Advanced Usage

Benchmark Mode

The --benchmark flag displays timing information for the parallel probe phase and total execution:

xfetch --benchmark

Example output:

Parallel probes:   127ms
Total time:        189ms

Benchmark timing covers:

• Parallel probes: GPU detection, package counting, and public IP fetching (run concurrently via thread::scope)
• Total time: Entire execution including config loading, module gathering, rendering, and output

Cache System

xfetch caches certain data to improve performance on repeated runs.

Cache Storage

The cache is stored as a JSON file at:

Platform	Path
Linux	~/.cache/xfetch/cache.json
macOS	~/Library/Caches/xfetch/cache.json
Windows	%LOCALAPPDATA%/xfetch/cache.json

Cached Data

Data	TTL	Purpose
Package counts	5 minutes	Avoid running multiple package manager commands
Public IP	5 minutes	Avoid repeated HTTP requests

Managing the Cache

# Clear all cached data
xfetch --clean-cache

Disabling the Cache

Set disable_cache: true in your configuration to disable caching entirely:

{
    "disable_cache": true
}

This is useful for environments where system state changes frequently or when you want the most current data on every run.

Privacy Controls

xfetch provides options to control network access and data collection.

Disabling Public IP Fetching

The public_ip module makes an HTTP request to an external service. To disable this for privacy:

{
    "disable_ip_fetching": true
}

When enabled, the public_ip module will return "Disabled" instead of attempting to fetch the IP address.

The plugin-based weather module also makes external API calls. To disable it, simply remove the plugin from your configuration.

Network Dependencies by Module

Module	Network Access	External Service
public_ip	Yes	ifconfig.me, api.ipify.org, icanhazip.com
plugin:weather	Yes (if installed)	wttr.in
plugin:github-stats	Yes (if installed)	api.github.com
All other modules	No	N/A

Cross-Platform Behavior

xfetch automatically adapts to the operating system.

Platform-Specific Module Behavior

Module	Linux	macOS	Windows
GPU	lspci -mm	system_profiler SPDisplaysDataType	wmic or PowerShell
Battery	/sys/class/power_supply/BAT*	pmset -g batt	wmic path Win32_Battery
Shell	$SHELL	$SHELL	$PSModulePath check
Datetime	date command	date command	PowerShell
Packages	pacman, dpkg, rpm, flatpak, snap, apk, nix-env	brew	scoop, choco
Config path	~/.config/xfetch/	~/Library/Application Support/xfetch/	%APPDATA%/xfetch/
Cache path	~/.cache/xfetch/	~/Library/Caches/xfetch/	%LOCALAPPDATA%/xfetch/
Binary name	xfetch-plugin-<name>	xfetch-plugin-<name>	xfetch-plugin-<name>.exe

Fallback Chains

xfetch uses graceful fallback chains for platform-specific features:

1. GPU detection: Primary command > fallback command > "Unknown"
2. Battery detection: Primary path > fallback command > "N/A"
3. Display resolution (plugin): xrandr > wlr-randr > xdpyinfo (Linux); system_profiler (macOS); PowerShell (Windows)
4. Timezone (plugin): /etc/timezone > /etc/localtime symlink > timedatectl

Terminal Support

• Color output: All ANSI-capable terminals
• Image logos: iTerm2, Kitty, or Sixel-compatible terminals
• ASCII logos: All terminals
• Animation: Requires TTY. Falls back to static display in pipes or non-TTY contexts.

Performance Optimization

xfetch employs several performance optimizations:

Parallel Probing

The following probes run concurrently using Rust's thread::scope:

• GPU detection
• Package counting
• Public IP fetching

This reduces total execution time by running I/O-bound operations in parallel.

Lazy Initialization

System resources are initialized only when the corresponding module is requested:

• sysinfo::System (CPU, memory, disks, networks) -- initialized lazily
• sysinfo::Disks -- initialized only if a disk module is configured
• sysinfo::Networks -- initialized only if a network module is configured
• sysinfo::Components -- initialized only if temperature modules were configured

Caching

Package counts and public IP lookups are cached with TTLs to avoid redundant system calls and network requests.

Environment Variables Reference

Variable	Description	Used By
USER / LOGNAME	Current username	Core modules (user)
SHELL	Current shell path	Core modules (shell)
HOME	Home directory path	Core modules, plugin discovery
TERM_PROGRAM	Terminal emulator name	Core modules (terminal)
TERM	Terminal type	Core modules (terminal)
WT_SESSION	Windows Terminal session	Core modules (terminal)
XDG_CURRENT_DESKTOP	Desktop environment	Core modules (wm)
DESKTOP_SESSION	Desktop session name	Core modules (wm)
XFETCH_PLUGIN_REPO	Plugin repository URL	Plugin installation
XFETCH_PLUGIN_DEV_DIR	Plugin development directory	Plugin discovery
GITHUB_USER	GitHub username	github-stats plugin
CARGO_NET_GIT_FETCH_WITH_CLI	Force git CLI fetch	Plugin builds