Tabby, formerly known as Terminus, is a highly customizable, open-source terminal emulator designed for Windows, macOS, and Linux. It serves as a powerful alternative to traditional terminal tools like Windows’ conhost, PowerShell ISE, PuTTY, macOS Terminal.app, and iTerm. Tabby has gained a strong following among developers and IT professionals for its sleek interface and robust feature set.
Unlike lightweight options such as Conemu or Alacritty, Tabby prioritizes functionality and customization over minimal resource usage. It’s not a shell replacement like MinGW or Cygwin but a versatile tool that enhances the terminal experience with integrated SSH, Telnet, and serial clients. Whether you’re managing remote servers or working locally, Tabby offers a modern, user-friendly solution.
Terminal Capabilities
Tabby supports a VT220 terminal with various extensions, making it compatible with a wide range of applications. Its split-pane functionality allows users to work in multiple nested panes, with tabs positionable on any side of the window. A unique “Quake console” feature provides a dockable window accessible via a global hotkey, ideal for quick terminal access. Tabby also supports font ligatures, bracketed paste, and multiline paste warnings, ensuring a smooth and visually appealing experience.
For Windows users, Tabby delivers a proper shell experience with tab completion via Clink. It supports PowerShell, WSL, Git-Bash, Cygwin, MSYS2, Cmder, and CMD, catering to diverse workflows. The terminal handles fast-flowing outputs without lag and offers full Unicode support, including double-width characters, making it suitable for global users.
SSH and Telnet Integration
Tabby shines as an SSH and Telnet client, featuring a connection manager for easy session handling. It supports X11 and port forwarding, automatic jump host management, and agent forwarding with tools like Pageant and Windows’ OpenSSH Agent. Users can leverage login scripts and direct file transfers via Zmodem, streamlining remote server interactions. Additionally, Tabby offers an integrated encrypted container for securely storing SSH secrets and configurations.
A web app version, available at app.tabby.sh, extends Tabby’s functionality to any device with a browser, making it a versatile tool for remote work. The web version mirrors the desktop experience, ensuring consistency across platforms.
Serial Terminal and Plugins
Tabby’s serial terminal supports saved connections, readline input, and optional hex byte-by-byte input with hexdump output. It also features newline conversion and automatic reconnection, enhancing usability for hardware-related tasks.
The plugin ecosystem is a standout feature, allowing users to extend Tabby’s functionality. Plugins like docker connect to Docker containers, sftp-tab enables SecureCRT-like SFTP sessions, and sync-config syncs settings to Gist or Gitee. Other plugins, such as title-control and quick-cmds, enhance terminal customization and productivity. Themes like catppuccin and gruvbox offer visually appealing color schemes, further personalizing the experience.
Portability and Customization
Tabby can run as a portable app on Windows by creating a data folder alongside Tabby.exe, making it convenient for users on the go. Its theming and color scheme options, combined with fully configurable shortcuts and multi-chord keybindings, allow users to tailor the emulator to their preferences. The ability to save profiles and remember tabs ensures a consistent workflow across sessions.
Conclusion
Tabby is a feature-rich, modern terminal emulator that caters to developers, system administrators, and power users. Its integration of SSH, Telnet, and serial clients, combined with extensive customization options and a growing plugin ecosystem, makes it a standout choice. While recent updates have introduced some challenges, the active community and ongoing development ensure that Tabby remains a reliable and evolving tool.
You can download Tabby from https://github.com/Eugeny/tabby.