Kinesis Advantage 360 Configurator

A native Linux GUI application for configuring the Kinesis Advantage 360 keyboard. Since the official SmartSet app doesn't work on Linux, this tool provides a graphical interface to edit the keyboard's configuration files directly on the V-Drive.

Features

• 🎨 Visual Keyboard Layout - Interactive split keyboard visualization matching the actual Kinesis 360 layout
• 🔄 9 Layout Support - Switch between and manage all 9 keyboard layouts
• 📋 Layout Copying - Easily duplicate layouts to speed up configuration
• 🎯 Key Remapping - Visual interface for remapping keys (coming soon)
• 💾 Direct V-Drive Access - Reads and writes configuration files directly to the keyboard
• 🐧 Native Linux - Built with GTK4 and Rust for a fast, native experience

Screenshots

Screenshots coming soon

Installation

Prerequisites

• Rust 1.70 or later
• GTK4 development libraries
• libadwaita development libraries
• cairo development libraries

Arch Linux

sudo pacman -S gtk4 libadwaita cairo

Ubuntu/Debian

sudo apt install libgtk-4-dev libadwaita-1-dev libcairo2-dev

Fedora

sudo dnf install gtk4-devel libadwaita-devel cairo-devel

Building from Source

git clone https://github.com/codemonkey76/kinesis-configurator.git
cd kinesis-configurator
cargo build --release

The binary will be at target/release/kinesis-configurator

Running

cargo run

Or install globally:

cargo install --path .
kinesis-configurator

Usage

1. Enable V-Drive Mode

Press SmartSet + Hk3 on your Kinesis Advantage 360 keyboard to enable V-Drive mode. The keyboard will appear as a USB storage device.

2. Mount the V-Drive (Linux)

The V-Drive typically doesn't auto-mount on Linux. You can either:

Option A: Manual mount

# Find the device
lsblk

# Mount it (replace /dev/sdX1 with your device)
sudo mkdir -p /mnt/kinesis
sudo mount /dev/sdX1 /mnt/kinesis

Option B: Use your file manager

Most Linux file managers will show the device and allow you to mount it with a click.

3. Detect and Load Configuration

1. Click Detect Keyboard to find the mounted V-Drive
2. Click Load Config to load your current keyboard configuration
3. Switch between layouts using the numbered buttons (1-9)
4. Make changes to your configuration
5. Click Save Config to write changes back to the keyboard

4. Exit V-Drive Mode

Press SmartSet + Hk3 again to return to normal keyboard operation.

Project Structure

kinesis-configurator/
├── src/
│   ├── main.rs              # Application entry point
│   ├── ui/
│   │   ├── mod.rs
│   │   ├── main_window.rs   # Main application window
│   │   └── keyboard_view.rs # Visual keyboard component
│   ├── config/
│   │   ├── mod.rs           # Configuration data structures
│   │   ├── parser.rs        # Config file parser
│   │   └── generator.rs     # Config file generator
│   └── vdrive/
│       └── mod.rs           # V-Drive detection and I/O
├── Cargo.toml
└── README.md

Roadmap

• V-Drive detection
• Visual keyboard layout
• Layout switching (1-9)
• Layout copying
• Key remapping interface
• Macro editor
• Lighting configuration
• Import/export configurations
• Undo/redo support
• Configuration presets

Contributing

Contributions are welcome! Please feel free to submit a Pull Request.

Development

# Run with debug output
RUST_LOG=debug cargo run

# Run tests
cargo test

# Format code
cargo fmt

# Lint
cargo clippy

Technical Details

• Language: Rust
• GUI Framework: GTK4 with libadwaita
• Architecture: Relm4 (Elm-inspired framework for GTK apps)
• Drawing: Cairo for keyboard visualization

Known Issues

• V-Drive auto-mounting doesn't work on some Linux distributions
• Configuration file format parsing is still in development
• Key remapping UI not yet implemented

FAQ

Q: Why doesn't the V-Drive auto-mount?
A: This is a Linux limitation with certain USB storage devices. Manual mounting is required on most systems.

Q: Will this work with the original Kinesis Advantage (non-360)?
A: Not currently, as the configuration format is different. PRs welcome!

Q: Can I brick my keyboard with this?
A: Unlikely, but always keep a backup of your configuration files. The keyboard's firmware is separate from the configuration.

License

MIT License - see LICENSE file for details

Acknowledgments

• Built with Relm4
• Inspired by the need for Linux support in the Kinesis community
• Thanks to all contributors and testers

Support

If you encounter issues or have questions:

• Open an issue on GitHub
• Check existing issues for solutions
• Join the discussion in the Kinesis community forums

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Note: This is an unofficial tool and is not affiliated with or endorsed by Kinesis Corporation.