Route new app windows to named workspaces

Give workspaces stable IDs, then place each matching new window on its workspace when it opens. Replace the example app IDs with the values reported by gnoblinctl window list --json.

Lua

gnoblin.configure {
    workspaces = {
        {id = "code", name = "Code"},
        {id = "web", name = "Web"},
        {id = "chat", name = "Chat"},
    },
}

gnoblin.window_rule {
    match = {type = "window", app_id = [[^org.gnome.TextEditor$]]},
    workspace = {id = "code"},
}

gnoblin.window_rule {
    match = {type = "window", app_id = [[^org.mozilla.firefox$]]},
    workspace = {id = "web"},
}

gnoblin.window_rule {
    match = {type = "window", app_id = [[^org.gnome.Fractal$]]},
    workspace = {id = "chat"},
}

Each declared workspace remains available when empty. The declaration order sets the initial positions, but rules target workspaces by stable ID. IDs must be unique and match ^[A-Za-z0-9][A-Za-z0-9._-]{0,63}$; names must be nonempty and at most 80 characters. Runtime-created workspaces are temporary and are not part of this list.

Option	Values and default	Effect
`match.app_id`	Case-sensitive Lua pattern; unset matches any app	Selects windows by application ID.
`workspace`	`{id = "code"}` or `{number = 1..1024}`; unset	Places a matching new normal window on that workspace.

App ID patterns use Lua 5.4 string.find syntax and search anywhere by default. Use ^ and $ to match the whole ID. Escape literal dots with %:

Lua

match = {type = "window", app_id = [[^org%.example%.Editor$]]}

Reload the configuration to apply these settings.

Placement happens once; it does not lock a window to its workspace. You can move it afterward, and Gnoblin will leave it there.

If an app reuses an existing window, Gnoblin does not place it again.
Dialogs stay with their parent window.
If the target workspace is unavailable, the new window stays where it opened.

See workspace rules and the window-management reference.