Want to know how to reset the Ubuntu Dock back to its default settings, complete with the same app shortcuts it would have if you’d just installed the distro?

A couple of terminal commands are all you need – and need them you might!

There are plenty of ways to customise the Ubuntu Dock, from adding, removing and reordering app shortcuts, to changing the size of the dock and its icons or its position on the screen, and choosing to show or hide mounted drives, the trash can, and more.

If you read my guides on things to do after installing Ubuntu, I always list the command needed to enable minimise on click. That is just one of several ‘hidden’ features not natively surfaced within the standard Ubuntu interface.

All those customisations can end up causing mayhem, so if your dock isn’t behaving the way it used to, looks weird, you may want to reset the Ubuntu Dock – here’s how.

Commands to Reset the Ubuntu Dock

Ubuntu dock before and after.
Undo the experiments to get a ‘factory fresh’ feeling

To revert to “out of the box” settings on all supported versions of Ubuntu, do as follows.

  1. Open the Terminal app on Ubuntu
  2. Type or copy & paste the following command then press enter:
dconf reset -f /org/gnome/shell/extensions/dash-to-dock/

As soon as you hit the enter key (or return, I forget which country calls it what) the dock instantly resets, literally blinking for a split second as it moves to its original location, icon pack, focus behaviour, and everything else.

You’re not finished yet, though.

The command above will reset the Ubuntu dock settings to their initial/original values but it won’t reset the app shortcuts pinned to it.

If you want to restore the default set of pinned dock shortcuts:

  1. Open the Terminal app on Ubuntu
  2. Run this command, and then press enter:
dconf reset -f /org/gnome/shell/extensions/favorite-apps

Note: On newer versions of Ubuntu the command you need is this:

dconf reset -f /org/gnome/shell/favorite-apps

If you have uninstalled an app the Ubuntu Dock is hardcoded to show (e.g., Firefox, App Center, etc), those magically reappear (or, for your peace of mind, be reinstalled).

Wrap Up

And that’s it; two simple commands that will change Ubuntu Dock back to its original settings. Perfect for those times when you want to undo a change but don’t know how, or wish to start over with a clean slate – without the hassle of a clean install.