Clipman is an accessible clipboard history manager for Linux, Windows, macOS, Android and iOS. The Linux edition connects to Clipman Server and uses the same encrypted history as your other devices. Add, edit, group, pin, reorder or delete an entry on one device and the change appears on every other connected device.
The Linux interface provides separate Text, Links, optional Rich Text and File History sections, Groups, multi-selection, templates, Quick Paste, machine-local Secrets, privacy exclusions, import and export, text transformations, global shortcuts, automatic updates and an encrypted offline read cache.
F1 explains the focused control in a readable help dialog. Preferences explanations are available on demand instead of repeating automatically through Orca. Plain F1 opens help without changing a hotkey; closing help returns to the previous control. The complete manual remains available from Help, Manual and Open Manual.
Alt+Enter opens embedded images in the default image app or reveals a File History item's location. Successful opens close History. Global Quick Clip restores History's previous visibility when the editor closes. New generic clipboard images include the source application's name when available; original filenames and existing entries are unchanged.
clipman:// configuration links are not launched.Extract the Linux archive, open a terminal in the extracted folder and run ./install.sh. Installation is per-user and does not require root access. The installer checks required components before copying Clipman.
On Arch Linux, install prerequisites with sudo pacman -S gtk4 python-gobject libkeybinder3 xdotool. Debian or Ubuntu users need gir1.2-gtk-4.0 gir1.2-keybinder-3.0 python3-gi xdotool. Fedora users need gtk4 python3-gobject keybinder3 xdotool.
.clpconf file. Enter the history password separately.The server token authorizes access to the server. The history password identifies and decrypts one database bucket. A connection file contains the server address and token, never the history password.
Clipman has Text, Links, optional Rich Text and File History tabs. When the tab list has focus, use Left Arrow, Right Arrow, Home or End to choose a section. You can also use Ctrl+Tab, Ctrl+Shift+Tab, or the View menu. Direct shortcuts are Alt+T, Alt+L, Alt+R and Alt+I. Move the active tab with Alt+Left or Alt+Right; its per-device order is remembered, while the direct shortcuts remain fixed.
Activate an entry or press Enter to copy it and hide Clipman. Ctrl+C copies while leaving the window open. Search includes entry text, names, groups and device names; File History search also includes paths, operations and source information. Type the beginning of a displayed entry to move directly to it.
Pinned entries remain in their own ordered section above normal entries and are numbered for Ctrl+1 through Ctrl+0. They are not affected by normal sorting or cleanup. The Normal Entries row separates the two sections. Press Backspace to move to the first normal entry, then press Up Arrow once to reach the separator.
The View, Sort menu offers Manual Order, Newest First, Oldest First, Text, Group and Device for Text, Links and Rich Text. File History can be sorted by manual order, capture time, file count, name, operation or source application. Sort choices persist between sessions; pinned order remains manual.
Use Shift with the arrow keys to select a contiguous range, or Ctrl+A to select every visible row. Copy, cut, group, transform, push, pin, delete, file restore and file-path commands act on the complete selection where applicable. Entry Properties, Details, Go to File, Paste After Selected and manual movement require one selected row.
General preferences can join multiple selected Text, Links or Rich Text entries with no separator, one new line, one blank line, a space, comma and space, or a custom separator. Custom separators accept \n, \r\n, \r, and \t. The choice applies to ordinary copies, transformed text, pushes and Copy Name and Content.
Clipman checks the server every two seconds. Unchanged results do not rebuild the list, move focus or produce repeated screen-reader announcements. Local clipboard capture is event-driven where the desktop reports changes and shares that existing two-second tick as a compatibility fallback instead of running a second polling loop.
Rich Text history is optional and off by default. Enable Preserve copied formatting and show Rich Text history in General preferences before copying formatted content from browsers, word processors, email clients or rich-text editors. These entries appear in a separate filtered section while retaining a plain-text fallback for every client. Copying one rich entry publishes the available plain and formatted representations together; templates and multi-entry copies remain plain text.
