Basics
Settings

KDE applications have three different types of settings: options, document options and the configuration.

Below an overview is given of each of these types of settings as well as how they interact with Session Management.

Options can be changed from the settings menu or by direct manipulation of GUI elements and only apply to the current application instance. An example is positioning of toolbars. Saving these options when the application closes is a nice optional feature for the user. But not strictly needed.
Note: in former versions of the styleguide the menu option 'save changes' was added. This is obsolete and the application should always save the changed options instead.

Document options are settings which are logically bound to a specific document or location. When the document or location changes the options from the new document/location will take effect. The options are saved whenever the document is saved. The application may choose to save the options inside the file containing the document or in some other place.

If the application does not save the document or location it may offer an option "Save options for this URL." to let the user save the options explicitly.

The configuration of an application can be changed with the "Configure..." menu option(s). Changes in the configuration of an application are saved when the user presses "OK" in the configuration dialog and take immediate effect in all application instances!. (Even if the other instances belong to a different UNIX process.)

Session Management is the ability of KDE to save the state of all desktops and to restore this state at a later point in time. The state of all desktops is also referred to as a "Session".

When an application gets saved by Session Management it needs to take care that each application instance saves its own options in the save file it got assigned for that session.

In addition the application needs to save any open file to a session specific location. Document settings are, as usual, saved together with this document.

Session Management never saves and/or changes the configuration of an application.

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