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TMUX

Terminal multiplexer. Split terminals, create windows, detach/reattach sessions. SSH connection drops? Session survives. Long-running processes? Background them. Multiple terminals? One window. The Swiss Army knife of terminal management.

Why TMUX

Persistent sessions survive disconnects, split panes for multi-tasking, window management without GUI, pair programming over SSH, scriptable layouts.

Quick Start

macOS: 

brew install tmux

Ubuntu/Debian: 

sudo apt install tmux

Arch Linux: 

sudo pacman -S tmux

Verify: 

tmux -V
# tmux 3.3a

Start session: 

# New session
tmux

# Named session
tmux new -s work

# New session with name and window
tmux new -s dev -n editor

Detach and attach: 

# Inside tmux, detach with: Ctrl+b then d

# List sessions
tmux ls

# Attach to session
tmux attach -t work

# Attach to last session
tmux a

Kill sessions: 

# Kill specific session
tmux kill-session -t work

# Kill all sessions
tmux kill-server

Prefix key: Ctrl+b (all commands start with this)

Session management: - Ctrl+b d - Detach session - Ctrl+b $ - Rename session - Ctrl+b s - List sessions

Window management: - Ctrl+b c - Create window - Ctrl+b , - Rename window - Ctrl+b w - List windows - Ctrl+b n - Next window - Ctrl+b p - Previous window - Ctrl+b 0-9 - Switch to window number - Ctrl+b & - Kill window

Pane management: - Ctrl+b % - Split vertically - Ctrl+b " - Split horizontally - Ctrl+b arrow - Navigate panes - Ctrl+b o - Next pane - Ctrl+b x - Kill pane - Ctrl+b z - Zoom/unzoom pane - Ctrl+b { - Move pane left - Ctrl+b } - Move pane right

Copy mode: - Ctrl+b [ - Enter copy mode - Space - Start selection - Enter - Copy selection - Ctrl+b ] - Paste

Configuration

Config file: ~/.tmux.conf

# ============================================
# TMUX CONFIGURATION
# ============================================

# Change prefix from Ctrl+b to Ctrl+a (easier to reach)
unbind C-b
set-option -g prefix C-a
bind-key C-a send-prefix

# Split panes using | and - (more intuitive)
bind | split-window -h
bind - split-window -v
unbind '"'
unbind %

# Switch panes using Alt+arrow without prefix
bind -n M-Left select-pane -L
bind -n M-Right select-pane -R
bind -n M-Up select-pane -U
bind -n M-Down select-pane -D

# Enable mouse mode (tmux 2.1+)
set -g mouse on

# Don't rename windows automatically
set-option -g allow-rename off

# Start windows and panes at 1, not 0
set -g base-index 1
setw -g pane-base-index 1

# Reload config with prefix + r
bind r source-file ~/.tmux.conf \; display "Config reloaded!"

# Increase scrollback buffer
set-option -g history-limit 10000

# Fix colors
set -g default-terminal "screen-256color"
set -ga terminal-overrides ",xterm-256color:Tc"

# Status bar
set -g status-position bottom
set -g status-bg colour234
set -g status-fg colour137
set -g status-left ''
set -g status-right '#[fg=colour233,bg=colour241,bold] %d/%m #[fg=colour233,bg=colour245,bold] %H:%M:%S '
set -g status-right-length 50
set -g status-left-length 20

# Active window title colors
setw -g window-status-current-style 'fg=colour81 bg=colour238 bold'
setw -g window-status-current-format ' #I#[fg=colour250]:#[fg=colour255]#W#[fg=colour50]#F '

# Inactive window title colors
setw -g window-status-style 'fg=colour138 bg=colour235'
setw -g window-status-format ' #I#[fg=colour237]:#[fg=colour250]#W#[fg=colour244]#F '

# Pane border colors
set -g pane-border-style 'fg=colour238'
set -g pane-active-border-style 'fg=colour51'

# Vi mode for copy
setw -g mode-keys vi
bind-key -T copy-mode-vi v send -X begin-selection
bind-key -T copy-mode-vi y send -X copy-selection-and-cancel

Apply configuration: 

# Reload inside tmux
# Press: Ctrl+b then :
source-file ~/.tmux.conf

# Or use the r binding from config above
# Press: Ctrl+a then r

Common Workflows

Development Session

# Create development session
tmux new -s dev

# Inside tmux:
# Ctrl+b | - Split vertically (code left, terminal right)
# Ctrl+b - - Split horizontally (logs bottom)
# Ctrl+b arrow - Navigate between panes