Include images in Rich Text history is a separate subordinate option and is also off by default. It stores bounded standalone PNG and JPEG clipboard images in the existing history database and restores native image clipboard data when copied. The same copy also supplies a temporary file representation, so pasting normally into a Linux file manager creates an image named from the capture date and source device and preserves that capture date as the file's modified date, while pasting into a document or image editor uses the richest format that application supports. Clipman preserves the stored PNG or JPEG bytes and removes its private temporary file automatically. An image already within the limits keeps its original bytes and metadata; larger accepted images are reduced safely. Retained metadata may contain camera or location information and follows the history's encryption and sync choices. In Entry Properties, embedded image content is read-only; use Name to change how the entry appears without risking its stored image.
Copying a PNG or JPEG file in a Linux file manager normally records it in machine-local File History. To share that image through Rich Text history as well, switch Clipman to Rich Text, select where the entry belongs, and press Ctrl+V. Clipman accepts exactly one available PNG or JPEG file and applies the same image limits and metadata rules. Other files, folders, and multi-file selections remain File History only.
Also add copied PNG and JPEG files to Rich Text history is an additional desktop preference and is off by default. When enabled, copying exactly one supported image file records the normal File History event and also adds the image to shared Rich Text history automatically. Rich Text history and its image option must also be enabled.
F4 safely presents common HTML formatting without running scripts, loading remote content or opening a browser view. RTF-only entries remain readable through their plain-text fallback and identify the stored format in Details. Editing or transforming an entry's text clears its previous formatting so stale rich content cannot be pasted later.
The labelled Filter control filters Text, Links and Rich Text; press Alt+G to focus it. It can show All, Pinned, Normal, Ungrouped, one named group, or entries attributed to one device. The Groups menu presents the same choices, with device names separated from groups. The first ten group choices use Alt+1 through Alt+0. Choose Group Entry or press Ctrl+G to assign one or several selected entries to a new or existing group.
Group names are case-insensitive, so spellings such as GitHub, Github, and github remain one group. If existing entries use several capitalizations, Clipman displays the spelling used most often and uses the newest spelling to resolve a tie. Groups are stored in the shared database, so group names and assignments travel with entries. File History is machine-local and does not use groups.
Entry Properties changes the name, group, text, pinned state and template state. The editor includes template samples, individual fields and a resolved preview. Enter inserts a new line; press Ctrl+Enter to save directly. Insertions occur at the text cursor and automatically mark the entry as a template. Stored template text remains literal; fields resolve only when copied.
Unnamed website links use a useful offline label followed by the scheme-less destination in history, while View and copy retain the complete unchanged URL. For one unnamed public HTTP or HTTPS entry, choose Use Website Title as Name from Edit or the context menu. Clipman explains that the site will be contacted and waits for confirmation. The confirmation includes Do not show this again; restore it with Ask before contacting a website for its title in General preferences. A deliberate request may contact an otherwise safe public link even when its path or query contains tracking data or looks token-like. Automatic title naming remains more conservative, and Clipman always refuses embedded credentials, local or private destinations, non-standard ports, unsafe redirects and overlong addresses. Clipman stores a successful title in the ordinary Name field where Entry Properties can review or change it. If no usable title can be retrieved, it saves the same generic offline URL label instead; direct downloads work without a file-extension allowlist, and the complete URL remains unchanged.
Automatically name copied website links from page headings is a separate per-device option and is off by default. It considers only newly captured, unnamed, link-only public HTTP or HTTPS entries and processes them one at a time in a small background queue. Existing history, imports, synchronized entries, manually added exceptions and refused addresses are never scanned. Automatic lookups do not delay capture, change the clipboard, play another sound or display a failure dialog.
View Full Text shows the complete text, a safe formatted preview when HTML is available, and a details list containing name, group, device, character and word counts, stored formatting, pin/template state, added time and last-used time. Multiline entries are condensed into one navigable history row while preserving all text in Properties and Details.
Ctrl+X cuts an unpinned entry. Ctrl+V adds current clipboard text after the selected normal entry. Ctrl+P marks the selected entry as newly pushed from this device and also places it on this clipboard, allowing devices with remote clipboard receipt enabled to receive it.
