Window: arrange your workspace from the keyboard

For separate mode pages and videos, start with the Window management overview.

Put your browser on the left and your editor on the right, collect scattered windows into tab groups, and save layouts you use every day. Start with moving one window, then build a workspace that suits your work.

Try moving a window first

Place the pointer over an ordinary window → press Alt+W → release the entry keys → move with H/J/K/L → press Q to finish.

This page uses shipped defaults. Alt+W means Alt on Windows and Option on macOS, not Command+W. Primary defaults to left Alt on Windows and Command on macOS. Capital letters make keys easier to read; only hold Shift where Shift+ is written.

Choose what you want to do

Your goal	From Window, press	Next step
Move, resize, centre, or change displays	Stay in Window	Adjust with direction keys; S toggles resizing
Place one window on half the screen or in a corner	A → Quick	Choose a direction and proportion
Arrange several windows and fine-tune regions	E → Editor	Start with automatic arrangement, then edit
Collect windows into switchable tab groups	T → Tabs	Group windows from the same app automatically, or combine them yourself
Restore a saved layout or tab template	R → Restore	Type its number in the list

In Quick, Editor, Tabs, or Restore, Q returns to Window; another Q returns to Idle. Primary+Q goes directly to Idle. Leaving a mode keeps applied changes; use undo to revert them.

Move and select windows

Entering Window activates and locks the window under the pointer. Moving the pointer elsewhere does not automatically change the target. Type a displayed window number to activate that window and move the pointer to its centre.

Key	Action in Window
H / J / K / L	Move left / down / up / right; hold for continuous adjustment
S	Toggle movement and resizing around the centre
C	Centre the window
D	Move to the next display
F	Cycle maximize → minimize → restore
Number	Select a window by number
Tab / Shift+Tab	Next / previous window; prefer members of the current tab group
X	Request that the window close; the app may ask you to save
Z / Shift+Z	Undo / redo window adjustments
Shift+C	Restore positions, sizes, and window states from the start of this window session

By default, candidates are non-minimized windows on the current display. Existing numbers stay stable where possible: closing a window does not renumber the others, although re-entering may reclaim gaps. Only a prefix that could form a longer number waits, for 250 ms by default.

Need to click something? Hold Primary to temporarily use Normal's pointer movement, scrolling, and click bindings. Release it to resume the same target. Each window mode has independent direction bindings; remapping Normal does not automatically remap these modes.

Recipe one: browser and editor side by side

1. Place the pointer over your browser, press Alt+W, release the entry keys, then press A for Quick.
2. Press H to place the browser on the left half.
3. Type your editor's window number, then press L to place it on the right half.
4. Press Q to return to Window, then Q again to start working.

Quick adjusts each axis independently. The first direction starts with the configured proportion nearest half a screen; repeating the direction shrinks it, while the opposite direction expands it. For example, press K after choosing the left half to place the window in the upper-left area. Default proportions are 1/4, 1/3, 1/2, 2/3, 3/4, plus an automatically included full-screen proportion. Press Z to undo.

Recipe two: arrange everything, then give your main window more room

Press Alt+W, then E for Editor. Entering immediately attempts to arrange candidate windows. Layouts respect application minimum sizes; there is no Enter-to-apply step.

Key	Action in Editor
H / J / K / L	Select the region to the left / below / above / right
Shift+H/J/K/L	Split in the chosen direction
Ctrl+H / Ctrl+L	Decrease / increase the selected region's width
Ctrl+K / Ctrl+J	Decrease / increase the selected region's height
Two window numbers	Select two windows in sequence to swap their positions
Backtick (`), then a region number	Select a region; with a source window selected, move it into an empty region
X	Remove a region without closing the application window
Z / Shift+Z	Undo / redo edits
Ctrl+S	Save the layout

For example, select your editor's region with the direction keys, then press Ctrl+L to widen it. Neighbouring regions adjust together to keep the layout tiled. If an application's minimum size prevents an adjustment, read the on-screen message and try another region or fewer splits. Z steps back through edits, including the automatic arrangement on entry.

Recipe three: turn scattered windows into tab groups

Press T from Window to group compatible, ungrouped windows from the same application separately on each display, preserving existing groups. Press Z to undo this automatic grouping.

You can also combine windows from different applications:

1. Choose the first displayed window number, for example 1, then press Space to end the number.
2. Type the second window number, for example 2, then Space. They form a group immediately.
3. Add more numbers to append members. Press T to finish this group and prepare another.
4. Press Q to return to Window. Groups remain after leaving the mode; click a tab to switch members.

The numbers 1 and 2 are examples: use the numbers on your screen. Space makes the boundary explicit so windows 1 and 2 are not interpreted as window 12.

Key	Action in Tabs
Tab / Shift+Tab or J / K	Next / previous tab
H / L	Reorder the active tab left / right
~, then a group number	Select a whole group, such as ~1
D	Remove the active member from its group
X	Dissolve the group without closing applications
Z / Shift+Z	Undo / redo grouping and ordering
Ctrl+S	Save a tab template

Only the active member is shown. Quick and Editor treat a group as one layout target. Minimizing the active member minimizes the group; dissolving it or quitting KeySteer normally restores members hidden by KeySteer. Groups last until dissolved or KeySteer exits; save a template to reuse them later.

