Glances Launcher

July 13, 2026 · View on GitHub

A feature-rich GUI launcher for Glances, the cross-platform system monitoring tool.

This is just an installer and a launcher to launch Glances in a standard and customised ways without falling into the CLI queries. No changes are performed to the official repository. Made only for Linux, planning to expand it for cross-platform.

Theme Platform Python

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Features

  • 7 run modes — Standalone TUI, Web Server, Server, Client, Browser TUI, Browser WebUI, Fetch
  • Tabbed interface — Mode & Features, Display, Export, Advanced settings
  • Live output log — see Glances output directly in the launcher
  • Start / Stop — control Glances processes from the GUI
  • Export support — CSV and JSON with file picker
  • Desktop integration — installs a .desktop entry for your application menu
  • Self-contained — Glances runs in its own virtual environment, no system-wide changes

Screenshot

Screenshot_1 Screenshot_2 Screenshot_3 Screenshot_4

Requirements

  • Linux (X11 or Wayland)
  • Python 3.8+
  • python3-tk (tkinter)
  • Internet connection (for initial Glances install)

Quick Install

git clone https://github.com/yottajunaid/glances-launcher.git
cd glances-launcher
bash install.sh

The installer will:

  1. Create a virtual environment at ~/.local/share/glances-launcher/venv/
  2. Install Glances with all features
  3. Set up a desktop entry in your application menu
  4. Create a glances-launcher command in ~/.local/bin/

Usage

From application menu:

Open your app menu and search for Glances Launcher.

From terminal (optional):

glances-launcher

Run Modes

ModeDescription
Standalone (TUI)Default. Full terminal UI with all stats
Web Server (-w)Starts web server on port 61208
Server Mode (-s)Glances server for remote clients
Client Mode (-c)Connects to a running Glances server
Browser TUIOpens Glances TUI in browser via terminal
Browser WebUIOpens Glances WebUI in browser
Fetch ModeOne-shot data fetch, prints and exits

Uninstall

bash uninstall.sh

Or manually:

rm -rf ~/.local/share/glances-launcher
rm -f ~/.local/bin/glances-launcher
rm -f ~/.local/share/applications/glances-launcher.desktop
rm -f ~/.local/share/icons/hicolor/256x256/apps/glances-launcher.png

Troubleshooting

Desktop entry doesn't appear

update-desktop-database ~/.local/share/applications/

"No terminal emulator found" The launcher needs a terminal for TUI modes. Install one:

# Debian/Ubuntu
sudo apt install gnome-terminal

# Fedora
sudo dnf install gnome-terminal

# Arch
sudo pacman -S gnome-terminal

"tkinter not found"

# Debian/Ubuntu
sudo apt install python3-tk

# Fedora
sudo dnf install python3-tkinter

# Arch
sudo pacman -S tk

License

MIT License. See LICENSE.