Open Entry Properties, or choose Set as Quick Paste Target from Edit or the context menu, to assign an existing Text, Links or Rich Text entry its own global Quick Paste hotkey. Each assignment has one of three modes: paste and restore the previous clipboard, paste and leave the target on the clipboard, or copy the target without sending a paste command. Template entries resolve immediately before use.
The Quick Paste menu lists every live target and its hotkey. Choosing a target moves to that history entry so you can review or remove the assignment with F2. Assigned rows include the hotkey and mode in their visible and accessible details; unassigned rows do not carry extra wording. Deleting an entry also removes its machine-local hotkey, preventing inaccessible stale assignments.
Quick Paste is available in X11 sessions when xdotool is installed. Wayland compositors may prevent synthesized paste commands; Copy to Clipboard Only remains usable.
ClipMerge is off by default. Enable it in General preferences, copy the first text or file selection normally, then copy the next selection twice within the configured 200-to-2000 millisecond window. Clipman combines the values, updates history, removes the temporary partial entry and plays merge.wav. Pinned entries are never modified.
Text separators can be a new line, blank line, space, comma and space, or a custom value with common backslash escapes. Merged formatted selections become plain text. File merging deduplicates paths. Cuts merge only while every source path still exists; after a source is pasted or moved, Clipman keeps the newer valid cut instead of combining it with a dead path. Rapid duplicate clipboard notifications from one command are coalesced without another history write or sound. Clipman refuses uncertain merges across applications, clipboard types, operations, ignored or excluded captures, expired intervals, or clipboard changes made by Clipman itself.
File History records files copied or cut while Clipman is running. It is stored only on the current device and does not sync file paths to other devices. Each event includes the first filename, operation, file count, source, device and capture time. Repeated copies of the same file set replace the existing event instead of creating duplicates.
Press Enter to restore available files to the clipboard and hide Clipman. Ctrl+C copies their paths as text. Ctrl+Enter opens the location of a single available file or folder. File details list every path and format.
File events can be pinned, moved in Manual Order, sorted, searched and deleted like text entries. Ctrl+1 through Ctrl+0 restore numbered pinned file events; add Shift to copy their paths instead. Clearing or removing unavailable events keeps pinned events and never deletes files from disk. File History keeps up to 200 events.
Secrets is an optional machine-local area for short private values you type deliberately. Open it from Options or press Ctrl+Shift+E, then enter the current history password before Clipman reveals secret names or assigned hotkeys. Secret values are never shown in the list, captured into ordinary history, synchronized through Clipman Server, or included in history import and export.
Add or edit a secret by entering its name and value twice. An optional global hotkey pastes the secret and restores the previous text clipboard. Press Enter or choose Paste in the unlocked Secrets manager to do the same. Deletion requires confirmation. Secrets are stored in a separate encrypted <device>-secrets.clipdb file using the current history password.
Secrets is a convenience feature, not a replacement for a full password manager. Software running as the same user may still observe keystrokes or clipboard contents during the brief paste operation.
Ignored Applications accepts one X11 process or application name per line. Automatic text capture from a matching foreground application is skipped. Automatically Group by Source Application uses the same source information to place new entries into app-named groups. Desktop environments do not expose this information consistently under Wayland, so both features are best supported under X11.
Sensitive Data exclusions are off by default. When enabled, selected presets can exclude valid credit-card numbers, US Social Security numbers, international phone numbers, long API keys or tokens, software license keys and approximate US driver-license shapes from automatic history. Credit-card detection includes a Luhn checksum, and complete HTTP or HTTPS URLs are not treated as tokens. Exclusions do not alter the system clipboard and do not block Save Current Clipboard to History, allowing an intentional override.
The Actions menu changes selected Text, Links or Rich Text entries and puts the result on the clipboard. It provides plain text copy, whitespace trimming, single-line conversion, blank-line removal, URL tracking removal, cleaner sharing links, line-ending conversion, uppercase/lowercase, HTML encode/decode/to-text and URL encode/decode. Changing stored text clears any previous rich formatting; Copy as Plain Text leaves the stored entry unchanged. These commands are omitted from the File History Edit menu because they do not apply to files.
