---
title: waybar-pomodoro-not-showing
type: note
permalink: dotfiles/plans/waybar-pomodoro-not-showing
tags:
- waybar
- pomodoro
- plan
---

# Waybar Pomodoro Not Showing Implementation Plan

> For implementation: use `subagent-driven-development` when subagents are available; otherwise use `executing-plans`.

**Goal:** Restore the Waybar pomodoro module so it reliably appears on the bar.

**Architecture:** The `custom/pomodoro` Waybar module depends on an external `waybar-module-pomodoro` binary and a preset helper script. The most likely failure mode is launch-time PATH mismatch between Hyprland/Waybar and the interactive shell, so the minimal fix is to make module and helper invocations explicit and independent of shell PATH.

**Tech Stack:** JSONC-style Waybar config, shell script, Hyprland/Wayland desktop environment.

## File map
- Modify `.config/waybar/config` — make the pomodoro module invoke the binary explicitly.
- Modify `.config/waybar/scripts/pomodoro-preset.sh` — make the preset helper use the same explicit binary path.

## Task 1: Fix pomodoro command wiring

**Files:**
- Modify: `.config/waybar/config`
- Modify: `.config/waybar/scripts/pomodoro-preset.sh`

**Acceptance criteria:**
- `custom/pomodoro` no longer depends on login-session PATH to find `waybar-module-pomodoro`.
- Right-click preset switching still works.
- The change is minimal and limited to pomodoro-related wiring.

**Non-goals:**
- Do not refactor unrelated Waybar modules.
- Do not add system-wide installation steps or package management changes.

**Verification:**
- Run `bash -n /home/alex/dotfiles/.config/waybar/scripts/pomodoro-preset.sh` successfully.
- Run `/home/alex/.local/bin/waybar-module-pomodoro --help` successfully to verify the explicit binary path exists.
- Inspect resulting config references to confirm they use the explicit path consistently.

**Likely regression surfaces:**
- Right-click preset command path drift.
- Middle-click reset command still using the old bare binary name.

## Pre-mortem
- Most likely failure: only one of the pomodoro entry points is updated, leaving click actions broken.
- Fragile assumption: the binary remains at `/home/alex/.local/bin/waybar-module-pomodoro`.
- Redesign trigger: if the binary path is unstable across sessions or machines, prefer a Hyprland PATH fix instead.
- Easy-to-miss regression: preset helper still using `command -v` and failing under Waybar's environment.

## Execution notes
- Updated `.config/waybar/config` `custom/pomodoro` wiring to use `$HOME/.local/bin/waybar-module-pomodoro` for `exec`, `on-click`, and `on-click-middle`.
- Updated `.config/waybar/scripts/pomodoro-preset.sh` to remove PATH reliance by introducing `POMODORO_BIN="$HOME/.local/bin/waybar-module-pomodoro"`, replacing the `command -v` guard with `[[ ! -x "$POMODORO_BIN" ]]`, and routing all `set-work`/`set-short`/`set-long` calls through `"$POMODORO_BIN"`.
- Scope remained pomodoro-only; no unrelated Waybar modules or scripts were changed.

## Outcomes
- `bash -n /home/alex/dotfiles/.config/waybar/scripts/pomodoro-preset.sh` passed (no syntax errors).
- `/home/alex/.local/bin/waybar-module-pomodoro --help` succeeded and printed usage, confirming explicit-path binary availability.
- No practical automated test harness exists here for full Waybar runtime rendering in this task context; verification used the minimal command-level checks above.