| name | tmux-operations |
| description | Use when user asks about tmux panes, windows, or layouts — reading pane content, moving processes between panes/windows, splitting, resizing, or rearranging. |
| user-invocable | true |
tmux Operations
Orientation
Always start by getting the current tmux context:
tmux display-message -p '#S:#I.#P'
Then list all panes in the session:
tmux list-panes -s -F '#{window_index}.#{pane_index} #{pane_current_command} #{pane_width}x#{pane_height} #{?pane_active,*,}'
This tells you the session, active window/pane, what's running in each pane, and their sizes.
List all sessions:
tmux list-sessions -F '#{session_name} #{session_windows} windows #{?session_attached,(attached),}'
List windows in a session:
tmux list-windows -t <session> -F '#{window_index} #{window_name} #{window_panes} panes #{?window_active,*,}'
Read Pane Content
Capture visible content plus 500 lines of scrollback from a target pane:
tmux capture-pane -t <target> -p -S -500
Targeting panes:
| Target | Meaning |
|---|
{left} | Pane to the left of active |
{right} | Pane to the right of active |
{up} | Pane above active |
{down} | Pane below active |
0.1 | Window 0, pane 1 |
%5 | Pane ID 5 (absolute) |
To read less scrollback, adjust -S (e.g., -S -50 for 50 lines). Omit -S for only the visible area.
Quick Move / Swap
Move pane to its own window:
tmux break-pane -t <target>
Omit -t to break the active pane.
Swap two panes:
tmux swap-pane -s <src> -t <dst>
Join a window as a pane in another window:
tmux join-pane -s <src> -t <dst>
Add -h for a horizontal split or -v for vertical (default).
Advanced Workflows
- For guided move workflows (interactive pane selection, edge cases, preserving focus) → read
move.md
- For layout management (splitting, resizing, preset layouts, rearranging) → read
layout.md