The File menu imports .clipdb history files by merging or replacing the current text history. Enter the password used by the imported file, or leave it blank for an unencrypted file. Import and Replace removes current text/link entries before adding the imported entries.
Export always requires confirmation of the current history password. The exported file can keep the current password, use a new password, or use no password. An export never changes the password used by the live database.
Clear Text History also requires the current history password and propagates the deletion safely through Clipman Server. File History is cleared separately and retains pinned events.
Preferences has six tabs. Use Ctrl+1 through Ctrl+6 to switch, and Clipman remembers the last tab.
| Tab | Contents |
|---|---|
| General | Clipboard monitoring, sounds, opt-in ClipMerge timing and separators, multiple-entry copy separator, source-application grouping, remote clipboard receipt, optional paste after Enter, dynamic history section, automatic URL cleanup, optional Links and Rich Text history, bounded PNG/JPEG capture within Rich Text, optional automatic image-file addition, saved list position and duplicate handling. |
| File History | Automatic removal of unavailable unpinned file events. |
| Hotkeys | Global Show History and Toggle Monitoring shortcuts, plus optional Save Current Clipboard and Quick Clip shortcuts that are unset by default. |
| Storage and Password | Server connection changes, ignored applications and the Linux display-server compatibility note. |
| Startup and Updates | Desktop-session startup, optional capture of the existing clipboard at startup, update frequency and silent automatic installation. |
| Sensitive Data | Opt-in automatic-capture exclusions and their individual presets. |
Automatic remote clipboard receipt, dynamic history and automatic tracking removal are opt-in. Dynamic history makes a newly accepted item select its matching section the next time history opens. That automatic selection is used once, so a section you choose manually remains selected until another new item arrives. Missing custom sounds fall back to factory sounds.
Entry deletion asks for confirmation by default. The confirmation can remember Do not ask again; re-enable it from General preferences. Clearing an entire history area keeps its separate confirmation.
Quick Clip creates a new saved entry without reading or changing the system clipboard. Use Ctrl+N, the File menu, or assign its optional global hotkey. Enter inserts a new line in the editor and Ctrl+Enter saves. Global Quick Clip restores History's previous visibility when the editor closes. Open Image or Link uses Alt+Enter to open exactly one selected standalone HTTP or HTTPS entry or embedded image in its default app. In File History it reveals the selected file or folder without running it. History closes on success and remains available on failure; ordinary prose and private clipman:// configuration links are not launched.
| Action | Shortcut |
|---|---|
| Copy/restore selected item and hide Clipman | Enter |
| Copy selected text, or file paths, and stay open | Ctrl+C |
| Copy selected Names and resolved content, then hide Clipman; Go to file in File History | Ctrl+Enter |
| Cut selected unpinned text entry | Ctrl+X |
| Paste clipboard text after selected entry | Ctrl+V |
| Open Quick Clip | Ctrl+N |
| Save Entry Properties or Quick Clip | Ctrl+Enter |
| Open selected image or website link; reveal File History location; close History on success | Alt+Enter |
| Select all visible entries | Ctrl+A |
| Import or export | Ctrl+I or Ctrl+E |
| Group selected entry | Ctrl+G |
| Push selected entry to other devices | Ctrl+P |
| Entry Properties | F2 |
| Entry or file-event details | F4 |
| Delete unpinned item | Delete |
| Pin or unpin | Shift+Enter |
| Move in Manual Order | Alt+Up or Alt+Down |
| Copy/restore pinned item 1 through 10 | Ctrl+1 through Ctrl+0 |
| Copy pinned file paths 1 through 10 | Ctrl+Shift+1 through Ctrl+Shift+0 |
| Choose group 1 through 10 | Alt+1 through Alt+0 |
| Search; next; previous | Ctrl+F, F3, Shift+F3 |
| Text, Links, Rich Text or File History | Alt+T, Alt+L, Alt+R, Alt+I |
| Choose a focused history tab | Left Arrow, Right Arrow, Home or End |
| Move the active history tab | Alt+Left or Alt+Right |
| Next or previous history section | Ctrl+Tab or Ctrl+Shift+Tab |
| Top, bottom or first normal item | Home, End, Backspace |
| Move ten entries | Page Up or Page Down |
| Open context menu | Application key or Shift+F10 |
| Hide Clipman | Escape |
| Show or hide globally | Ctrl+Alt+Backslash by default |
| Turn monitoring on/off globally | Ctrl+Alt+Grave by default |
| Save current clipboard to history globally | User-assigned in Preferences; unset by default |
| Open Quick Clip globally | User-assigned in Preferences; unset by default |
| Preferences | Ctrl+, |
| Secrets | Ctrl+Shift+E |
| Assigned Quick Paste or secret | User-assigned global hotkey |
| Help for the focused control | F1 |
| Update check or project page | Shift+F1, Ctrl+F1 |
| Diagnostics | Alt+F1 |
Press F1 on a control for a short explanation tailored to that control. Tab and Shift+Tab move through the read-only help text, Open Manual and Close; Escape returns to the previous control. Preference explanations are available on demand rather than repeated automatically by Orca. Plain F1 opens help even in a hotkey field, without replacing its shortcut. The complete manual remains available from Help, Manual and Open Manual.
