Tk Source Code

On a default CentOS 7.5 install, after a default compile of tk8.5.18, the command "raise ." fails, using the default Gnome desktop.  It generates a non-informative upper right pop-up with only two lines, for example:

  wish
  wish is ready

This is likely due to Linux window managers ignoring XRaiseWindow (for the last decade).

Here is an example of a tiny wrapper for XRaiseWindow that solves this problem on CentOS 7 and many other linux distributions, by sending a message to the window manager, whoever that is.  Perhaps it could be adapted to fix the tk "raise" command.



#include <X11/Xlib.h>

static Display *display;
static Window  glxwindow;

void raise_window(void)
{
#ifdef Linux /* metacity "focus stealing prevention" intercepts XRaiseWindow */
  XEvent xev;
  Window rootwindow;

  xev.type = ClientMessage;
  xev.xclient.display = display;
  xev.xclient.window = glxwindow;
  xev.xclient.message_type = XInternAtom(display,"_NET_ACTIVE_WINDOW",0);
  xev.xclient.format = 32;
  xev.xclient.data.l[0] = 2L;
  xev.xclient.data.l[1] = CurrentTime;
  rootwindow = XDefaultRootWindow(display);
  XSendEvent(display, rootwindow, 0,
             SubstructureNotifyMask | SubstructureRedirectMask, &xev);
#endif
  XRaiseWindow(display, glxwindow);
  XFlush(display);   
}

Looks good to me.

So merged to [341051203d21523b|trunk] now, and also to core-9-0-branch and core-8-6-branch.

Just re-open if something turns out to be wrong with it.

thx! (and for the explanation)
cheers, marty

raise now also sends the EWMH _NET_RESTACK_WINDOW request, which KWin and Mutter honor for a window which is not active (they ignore the plain XReconfigureWMWindow request); tested with KWin 6.6. It restacks without activating the window, as raise is documented. Fixed in [753272357c] (branch x11-raise-ewmh).

Your code sends _NET_ACTIVE_WINDOW, which I tested too. Current mutter and KWin honour it (as well as _NET_RESTACK_WINDOW, which raises without activating) only when the user has not interacted with another window more recently; otherwise they only mark the window as demanding attention (the "wish is ready" notification). That is the window managers' focus stealing prevention, which no client request can override. Tk could still send _NET_RESTACK_WINDOW in addition to XReconfigureWMWindow, so that raise works whenever the window manager allows it; I will look into that.

"nothing can be done on the Tk side"

But the code above/below is on the tk side (?)

Sorry for the multiple messages.  One more data point: if the code messaging the window manager is inserted into:

  ./tk8.5.18/unix/tkUnixWm.c:TkWmRestackToplevel()

just *before* the call to:

  XReconfigureWMWindow()

(rather than after the call, as described above), then the annoying Gnome popup doesn't appear.

If the following test code:

#if 1 
    XEvent xev;
    Window rootwindow;

    xev.type = ClientMessage;
    xev.xclient.display = winPtr->display;
    xev.xclient.window = wrapperPtr->window;
    xev.xclient.message_type =
      XInternAtom(winPtr->display,"_NET_ACTIVE_WINDOW",0);
    xev.xclient.format = 32;
    xev.xclient.data.l[0] = 2L;
    xev.xclient.data.l[1] = CurrentTime;
    rootwindow = XDefaultRootWindow(winPtr->display);
    XSendEvent(winPtr->display, rootwindow, 0,
               SubstructureNotifyMask | SubstructureRedirectMask, &xev);
#endif

is added to the very bottom of:

  ./tk8.5.18/unix/tkUnixWm.c:TkWmRestackToplevel()

after an otherwise default compile of tk8.5.18 on CentOS 7.5, tk "raise" works again. The annoying, large, almost empty, upper right, Gnome popup window containing only:

  wish
  wish is ready

still appears, but unlike the original case where "raise" was failing, now instantly disappears.