diff --git a/frontend/electron/main.ts b/frontend/electron/main.ts
index 1743da5..b8be8f2 100644
--- a/frontend/electron/main.ts
+++ b/frontend/electron/main.ts
@@ -2,7 +2,7 @@ import { app, BrowserWindow, clipboard, dialog, ipcMain, protocol, shell } from
 import { lookup } from 'node:dns/promises';
 import { spawn, type ChildProcess } from 'node:child_process';
 import { randomBytes } from 'node:crypto';
-import { readFileSync } from 'node:fs';
+import { existsSync, readFileSync, rmSync, statSync, writeFileSync } from 'node:fs';
 import { createInterface } from 'node:readline';
 import * as net from 'node:net';
 import * as path from 'node:path';
@@ -28,6 +28,306 @@ protocol.registerSchemesAsPrivileged([
   { scheme: 'app', privileges: { standard: true, secure: true, supportFetchAPI: true } },
 ]);
 
+// -----------------------------------------------------------------------------
+// Linux display-server compatibility (X11, Wayland, Hyprland, ...)
+//
+// Hyprland (and every Wayland session running XWayland) exports BOTH $DISPLAY
+// and $WAYLAND_DISPLAY, so the platform must be chosen explicitly before
+// Chromium initializes. Everything here runs at module load — before
+// `app.whenReady()` — so the switches take effect.
+//
+// If the first attempt dies before the window ever paints (a common Wayland
+// symptom: GPU/dmabuf issues or a broken sandbox), a watchdog relaunches the
+// app one rung down a fixed ladder:
+//
+//   0. as detected, software rendering (safe default)
+//   1. the other platform (Wayland -> XWayland, X11 -> Wayland)
+//   2. detected platform with the GPU enabled
+//   3. the other platform with the GPU enabled
+//   4. give up: show an error dialog with the escape hatches below
+//
+// Escape hatches (environment):
+//   KEYNCTR_FORCE_X11=1      always use X11/XWayland
+//   KEYNCTR_FORCE_WAYLAND=1  always use native Wayland
+//   KEYNCTR_ENABLE_GPU=1     use hardware-accelerated rendering
+//   KEYNCTR_DISABLE_GPU=1    force software rendering (the default)
+//   KEYNCTR_NO_RELAUNCH=1    disable the fallback relauncher
+// -----------------------------------------------------------------------------
+
+/** How long a launch has to prove it works before the watchdog intervenes. */
+const LAUNCH_PROVE_MS = 8_000;
+/** The max ladder distance: a marker newer than this means the last launch crashed early. */
+const CRASH_WINDOW_MS = 45_000;
+
+function detectSessionPlatform(): 'wayland' | 'x11' {
+  if (process.env.KEYNCTR_FORCE_X11) {
+    return 'x11';
+  }
+  if (process.env.KEYNCTR_FORCE_WAYLAND) {
+    return 'wayland';
+  }
+  const sessionType = (process.env.XDG_SESSION_TYPE ?? '').toLowerCase();
+  if (sessionType === 'wayland' || process.env.WAYLAND_DISPLAY) {
+    return 'wayland';
+  }
+  return 'x11';
+}
+
+const sessionPlatform = detectSessionPlatform();
+const fallbackStep = Number.parseInt(process.env.KEYNCTR_FALLBACK_STEP ?? '0', 10);
+
+/**
+ * Per-user marker recording the launch currently in flight. If a previous
+ * process left one behind and it is recent, that launch died before its
+ * window ever painted — so this process continues the fallback ladder.
