Aegis

A macOS menu bar replacement for tiling window managers. Transforms your menu bar and notch into a control center for spaces, windows, and system status. Supports Yabai, AeroSpace, and Rift — auto-detected at launch.

Window Manager Support

Aegis auto-detects your window manager at launch. No configuration required.

Feature	Yabai	AeroSpace	Rift
Workspace display	macOS native spaces	Virtual (1–9)	Virtual
Click to switch workspace	✓	✓	✓
Window icons per workspace	✓	✓	✓ (cached)
Drag reorder workspaces	✓	—	—
Create workspace	✓	✓	✓
Destroy workspace	✓	—	—
Send window to workspace	✓	✓	✓
Focus window (click)	✓	✓	✓
Drag window between workspaces	✓	—	✓
Float / unfloat window	✓	✓	✓
Toggle fullscreen	✓	✓	✓
Stack windows	✓	—	—
BSP / tiling layout toggle	✓	✓	✓
Close / minimize window	—	✓	—
Resize window	—	✓	—
Mode visualiser	—	✓	—
Multi-monitor focus/move	—	✓	—
App switcher (Cmd+Tab) by workspace	✓	✓	✓
Event system	FIFO pipe	FIFO pipe	Mach subscription
Setup prompt	✓	✓	Auto

Full feature matrix in WINDOW_MANAGERS.md

Features

Menu Bar

Space indicators - Visual workspace display with app icons, click to switch, scroll to navigate, drag to reorder. Focused window title auto-expands with live updates

App launcher - Quick-access floating apps button with configurable app list (e.g. finder, iTerm, passwords etc)

aegis_2_applauncher_2_scrollmenu.mp4

Context button - a scroll-able button to cycle through yabai commands. Right click menu for expanded commands (stack windows, move to/destroy space, access settings etc)

aegis_3_context_menu.mp4

• System status - Battery, WiFi, Focus mode, clock
• Multi-display support - Menu bars on all connected monitors with configurable modes (auto, primary only, per-monitor, all show all)

Notch HUD

Volume	Brightness
aegis_4_notch_volume.mp4	aegis_4_notch_brightness.mp4
Focus Mode	Device Connect
aegis_4_notch_focus.mp4	aegis_4_notch_deviceconnect.mp4
Media
aegis_4_notch_music.mp4

• Media - Album art with visualizer or track info (static or marquee scrolling for long titles)
  • Works with Music, Spotify, Safari, Chrome, Firefox, YouTube, and more
• Notifications - Intercepts system notifications, click to open source app

App Switcher

• Cmd+Tab replacement - Window previews with app icons
• Scroll navigation - Two-finger scroll to cycle through windows
• Cmd+scroll activation - Optional gesture to open switcher (configurable)

Other

• Customizable - JSON config file with hot-reload, plus Settings panel with custom theme color pickers and saveable presets
• Auto-updates - Built-in update checking via Sparkle
• Energy efficient - Coalescing event gate, fixed-duration animations, and non-reactive view isolation for minimal CPU usage

Quick Start

1. Install a supported window manager

Yabai:

brew install koekeishiya/formulae/yabai

See the Yabai wiki for SIP and scripting addition setup.

AeroSpace:

brew install --cask nikitabobko/tap/aerospace

See AeroSpace docs for configuration.

Rift: Download from Rift or your preferred source.

2. Install Aegis

Download from Releases or build from source:

git clone https://github.com/CCMurphy-Dev/Aegis.git
cd Aegis
open Aegis.xcodeproj

3. Launch — Aegis auto-detects your WM

On first launch, Aegis detects your running window manager and prompts for any required setup (FIFO pipe integration for Yabai/AeroSpace). You can also run setup manually:

# Yabai
~/.config/aegis/setup-aegis-yabai.sh

# AeroSpace
~/.config/aegis/setup-aegis-aerospace.sh

Rift connects automatically via its Mach subscription API — no setup needed.

4. Grant Permissions

• Accessibility - System Settings → Privacy & Security → Accessibility

Requirements

• macOS 14.0+ (Sonoma)
• Apple Silicon Mac with notch (recommended)
• One of: Yabai, AeroSpace, or Rift

Documentation

• User Guide - Full documentation, configuration, and troubleshooting
• Changelog - Version history
• Architecture - Technical overview for developers
• Roadmap - Completed features and future ideas

License

MIT License - see LICENSE for details.

Acknowledgments

• Yabai - Tiling window manager
• AeroSpace - i3-inspired tiling window manager
• Rift - Modern macOS tiling window manager
• skhd - Hotkey daemon
• Sparkle - Auto-update framework
• mediaremote-adapter - Media integration (Now Playing)
• Barik & Mew-Notch - Inspiration

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Aegis - A shield for your macOS menu bar.