Building the Aero7 Desktop

Aero7 is beginning work on its own desktop environment. The long-term goal is to replace KDE Plasma as the visible desktop shell with an interface designed and maintained specifically for Aero7.

This does not mean discarding the strong open-source technology underneath. Aero7 Desktop will use proven KDE and Linux components where they make sense while giving Aero7 full control over the interface people see and use every day.

Intended architecture

                     AERO7 DESKTOP
                           │
             ┌─────────────┴──────────────┐
             │                            │
        Aero7 user interface         KDE/Linux backend
             │                            │
   ┌─────────┼─────────┐         ┌────────┼────────┐
   │         │         │         │        │        │
 Taskbar    Start    Desktop    KWin   KScreen   KDE
  Tray      Menu      Icons             etc.    Frameworks
   │         │         │
 Notify    Search    Gadgets
 Clock     Programs
 Volume
 Network
                           │
                       Wayland
                           │
                        Linux

What Aero7 will own

A dedicated Aero7 taskbar and system tray
An Aero7 Start menu with search and program launching
Desktop icons and future desktop gadgets
Notifications, clock, volume, and network controls
A consistent interface that feels native to the rest of Aero7

What remains underneath

KWin, KScreen, KDE Frameworks, Wayland, and Linux provide mature foundations for window management, display handling, application integration, and hardware support. Reusing these components lets the project focus its effort on creating the Aero7 experience instead of rebuilding every low-level system at once.

Why we are doing this

Aero7 has grown beyond a theme. Owning the desktop shell will let us create a more consistent experience, integrate Aero7 applications more deeply, and evolve the interface without being limited by the structure of another desktop environment.

A gradual transition

This is a long-term development effort, not an immediate switch. KDE Plasma remains the current Aero7 desktop while the new shell is designed, built, and tested component by component. Stability and a usable system come first.

Progress, experiments, and testing opportunities will be shared through the weekly development logs. We look forward to building the next stage of Aero7 with the community.