Coming from Mac or Windows to Omarchy: Migration Guide
Switch from macOS or Windows to Omarchy: what changes, app replacements, keymaps, and 2-week adjustment plan for keyboard tiling.
Omarchy is not Windows and not macOS โ itโs trying to be better. Expect a 2-week muscle-memory rewrite.
What actually changes
- No minimize / maximize drag โ tiling, workspaces 1-0,
Super+H/J/K/Lfocus,Super+Shift+H/J/K/Lmove - Launcher โ
Super+Space(Walker) does apps, files, clipboard, math, emoji (Caps as compose) - Top bar โ Quickshell: left app, center workspaces, right tray/notifications. Waybar-look but QML.
- Config files โ
~/.config/hypr/*.confLua layers; themeomarchy theme set.
App replacements (field-tested 8 months)
| macOS / Windows | Omarchy | Notes |
|---|---|---|
| Raycast/Alfred | Walker Super+Space |
file search, clipboard, math |
| Terminal | Alacritty + Starship + zsh | Super+Enter, zoxide, fzf |
| Finder/Explorer | yazi (TUI) or Nautilus | Super+E if you add binding |
| 1Password | 1Password Linux + SSH agent | Needs HW accel ON + launch after boot |
| Slack | Web Apps (Chromium) Install as app |
Pinned per workspace |
| Calendar | Reminders + Obsidian | See Reminders manual |
| Screen backup | Btrfs Snapper | sudo snapper create before big tweaks |
| Bar / Dock | Quickshell top bar | Not GNOME |
Keyboard quick start
| You used to | Now |
|---|---|
Cmd+Space |
Super+Space |
Cmd+Tab |
Super+Tab or Super+1..9 workspace |
Cmd+Q |
Super+Q |
Cmd+Tab drag |
Super+Shift+1..9 move window |
Print Super+? cheat sheet first day.
2-week plan
Days 1-3: Install, learn 10 bindings, set GDK_SCALE for your monitor, pair Bluetooth.
Week 1: Move daily apps to fixed workspaces: 1 browser, 2 code, 4 notes. Disable mouse hints (force tiling).
Week 2: Customize hypr.looknfeel gaps, theme, starship.toml. Set up mise and gh auth.
Hardware gotchas
- Trackpad gestures โ Hyprland supports basic, but not macOS three-finger drag. Edit
~/.config/hypr/input.conf. - Hibernation โ System sleep manual:
systemctl hibernateneeds swap โฅ RAM, NVIDIA needsNVreg_PreserveVideoMemoryAllocations=1. - Printers โ
system-config-printer+ CUPS; Remote desktop โwayvnc.
If you need Adobe/Office native, keep dual-boot (see Dual Boot guide). Otherwise Omarchy ships LibreOffice, Chromium, Obsidian, Kdenlive, OBS.
Post-migration story: 8 Months Later โ Good, Bad, Fixable is honest about GPU crashes and external projectors.