CHEATSHEET/ TMUX

tmux Cheat Sheet

Sessions, windows, panes, copy mode, configuration, and the patterns you actually use day-to-day.

SESSIONS (THE OUTERMOST LAYER)

tmux

Start a new session

tmux new -s name

Start a new named session (recommended)

tmux ls

List sessions

tmux a

Attach to last session

tmux a -t name

Attach to a specific named session

tmux kill-session -t name

Kill a session by name

tmux kill-server

Kill all sessions and the tmux server

prefix d

Detach from session (it keeps running)

prefix s

Interactive session picker

prefix $

Rename current session

WINDOWS (TABS)

prefix c

Create new window

prefix ,

Rename current window

prefix &

Kill current window (with confirmation)

prefix n

Next window

prefix p

Previous window

prefix 0-9

Jump to window by number

prefix l

Last (most recent) window

prefix w

Interactive window picker

prefix f

Find window by content/name

PANES (SPLITS WITHIN A WINDOW)

prefix %

Split pane vertically (creates left/right split)

prefix "

Split pane horizontally (creates top/bottom split)

prefix arrow

Move between panes

prefix o

Cycle to next pane

prefix q

Show pane numbers (press number to jump)

prefix x

Kill current pane (with confirmation)

prefix z

Toggle full-screen zoom on current pane

prefix Space

Cycle through pane layouts (preset arrangements)

prefix {

Swap with previous pane

prefix }

Swap with next pane

prefix !

Convert pane to its own window

prefix Ctrl+arrow

Resize pane in steps

prefix Alt+arrow

Resize pane in larger steps

COPY MODE

prefix [

Enter copy mode (scrollback navigation, search, copy)

Exit copy mode

/ then text

Search forward (vi mode)

? then text

Search backward (vi mode)

n / N

Next / previous search match

Space

Start text selection (vi mode)

Enter

Copy selection to tmux paste buffer

prefix ]

Paste from tmux paste buffer

prefix =

Show all paste buffers and pick one

System clipboard: by default, tmux's paste buffer is internal. To put copied text into your OS clipboard, install xclip (Linux), pbcopy (macOS), or use the tmux-yank plugin which handles all platforms.

STATUS & INFO

prefix t

Show big clock

prefix i

Show window info

prefix ?

List all keybindings

prefix :

Open command prompt

tmux info

Detailed info about tmux server (from outside tmux)

tmux list-keys

All keybindings, dumped (useful for grepping)

CONFIGURATION (~/.TMUX.CONF)

Edit ~/.tmux.conf and reload with prefix :source-file ~/.tmux.conf or kill the tmux server.

Remap prefix to Ctrl+a (less finger strain)

unbind C-b
set -g prefix C-a
bind C-a send-prefix

More intuitive split commands

bind | split-window -h
bind - split-window -v
unbind '"'
unbind %

vi-style copy mode

set-window-option -g mode-keys vi
bind-key -T copy-mode-vi 'v' send-keys -X begin-selection
bind-key -T copy-mode-vi 'y' send-keys -X copy-selection-and-cancel

Mouse support (scroll, click panes, drag to resize)

set -g mouse on

Bigger scrollback buffer

set -g history-limit 50000

Start window/pane numbering at 1 (top row of keyboard)

set -g base-index 1
setw -g pane-base-index 1
set -g renumber-windows on

Reload config with prefix r

bind r source-file ~/.tmux.conf \; display-message "Config reloaded"

PLUGIN MANAGER (TPM)

git clone

Install: git clone https://github.com/tmux-plugins/tpm ~/.tmux/plugins/tpm

prefix I

Install configured plugins (capital I)

prefix U

Update all plugins

prefix Alt+u

Uninstall plugins removed from .tmux.conf

TPM bootstrap in ~/.tmux.conf

set -g @plugin 'tmux-plugins/tpm'
set -g @plugin 'tmux-plugins/tmux-yank'
set -g @plugin 'tmux-plugins/tmux-resurrect'
set -g @plugin 'tmux-plugins/tmux-continuum'

# Keep this at the very bottom of the config file
run '~/.tmux/plugins/tpm/tpm'

COMMON PATTERNS

One project per session. Name sessions after projects (tmux new -s terminalfeed). Use windows inside the session for different concerns (editor, server, logs, git). Detach (prefix d) when switching projects, never close the terminal window.

Reattach after SSH disconnect. If you SSH'd into a server and started something long-running in tmux, it survives the disconnect. Reconnect, run tmux a, and you're back.

Pair-programming. Two people SSH'd into the same machine can attach to the same session and see each other's input. Useful for live debugging or teaching.

Quick split for tail -f. prefix " then run tail -f log. Watch logs in the bottom while you work in the top. prefix z zooms whichever pane needs full attention.

Prefix key reminder. By default, every tmux keybinding is prefaced by Ctrl+b (the prefix). So when you see prefix c below, that means: press Ctrl+b, release, then press c. Many people remap the prefix to Ctrl+a for less finger gymnastics. See the Configuration section.