# Configuration storage

The ThinLinc client uses a plain text format with key/value pairs to store the configuration, except on Windows where the registry is used for this purpose. When running on a network-booted ThinStation terminal, configuration options can also be provided remotely via TFTP. See Running ThinLinc on a ThinStation terminal for further information.

## Configuration file format

Each parameter is written on one line, followed by an equal sign (`=`) and the value of the parameter, as in the following example:

    SOUND_ENABLED = 0
    SERVER_NAME = tl.example.com

For descriptions of all configuration parameters, see Client configuration parameters.

## Configuration file locations

On Linux systems, including Linux-based thin terminals, the ThinLinc client first reads the file `/opt/thinlinc/etc/tlclient.conf`, if it exists. It then reads the file `.thinlinc/tlclient.conf` in the user’s home directory, and the values there override the ones from `/opt/thinlinc/etc/tlclient.conf`. This way, a system administrator can set global defaults for client operations, while each user can still customize the client behavior.

On macOS, the behavior is the same, except that the global configuration file is located at `/Library/Application Support/ThinLinc Client/tlclient.conf`.

On all platforms, the command-line option `-C` can be used to specify a configuration file in an arbitrary location. Any name is accepted, but the file extension `.tlclient` is recommended. The Windows, Linux, and macOS packages configure the system to automatically recognize such files as configuration files for the ThinLinc client. Additionally, the Internet Media Type application/vnd.cendio.thinlinc.clientconf is linked to such configuration files.

## Windows client configuration

On Windows, the ThinLinc client reads its configuration from the registry. All ThinLinc client data is stored under `Software\Cendio\ThinLinc\tlclient` in the HKLM and HKCU hives. The parameter names are the same as for the Linux client.

The behavior of global and user-specific settings is identical to that of other platforms, where settings in HKLM correspond to the global settings, and those in HKCU correspond to user-specific settings.