+ */
+function startupMarkerPath(): string {
+  return path.join(app.getPath('temp'), 'keynctr-startup.json');
+}
+
+interface StartupMarker {
+  step: number;
+  platform: string;
+  startedAt: number;
+  /** Set when the app shut down on purpose (not a crash before first paint). */
+  clean?: boolean;
+}
+
+function readStartupMarker(): StartupMarker | null {
+  try {
+    const parsed = JSON.parse(readFileSync(startupMarkerPath(), 'utf8')) as StartupMarker;
+    if (typeof parsed.step === 'number' && typeof parsed.startedAt === 'number') {
+      return parsed;
+    }
+  } catch {
+    // No marker (or unreadable): nothing to learn.
+  }
+  return null;
+}
+
+function writeStartupMarker(step: number): void {
+  try {
+    writeFileSync(
+      startupMarkerPath(),
+      JSON.stringify({ step, platform: sessionPlatform, startedAt: Date.now() }),
+    );
+  } catch {
+    // Marker is best-effort only.
+  }
+}
+
+function clearStartupMarker(): void {
+  try {
+    rmSync(startupMarkerPath(), { force: true });
+  } catch {
+    // Best-effort.
+  }
+}
+
+/**
+ * Stamp the marker as a clean exit so the next launch does not mistake an
+ * intentional quit (e.g. closing the window a few seconds after it opened)
+ * for a crash before first paint.
+ */
+function markStartupCleanExit(): void {
+  const marker = readStartupMarker();
+  if (marker && !marker.clean) {
+    try {
+      writeFileSync(startupMarkerPath(), JSON.stringify({ ...marker, clean: true }));
+    } catch {
+      // Best-effort.
+    }
+  }
+}
+
+/** Environment for fallback ladder rung `step` (0 keeps the detected setup). */
+function envForFallbackStep(step: number): Record<string, string> {
+  const env: Record<string, string> = { KEYNCTR_FALLBACK_STEP: String(step) };
+  const other = sessionPlatform === 'wayland' ? 'x11' : 'wayland';
+  switch (step) {
+    case 1:
+      if (other === 'x11') {
+        env.KEYNCTR_FORCE_X11 = '1';
+      } else {
+        env.KEYNCTR_FORCE_WAYLAND = '1';
+      }
+      break;
+    case 2:
+      if (sessionPlatform === 'x11') {
+        env.KEYNCTR_FORCE_WAYLAND = '1'; // X11 failed: try native Wayland (still software GL)
+      } else {
+        env.KEYNCTR_ENABLE_GPU = '1'; // Wayland failed: retry Wayland with hardware GL
+        env.KEYNCTR_DISABLE_GPU = ''; // clear any user override that would block the retry
+      }
+      break;
+    case 3:
+      if (other === 'x11') {
+        env.KEYNCTR_FORCE_X11 = '1';
+      } else {
+        env.KEYNCTR_FORCE_WAYLAND = '1';
+      }
+      env.KEYNCTR_ENABLE_GPU = '1';
+      env.KEYNCTR_DISABLE_GPU = '';
+      break;
+  }
+  return env;
+}
+
+function describeFallbackStep(step: number): string {
+  const other = sessionPlatform === 'wayland' ? 'XWayland (X11)' : 'native Wayland';
+  switch (step) {
+    case 1:
+      return `${other}, software rendering`;
+    case 2:
+      return sessionPlatform === 'wayland'
+        ? `${sessionPlatform} with hardware acceleration`
+        : 'native Wayland, software rendering';
+    case 3:
+      return `${other} with hardware acceleration`;
+    default:
+      return 'default settings';
+  }
+}
+
+/** Relaunch this executable with extra environment variables, then quit. */
+function relaunchLinux(extraEnv: Record<string, string>): void {
+  // On AppImage, process.execPath is the temporary FUSE mount, which is torn
+  // down when this process exits — relaunch the original file instead.
