What Is This?

This software is a tool that restores the title bar lost in recent updates of the official Discord client app.

Until recently, the Linux version of Discord displayed the window manager’s title bar rather than Discord’s own custom title bar, unlike the Windows version. With a recent update this changed: Discord now uses its own title bar on Linux, just like on Windows, and the window manager’s title bar is hidden.

Installation

DiscordPatcher is just a shell script, so once you have the required packages installed it can be run immediately.
DiscordPatcher requires the asar command, and installing that requires npm.
On Debian‑based distributions you can install them with:

sudo apt install npm
sudo npm install -g asar

You might be prompted to install @electron/asar instead of asar. If you can install NodeJS 22 or newer, you may use that. On Debian only NodeJS 20 is available, so simply install asar.

How to Use

First, install Discord. When the installation is finished, open Discord once, wait until the main window appears, then press Ctrl + Q to quit completely. Verify that the Discord icon has disappeared from the system tray.

After that, simply run this tool from the terminal. There are no command‑line options. Running it immediately modifies the client app.
If the modification completes without error, the message Discord was successfuly patched! will be displayed. When you open Discord again, the title bar should be restored.

Because updating Discord will revert the change, you must repeat the same steps after each update.

Why You Might Want to Restore the Window Manager’s Title Bar

• Custom Title‑Bar Buttons
  Discord’s built‑in title bar forces the window‑control buttons to be right‑aligned in a Windows‑style layout. Some window managers use non‑Windows layouts, and others provide customization options to adjust button placement. If you prefer a macOS‑style title bar, the Motif Window Manager layout, or you’ve applied your own unique custom arrangement, Discord’s custom title bar will ruin that. Restore the window‑manager title bar to regain desktop usability!

• Desktop Cohesion
  With the title bar hidden, Discord looks different from the other windows. This breaks the visual unity of your desktop. You probably want your favorite theme to apply to every window.

• Window Effects
  Some window managers add shadows or borders to windows. Discord does not receive these effects, so the window boundary becomes invisible. When resizing, you might accidentally click on another window.

Disclaimer

Discord’s terms of service prohibit modifying the client. Using this tool may violate those terms, so use it at your own risk and exercise caution.
After all, it’s Discord that’s really at fault, isn’t it?

Finally, to the Discord developers who degrade usability for the sake of their own design: stop it. Discord’s design—installing system‑wide via a .deb package yet storing the client binary in each user’s home directory—is fundamentally flawed. Discord simply doesn’t understand GNU/Linux. After all, it is proprietary software. We shouldn’t expect or rely on proprietary software, and we shouldn’t use it. Encourage friends who use Discord to switch to better open‑source alternatives.

License

This script is provided in the public domain.