CITATION — REFERENCE ENTRY

ClipboardsWiki — freedesktop.org

Revision 661c623c-8422-417d-91ca-8a222b29df9f · 4/1/2026, 8:44:06 PM UTC

Key: freedesktop-clipboards-wiki
Type: webpage
Publisher: freedesktop.org
URL: https://www.freedesktop.org/wiki/Specifications/ClipboardsWiki/

Raw CSL JSON

{
  "URL": "https://www.freedesktop.org/wiki/Specifications/ClipboardsWiki/",
  "type": "webpage",
  "title": "ClipboardsWiki",
  "accessed": {
    "date-parts": [
      [
        2026,
        4,
        1
      ]
    ]
  },
  "publisher": "freedesktop.org"
}

Claims

selection-async-protocol

X11 selections are an asynchronous protocol: the owning application holds the data and responds to paste requests on demand rather than copying data to a central store. As a result, clipboard data disappears when the owning application exits, unless a clipboard manager is running.
three-selections

The X Window System defines three standard selections in the ICCCM: PRIMARY (used for currently-highlighted text, pasted via middle-click), SECONDARY (rarely used), and CLIPBOARD (used for explicit cut/copy/paste commands, equivalent to the clipboard on macOS or Windows).

Available in

en - English