Tmux Cheat Sheet

Terminal multiplexer commands for managing sessions, windows, and panes that persist across SSH disconnects.

1 PageIntermediateFeb 20, 2026

Session Management

Create and reattach to persistent sessions.

bash

tmux new -s work           # Start a new named sessiontmux ls                    # List sessionstmux attach -t work        # Reattach to a sessiontmux kill-session -t work  # Kill a specific sessiontmux detach                # Detach (or press prefix + d)

Key Bindings (prefix = Ctrl-b)

Default prefix key followed by these commands.

c- Create a new window
n / p- Move to next / previous window
0-9- Jump directly to window number
%- Split pane vertically (side by side)
"- Split pane horizontally (stacked)
arrow keys / o- Move between panes
z- Zoom/unzoom the current pane to full screen
d- Detach from the session

~/.tmux.conf Basics

Common customizations.

bash

# Remap prefix to Ctrl-aset -g prefix C-aunbind C-bbind C-a send-prefix# Enable mouse supportset -g mouse on# Start window numbering at 1set -g base-index 1

Pro Tip

Start long-running remote work inside a named tmux session before you SSH in for the day — if your connection drops, the session (and every process in it) keeps running, and 'tmux attach' picks up exactly where you left off.

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