Quickstart¶

One happy path from zero to a working tool invocation.

1. Install¶

Pick your MCP client and install method:

With uvx installed:

$ claude mcp add tmux -- uvx libtmux-mcp

Config file: .mcp.json (project) or ~/.claude.json (global)

With pipx installed:

$ claude mcp add tmux -- pipx run libtmux-mcp

Config file: .mcp.json (project) or ~/.claude.json (global)

Install the packages first:

$ pip install --user --upgrade libtmux libtmux-mcp

Then register:

$ claude mcp add tmux -- libtmux-mcp

Config file: .mcp.json (project) or ~/.claude.json (global)

With uvx installed:

{
    "mcpServers": {
        "tmux": {
            "command": "uvx",
            "args": ["libtmux-mcp"]
        }
    }
}

Config file: claude_desktop_config.json

With pipx installed:

{
    "mcpServers": {
        "tmux": {
            "command": "pipx",
            "args": ["run", "libtmux-mcp"]
        }
    }
}

Config file: claude_desktop_config.json

Install the packages first:

$ pip install --user --upgrade libtmux libtmux-mcp

Then use this config:

{
    "mcpServers": {
        "tmux": {
            "command": "libtmux-mcp"
        }
    }
}

Config file: claude_desktop_config.json

With uvx installed:

$ codex mcp add tmux -- uvx libtmux-mcp

Config file: ~/.codex/config.toml

With pipx installed:

$ codex mcp add tmux -- pipx run libtmux-mcp

Config file: ~/.codex/config.toml

Install the packages first:

$ pip install --user --upgrade libtmux libtmux-mcp

Then register:

$ codex mcp add tmux -- libtmux-mcp

Config file: ~/.codex/config.toml

With uvx installed:

$ gemini mcp add tmux uvx -- libtmux-mcp

Config file: ~/.gemini/settings.json

With pipx installed:

$ gemini mcp add tmux pipx -- run libtmux-mcp

Config file: ~/.gemini/settings.json

Install the packages first:

$ pip install --user --upgrade libtmux libtmux-mcp

Then register:

$ gemini mcp add tmux libtmux-mcp

Config file: ~/.gemini/settings.json

With uvx installed:

{
    "mcpServers": {
        "tmux": {
            "command": "uvx",
            "args": ["libtmux-mcp"]
        }
    }
}

Config file: .cursor/mcp.json (project) or ~/.cursor/mcp.json (global)

With pipx installed:

{
    "mcpServers": {
        "tmux": {
            "command": "pipx",
            "args": ["run", "libtmux-mcp"]
        }
    }
}

Config file: .cursor/mcp.json (project) or ~/.cursor/mcp.json (global)

Install the packages first:

$ pip install --user --upgrade libtmux libtmux-mcp

Then use this config:

{
    "mcpServers": {
        "tmux": {
            "command": "libtmux-mcp"
        }
    }
}

Config file: .cursor/mcp.json (project) or ~/.cursor/mcp.json (global)

See MCP Clients for dev-checkout setup, full config-file locations, and common pitfalls.

2. Verify¶

Ask your LLM:

Prompt

List all my tmux sessions and show me what’s running in each pane.

The agent will call list_sessions, then list_panes and capture_pane to inspect your workspace. You should see your tmux sessions, windows, and pane contents in the response.

3. Try it¶

Here are a few things to try:

Prompt

Create a new tmux session called “workspace” with a window named “build”.

Prompt

Send make test to the pane in my build window, then wait for it to finish and capture the output.

Prompt

Search all my panes for the word “error”.

How it works¶

When you say “run make test and show me the output”, the agent executes a three-step pattern:

send_keys mutating — send the command to a tmux pane
wait_for_text readonly — wait for the shell prompt to return (command finished)
capture_pane readonly — read the terminal output

This send → wait → capture sequence is the fundamental workflow. Most agent interactions with tmux follow this pattern or a variation of it.

Next steps¶

Concepts — Understand the tmux hierarchy and how tools target panes
Configuration — Environment variables and socket isolation
Safety tiers — Control which tools are available
Tools — Browse all available tools