# Result: 3-pane layout
# +------------------+----------+
# |                  |          |
# |  Code Editor     | Terminal |
# |                  |          |
# +------------------+----------+
# |      Logs / Tests           |
# +-----------------------------+

Remote Server Monitoring

# SSH to server
ssh user@server

# Start tmux session
tmux new -s monitoring

# Create windows for different services
# Ctrl+b c - New window for logs
# Ctrl+b c - New window for htop
# Ctrl+b c - New window for docker

# Detach (Ctrl+b d) and logout
# SSH back later, reattach: tmux a -t monitoring

Pair Programming

# Person A creates session
tmux new -s pair

# Person B connects (same user or separate account)
tmux attach -t pair

# Both see the same screen, both can type
# Perfect for remote pair programming

Advanced Commands

# Session management
tmux new -s name                    # New named session
tmux attach -t name                 # Attach to session
tmux switch -t name                 # Switch to session
tmux ls                             # List sessions
tmux kill-session -t name           # Kill session
tmux rename-session -t old new      # Rename session

# Window management
tmux new-window -n name             # New named window
tmux select-window -t :0            # Select window by index
tmux rename-window name             # Rename current window
tmux move-window -t :3              # Move window to index 3
tmux swap-window -s 2 -t 1          # Swap windows 2 and 1

# Pane management
tmux split-window -h                # Split horizontal
tmux split-window -v                # Split vertical
tmux select-pane -t :.+             # Select next pane
tmux resize-pane -D 10              # Resize down 10 cells
tmux resize-pane -U 10              # Resize up 10 cells
tmux resize-pane -L 10              # Resize left 10 cells
tmux resize-pane -R 10              # Resize right 10 cells
tmux swap-pane -s 0 -t 1            # Swap panes

# Layouts
tmux select-layout even-horizontal  # Evenly split horizontal
tmux select-layout even-vertical    # Evenly split vertical
tmux select-layout main-horizontal  # Main pane top
tmux select-layout main-vertical    # Main pane left
tmux select-layout tiled            # Tile all panes

Pro Tips

  • Use Ctrl+a prefix - Easier to reach than Ctrl+b (like GNU Screen)
  • Mouse mode is OK - Don't let purists shame you, it's convenient
  • Name your sessions - tmux new -s project beats tmux-0
  • Use zoom - Ctrl+b z to fullscreen a pane temporarily
  • Copy mode is powerful - Ctrl+b [ then navigate with vi keys
  • Detach often - Long-running tasks? Detach and close terminal
  • Save layouts - Use scripts to recreate window/pane setups
  • Resurrect plugin - Save/restore entire tmux environments
  • Synchronize panes - Ctrl+b :setw synchronize-panes - type in all panes at once
  • Use tmuxinator - Define project layouts in YAML

Common Gotchas

  • Colors broken - Set TERM=screen-256color or xterm-256color in config
  • Nested tmux sessions - Don't start tmux inside tmux (detach first)
  • Clipboard doesn't work - Install reattach-to-user-namespace (macOS) or xclip (Linux)
  • Mouse scroll not working - Enable mouse mode: set -g mouse on
  • Prefix key conflicts - Ctrl+b conflicts with vim? Change to Ctrl+a
  • Can't resize panes - Check mouse mode, or use Ctrl+b arrow + arrow keys
  • Session persists after reboot - Use tmux-continuum plugin for auto-save/restore
  • Status bar ugly - Use powerline or tmux themes (tokyo-night, dracula)
  • Too many sessions - Run tmux ls, clean up with tmux kill-session -t name

Resources

Official: - TMUX Manual - Complete reference - GitHub - Source code and issues - Wiki - Community wiki

Plugins: - TPM (Tmux Plugin Manager) - Plugin manager - tmux-resurrect - Save/restore sessions - tmux-continuum - Auto-save sessions - tmux-sensible - Sensible defaults

Tools: - tmuxinator - Manage complex tmux sessions - tmuxp - Python-based tmux session manager

Learning: - tmux Cheat Sheet - Quick reference - The Tao of tmux - Free book

Communities: - r/tmux - Reddit community

Last Updated: 2026-02-03

Tags: tmux, terminal-multiplexer, terminal, cli, session-management, development-tools, productivity