How To Install cwm on Debian 11

In this tutorial we learn how to install cwm on Debian 11. cwm is lightweight and efficient window manager for X11

Introduction

In this tutorial we learn how to install cwm on Debian 11.

What is cwm

cwm is:

cwm is a minimalist stacking window manager ported from OpenBSD. Originally inspired by evilwm, it was rewritten from scratch due to limitations in the evilwm codebase.

cwm contains many features that concentrate on the efficiency and transparency of window management. cwm also aims to maintain the simplest and most pleasant aesthetic. It provides minimal decoration and screen clutter, instead having powerful controls to manage windows, launch programs etc. via key and mouse bindings. A “virtual desktop” can be simulated by the ability to group windows, and to show and hide these groups.

cwm is very configurable via a simple, clearly documented .cwmrc file.

If you are looking for simple menus and pretty icons, cwm is probably not going to be your cup of tea. If you don’t mind a little learning curve and want something powerful and flexible, try it out.

There are three methods to install cwm on Debian 11. We can use apt-get, apt and aptitude. In the following sections we will describe each method. You can choose one of them.

Install cwm Using apt-get

Update apt database with apt-get using the following command.

sudo apt-get update

After updating apt database, We can install cwm using apt-get by running the following command:

sudo apt-get -y install cwm

Install cwm Using apt

Update apt database with apt using the following command.

sudo apt update

After updating apt database, We can install cwm using apt by running the following command:

sudo apt -y install cwm

Install cwm Using aptitude

If you want to follow this method, you might need to install aptitude first since aptitude is usually not installed by default on Debian. Update apt database with aptitude using the following command.

sudo aptitude update

After updating apt database, We can install cwm using aptitude by running the following command:

sudo aptitude -y install cwm

How To Uninstall cwm on Debian 11

To uninstall only the cwm package we can use the following command:

sudo apt-get remove cwm

Uninstall cwm And Its Dependencies

To uninstall cwm and its dependencies that are no longer needed by Debian 11, we can use the command below:

sudo apt-get -y autoremove cwm

Remove cwm Configurations and Data

To remove cwm configuration and data from Debian 11 we can use the following command:

sudo apt-get -y purge cwm

Remove cwm configuration, data, and all of its dependencies

We can use the following command to remove cwm configurations, data and all of its dependencies, we can use the following command:

sudo apt-get -y autoremove --purge cwm

Dependencies

cwm have the following dependencies:

References

Summary

In this tutorial we learn how to install cwm package on Debian 11 using different package management tools: apt, apt-get and aptitude.