctly. This happens because Kitty (the terminal running sysc-greet) needs XKB environment variables set explicitly — it does not inherit the compositor's keyboard config.

Set XKB_DEFAULT_LAYOUT=us XKB_DEFAULT_VARIANT=dvorak in the Kitty exec line for your compositor:

niri (/etc/greetd/niri-greeter-config.kdl):

spawn-sh-at-startup "XDG_CACHE_HOME=/tmp/greeter-cache HOME=/var/lib/greeter XKB_DEFAULT_LAYOUT=us XKB_DEFAULT_VARIANT=dvorak kitty --start-as=fullscreen --config=/etc/greetd/kitty.conf /usr/local/bin/sysc-greet; niri msg action quit --skip-confirmation"

sway (/etc/greetd/sway-greeter-config):

exec "XDG_CACHE_HOME=/tmp/greeter-cache HOME=/var/lib/greeter XKB_DEFAULT_LAYOUT=us XKB_DEFAULT_VARIANT=dvorak kitty --start-as=fullscreen --config=/etc/greetd/kitty.conf /usr/local/bin/sysc-greet; swaymsg exit"

hyprland (/etc/greetd/hyprland-greeter-config.conf):

exec-once = XDG_CACHE_HOME=/tmp/greeter-cache HOME=/var/lib/greeter XKB_DEFAULT_LAYOUT=us XKB_DEFAULT_VARIANT=dvorak kitty --start-as=fullscreen --config=/etc/greetd/kitty.conf /usr/local/bin/sysc-greet && hyprctl dispatch exit

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

command = "env XKB_DEFAULT_LAYOUT=us XKB_DEFAULT_VARIANT=dvorak cagebreak -e -c /etc/greetd/cagebreak-greeter-config"

The same pattern applies to other Dvorak-family layouts (Dvorak Programmer, etc.) — just change XKB_DEFAULT_VARIANT accordingly. Run localectl list-x11-keymap-variants us to see all available US variants.