Problems with latest Electron apps when using Vulkan renderer

[sylv-io]

Please fill out the following:

• Sway Version:

  • 1.11
  • 1.12-dev-b7eb6177e (Oct 19 2025, branch 'master')

• Configuration File:

  • default

• Description:

After a "recent" system update, some Electron-based applications started having rendering problems when using sway with the vulkan renderer (WLR_RENDERER=vulkan). Instead of showing the app's content, you can only see a black screen. It doesn't cause any errors, and the app runs even when you can't see anything.
It also only affects the Wayland backend, so using the --ozone-platform=x11 is a workaround.

Here are some affected Apps:

• Signal
• Slack
  • last working version: 4.46.99 (22.09.2025)
  • first failing version: 4.46.101 (6.10.2025)
• 1Password
  • last working version: 8.11.14 (15.10.2025)
  • first failing version: 8.11.16 (28.10.2025)

Here's how to reproduce the issue:

1. Start sway with WLR_RENDERER=vulkan
2. Download the working and failing 1Password version
3. Decompress and run 1password

This is probably not a bug that only affects sway. Right now, I'm trying to figure out what's causing the problem and see if it can be reproduced in other desktop environments or window managers using wlroots.

[sylv-io]

okay, it this issue is also reproducible with cage-kiosk.

# works
cage -- <electron app> --ozone-platform=x11
cage -- <electron app> --ozone-platform=wayland
WLR_RENDERER=vulkan cage <electron app> --ozone-platform=x11

#fails (black screen)
WLR_RENDERER=vulkan cage  -- <electron app> --ozone-platform=wayland

It looks like the problem is with wlroots.

[emersion]

Can you provide a WAYLAND_DEBUG=1 log of your client?

WAYLAND_DEBUG=1 your-client >client.log 2>&1
# Then reproduce the bug

[sylv-io]

Can you provide a WAYLAND_DEBUG=1 log of your client?

WAYLAND_DEBUG=1 your-client >client.log 2>&1

Then reproduce the bug

sure:

WAYLAND_DEBUG=1 timeout 3s 1password --ozone-platform=wayland >1password_wayland_fail.log 2>&1

1password_wayland_fail.log

[sylv-io]

Can you provide a WAYLAND_DEBUG=1 log of your client?

WAYLAND_DEBUG=1 your-client >client.log 2>&1

Then reproduce the bug

This might make debugging easier:

# works
WAYLAND_DEBUG=1 timeout 3s ./downloads/1password-8.11.14.x64/1password --ozone-platform=wayland >1password_8.11.14_pass.log 2>&1
# fails (black screen)
WAYLAND_DEBUG=1 timeout 3s ./downloads/1password-8.11.16.x64/1password --ozone-platform=wayland >1password_8.11.16_fail.log 2>&1

1password_8.11.14_pass.log
1password_8.11.16_fail.log

[sylv-io]

wlroots issue: https://gitlab.freedesktop.org/wlroots/wlroots/-/issues/4025

[sylv-io]

quote from wlroots issue:

It's a chromium bug, it was broken in 140.0.7287.0 and fixed in 141.0.7369.0
https://issues.chromium.org/issues/437811360