tmux is an
open-source
Open source is source code that is made freely available for possible modification and redistribution. Products include permission to use the source code, design documents, or content of the product. The open-source model is a decentralized sof ...
terminal multiplexer
A terminal multiplexer is a software application that can be used to multiplex several separate pseudoterminal-based login sessions inside a single terminal display, terminal emulator window, PC/workstation system console, or remote login session, ...
for
Unix-like
A Unix-like (sometimes referred to as UN*X or *nix) operating system is one that behaves in a manner similar to a Unix system, although not necessarily conforming to or being certified to any version of the Single UNIX Specification. A Unix-li ...
operating system
An operating system (OS) is system software that manages computer hardware, software resources, and provides common services for computer programs.
Time-sharing operating systems schedule tasks for efficient use of the system and may also in ...
s. It allows multiple
terminal
Terminal may refer to:
Computing Hardware
* Terminal (electronics), a device for joining electrical circuits together
* Terminal (telecommunication), a device communicating over a line
* Computer terminal, a set of primary input and output dev ...
sessions to be accessed simultaneously in a single window. It is useful for running more than one
command-line
A command-line interpreter or command-line processor uses a command-line interface (CLI) to receive commands from a user in the form of lines of text. This provides a means of setting parameters for the environment, invoking executables and pro ...
program at the same time. It can also be used to detach
processes from their controlling terminals, allowing remote sessions to remain active without being visible.
Features
tmux includes most features of
GNU Screen
GNU Screen is a terminal multiplexer, a software application that can be used to multiplex several virtual consoles, allowing a user to access multiple separate login sessions inside a single terminal window, or detach and reattach sessions from ...
. It allows users to start a terminal session with clients that are not bound to a specific physical or virtual console; multiple terminal sessions can be created within a single terminal session and then freely rebound from one virtual console to another, and each session can have several connected clients.
Some notable tmux features are:
* Menus for interactive selection of running sessions, windows or clients
* Window can be linked to an arbitrary number of sessions
*
vi-like or
Emacs
Emacs , originally named EMACS (an acronym for "Editor MACroS"), is a family of text editors that are characterized by their extensibility. The manual for the most widely used variant, GNU Emacs, describes it as "the extensible, customizable, s ...
command mode (with
auto completion) for managing tmux
* Lack of built-in
serial and
telnet
Telnet is an application protocol used on the Internet or local area network to provide a bidirectional interactive text-oriented communication facility using a virtual terminal connection. User data is interspersed in-band with Telnet control i ...
clients.
* Different command keys—it is not a drop-in replacement for screen, but can be configured to use compatible
keybindings
computing, a keyboard shortcut also known as hotkey is a series of one or several keys to quickly invoke a software program or perform a preprogrammed action. This action may be part of the standard functionality of the operating system or ...
* Vertical and horizontal Window split support
Adoption
tmux is included in the
OpenBSD
OpenBSD is a security-focused, free and open-source, Unix-like operating system based on the Berkeley Software Distribution (BSD). Theo de Raadt created OpenBSD in 1995 by forking NetBSD 1.0. According to the website, the OpenBSD project em ...
base system,
and is available as a
package for many other
Unix-like
A Unix-like (sometimes referred to as UN*X or *nix) operating system is one that behaves in a manner similar to a Unix system, although not necessarily conforming to or being certified to any version of the Single UNIX Specification. A Unix-li ...
operating systems.
See also
*
Byobu (software)
Byobu is an enhancement for the GNU Screen terminal multiplexer or tmux used with the Linux computer operating system that can be used to provide on-screen notification or status, and tabbed multi-window management. It is intended to improve t ...
*
Mosh (software)
In computing, Mosh (mobile shell) is a tool used to connect from a client computer to a server over the Internet, to run a remote terminal.
*
Twin (windowing system)
*
xpra
xpra, abbreviated from X Persistent Remote Applications, is a set of software utilities that run X clients, typically on a remote host, and direct their display to the local machine without the X clients closing or losing any state in case the ne ...
References
{{OpenBSD
Unix software
Terminfo
Terminal multiplexers
Free software programmed in C
Software using the ISC license