Where Does Cinnamon Store Settings?
Cinnamon stores core settings in dconf with applet configs in ~/.cinnamon. Spices live under ~/.local/share/cinnamon.
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Cinnamon splits three ways. Core desktop settings (panels, effects, workspaces) live in dconf under org.cinnamon, shared-binary with the GNOME store at ~/.config/dconf/user. Per-applet, desklet, and extension configs live as JSON under ~/.cinnamon/configs, one folder per object. Spices code itself installs to ~/.local/share/cinnamon with themes in ~/.themes.
Backups need all three: dconf dump for core, configs dir for applet state, local-share for the spice code. Missing any one restores a desktop with default panels, mute applets, or absent themes respectively. The Spices website and in-settings downloader both target the same local-share paths, so manual and GUI installs converge.
Where Cinnamon stores this, by platform
~/.config/dconf/user (plus ~/.cinnamon)
Core Cinnamon settings in the shared dconf db. Dump org.cinnamon paths for text backups. Applet state and spice code live in the sibling paths; all three move together.
Frequently asked questions
how do i back up my cinnamon desktop
Dump dconf (dconf dump /org/cinnamon/) plus copy ~/.cinnamon and ~/.local/share/cinnamon with the session stopped. Core settings, applet configs, and spice code travel as three halves. Restore all three for the identical desktop.
how do i reset cinnamon applets
Remove the applet configs under ~/.cinnamon/configs and log back in. Panels rebuild from dconf defaults while spicy code stays installed. Export applet settings first when the option exists; reimport beats reconfiguring.
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