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I would like to use the Super key as a modifier for keyboard and mouse shortcuts in other applications. However, Gnome seems to have dozens of keybinds that are tied to that key and that appears to affect its usability as a modifier in some apps (notably, I can't use it as a modifier in IntelliJ). I've removed the ones I could find in Settings, but there are a couple I can't find defined anywhere:

  • Super to open application launcher
  • Super+drag to move windows around

Is there a way to disable these in Gnome so that I can use it as a modifier?

monitorjbl
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  • @Quasímodo I can do that, but I'm not sure how to do it in such a way that Gnome will respect it. I asked a question about that a week ago, Gnome seems to not respect remapping keys: https://askubuntu.com/questions/1439814/how-do-you-swap-the-alt-win-keys-and-map-win-key-to-meta-in-gnome. – monitorjbl Nov 18 '22 at 21:10

1 Answers1

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There is no one way to disable all Super+key combination. They are defined in different places. "Settings" - "Keyboard Shortcuts" is the first place to look for several of them and disable/change them. Others are in different places.

The command gsettings list-recursively | grep '<Super>' will give you a good idea on the different places where Super is assigned. You can then either use the gsettings command or the graphical tool dconf-editor (not installed by default) to change the settings.

For the two examples you provided:

Super to open application launcher

Disable with the command

gsettings set org.gnome.mutter overlay-key ''

Super+drag to move windows around

In Gnome Tweaks, Window Tab, disable the "Window Action Key" or set it to Alt.

Alternatively, use gsettings to disable the key or set it to another modifier key (e.g. <alt> or <Control>).

gsettings set org.gnome.desktop.wm.preferences mouse-button-modifier 'disabled'
vanadium
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