Your One-Stop Reference for TilesWM

Launch and follow the onboarding

Open TilesWM and follow the setup guide to enable window management.

First things first

Launch TilesWM for the first time. The welcome screen greets you with a clean, focused interface that sets the tone for everything ahead.

Adjust everything to your needs, enjoy TilesWM.

Speak your language

If TilesWM couldn't detect your preferred language, choose the one you're most comfortable with. Every word matters.

Grant the power to control

To manage window positions, sizes, and respond to hotkeys, TilesWM needs Accessibility permissions. Click "Enable Accessibility," then choose "Open System Settings" in the prompt.

Activate the toggle

You'll find TilesWM waiting in the Accessibility list. Turn it on. Simple as that.

Authenticate with Touch ID

Your Mac wants to make sure it's really you. Use Touch ID or enter your password to confirm the change.

All set

The toggle indicator is now active. TilesWM is now fully authorized to manage your windows with precision.

Launch at login

Click "Open at login" and watch the notification appear. That's it, you're done. TilesWM will be ready every time you sign in.

See it in action

You don't need to, but if curiosity strikes, click the notification to see TilesWM listed successfully in your login items.

Stay informed

Click "Allow notifications" and the system prompt appears. Notifications keep you in the loop when layouts change or permissions need attention.

Grant permission

Hover to reveal the options, then click "Allow." Done.

Missed the prompt?

No worries. Click "Allow Notifications" again. System Settings opens automatically. Scroll down until you find TilesWM.

Enable manually

Open the TilesWM entry and toggle notifications on. Simple fix.

Notifications ready

Notification setup complete. TilesWM can now keep you updated with helpful, non-intrusive alerts.

Time to create

The onboarding guides you forward. Click "Open Profiles" to begin designing your first layout.

Add your profile

Follow the guidance. Click "Add Profile" to start with a blank canvas.

Name it something

Type a name for your profile. Press Enter or click away when you're satisfied. Hint: A double-click lets you rename it later.

Enter the editor

As the onboarding guides, tap to enter the profile editor for your newly created profile.

Draw your first tile

Hold your primary mouse button, drag across the canvas, and release.

Refine it

Try resizing. Drag the edges until it feels right. When you're ready, press Escape or click the X in the top-right corner. Your first profile is complete.

Time to try it out!

With your profile active, the onboarding guides you one more time. Drag the onboarding window itself to see TilesWM in action.

Hold your activation key

As the settings haven't been changed yet, press and hold Shift while you drag. The overlay appears, showing your tiles.

Success

Release over a highlighted tile and watch your window snap perfectly into place. That's TilesWM. That's the moment everything clicks.

The Context Menu

After completing onboarding and granting all permissions, this is the screen you’ll see first. Beyond instantly switching between your profiles, a whole suite of features awaits discovery.

Visit the product page

Tap the icon next to TilesWM to open its web portal—your central spot for updates, news, an extensive FAQ & Knowledge Base, plus a Feedback Hub for any help you need.

Know what's missing

If Autostart or Notifications aren't enabled, TilesWM tells you directly. You can trigger the request prompts right from here to enable them with ease.

When permissions are revoked

If Accessibility permissions get revoked, TilesWM is unable to operate. The menu makes it crystal clear and offers quick access to fix it.

Quick edit your active profile

Opens the editor for your currently active profile instantly, no need to navigate through Settings → Profiles → Editor. It's a shortcut that saves time.

Check version and updates

The About dialog shows version notes and provides links to the product page and Feedback Hub. Stay informed, stay connected.

Open Settings

Click Settings to access General Settings, Profile Settings, Backup and Restore options, and Debug Mode when enabled.

Switch languages anytime

Change your locale whenever inspiration strikes. TilesWM speaks your language, literally.

Choose your activation key

Default is Left Shift, but you're in control. Pick the key that feels natural to you, or even go keyless with Always Active-Mode.

Fine-tune the overlay delay

Adjust how long the overlay stays visible after you press your activation key. The green indicator shows the timing in real-time. If you often miss the tile highlight, increase the window.

Try Always Active Mode

No need to hold a key, the overlay appears automatically when dragging any window. But when you want to move windows freely, choose a deactivation key to hide the overlay temporarily.

Review your shortcuts

See all your keyboard shortcuts at a glance. Use the trash can icon to disable any shortcut you don't need.

Customize your Hotkeys

Click the pencil to enter edit mode. TilesWM waits for your key combination. Press Escape to cancel if you change your mind.

Instant activation

Once set, your new shortcut works immediately. No restart required.

Dial up the drama

Crank the overlay brightness to 90% for a bold, dimmed desktop that puts full focus on your tiles.

Keep it subtle

Lower it to 10% for a nearly invisible overlay. The tile highlights still guide you without overwhelming your view.

Bold tile visibility

Bump tile opacity to 90% and tiles become almost opaque—highly visible, unmissable.

Gentle guidance

At 10%, tiles are almost invisible but present enough to place your windows with precision.

Express yourself with color

The accent color applies to the UI and the tile highlights, helping you identify profiles at a glance.

