Currently, the system appearance (Light/Dark) in GNOME must be switched manually. However, Night Light already provides sa scheduling system (sunset to sunrise or manual times). Many users prefer their system to automatically switch to Dark mode at night and Light mode during the day, to reduce eye strain and match ambient lighting.
Proposal:
Add a scheduling option for Appearance:
Automatic (Sunset to Sunrise)
Manual schedule (custom times)
This could reuse or align with the existing Night Light scheduling logic for consistency.
Why this is useful:
Improves usability and comfort without requiring extensions
Matches an existing GNOME concept (Night Light scheduling)
Reduces need for third-party tweaks or scripts
Already implemented in other environments like KDE Plasma
I also enjoy the automatic scheduling on my systems ever since I discovered the feature on my phone. It’s being tracked here and some design mockups are here.
I’m already aware of this extension, but I don’t see why this functionality hasn’t been integrated into the system itself. There’s already similar behavior built in, and having a native option to schedule light and dark mode would improve accessibility and overall user experience
The Dynamic Wallpaper can be configured by the xml file to change the background on a schedule. I don’t know if this can also be used to change the global light / dark theme.
Changing this file is a dark art. I found your post searching for documentation.
