Super User
Super User

Questions tagged [gnu-screen]

GNU Screen is a command line utility which allows the user to create multiple shell sessions on one connection. These sessions are decoupled from the primary connection and so maintain state for the user, even if the connection is dropped.

Links:

664 questions
597
votes
16 answers

Reload a Linux user's group assignments without logging out

When assigning a user's secondary group list using: # usermod -G is it possible to force this group assignment to take effect without logging out all running sessions? This would be very useful in the situation where a Screen…
Simon
  • 6,462
387
votes
8 answers

tmux vs. screen

I'm about to get back into using GNU Screen, but I have been hearing people occasionally mention tmux as a better alternative. Does it really offer an alternative to all the features Screen offers, such as activity monitoring in different windows,…
Alison R.
  • 4,490
278
votes
3 answers

How can I rename a GNU screen session?

Is it possible to change the name of a GNU screen session? Say I called started it with screen -S foo and I want to rename it to bar.
moinudin
  • 3,134
195
votes
8 answers

How to execute a command in screen and detach?

How can I get screen to execute a command and then detach (That is, automatically in a single script without further input beyond initially starting the script)? e.g. I run myscript.sh and it automatically starts a screen session, executes a…
darkfeline
  • 2,232
131
votes
4 answers

Byobu vs. GNU Screen vs. tmux — usefulness and transferability of skills

So far I have used Konsole to manage multiple shell sessions but I haven't tried Byobu, GNU Screen, and tmux, which offer better support for multiple shells. They all share one main feature, which is to allow detaching the current session and later…
Keitai
  • 1,321
  • 2
  • 9
  • 4
129
votes
22 answers

What's the least conflicting prefix/escape sequence for screen or tmux?

Screen goes with Ctrl+A. tmux on the other hand—as developed within screen—uses Ctrl+B. Both keystrokes, however, are also used in editors, shells, etc. Thus choosing either one degrades the user experience and functionality of those tools when…
Flow
  • 1,556
111
votes
5 answers

Unix: How to unsplit in screen

I'm trying to learn how to use screen, in unix so that I don't have to open up several ssh connections and terminal windows just because I want to do more than one thing at the same time on a machine. I have found the split command quite useful, but…
Svish
  • 41,258
94
votes
5 answers

How to switch between two latest windows in tmux?

GNU Screen has Ctrl-a,Ctrl-a to switch between the two latest windows. How to do it in tmux?
kev
  • 13,200
85
votes
8 answers

How can I view more of my history in Screen on Linux?

I was running scripts overnight from the command line (inside Screen on a Linux EC2 instance) and some errors that I was not tracking occurred. I want to "scroll up" or view more of the history in Screen, but I cannot seem to find any commands that…
T. Brian Jones
  • 1,005
82
votes
3 answers

Transfer current command to a detachable session (tmux/screen)

I'm currently running a backup and it now needs to be transferred to detachable one like on tmux or screen. Is there a way to do this when the command is currently running? I can send the command the background by pressing Ctrl+Z and put it back up…
Jürgen Paul
  • 1,145
81
votes
5 answers

Slight delay when switching modes in vim using tmux or screen

Switching to and from insert mode in Vim is no longer instantaneous since I use tmux. After pressing Esc in insert mode, it takes a noticeable amount of time to actually get out of insert mode. After pressing Esc and any other key afterwards the…
Ton van den Heuvel
  • 3,914
77
votes
7 answers

Cannot make directory '/var/run/screen': Permission denied

Sometime, usually after a crash or sudden shutdown, screen refuses to start. Commands like screen screen -ls screen -r screen -d result in the following output Cannot make directory '/var/run/screen': Permission denied What's the issue here? How…
Huey
  • 1,559
58
votes
4 answers

Binding a command in tmux without using the prefix key

Is it possible to bind a tmux command to a key combination and use it directly without first pressing the prefix? I find C-b + n too cumbersome to switch panes, so I was wondering whether I could bind C-1 for example, to switch to pane #1. Or…
Ivan
  • 4,679
57
votes
13 answers

How do you get screen to automatically connect to the current ssh-agent when re-attaching to an existing screen?

If you start a screen session while ssh-agent is running (from ssh -A agent forwarding), accessing ssh-agent works fine. However, if you detach from that session, log out, log in again (with ssh-agent forwarding), and re-attach to your screen…
apinstein
52
votes
4 answers

Gnu screen: kill a frozen tab

How to go about closing a stalled screen tab (the machine is no longer reachable) ?
Philippe Blayo
  • 675
1
2 3
…
44 45