16 — Glossary

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These definitions describe usage in this manual. They do not assert that an optional component is active unless another page cites project evidence.

Term	Meaning in this manual
Arch Linux	Rolling-release Linux distribution providing the operating-system and package layer.
Wayland	Protocol through which applications, the compositor, displays, and input devices exchange state.
Display server	Role coordinating graphical clients, displays, and input; here Wayland protocols and the compositor provide that role.
Compositor	Program arranging application surfaces into the final image and, on Wayland, commonly managing windows and input.
Hyprland	Dynamic tiling Wayland compositor used by the documented configuration.
Caelestia	Desktop shell and related tools represented in stored configuration and audit evidence.
Shell	Either a command shell such as Zsh or a desktop shell such as Caelestia; context must distinguish them.
Terminal emulator	Graphical application hosting a command shell; Kitty is confirmed by project evidence.
Workspace	Virtual area containing windows. A special workspace is a named scratchpad-like area.
Binding / keybinding	Mapping from keys and modifiers to a dispatcher or command. Generated data is this snapshot’s source of truth.
Modifier	Key such as Super, Ctrl, Alt, or Shift that changes another key’s meaning. Left/right and AltGr distinctions can matter.
Dispatcher	Named Hyprland action invoked by a binding or IPC command.
Focus	Window or control currently receiving keyboard input.
Layout	Arrangement of windows, displays, or controls, according to context.
Service	Long-running or on-demand process managed by a service manager.
User service	Service managed in the logged-in user’s scope with systemctl --user.
Package	Software unit tracked by a package manager. Pacman and Flatpak use different update models.
Flatpak	Application distribution and sandboxing system separate from Pacman.
Environment variable	Named value inherited by a process and used to influence runtime behaviour.
Configuration include	Directive reading another configuration file at a defined point; order and precedence matter.
Reload	Ask a running component to reread state or configuration without replacing the session.
Restart	Stop and start a process or service; it is more disruptive than a reload.
Rollback	Restore a known-good state after a change causes an incorrect result.
Audit	Read-only capture and analysis of selected system and configuration facts.
Source of truth	Evidence that owns a fact. For bindings, it is generated data—not prose copied into a page.
Generated data	Parser or generator output that can become stale after its source configuration changes.
Live-system data	Data captured by a successful read-only runtime command. Failed capture is recorded as unavailable, not inferred.
Mount point	Directory at which a filesystem is attached to the directory tree.
Display manager	Login service that starts graphical sessions; no active implementation is asserted here.

Related: System overview, Configuration map, and Troubleshooting.