+  const target = process.env.APPIMAGE || process.execPath;
+  try {
+    const child = spawn(target, process.argv.slice(1), {
+      env: { ...process.env, ...extraEnv },
+      detached: true,
+      stdio: 'ignore',
+    });
+    child.unref();
+    app.exit(0);
+  } catch (err) {
+    console.error('[linux] relaunch failed:', err);
+  }
+}
+
+/** Set when the fallback ladder is exhausted: shown once Electron is ready. */
+let pendingGiveUpDialog: string | null = null;
+
+/**
+ * Decide, at startup, whether the previous launch crashed before painting a
+ * window and, if so, relaunch one rung further down the fallback ladder.
+ * Called once at module load, before the Ozone switches below are applied.
+ */
+function evaluateLinuxStartup(): void {
+  if (process.platform !== 'linux' || process.env.KEYNCTR_NO_RELAUNCH) {
+    clearStartupMarker();
+    return;
+  }
+  const marker = readStartupMarker();
+  const crashedEarly =
+    marker !== null && !marker.clean && Date.now() - marker.startedAt < CRASH_WINDOW_MS;
+
+  if (fallbackStep > 0) {
+    // We are already a relaunch: record this attempt (cleared once the window
+    // paints and stays up). Never cascade from here — each crash advances the
+    // ladder exactly one rung on the NEXT launch.
+    if (marker && crashedEarly) {
+      console.warn(
+        `[linux] previous launch (${describeFallbackStep(marker.step)}) exited before its ` +
+          'window was ready.',
+      );
+    }
+    writeStartupMarker(fallbackStep);
+    return;
+  }
+
+  if (marker && crashedEarly) {
+    const nextStep = marker.step + 1;
+    if (nextStep <= 3) {
+      console.warn(
+        `[linux] previous launch (${describeFallbackStep(marker.step)}) exited before its ` +
+          `window was ready; retrying with ${describeFallbackStep(nextStep)}.`,
+      );
+      relaunchLinux(envForFallbackStep(nextStep));
+      return; // relaunchLinux exits the process.
+    }
+    // Ladder exhausted. Stay on the safest default (detected platform,
+    // software rendering) and tell the user about the escape hatches instead
+    // of relaunching forever.
+    delete process.env.KEYNCTR_ENABLE_GPU;
+    pendingGiveUpDialog =
+      'Keynctr failed to start with every display configuration (default, ' +
+      `${describeFallbackStep(1)}, ${describeFallbackStep(2)}, ${describeFallbackStep(3)}).\n\n` +
+      'This attempt uses the most compatible mode. If it still fails, force a ' +
+      'configuration from a terminal, e.g.:\n' +
+      '  KEYNCTR_FORCE_X11=1 keynctr      (XWayland)\n' +
+      '  KEYNCTR_FORCE_WAYLAND=1 keynctr  (native Wayland)\n' +
+      '  KEYNCTR_ENABLE_GPU=1 keynctr     (hardware acceleration)\n';
+  }
+  // Fresh launch: record the attempt; cleared once the window proves itself.
+  clearStartupMarker();
+  writeStartupMarker(0);
+}
+
+if (process.platform === 'linux') {
+  // Runs FIRST so the env overrides below (and the GPU switch) see any
+  // force-flags this process just adopted from the fallback ladder.
+  evaluateLinuxStartup();
+
+  if (detectSessionPlatform() === 'wayland') {
+    app.commandLine.appendSwitch('ozone-platform', 'wayland');
+  } else {
+    app.commandLine.appendSwitch('ozone-platform', 'x11');
+  }
+
+  // Chromium refuses to sandbox when running as root.
+  if (typeof process.getuid === 'function' && process.getuid() === 0) {
+    app.commandLine.appendSwitch('no-sandbox');
+  }
+
+  // SUID sandbox pre-flight: if the helper exists but is not setuid-root AND
+  // unprivileged user namespaces are blocked (Ubuntu 24.04 AppArmor, hardened
+  // kernels, some containers), Chromium aborts before any window appears.
+  // Start without the sandbox instead of refusing to start.
