Ubuntu 25.04 - Inconsistent Window Button Sizes Across GTK Apps

[Cristiano Fraga G. Nunes]

[ Impact ]

After upgrading system packages on Ubuntu 25.04, the window control buttons (minimize, maximize, close) appear at inconsistent sizes across different GTK applications.

[ Test Case | for libadwaita bug ]

1. Run nautilus, the close buttons circle should have padding
   (similar to GNOME terminal)

[ Test Case | for yaru bug ]

1. Run a pure gtk4 application such as gtk4-demo
2. the close buttons circle should have padding (similar to GNOME terminal)

[ Regression potential ]

Very low, some windows may have extra-large window buttons.

---

**Description:**

After upgrading system packages on Ubuntu 25.04, the window control buttons (minimize, maximize, close) appear at inconsistent sizes across different GTK applications.

For example:
- In **Nautilus** and **GNOME Text Editor**, the window buttons are noticeably **smaller**.
- In **GNOME Terminal**, the window buttons appear **larger**, as expected.

**Steps to Reproduce:**

1. Install Ubuntu using the `ubuntu-25.04-beta-desktop-amd64.iso`.
2. Observe that window button sizes are consistent across GTK apps.
3. Upgrade system packages using the default package manager (`sudo apt update && sudo apt upgrade`).
4. Restart and observe the change in window button sizes across different GTK applications.

**Expected Behavior:**

Window button sizes should remain consistent across all GTK apps, before and after system updates.

**Actual Behavior:**

After the system upgrade, some apps (e.g., Nautilus, GNOME Text Editor) display smaller window buttons, while others (e.g., GNOME Terminal) retain larger buttons.

**Additional Info:**

- ISO used: `ubuntu-25.04-beta-desktop-amd64.iso`
- This issue was not present in the clean installation, only after the upgrade.
- Affects multiple core GNOME apps.

ProblemType: BugDistroRelease: Ubuntu 25.04
Package: gnome-shell 48.0-1ubuntu1
ProcVersionSignature: Ubuntu 6.14.0-11.11-generic 6.14.0-rc7
Uname: Linux 6.14.0-11-generic x86_64
ApportVersion: 2.32.0-0ubuntu3
Architecture: amd64
CasperMD5CheckResult: unknown
CurrentDesktop: ubuntu:GNOME
Date: Thu Apr 10 22:59:06 2025
DisplayManager: gdm3
InstallationDate: Installed on 2025-04-11 (0 days ago)
InstallationMedia: Ubuntu 25.04 "Plucky Puffin" - Beta amd64 (20250326.6)
ProcEnviron:
 LANG=en_US.UTF-8
 PATH=(custom, no user)
 SHELL=/bin/bash
 TERM=xterm-256color
 XDG_RUNTIME_DIR=<set>
RebootRequiredPkgs: Error: path contained symlinks.
RelatedPackageVersions: mutter-common 48.1-1ubuntu3SourcePackage: gnome-shell
UpgradeStatus: No upgrade log present (probably fresh install)

[Daniel van Vugt (vanvugt)]

The difference between GTK apps is because most use GTK4, but some (Terminal) use GTK3.

Either way, the button style is Yaru's responsibility.

[Andreas Hasenack (ahasenack)]

Hello Cristiano, or anyone else affected,

Accepted libadwaita-1 into plucky-proposed. The package will build now and be available at https://launchpad.net/ubuntu/+source/libadwaita-1/1.7.0-1ubuntu2 in a few hours, and then in the -proposed repository.

Please help us by testing this new package. See https://wiki.ubuntu.com/Testing/EnableProposed for documentation on how to enable and use -proposed. Your feedback will aid us getting this update out to other Ubuntu users.

If this package fixes the bug for you, please add a comment to this bug, mentioning the version of the package you tested, what testing has been performed on the package and change the tag from verification-needed-plucky to verification-done-plucky. If it does not fix the bug for you, please add a comment stating that, and change the tag to verification-failed-plucky. In either case, without details of your testing we will not be able to proceed.

Further information regarding the verification process can be found at https://wiki.ubuntu.com/QATeam/PerformingSRUVerification . Thank you in advance for helping!

N.B. The updated package will be released to -updates after the bug(s) fixed by this package have been verified and the package has been in -proposed for a minimum of 7 days.

[Andreas Hasenack (ahasenack)]

When QQ opens, be sure to use 1ubuntu3 (or higher upstream) for the upload.

[Pierre Bordeau (pierrebrd7)]

I tested the version from plucky-proposed and it doesn't completely fix the issue. It works well when Yaru is defined as the gtk theme ("Legacy Applications" in Gnome Tweaks), but when I select another theme (the Default theme or adw-gtk3, a theme that brings adwaita theming to gtk3 apps), I still have the small buttons.

