iTerm 2 is an amazing Terminal replacement (err, technically terminal emulator) for Mac users. If you spend any time at all in the terminal, free from the prescriptive constraints of the GUI…iTerm 2 is worth checking out. All of us begin our terminal journey learning the basics; the commands associated with moving around the filesystem, basic file manipulation, and probably a few administrative commands (e.g. chmod +r file). Learning how to operate the terminal itself quickly and efficiently is the next stage in your journey. Imagine the power one wields when being able to split terminal panes or delete entire sentences with a single keystroke…
The following is a list of commands and key bindings I originally discovered here.
If you’re experiencing any issues with your key bindings, you should check out this article.
Tabs and Windows
| Function |
Shortcut |
| New Tab |
⌘ + T |
| Close Tab or Window |
⌘ + W (same as many mac apps) |
| Go to Tab |
⌘ + Number Key (ie: ⌘2 is 2nd tab) |
| Go to Split Pane by Direction |
⌘ + Option + Arrow Key |
| Cycle iTerm Windows |
⌘ + backtick (true of all mac apps and works with desktops/mission control) |
| Splitting |
|
| Split Window Vertically (same profile) |
⌘ + D |
| Split Window Horizontally (same profile) |
⌘ + Shift + D (mnemonic: shift is a wide horizontal key) |
| Moving |
|
| Move a pane with the mouse |
⌘ + Alt + Shift and then drag the pane from anywhere |
| Fullscreen |
|
| Fullscreen |
⌘+ Enter |
| Maximize a pane |
⌘ + Shift + Enter (use with fullscreen to temp fullscreen a pane!) |
| Resize Pane |
Ctrl + ⌘ + Arrow (given you haven’t mapped this to something else) |
| Less Often Used By Me |
|
| Go to Split Pane by Order of Use |
⌘ + ] , ⌘ + [ |
| Split Window Horizontally (new profile) |
Option + ⌘ + H |
| Split Window Vertically (new profile) |
Option + ⌘ + V |
| Previous Tab |
⌘+ Left Arrow (I usually move by tab number) |
| Next Tab |
⌘+ Right Arrow |
| Go to Window |
⌘ + Option + Number |
Basic Moves
| Function |
Shortcut |
| Move back one character |
Ctrl + B |
| Move forward one character |
Ctrl + F |
| Delete current character |
Ctrl + D |
| Delete previous word (in shell) |
Ctrl + W |
Moving Faster
A lot of shell shortcuts work in iterm and it’s good to learn these because arrow keys, home/end
keys and Mac equivalents don’t always work. For example ⌘ + Left Arrow is usually the same as Home
(go to beginning of current line) but that doesn’t work in the shell. Home works in many apps but it
takes you away from the home row.
| Function |
Shortcut |
| Move to the start of line |
Ctrl + A or Home |
| Move to the end of line |
Ctrl + E or End |
| Move forward a word |
Option + F |
| Move backward a word |
Option + B |
| Set Mark |
⌘ + M |
| Jump to Mark |
⌘ + J |
| Moving by word on a line (this is a shell thing but passes through fine) |
Ctrl + Left/Right Arrow |
| Cursor Jump with Mouse (shell and vim - might depend on config) |
Option + Left Click |
Copy and Paste with iTerm without using the mouse
| Function |
Shortcut |
| Enter Copy Mode |
Shift + ⌘ + C |
| Enter Character Selection Mode in Copy Mode |
Ctrl + V |
| Move cursor in Copy Mode |
HJKL vim motions or arrow keys |
| Copy text in Copy Mode |
Ctrl + K |
Copy actions goes into the normal system clipboard which you can paste like normal.
Search the Command History
| Function |
Shortcut |
| Search as you type |
Ctrl + R and type the search term; Repeat Ctrl + R to loop through result |
| Search the last remembered search term |
Ctrl + R twice |
| End the search at current history entry |
Ctrl + Y |
| Cancel the search and restore original line |
Ctrl + G |
Misc
| Function |
Shortcut |
Clear the screen/pane (when Ctrl + L won’t work) |
⌘ + K (I use this all the time) |
| Broadcast command to all panes in window (nice when needed!) |
⌘ + Alt + I (again to toggle) |
| Find Cursor |
⌘ + / or use a theme or cursor shape that is easy to see |