# System Settings

> The one window for everything you can change: how to open it, find any setting by typing, what every pane holds, and how to take a change back.

Source: https://wolos.org/manual/settings

## What it is

**System Settings** is the window where you change how WolOS looks, sounds and behaves: the Wi-Fi, the sound, the wallpaper, the Dock, your password, the updates and everything else. On the left is a sidebar of **panes**, one per subject, in groups. On the right is the pane you picked, made of rows: a switch, a slider, a menu, or an arrow that opens more.

## Why WolOS does it this way

A setting is only useful if you can find it, trust it and take it back. So System Settings has one search field that finds every row in every pane; every switch you see either does what it says or is not shown at all; a change that could not be saved puts the control back to what is really set and says so under it; and every change is written down, so System Settings > Restore can take it back later.

## How

### Open System Settings

Press **Super+,** (Super and comma), click the gear icon in the Dock, or choose **System Settings…** in the WolOS menu at the top left.

![System Settings on General: 1 marks the search field, 2 the sidebar of panes, 3 the row Software Update with its arrow.](/img/manual/settings-general-wide-annotated.png)

1. **The search field** (1) at the top of the sidebar finds any setting; see below.
2. **The sidebar** (2) lists the panes in groups: the network, then notifications and sound, then the desktop, then security and your account, then devices, then the rest. Click a pane to open it.
3. **Rows with an arrow** (3) open a page of their own. **General** is made of such rows: About, Software Update, Storage, Login Items, Language & Region, Date & Time and Sharing. The back arrow at the top returns to General.

### Find any setting by typing

Click the search field and type a word, for example "volume", "dark" or "menu bar".

![Searching for volume: 1 marks the search field with volume typed, 2 the only pane left in the sidebar, Sound, 3 the matching rows Sound, Output volume, Input volume and Ignore hardware volume.](/img/manual/settings-search-rows-wide-annotated.png)

1. As you type, the sidebar keeps only the panes that have a match (2), and the right side lists every matching row (3).
2. Click a row, or press Return for the first one, to go straight to it.
3. The round × at the end of the field clears it, and the full sidebar comes back.

When nothing matches you see "No Results" and "No settings match. Try another word." A shorter word usually helps.

### Every pane

| Pane | What you change there | More |
|---|---|---|
| **Wi-Fi** | Turn Wi-Fi on and off, join a network, forget one. | [Control Center](/manual/control-center) |
| **Bluetooth** | Turn Bluetooth on and off, pair headphones, mice, keyboards and phones. | [Control Center](/manual/control-center) |
| **Network** | Cable connections, VPN, addresses. | |
| **Notifications** | Which apps may show banners, Focus and Do Not Disturb. | [Notifications](/manual/notifications) |
| **Sound** | Speakers and headphones, the microphone, volume and balance, voice effects. | [Sound](/manual/sound) |
| **General** | About This Computer, Software Update, Storage, Login Items, Language & Region, Date & Time, Sharing, and the shell of new terminal windows. | [Updates](/manual/updates), [Sharing](/manual/sharing) |
| **Appearance** | Light, Dark or Auto, the accent colour, themes, the wallpaper. | [Looks and themes](/manual/themes), [Dark Mode](/manual/dark-mode) |
| **Accessibility** | Reduce motion and transparency, more contrast, zoom, a bigger pointer. | |
| **Control Center** | Which switches and tiles Control Center and the menu bar show. | [Control Center](/manual/control-center) |
| **Desktop & Dock** | The Dock's size, magnification and hiding, the date and battery in the menu bar, tiling windows. | [The Dock](/manual/dock) |
| **Displays** | Resolution, size of everything on screen, refresh rate, several screens, Night Shift. | [Night Shift](/manual/night-shift) |
| **Wallpaper** | The picture on the desktop. | [Wallpapers](/manual/wallpapers) |
| **Effects & Looks** | Blur, transparency, rounded corners, shadows and animations. | [Looks and themes](/manual/themes) |
| **Widgets** | Cards on the desktop: clock, weather, calendar, music. | [Arranging widgets](/manual/widgets-edit) |
| **Battery** or **Energy** | Power modes, sleep, the lid, Memory Saver. | [Battery and sleep](/manual/power) |
| **Lock Screen** | When the screen locks by itself. | [Lock Screen](/manual/lock-screen) |
| **Privacy & Security** | What apps may use, the firewall, the malware check, how the computer starts. | [Privacy](/manual/privacy) |
| **Users & Groups** | Accounts on this computer, passwords, who is an administrator. | |
| **Keyboard** | Key repeat, keyboard layouts, keyboard shortcuts. | [The keyboard](/manual/keyboard) |
| **Trackpad & Mouse** | Pointer speed, scrolling direction, tap to click. | |
| **Printers** | Add a printer or scanner, choose the default. | |
| **Hardware** | The devices in the computer and whether each works. | |
| **Assistants & Automation** | What scripts and AI assistants may change, and what they did. | [Scripts that change settings](/manual/ruby-script) |
| **Modules** | Add or remove sets of apps for development, creative work, games and more. | [Modules](/manual/modules) |
| **Restore** | Undo a recent change, or go back to an earlier state. | [Backups and undo](/manual/backups) |

### How a change takes effect

Most changes take effect the moment you make them: there is no **Save** or **Apply** button. A few ask first, and say why:

- A change that affects everyone on the computer (a new account, a module, a printer) shows a sheet and asks for an administrator's password.
- A new screen resolution is saved only once the screen has really switched to it.

If a change could not be saved, the switch, slider or menu goes back to what is really set, and a line under the section says what happened, for example "The shell couldn’t be changed. Try again in a moment."

### Take a change back

System Settings > **Restore** > **Recent Changes** lists what you changed, newest first, each with **Undo**. Undo puts that setting back as it was before. See [Backups and undo](/manual/backups).

## A worked example

Alice finds the volume of her laptop too low. She presses Super+, and types "louder" in the search field: the Sound pane stays in the sidebar, with the row **Allow louder**. She clicks it, turns the switch on, and the volume slider can now go past 100%. The next day she decides it was too much, opens System Settings > Restore > Recent Changes, and clicks **Undo** next to the change: the switch is off again.

## If something goes wrong

| What you see | What to do |
|---|---|
| A switch flips back after you click it | The change could not be saved, so the switch shows what is set. The line under the section says why. Try again. |
| "No settings match. Try another word." | Search found no pane or row. Try a shorter or more common word, like "sound" instead of "speakers". |
| A pane says "Displays appear here once the desktop is running" | Open System Settings from your desktop, not from a remote session. |
| "That name is reserved by the system" when adding a user | The system uses that account name itself. Pick another. |
| A setting you need is not where this page says | Type its name in the search field: it finds rows wherever they are. |
| You changed something and regret it | System Settings > **Restore** > **Recent Changes** > **Undo**. |