Actually the problem of the small buttons in libadwaita apps does not come from Yaru, it is a libadwaita issue that has already been fixed in upstream libadwaita 1.7.2 (see https://gitlab.gnome.org/GNOME/libadwaita/-/issues/1022 and the fix commit that only changes 1 character : https://gitlab.gnome.org/GNOME/libadwaita/-/commit/53a4f46d3a390d617b3d91463725184145c43287 )

So I believe that integrating the upstream fix would be a better idea since it would work without being limited to the Yaru theme.

[Marco Trevisan (Treviño) (3v1n0)]

> I tested the version from plucky-proposed and it doesn't completely fix the issue. It works well when Yaru is defined as the gtk theme ("Legacy Applications" in Gnome Tweaks).

Ok, that's enough for the ubuntu experience though (as we don't really support other themes), so let's mark this as done for now so at last most users get the fix, however the other fix is will be handled with the next SRU including 1.7.2, but we'll also need https://gitlab.gnome.org/GNOME/libadwaita/-/commit/37411631c52c397a0cd6939c336f4375181e35c7 that has not been released yet (but part of the stable branch), so I feel it's better to go with this SRU first and then re-iterate on next point releases.

[Andreas Hasenack (ahasenack)]

@3v1n0 could you or someone from your team please handle a questing upload, so we don't have the upgradability problem?

Current versions of libadwaita-1:
 libadwaita-1 | 1.7.0-1ubuntu1 | questing | source
 libadwaita-1 | 1.7.0-1ubuntu2 | plucky-proposed | source

[Benoît Rouits (brouits)]

In my case, there is still an unpleasant glitch with Yaru-* themes (tested Yaru and Yaru-blue-dark) for pure Gtk4 applications, such as gtk4-demo: Window decoration have non-circled window buttons, but they look like vertical beans instead (see first screenshot witht "gtk4-demo").

Other pure Gtk4 apps from my own which have client-side window decoration made with GtkHeaderBar type have exactly the same problem.

[Timo Aaltonen (tjaalton)]

still waiting for the questing upload

[Andreas Hasenack (ahasenack)]

The update of libadwaita-1 for plucky is still blocked on a questing upload:
 libadwaita-1 | 1.7.0-1ubuntu1 | plucky | source
 libadwaita-1 | 1.7.0-1ubuntu1 | questing | source
 libadwaita-1 | 1.7.0-1ubuntu2 | plucky-proposed | source

[Launchpad Janitor (janitor)]

This bug was fixed in the package libadwaita-1 - 1.7.2-1ubuntu1

---------------
libadwaita-1 (1.7.2-1ubuntu1) questing; urgency=medium

  * Merge with debian, containing new upstream release:
    - Add 2 patches to adjust accent colors for Ubuntu
    - Add patch to set orange as default accent color instead of blue
    - Add patch to include a warty brown accent color
    - Update debian/salsa-ci.yml & debian/gbp.conf for Ubuntu
  * d/p: Drop unneeded yaru-only patch for window button paddings.
    Related to LP: #2106784
  * d/p: Add upstream fix for window buttons padding on default decoration.
    Related to LP: #2106784

libadwaita-1 (1.7.2-1) unstable; urgency=medium

  * New upstream release

libadwaita-1 (1.7.1-1) unstable; urgency=medium

  * New upstream release

libadwaita-1 (1.7.0-1ubuntu2) plucky; urgency=medium

  * d/p/ubuntu: Increase size for window controls button in stylesheet
    (LP: #2106784)

 -- Marco Trevisan (Treviño) <email address hidden> Fri, 23 May 2025 15:46:22 +0200

[Launchpad Janitor (janitor)]

This bug was fixed in the package libadwaita-1 - 1.7.0-1ubuntu2

---------------
libadwaita-1 (1.7.0-1ubuntu2) plucky; urgency=medium

  * d/p/ubuntu: Increase size for window controls button in stylesheet
    (LP: #2106784)

 -- Marco Trevisan (Treviño) <email address hidden> Tue, 15 Apr 2025 19:07:58 +0200

[Andreas Hasenack (ahasenack)]

The verification of the Stable Release Update for libadwaita-1 has completed successfully and the package is now being released to -updates. Subsequently, the Ubuntu Stable Release Updates Team is being unsubscribed and will not receive messages about this bug report. In the event that you encounter a regression using the package from -updates please report a new bug using ubuntu-bug and tag the bug report regression-update so we can easily find any regressions.