title: First Steps description: Your complete onboarding guide to becoming productive with Termy order: 1 category: Getting Started

First Steps with Termy

For: end users

Welcome to Termy! This guide will get you from first launch to productive workflows in minutes. Follow along step-by-step or jump to sections that interest you.

The Basics

Understanding the Interface

When you open Termy, you'll see:

Tab Bar: At the top, shows open tabs with titles
Terminal Area: The main space where commands run
Scrollbar: Right side, shows your scrollback position
Title Bar: macOS only, window controls

Your First Commands

Try these to get familiar:

# See Termy version
termy --version

# Check your shell
echo $SHELL

# See environment variables Termy sets
env | grep TERMY

Essential Shortcuts

Master these and you'll fly through Termy:

Tabs

Shortcut	Action
`Cmd/Ctrl + T`	New tab
`Cmd/Ctrl + W`	Close tab
`Cmd/Ctrl + Shift + ]`	Next tab
`Cmd/Ctrl + Shift + [`	Previous tab

Window

Shortcut	Action
`Cmd/Ctrl + P`	Command Palette
`Cmd/Ctrl + =`	Zoom in
`Cmd/Ctrl + -`	Zoom out
`Cmd/Ctrl + 0`	Reset zoom

Text

Shortcut	Action
`Cmd/Ctrl + C`	Copy (when text selected)
`Cmd/Ctrl + V`	Paste
`Cmd/Ctrl + F`	Find/Search

Tip: Cmd on macOS, Ctrl on Windows/Linux

The Command Palette

The Command Palette is a fuzzy-search overlay for every action Termy can perform. Press Cmd/Ctrl + P to open it, start typing to filter, then press Enter to execute the highlighted entry.

What You Can Do

Switch themes instantly
Check for updates
Open settings
Zoom and resize
See all keyboard shortcuts

Example Workflow

Press Cmd/Ctrl + P
Type "theme"
Select "Switch Theme"
Pick from the list

Configuration Basics

Termy uses a simple text file for configuration.

Where Is It?

~/.config/termy/config.txt

Create it if it doesn't exist:

mkdir -p ~/.config/termy

Essential Settings

# Appearance
font_family = JetBrains Mono
font_size = 14
theme = termy

# Window
background_opacity = 0.95
padding_x = 12
padding_y = 8

# Terminal
cursor_style = block
cursor_blink = true
scrollback_history = 10000    # Increase from the default of 2000

Changes apply immediately—no restart needed!

Finding Fonts

List available fonts:

# macOS
system_profiler SPFontsDataType | grep "Family:" | head -20

# Linux
fc-list : family | sort | uniq | head -20

Popular choices:

JetBrains Mono (default)
Fira Code
SF Mono (macOS)
Cascadia Code

Tab Management

Understanding Tab Titles

Termy intelligently names tabs based on:

Manual name: You renamed it
Shell integration: Current directory/command
Process: Running program name
Fallback: "Terminal"

Working with Tabs

Rename a tab:

Right-click tab
Select "Rename Tab"
Type new name

Or use the Command Palette:

Cmd/Ctrl + P
Type "rename"

Tab Behavior Settings

# In config.txt
tab_title_mode = smart
tab_title_shell_integration = true
tab_close_visibility = active_hover
tab_width_mode = active_grow_sticky

Search Like a Pro

Press Cmd/Ctrl + F to search in the terminal buffer.

Search Features

Case sensitivity: Toggle with Cmd/Ctrl + Alt + C
Regex mode: Toggle with Cmd/Ctrl + Alt + R
Navigation: Cmd/Ctrl + G for next, Cmd/Ctrl + Shift + G for previous

Example Search

Run some commands
Press Cmd/Ctrl + F
Type what you're looking for
Use Cmd/Ctrl + G to jump through matches

Shell Integration

Termy sets a handful of environment variables in every shell it spawns. There's nothing to install or enable — they're available as soon as your prompt appears:

TERMY=1                    # Present in every Termy shell
TERMY_PID=12345            # PID of the Termy process hosting this tab
TERMY_TAB_ID=1             # Tab ID, unique within the window

Verify they're set:

env | grep TERMY

Customizing Your Shell

Because TERMY is only present inside Termy, you can use it to gate Termy-only tweaks in your shell startup file (.bashrc, .zshrc, config.fish, etc.):

# Add a rocket to your prompt only when you're running inside Termy
if [ -n "$TERMY" ]; then
    export PS1="🚀 $PS1"
fi

Themes

Termy ships with several built-in themes.

Available Themes

termy (default)
catppuccin
gruvbox
tokyonight
github
dracula

Switching Themes

Via Command Palette:

Cmd/Ctrl + P
Type "switch theme"
Select your theme

Or in config:

theme = catppuccin

Custom Colors

Override any theme color in config:

[colors]
background = #1e1e2e
foreground = #cdd6f4
blue = #89b4fa

Keyboard Navigation

Without a Mouse

Keys	Action
`Cmd/Ctrl + 1-9`	Jump to tab 1-9
`Cmd/Ctrl + Shift + ←/→`	Move tab left/right
`Cmd/Ctrl + M`	Minimize window

Custom Shortcuts

Add to config:

# Example: open config with Cmd/Ctrl + Shift + C
keybind = secondary-shift-c=open_config

# Disable default
keybind = secondary-w=unbind

See Keybindings for full reference.

Common Workflows

Development Workflow

# 1. Open Termy
# 2. Split your work:
cd ~/projects/myapp
git status                    # Check changes
# 3. New tab: Cmd/Ctrl + T
npm run dev                   # Start dev server
# 4. Switch tabs: Cmd/Ctrl + Shift + [/]

System Administration

# Quick SSH sessions
ssh user@server1     # Tab 1
ssh user@server2     # Tab 2 (Cmd/Ctrl + T)
ssh user@server3     # Tab 3 (Cmd/Ctrl + T)

# Rename tabs to identify servers
# Right-click → Rename Tab

Staying Updated

Termy checks for updates automatically, or manually:

Open Command Palette (Cmd/Ctrl + P)
Type "check for updates"
Follow prompts

Or use package managers:

# macOS (Homebrew)
brew upgrade --cask termy

# Arch Linux
paru -S termy-bin

Getting Help

Stuck? Here's where to go:

Command Palette: Cmd/Ctrl + P → type what you need
Documentation: You're already here! Check other guides.
GitHub Issues: https://github.com/lassejlv/termy/issues
Discord Community: https://discord.gg/4VDBFD7vAp

What's Next?

Configuration - Deep dive into all settings
Customization Guide - Make it yours
Keybindings - Full shortcut reference

First Steps