usage

gaur is built for speed. Everything happens through the keyboard, with optional mouse support. Learn these shortcuts and you’ll fly through package management.

command line options

Launch gaur with flags to jump straight into action:

gaur                     # Start with default mode (from config)
gaur -i                  # Start in install mode
gaur -r                  # Start in remove mode
gaur -u                  # Start in update mode
gaur -d                  # Start in dashboard mode
gaur --theme dracula     # Use a specific theme
gaur --list-themes       # List all available themes

Flag	Long Form	Description
-i	--install	Start in install mode
-r	--remove	Start in remove mode
-u	--update	Start in update mode
-d	--dash	Start in dashboard mode
	--theme <name>	Set color theme
	--list-themes	List themes and exit

mode switching

Jump between views instantly:

Key	Alt Key	Action
i	Alt+2	Install mode
r	Alt+4	Remove mode
u	Alt+3	Update mode
d	Alt+1	Dashboard mode
,		Open settings
q		Quit
Ctrl+C		Force quit

getting around

Navigate lists and search:

Key	Action
/	Focus search box
↑ / k	Move up
↓ / j	Move down
PgUp	Jump 10 items up
PgDown	Jump 10 items down
Esc	Clear focus / deselect all

mouse support

gaur has full mouse support enabled by default:

• Scroll wheel navigates package lists
• In Install/Remove modes: Scroll on the left for the list, scroll on the right for package details
• In Update mode: Scroll anywhere to navigate the update list
• In confirmation dialogs: Scroll to see more packages

No configuration needed—just scroll.

working with packages

Install, remove, or mark packages for batch operations:

Key	Action
Tab	Mark/unmark for batch processing
Enter	Execute on selected/marked
*	Toggle selection panel

batch operations

1. Press Tab on packages you want to operate on
2. Watch them appear in the selection panel (top-right)
3. Press * to focus the panel and manage selections
4. Press Enter to confirm the batch operation

updating

When updates are available, you have two options:

Key	Action
Enter / y / a	Full system upgrade
s	Switch to selective mode
m	Open mirror configuration

Heads up: Selective updates can break dependencies. Arch recommends full system upgrades. Proceed with caution.

mirror management

Press m from the update view to configure package mirrors using reflector.

mirror configuration

Option	Description
Sort by	Rate (speed), Age, Score, Country, or Delay
Country	Filter by country or use Worldwide
Latest	Number of recently synced mirrors (5-100)
Protocol	HTTPS, HTTP, or Both

mirror overlay controls

Key	Action
j / k	Navigate options
h / l	Change selected value
Enter	Execute mirror update
Esc	Close without changes

Requires: The reflector package must be installed (pacman -S reflector).

Mirror updates write to /etc/pacman.d/mirrorlist and require sudo.

dashboard shortcuts

The dashboard gives you quick access to different package categories:

Key	Action
t	Remove mode → all packages
e	Remove mode → explicit only
f	Remove mode → AUR/foreign
o	Remove mode → orphans
c	Cache cleaning menu
R	Remove all orphan packages
Ctrl+R	Refresh dashboard data

cache management

Press c from the dashboard to open the cache cleaning menu:

Option	Description
Safe Clean (Keep 3)	Keep installed version + 2 fallbacks
Aggressive (Keep 1)	Keep only the installed version
Orphaned Cache	Remove caches for uninstalled packages
Nuke Everything	Empty the entire cache
Selective Clean	Choose specific packages to remove

gaur shows size estimates for each option before you commit.

confirmation prompts

When gaur asks “are you sure?”:

Key	Action
y / Enter	Confirm
n / Esc	Cancel
↑ / ↓ / j / k	Scroll the list
PgUp / PgDown	Jump to start/end

search filters

Narrow down results with prefixes.

install mode

Filter by repository:

Prefix	Repo
c:	Core
e:	Extra
m:	Multilib
a:	AUR

Example: ae:firefox searches both AUR and Extra for “firefox”.

remove mode

Filter installed packages by category:

Prefix	Shows
t:	All installed packages
e: / l:	Explicitly installed
f: / a:	AUR/foreign packages
o:	Orphans

Example: of:google finds orphaned AUR packages matching “google”.

Combine filters: ef: shows explicitly installed foreign packages.

color legend

Packages are color-coded by repository:

Color	Source
🟢 Green	core
🔵 Blue	extra
🟠 Orange	multilib
🟣 Magenta	AUR
⚪ Grey	Other