The interface uses native GTK 4 controls exposed through AT-SPI. A conventional menu bar exposes commands and shortcuts. Tab and Shift+Tab move between controls; Up and Down move one history entry. Every history row is one focus stop. Its accessible text includes relevant state, group, device and list position without duplicating visible content.
History polling does not reconstruct unchanged rows, so Orca focus and braille position remain stable. Status changes are announced without taking keyboard focus. Tab and Shift+Tab leave multiline editors instead of inserting tab characters.
Global shortcuts and background clipboard monitoring work normally under X11. Wayland compositors control those capabilities and support varies. Use Save Current Clipboard to History when a compositor prevents automatic capture.
Choose Help, Check for Updates or press Shift+F1. Preferences can check at startup, hourly or daily. Automatic checks and silent installation are both opt-in.
Clipman accepts only a Linux GUI archive for the current processor architecture. It verifies the GitHub SHA-256 digest, archive size, HTTPS origin, safe paths, packaged version and required files before installation. Settings, server credentials, custom sounds, file history and encrypted cache are retained.
After a successful connection, Clipman keeps an encrypted owner-only read cache. Existing text, links and rich text remain readable and copyable if the server becomes unavailable. Server-backed edits are disabled until the connection recovers, preventing an unverified offline edit from overwriting newer shared data. Machine-local File History remains available.
| Location | Purpose |
|---|---|
~/.local/share/clipman-linux | Application, backend, manual and factory sounds. |
~/.local/bin/clipman-linux | Launcher. |
~/.clipman/config.toml | Owner-only server profile used by Clipman for Linux. |
~/.clipman/gui-cache.clipdb | Encrypted offline read cache. |
~/.clipman/<device>-file-history.clipdb | Encrypted machine-local File History. |
~/.clipman/<device>-secrets.clipdb | Encrypted machine-local Secrets. |
~/.config/clipman-linux/settings.json | Linux interface preferences. |
~/.config/clipman-linux/sounds | Optional sound replacements. Missing sounds fall back to factory versions. |
Run ./uninstall.sh from the extracted archive to remove the application. Private configuration, encrypted cache and file history are retained unless you remove them separately.
Clipman Server stores encrypted database blobs and does not know the history password. Public servers must use HTTPS. Plain HTTP is accepted only for loopback, private-network and VPN addresses. Remembered credentials and local databases are restricted to their Linux user account.
A current private-CA server can include its public authority in the .clpconf file. Clipman validates it and uses it as the exclusive authority only for that saved HTTPS host. It does not install the certificate in the Linux system trust store. Public HTTPS profiles without an embedded authority continue to use normal operating-system trust.
Treat a .clpconf file as a credential because it contains a server token. Exporting with no history password creates an unencrypted clipboard history file; use that option only when the destination is appropriate.
Clipman is released under the MIT License. See LICENSE.txt. Visit the Clipman project on GitHub for downloads, source and issue reporting, or visit Andre Louis's website.