# Windows Capability Matrix

Maps current official Ghostty docs surfaces to winghostty behavior on
Windows. Keep this short. Update rows when Windows behavior changes or when
upstream docs add or remove a surface that this fork cares about.

Last reviewed: 2026-05-24.

## Status legend

- `supported` — works on current Windows builds and matches upstream docs
  closely enough to rely on them.
- `partial` — some of the surface works, but Windows behavior is narrower,
  differently scoped, or still filling in.
- `no-op compatibility` — the option or surface exists for compatibility,
  but currently reduces to placeholder or weaker behavior.
- `windows-specific` — added or materially changed by this fork; upstream
  Ghostty docs do not describe it accurately yet.

## Supported

| Ghostty docs surface | winghostty note |
| --- | --- |
| [Configuration](https://ghostty.org/docs/config) and [option reference](https://ghostty.org/docs/config/reference) | Same config grammar and generated docs surface. On Windows the config file lives at `%LOCALAPPDATA%\winghostty\config.ghostty`, and live reload is available via `Ctrl+Shift+,`. |
| [Custom keybindings](https://ghostty.org/docs/config/keybind) | Same `keybind = trigger=action` grammar and `+list-keybinds` flow. Default bindings are Windows-native rather than macOS/Linux defaults. |
| [Color Theme](https://ghostty.org/docs/features/theme) | Built-in themes, separate light/dark themes, custom themes, and `+list-themes` ship on Windows. |
| [Configuration: `background-opacity`](https://ghostty.org/docs/config/reference) | Transparent terminal backgrounds work on Windows and can be toggled live. |
| [Terminal API (VT)](https://ghostty.org/docs/vt) and [VT reference](https://ghostty.org/docs/vt/reference) | The shared Ghostty terminal core carries the documented VT/OSC/Kitty surface used by terminal apps. |
| [Features overview: windows, tabs, and splits](https://ghostty.org/docs/features) | Native Win32 windows, tabs, and splits ship today in winghostty. |

## Partial

| Ghostty docs surface | winghostty note |
| --- | --- |
| [Shell integration](https://ghostty.org/docs/features/shell-integration) | Upstream docs for automatic `bash` / `elvish` / `fish` / `nushell` / `zsh` injection still apply when those shells are launched on Windows. winghostty additionally supports automatic PowerShell injection (`powershell.exe`, `pwsh.exe`) plus a manual fallback under `%LOCALAPPDATA%\winghostty\shell-integration\powershell\integration.ps1`. PowerShell emits OSC 7 cwd URIs, OSC 133 prompt marks, command-finish status, and PSReadLine command metadata when available. PowerShell now wraps `ssh` for `ssh-env` and cache-aware `ssh-terminfo`, but it does not auto-install remote terminfo; uncached hosts use `xterm-256color`. `cmd.exe` remains a plain fallback shell without automatic shell integration. |
| [Action reference](https://ghostty.org/docs/config/keybind/reference) | Shared action grammar is intact, but upstream docs still mix shared actions with macOS/Linux-specific behavior. For Windows-specific truth on a disputed action, prefer `winghostty +show-config --default --docs` plus the current defaults from `+list-keybinds`. |
| [Action reference: `toggle_secure_input`](https://ghostty.org/docs/config/keybind/reference) | Windows implements the action as a local sensitive-input indicator and cursor/status/title state. It does not use a Windows OS API equivalent to macOS Secure Keyboard Entry and does not block system-wide keyboard hooks. |
| [Configuration: `auto-update`](https://ghostty.org/docs/config/reference) | Windows supports stable-release checking and update prompts backed by GitHub Releases. `download` can stage signed, checksum-matching installer releases and, for installer-managed installs, launch the verified staged installer after a user click. |
| [Configuration: `window-save-state`](https://ghostty.org/docs/config/reference) | Windows persists practical session shape under `%LOCALAPPDATA%\winghostty\session-state.json`: host windows, tabs, splits, selected profiles, working directories, and explicit titles. Terminal contents and child process state are not restored. |
| [Configuration: `background-blur`](https://ghostty.org/docs/config/reference) | On Windows 11 22H2 or newer, `background-opacity < 1` plus enabled `background-blur` requests the DWM tabbed system backdrop. On Windows 10 and Windows 11 21H2, the option remains accepted but no DWM backdrop is requested. Numeric blur radii are treated as enabled/disabled, not as tunable blur strength. |
| [Features overview](https://ghostty.org/docs/features) | Accessibility is partial: the Win32 host exposes a UI Automation root provider and the command palette exposes a list provider, but terminal scrollback is not yet exposed through `ITextProvider`. |
| OSC 52 primary/selection clipboard selectors | Windows exposes one native clipboard. OSC 52 writes using selectors `c`, `s`, and `p` all target the standard Windows clipboard. OSC 52 read replies still echo the requested selector (`c`, `s`, or `p`) so terminal clients can correlate the response. |

## No-op Compatibility

| Ghostty docs surface | winghostty note |
| --- | --- |
| [Configuration: `auto-update = download`](https://ghostty.org/docs/config/reference) | Stages only stable Windows installer releases with architecture-specific SHA256 metadata, a matching installer SHA-256, and a valid Authenticode signature. Installer apply is user-initiated and may prompt for UAC. Portable ZIP apply is not implemented. |

## Windows-Specific

| Ghostty docs surface | winghostty note |
| --- | --- |
| [Features overview](https://ghostty.org/docs/features) | Upstream Ghostty docs still say Windows support is planned. winghostty ships a native Win32 app on Windows 10/11 x64 and ARM64. |
| [Features overview: GPU-accelerated rendering](https://ghostty.org/docs/features) | Upstream highlights Metal on macOS and OpenGL on Linux. winghostty renders on Windows with OpenGL 4.3+ via WGL; no D3D/DirectX backend ships. |
| [Configuration](https://ghostty.org/docs/config) | Windows state/config paths live under `%LOCALAPPDATA%\winghostty\...`, not the macOS/Linux paths documented upstream. |
| Local automation | `winghostty +list-windows` reports `winghostty.windows.v2` JSON with local window/tab/pane IDs, focus/active state, and structural counts. `winghostty +perform-action <action>` forwards allowlisted keybinding actions over Win32 single-instance IPC. `--surface-id` targets only surface-scoped actions; app-scoped actions target the app. Terminal-input, arbitrary file helper, and crash actions are rejected by the running instance, and new action variants remain disabled until reviewed. |
| [Features overview](https://ghostty.org/docs/features) | Win32-specific UX includes DWM dark title bar integration, high-contrast palette switching, IME, drag-and-drop, and native context menus. |

## Maintenance Anchors

- `src/config/Config.zig` — config docs, keybinds, `auto-update` docstrings.
- `src/termio/shell_integration.zig` and `src/config/windows_shell.zig` —
  shell integration and Windows shell detection.
- `src/apprt/win32.zig`, `src/apprt/win32_theme.zig`, and
  `src/apprt/win32_uia/` — Win32 runtime, chrome/input, accessibility.
- `docs/status.md` and `docs/getting-started.md` — user-facing summaries that
  should stay aligned with this matrix.