Interface Overview
A tour of the Ternux window — tabs, Connections sidebar, terminal area, and settings.
Ternux uses a tabbed interface. The first tab is always Connections (it cannot be closed). Additional tabs open for terminal sessions, settings, and file transfer views.
Tab bar
The horizontal tab strip runs across the top of the window.
| Tab type | Description |
|---|---|
| Connections | SSH and S3 connection management, groups, keychain, port forwarding, snippets |
| Terminal | Full-screen terminal — local shell or SSH session |
| Settings | App configuration with sidebar navigation |
| File Transfer | Dual-pane file browser (local ↔ SFTP or S3) |
A green dot indicator appears on terminal tabs that are actively connected.
Connections tab layout
┌──────────────────────────────────────────────────┐
│ ← Brand mark │
│ ─────────────────────────────────────── │
│ Connections │ ┌─────┐ ┌─────┐ ┌─────┐ │
│ Keychain │ │ SSH │ │ S3 │ │ SSH │ │
│ Port Forward │ └─────┘ └─────┘ └─────┘ │
│ Snippets │ │
│ Known Hosts │ ┌─────┐ ┌─────┐ │
│ Audit Log │ │ SSH │ │ S3 │ │
│ │ └─────┘ └─────┘ │
│ ───────────── │ │
│ User row │ │
└──────────────────────────────────────────────────┘- Left sidebar (228 px) — navigation items.
- Right content area — connection cards grid (SSH and S3), tables, or forms depending on the active section.
Connection card interactions
| Action | SSH result | S3 result |
|---|---|---|
| Single-click | Select the card (teal highlight ring) | Select the card |
| Double-click | Open SSH connection in a terminal tab | Open S3 file browser |
Right-click / … button | Context menu: Connect, File Transfer, Edit, Delete | Context menu: Browse S3, Edit, Delete |
Terminal tab layout
Terminal tabs are distraction-free — the full window is the xterm.js terminal. No sidebar, no chrome.
A small Transfer button overlays the bottom-right corner on SSH tabs to launch file transfer mode.
Settings tab layout
┌────────────────────────────────────────────┐
│ General │ Setting fields │
│ Appearance │ with labels, │
│ Terminal │ descriptions, │
│ Connection │ and controls │
│ Security │ │
│ Vault │ │
│ Shortcuts │ │
│ File Transfer│ │
│ Connections │ │
│ Groups │ │
│ Config File │ │
└────────────────────────────────────────────┘Changes in Settings save immediately — there is no Save button.
Spotlight search
Press Cmd+K (macOS) or Ctrl+K (Linux / Windows) to open the Spotlight command palette. Type any host name, group, or command to find and connect instantly.
See Spotlight Search for details.