tmux

name	tmux
description	Use when interacting with tmux — sending commands to panes, creating panes, resuming sessions, checking pane status, or any tmux operation. Triggers on "tmux", "pane", "resume session in tmux", "new pane", "send to pane", "grid", "split".

tmux skill

Max runs Claude Code sessions in tmux. This skill ensures safe, correct tmux operations.

Max's setup

• Session: c with window claude (index 1), typically 8 panes
• Pane numbering: starts at 1 (pane-base-index 1)
• Config: ~/dotfiles/.tmux.conf
• Helper: ~/bin/cc [name] — creates a new pane with Claude Code
• Keybindings: prefix-c new Claude pane, prefix-g tile grid, prefix-r reload config

Safety rules

NEVER send keys to an occupied pane

Before sending any command to a pane, check what's running:

tmux list-panes -t c:1 -F '#{pane_index} #{pane_current_command}'

• Only send to panes where command is zsh or bash (idle shell)
• Claude Code shows as node or a version like 2.1.50 — these are OCCUPIED
• Blank visible output does NOT mean empty — Claude Code's TUI can show blank areas
• If no pane is free, create a new one instead

Creating a new pane

# Simple: new pane running a command
tmux split-window -t c:1 "command here"

# With name (using the cc helper):
~/bin/cc session-name

# Manual with name:
pane=$(tmux split-window -c ~ -P -F '#{pane_index}')
tmux send-keys -t "$pane" "claude --resume SESSION_ID" Enter
tmux select-pane -t "$pane" -T "name"
tmux select-layout tiled

Sending keys to a verified-free pane

# First verify it's free:
tmux list-panes -t c:1 -F '#{pane_index} #{pane_current_command}' | grep -E '(zsh|bash)$'

# Then send:
tmux send-keys -t c:1.$PANE "command" Enter

Common operations

Task	Command
List sessions	tmux list-sessions
List panes with status	tmux list-panes -t c:1 -F '#{pane_index} #{pane_title} #{pane_current_command}'
See pane content	tmux capture-pane -t c:1.$N -p | tail -5
Resume CC session	claude --resume SESSION_ID
Re-tile grid	tmux select-layout -t c:1 tiled
Rename pane	tmux select-pane -t c:1.$N -T "name"
New named CC pane	~/bin/cc name