retrobar.dev
v1.22.122

Tools

Tools for RetroBar

Each tool solves a problem RetroBar users ask about in its issue tracker, and each runs entirely in your browser: nothing you type or open is uploaded. They are built from RetroBar 1.22.122's own source files, so the settings, theme keys and file names they know about are exactly the ones in this release.

Checked against RetroBar 1.22.122Updated 2 min read
SettingsSettings BuilderChange any of the 41 settings in a form that mirrors RetroBar Properties, see a preview, and get a ready settings.json or a PowerShell script that switches theme and settings. The answer to RetroBar's most-discussed request, setting the theme from the command line (issue #958). We tested the script on Windows. MakeoverRetro MakeoverPick Windows 95, 98, Me, 2000, XP, Vista or 7 and get one script that sets RetroBar's theme and that version's taskbar habits, installs Open-Shell with our preset (hash checked) and sets the desktop colour. It writes an undo script. ThemesTheme StudioMake your own theme from a built-in one: change colours, font and height with a live preview, and download a .xaml that loads the way that worked in our tests. ThemesTheme CheckerPaste or drop a .xaml theme. It finds XAML errors, duplicate keys, misspelt or removed keys, wrong types, and the image paths that make downloaded themes crash RetroBar, which we reproduced on Windows. DownloadDownload chooserTells you which of the two downloads you need and which of the five builds inside the portable zip to run, with its SHA-256 and the .NET runtime it needs. Detects your processor where the browser allows it. Start menuOpen-Shell presetsThree ready Open-Shell settings files that match RetroBar's classic, XP and Vista themes, tested on Windows with RetroBar's Start button and the Windows key.

Why these tools

We built tools only where RetroBar users clearly need one and a page of text is not enough:

  • RetroBar has no command-line options, and its settings file stores choices as numbers. The Settings Builder writes the file and the script for you.
  • Downloaded themes fail in ways that are hard to see: a wrong path makes RetroBar crash or fall back to grey without saying why. The Theme Checker reads the file the way RetroBar does.
  • Since 1.22 the portable download holds five builds in one zip. The chooser saves the guesswork.
  • Making a theme means writing XAML, and a custom theme that inherits a built-in one only loads with the right path. The Theme Studio writes the file with the path we tested.
  • A retro look takes several programs and settings: RetroBar, a theme, Open-Shell and its settings, the desktop. Retro Makeover does the tested parts in one go and can undo them.

Keep going

Settings referenceEvery setting, what it does, and its settings.json key.Custom themesInstall, fix and make your own .xaml themes.DownloadThe right official file for your PC, with verified hashes.

Found something out of date or wrong? Tell us at hello@retrobar.dev and we will fix it.