On Windows, you can also drag tabs after leaving the mode: reorder them, move a window to another strip, or drag ~group number to merge a whole group. Scroll the strip when there are many tabs. macOS uses system minimize/restore operations to switch members, so system animations may appear. Native fullscreen and incompatible windows report that grouping is unsupported.

Save and restore a workspace

Press Ctrl+S in Editor or Tabs, type a note in the bottom field, and press Enter to save. Notes are optional and limited to 80 characters. Try names such as “Coding” or “Reading and notes”.

Press R from Window to open the shared preset list, then type a preset number. Use PageUp / PageDown to browse six entries per page.

Template type	What restoring does
Layout	Fills saved regions with current windows; on success, enters Editor by default for further adjustment
Tabs	Enters Tabs so you can choose the required windows in order; applies when all are selected, and can be cancelled before then

Templates do not save application identities, launch apps, or reopen documents. Layout restoration uses the current windows' recent activity order. Extra windows stay where they are; missing windows leave empty regions. For tab templates, you choose the members again.

To delete a preset, press X in Restore to switch to deletion, type its number, check the displayed name, and press Enter. Press X again to return to restoration. Deleting a template does not affect an existing tab group.

Layouts and tab templates share workspace.ksw: beside the executable on Windows portable builds, or in ~/Library/Application Support/KeySteer/ for the macOS app. Use the Configuration & simulator to import, practise, and export. The website only changes sample windows and browser storage. Replace the file in the application's data directory with your export, then reopen Restore; back up the original file before replacing it if needed.

Adjust audio without leaving your layout

These default combinations work in Window, Quick, and Editor. Hold V and press the partner key; add Shift for system controls.

Scope	Volume down / up	Toggle mute	Previous / next output device
Application owning the target window	V+J / V+K	V+M	V+H / V+L
System	Shift+V+J / Shift+V+K	Shift+V+M	Shift+V+H / Shift+V+L

Volume changes by 1% per step. Raising application volume does not automatically unmute it. Multiple windows from the same app may share an audio session.

• Windows: application volume needs an available audio session; start playback if none is found. Whether a device change moves an existing stream immediately depends on the application.
• macOS: system audio works on macOS 14+; independent application audio needs macOS 14.2+ and System Audio Recording permission. Local processing adds audio latency. Some output devices do not support software volume control.

Troubleshooting

What you see	What to try
A window has no number	Check its display, minimized state, and compatibility; candidate scope is configurable independently for each mode
Leaving does not restore the previous layout	Leaving keeps changes; use Z, or Shift+C in Window/Quick/Editor to restore this session's initial state
X does something unexpected	Window closes a window, Editor removes a region, Tabs dissolves a group, and Restore toggles deletion; check the current mode hint
New shortcuts do not work after upgrading	An explicit [mode.bindings] replaces that mode's default table; add new bindings from the latest defaults

Continue with Window configuration, the action reference, or macOS installation and permissions.

Window number card style

Window and A / E / R / T share [window.card]; do not repeat this section under child modes. app_font_size and title_font_size set the two text sizes (0 = automatic). app_font_family and title_font_family set their fonts (empty = inherit the current mode ui.font_family). app_bold and title_bold control bold text.

background_color, border_color, number_color, app_color and title_color set the background, border, number, application name and title colors. Use #RRGGBBAA or a light/dark table, for example app_color = { light = "#19357DFF", dark = "#E8EEFFFF" }. Omitted colors inherit the current mode UI/theme. The default configuration includes commented examples.

text_width sets each text column width (default 260); padding_x / padding_y set text padding (9 / 4); line_height sets the row height multiplier (1.4); min_height sets the minimum card height (44); number_min_width sets the minimum number width (38). Dimensions use logical pixels. Rows follow the larger font size, and text is truncated when space is limited. Number font size, border width and corner radius still use each mode ui.font_size, ui.border_width and ui.border_radius. Internal export and the web editor support these settings.

Card positioning

[window.card] supports position_mode (window / screen) and position. Defaults: position_mode = "window", position = ["50%", "50%", "50%", "50%"]. The four percentage strings are top, right, bottom and left insets. Values must be 0% to 100%, with opposite sides totaling no more than 100%. Four 50% values collapse to the center point.

window anchors each card within its window; Editor has a separate position override, defaulting to top center. screen packs cards into a compact rectangle on the current target display, ordered left to right then top to bottom. Use position = ["0%", "0%", "100%", "0%"] for a full-width top row that wraps when necessary. Switching displays recomputes geometry using the new display work area and DPI.

Positions are preferences: existing collision avoidance still moves cards away from region numbers, other cards and the help panel. Cards may leave the preferred range when space is limited. All window modes share this configuration; percentages are parsed when configuration loads.

Editor overrides position only: set position and optionally position_mode in [window_editor.card]. Colors, fonts and sizes still inherit [window.card]. Editor defaults to window positioning at top center, with position = ["0%", "50%", "100%", "50%"]. Changing the base Window position does not change this default. Quick, Restore and Tabs retain their original positioning. The simulator edits each mode position separately while retaining shared style controls.