+  if (app.isPackaged) {
+    try {
+      const helper = path.join(path.dirname(process.execPath), 'chrome-sandbox');
+      if (existsSync(helper) && (statSync(helper).mode & 0o4000) === 0) {
+        const procFlag = (file: string, blockedValue: string): boolean => {
+          try {
+            return readFileSync(file, 'utf8').trim() === blockedValue;
+          } catch {
+            return false; // Kernel without the knob: assume allowed.
+          }
+        };
+        const cloneBlocked = procFlag('/proc/sys/kernel/unprivileged_userns_clone', '0');
+        const apparmorRestricted = procFlag(
+          '/proc/sys/kernel/apparmor_restrict_unprivileged_userns',
+          '1',
+        );
+        if (cloneBlocked || apparmorRestricted) {
+          console.warn(
+            '[linux] chrome-sandbox is not setuid and unprivileged user namespaces are ' +
+              'restricted; starting with the sandbox disabled.',
+          );
+          app.commandLine.appendSwitch('no-sandbox');
+        }
+      }
+    } catch (err) {
+      console.error('[linux] sandbox pre-flight failed:', err);
+    }
+  }
+
+  // Chromium's hardware GL path is unreliable under Wayland compositors on
+  // some Mesa/EGL setups (observed: the GPU process segfaults inside
+  // eglCreateWindowSurface on Intel Iris Xe under Hyprland, so the window
+  // never paints). Software rendering costs nothing noticeable for this app,
+  // so hardware acceleration is off by default on Linux; set
+  // KEYNCTR_ENABLE_GPU=1 to opt back in.
+  const gpuEnabled = Boolean(process.env.KEYNCTR_ENABLE_GPU) && !process.env.KEYNCTR_DISABLE_GPU;
+  if (!gpuEnabled) {
+    app.disableHardwareAcceleration();
+    app.commandLine.appendSwitch('disable-gpu-compositing');
+  }
+}
+
 /**
  * Content-Security-Policy applied to every page this app loads.
  *
@@ -532,6 +832,7 @@ function createWindow(): void {
     icon: resolveWindowIcon(),
     backgroundColor: '#f6f4f0',
     autoHideMenuBar: true,
+    show: false,
     webPreferences: {
       preload: path.join(__dirname, 'preload.js'),
       contextIsolation: true,
@@ -539,6 +840,29 @@ function createWindow(): void {
     },
   });
 
+  // Always reveal the window once it has painted. On Linux the startup
+  // watchdog additionally waits LAUNCH_PROVE_MS before clearing the marker:
+  // if the process dies before that, the next launch advances the fallback
+  // ladder one rung.
+  window.once('ready-to-show', () => {
+    window.show();
+  });
+  if (process.platform === 'linux' && !process.env.KEYNCTR_NO_RELAUNCH) {
+    let proveTimer: ReturnType<typeof setTimeout> | null = null;
+    window.once('ready-to-show', () => {
+      proveTimer = setTimeout(() => {
+        proveTimer = null;
+        clearStartupMarker();
+      }, LAUNCH_PROVE_MS);
+    });
+    window.webContents.on('render-process-gone', () => {
+      if (proveTimer) {
+        clearTimeout(proveTimer);
+        proveTimer = null;
+      }
+    });
+  }
+
   const devServer = process.env.NOSTR_GUI_DEV_URL;
   if (devServer) {
     void window.loadURL(devServer);
@@ -665,6 +989,11 @@ app.whenReady().then(() => {
 
   createWindow();
 
+  if (pendingGiveUpDialog) {
+    dialog.showErrorBox('Keynctr — display problems', pendingGiveUpDialog);
+    pendingGiveUpDialog = null;
+  }
+
   app.on('activate', () => {
     if (BrowserWindow.getAllWindows().length === 0) {
       createWindow();
@@ -673,6 +1002,7 @@ app.whenReady().then(() => {
 });
 
 app.on('before-quit', () => {
+  markStartupCleanExit();
   if (backend) {
     backend.kill();
   }