KodeKloud Notes

tmux is a powerful terminal multiplexer first released in 2007. It uses a client–server architecture to manage multiple terminal sessions from a single server process. Key enhancements over traditional tools include:

Client–server model for centralized session management
Multiple windows per session, with windows linkable across sessions
Interactive menus for navigating sessions, windows, and clients
Support for both Vim and Emacs key bindings
Full UTF-8 and 256-color support

Note

Ensure your terminal emulator supports 256 colors and UTF-8 for the best tmux experience.

The image is a text description of features related to "tmux," highlighting its release year, client-server model, session management, key layouts, and terminal support.

Starting tmux

To launch tmux with a default session:

$ tmux

This creates a new session containing one window. The status bar at the bottom displays:

Component	Description
Host name	Your machine’s hostname
Time & date	Current timestamp
Session name	Name of the active tmux session
Window index	Numeric index (starts at 0)
Window name	Name of the window (usually the running program)
Active window	Marked with `*`

To start tmux with a custom session and window name:

$ tmux new -s LPI -n "Window zero"

The status bar then shows:

[LPI] 0:Window zero*

Managing Windows

All tmux commands begin with the prefix key (default: Ctrl +b).

Action	Shortcut
Create new window	Prefix + c
Rename current window	Prefix + ,
List windows interactively	Prefix + w
Next window	Prefix + n
Previous window	Prefix + p
Select window by number	Prefix + `<number>`
Kill current window	Prefix + & (confirm y/n)
Find window by name	Prefix + f
Change window index	Prefix + . (period)

The image shows a tmux session with window management commands on the left and keyboard shortcuts on the right. The shortcuts include combinations for creating, renaming, and navigating windows.

Warning

Killing a window will prompt for confirmation. Unsaved work inside that window will be lost upon confirmation.

Panes (Splits)

tmux splits windows into panes, each running as an independent pseudoterminal.

Splitting Panes

Action	Shortcut
Split horizontally	Prefix + "
Split vertically	Prefix + %
Kill current pane	Prefix + x (confirm y/n)

Navigating & Resizing Panes

Action	Shortcut
Move between panes	Prefix + Arrow keys
Last active pane	Prefix + ;
Resize by 1 line	Prefix + Ctrl + Arrow
Resize by 5 lines	Prefix + Alt + Arrow

The image shows a list of keyboard shortcuts for managing panes in tmux, including moving between panes, moving to the last active pane, and resizing a pane by one line.

Swapping & Zooming Panes

Action	Shortcut
Swap with previous pane	Prefix + {
Swap with next pane	Prefix + }
Toggle pane zoom	Prefix + Z

The image shows keyboard shortcuts for managing panes in tmux, including swapping to previous and next panes, and zooming in/out of a panel.

Additional Pane Actions

Action	Shortcut
Show a clock	Prefix + t (press q to quit)
Break pane into new window	Prefix + !

Sessions

Control entire tmux sessions with these commands:

Action	Command / Shortcut
List sessions	`tmux ls`<br>or Prefix + s
Create new session (prompt)	Prefix + : `new`
Rename session	Prefix + $
Switch sessions	Prefix + s → select
Kill session	`tmux kill-session -t <name>`
Attach to session	`tmux a`
Detach from session	Prefix + d
Detach specific client	Prefix + D
Refresh display	Prefix + r

Copy/Paste & Scrollback

To capture text from a pane:

Enter copy mode: Prefix + [
Navigate to the start point: Arrow keys
Press Space to begin selection
Move to the end point: Arrow keys
Press Space to copy into tmux buffer
Paste into any pane: Prefix + ]

The image is a guide for using tmux scrollback mode, showing keyboard shortcuts for entering scrollback mode, moving to text, and marking the beginning and end of a selection.

Configuration

tmux reads configuration from:

System-wide: /etc/tmux.conf
User-specific: ~/.tmux.conf

To load a custom file at startup:

$ tmux -f ~/my-tmux.conf

Sample ~/.tmux.conf:

# Change prefix to Ctrl-a
set -g prefix C-a
unbind C-b
bind C-a send-prefix

# Quick access to windows 10, 11, 12
bind F1 select-window -t :10
bind F2 select-window -t :11
bind F3 select-window -t :12

Note

Reload your tmux configuration without restarting by running:

Prefix + : source-file ~/.tmux.conf

For full command reference:

$ man tmux

Links and References

That’s it for this lesson. You can test your knowledge with the quiz.

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