📌 tmux: Installation & Usage Guide

tmux (Terminal Multiplexer) is a powerful tool that allows you to manage multiple terminal sessions within a single SSH connection. It ensures long-running tasks continue even if your SSH session disconnects.

📥 Installation

Linux (Debian/Ubuntu)

sudo apt update && sudo apt install tmux

Linux (CentOS/RHEL)

sudo yum install tmux

macOS (via Homebrew)

brew install tmux

Windows (via WSL)

Ensure you have WSL installed, then:

sudo apt update && sudo apt install tmux

Verify installation with:

tmux -V

🚀 Basic Usage

1. Start a New tmux Session

tmux new -s my_session

my_session is an optional session name for easier management.

2. Detach from the Session (Keep Running in Background)

Press:

Ctrl + B, then D

This allows the session to continue running even if you close your SSH connection.

3. Reattach to an Existing Session

tmux attach -t my_session

If you didn’t name the session, check running sessions:
```
tmux ls
```

4. List All Active Sessions

tmux ls

5. Kill a tmux Session

tmux kill-session -t my_session

To kill all tmux sessions:
```
tmux kill-server
```

🎨 Multi-Window & Pane Management

1. Create a New Window

Inside tmux, press:

Ctrl + B, then C

Creates a new terminal window inside your tmux session.

2. Switch Between Windows

Next window:
```
Ctrl + B, then N
```
Previous window:
```
Ctrl + B, then P
```
List all windows:
```
Ctrl + B, then W
```

3. Split Panes Horizontally

Ctrl + B, then "

4. Split Panes Vertically

Ctrl + B, then %

5. Switch Between Panes

Ctrl + B, then Arrow Key

6. Close a Pane

Ctrl + B, then X

(Confirm with Y)

🛠 Troubleshooting

1. “Error Connecting to /tmp/tmux-1000/default”

Try:

rm -rf /tmp/tmux-*
tmux new -s my_session

Or check /tmp permissions:

ls -ld /tmp
sudo chmod 1777 /tmp

2. tmux Not Found

Ensure installation:

which tmux

If not installed, follow the installation steps above.

🏆 Advanced Tips

Customize tmux with `.tmux.conf`

Add the following to ~/.tmux.conf for a better experience:

# Enable mouse support
set -g mouse on

# Start numbering windows from 1 instead of 0
set -g base-index 1

# Set a more intuitive split pane behavior
bind | split-window -h
bind - split-window -v
unbind '"'
unbind %

Apply changes:

tmux source ~/.tmux.conf