How to manage command history in tmux?
Quick Answer
To view tmux command history, press Ctrl+b : and use the up/down arrows to cycle through previously used tmux commands. For shell command history within a tmux pane, use your shell's history feature (typically Ctrl+r or up arrow). To save tmux command history, add set -g history-file ~/.tmux_history to your ~/.tmux.conf file.
# View command history Ctrl+b :(then use up/down arrows) # Save command history to file echo "set -g history-file ~/.tmux_history" >> ~/.tmux.conf
Detailed Explanation
tmux provides several types of history functionality that are useful for different purposes. Understanding these different history mechanisms can greatly improve your productivity.
Types of History in tmux
There are three main types of history in tmux:
- Command history - Previous tmux commands entered in the command prompt
- Scrollback history - Terminal output saved in each pane's buffer
- Shell history - Command history of the shell running in each pane (bash, zsh, etc.)
tmux Command History
tmux maintains a history of commands entered in the command prompt (accessed with Ctrl+b :):
- Press Ctrl+b : to access the command prompt
- Use the up/down arrow keys to cycle through previously used commands
- Press Enter to execute a command
- Press Escape to cancel
Saving tmux Command History
By default, tmux's command history is not saved between sessions. To enable persistent command history:
# Add to ~/.tmux.conf set -g history-file ~/.tmux_history
This configuration saves the command history to the specified file, making it available across tmux sessions and server restarts.
Accessing Scrollback History
tmux keeps a record of terminal output for each pane, which you can access in copy mode:
- Press Ctrl+b [ to enter copy mode
- Use the arrow keys or Vim/Emacs navigation keys to scroll through the history
- Press q to exit copy mode
The default scrollback size is 2000 lines. To increase it:
# Add to ~/.tmux.conf set -g history-limit 10000 # Increase to 10,000 lines