Enable basic debugging

Usually only needed when something doesn't work as expected. Activating this adds the Debug tab to the top-right corner.

Advanced debugging requires restart

Enabling Advanced Debug mode prompts you to restart. It works without restarting, but for capturing initialization issues, a restart is recommended.

It became messy?

Resetting only affects the General tab settings—nothing more, nothing less. A 3-second grace period prevents accidental clicks. You may want to make a backup first.

3-second grace period

After 3 seconds, the button activates. You can proceed or abort.

Back to normal

Your general settings return to their default state. Fresh start.

Profiles need a cleanup?

This deletes all your profiles. The same 3-second grace period applies. Make a backup if these layouts matter.

Wait 3 seconds...

When ready, the button activates. Take a breath, then decide.

Profiles cleared

All your profiles are gone. Time to rebuild or restore from backup.

The nuclear option

This wipes everything—settings, profiles, the whole database. Make absolutely sure you have a backup.

Last chance

The 3-second grace period passes. Click to wipe everything clean.

Factory clean

The database is wiped. TilesWM returns to the onboarding screen. You're starting fresh.

Help & Support

The teaching icon gives you instant access to FAQs, the Feedback Hub, and the onboarding guide. Help is always one click away.

Add a new profile

Just like in onboarding, click "Add Profile" to start building a new layout from scratch.

Give it a name

Type a descriptive name. Hit Enter or click away. Done. (You can always rename it later by double-clicking the name.)

Let TilesWM map your windows

Click "Create Profile from Layout." The modal asks you to arrange your windows the way you want your profile to be. Ignore the TilesWM window and modal, they don't count.

Arrange your windows

For example, three windows at the bottom. Position them exactly how you envision your tiles.

Name your creation

Once you hit "Create Profile," TilesWM analyzes your window positions and generates tiles. Give it a name.

See the result

Make sure the profile is active. You'll see the new layout based on your window arrangement.

Magic in action

Windows snap right in. Remember: every window fits in any tile, not just the ones you used during creation.

Mind the minimums

Tiles can be too small. This example shows a tile that's neither tall enough nor wide enough to be usable.

Too short

Insufficient height. Adjust until TilesWM is happy.

Too narrow

Insufficient width. Make it wider.

Know your dimensions

Each tile displays its exact dimensions and aspect ratio at the bottom. Precision at a glance.

Duplicate with ease

Found the perfect tile? Duplicate it and adjust. Saves time.

Resize two at once

When two tiles touch, you can resize both simultaneously by dragging their shared edge.

Works both ways

Horizontal or vertical—dual resize adapts to the tiles you're working with.

Stay aligned horizontally

As you arrange tiles, guidelines appear with magnetic snapping to help you position everything perfectly along the X axis.

Stay aligned vertically

The guide works for the Y axis too. Precision without effort.

Go granular with ⌘

Hold ⌘ for pixel-perfect positioning. No snapping, no dual resize—just pure precision.

Instant delete, use carefully

While holding ⌘, you can also instantly delete tiles. No confirmation. Be careful with this power.

Hold to delete safely

Without ⌘, you need to hold the delete button (trashcan-icon). Prevents accidents.

Custom activation keys

Assign a dedicated activation key for each profile. Overrides the global setting when this profile is active.

Deactivation in Always Active Mode

Using Always Active Mode? The deactivation key setting becomes available here too, of course.

Color-code your profiles

Each profile can have its own accent color, overriding the global setting. Makes switching profiles visually intuitive.

See the difference

The accent color applies to highlights, helping you identify which profile is active at a glance.

Experiment with duplicates

Duplicate a profile to create variations. Maybe give it a new name and tweak it without touching the original.

Hold to delete

Just like in the editor—hold the button until the profile is gone. No accidental deletions.

Quick delete with ⌘

Hold ⌘ and click to instantly delete. Use with caution, mate.

Organize your way

The order of profiles is mirrored in the system context menu. Use the arrows to arrange them as you like. Position example 1/3.

One step down

Press the down arrow once. Position example 2/3.

And another

Press again. Position example 3/3. Your order, your rules.

Your backup command center

The overview provides Backup and Restore functions and shows the actual contents of your backup, securely saved on your machine.

Choose your destination

Click the Backup button and a file dialog opens. Choose where to save your backup—Desktop, Documents, external drive, wherever feels safe.

Confirmation in seconds

If the backup saves correctly, TilesWM tells you immediately. Peace of mind, delivered.

Starting fresh

Imagine you just installed TilesWM on a new Mac or wiped your profiles. This is what you see—empty, ready for restoration.

Select your backup file

Click Restore and the file dialog appears. Find your backup file and select it.

Everything's back

If your backup is valid, everything just got restored—profiles, settings, shortcuts. Like you never left.

Behind the curtain

The base Debug overview provides insights into all the key values TilesWM operates with—activation keys, window positions, timers, delays, database location. Everything that powers the app, laid bare.

Watch it live

Turn on Advanced Debugging and the log shows real-time information about the app—background events, actions, window resizes, everything. If you encounter issues, export this log for the Feedback Hub so bugs can be properly fixed.