Introduction
Rofi is an X11 pop-up window switcher, run dialog, script launcher and more. It focuses on being fast to use and causing minimal distraction. This Help file describes it as installed in MX-Fluxbox 2.2 and later to function as the run app instead of the native fbrun.
Usage
The app can be launched in various ways:
- Press F2 (mode: run)
- Click Menu > Run (mode: run)
- Click Menu > All apps (mode: drun)
- In terminal: rofi -show run

As set up in MX-Fluxbox, the bottom row (set up by the line in the config file: sidebar-mode: true;) shows the available modes (“modi”) that can be used. Switching mode is accomplished with a mouse click or Ctrl+Tab on the keyboard.
- drun
- applications menu with names and icons in desktop files
- icons enabled in config file (show/hide, icon set)
- creates Favorites list by sorting frequently used programs on top
- can not launch apps requiring root access (–> drun)
- calc
- the powerful qalc runs in the background
- standard operators: +, -, *, /, ^, sqrt, etc. (e.g., “22^2 * pi” for area of circle)
- conversions (e.g., “64km to miles”)
- currency (e.g., “100 dollars to euros”). The updating of currency information within rofi-calc is currently broken so that currency conversion fails. As a workaround, install qalculate and enter a currency conversion formula such as the one above. That will trigger a successful update of currency information and then rofi-calc will function correctly.
- window
- displays open windows for rapid switching
- run
- shows all installed files
- preserves history
- displays command, not name (e.g., “calc” brings up “localc” not “LibreOffice Calc”)
One of the available modi is not enabled by default in MX-Fluxbox but can be added to the config file if desired.
- ssh
- run ssh via ~/.ssh/config
Custom modi can be added using the internal ´script´ mode. Each mode has two parameters “name” and “script.” This is begin used in the default config, for instance, where the calc function is invoked with calc:qalc.
Configuration
Default: ~/.config/rofi/config.rasi
configuration {
modi: "drun,calc:qalc,window,run";
width: 25;
show-icons: true;
icon-theme: "papirus";
lines: 10;
fake-transparency: true;
sidebar-mode: true;
}
@import "/usr/share/rofi/themes/glue_pro_blue.rasi"
Resources for config file: ~/.config/rofi/xresources
Many themes are available for rofi. To see and select them, open a terminal and enter: rofi-theme-selector
Setup
1. Edit rofi’s configuration to use MX-FB’s defaults
Open the terminal and type or paste:
mkdir ~/.config/rofi
touch ~/.config/rofi/config.rasi
featherpad ~/.config/rofi/config.rasi
In the leafpad window, delete any content and paste this:
configuration {
modi: "drun,calc:qalc,window,run";
width: 25;
show-icons: true;
icon-theme: "papirus";
lines: 10;
fake-transparency: true;
sidebar-mode: true;
}
Save the file.
2. Run rofi
Open the terminal and type or paste:
rofi -show drun
3. Change menu’s “Run” to use rofi
Click Menu > Settings > Configure > Menu. Search for this line:
[exec] (Run F2) {fbrun -nearmouse}
Replace it with this line:
[exec] (Run F2) {rofi -show drun}
Save the file
4. Replace F2 key binding to run “rofi” insted of “fbrun”
Click Menu > Settings > Configure > Keys. Search for this line:
Search for this line:
none F2 :Exec fbrun
Replace it with this line:
none F2 :Exec rofi -show drun
Save the file, then click Menu > Leave > Refresh.
Links
v. 20200825