Commands
These commands can be invoked with zellij [SUBCOMMAND].
For more details, each subcommand has its own help section when run with the
--help flag (zellij [SUBCOMMAND] --help).
attach [session-name]
short: a
Zellij will attempt to attach to an already running session, with the name
[session-name].
If given no [session-name] and there is only one running session, it will attach to that session.
The attach subcommand will also accept the optional options subcommand.
Starting a session with an initial command
Trailing arguments given after -- are run as a command in the first pane of the
session:
$ zellij attach -c my-session -- htop
This works both when creating a session in the foreground (-c, --create) and in the
background (-b, --create-background).
The command only runs if the session is created by this invocation. When attaching to an already running session, the trailing command is ignored.
If a layout is used, the pane running the command is placed in the focused tab.
Two flags change how the initial command behaves. Both require an initial command to be given:
| Flag | Description |
|---|---|
| --close-on-exit | Close the initial command's pane as soon as the command exits. By default the pane is held open |
| --start-suspended | Start the command suspended - it is only run once ENTER is pressed for the first time |
Initial commands are not supported for remote (web client) sessions - the CLI will error out.
list-sessions
short: ls
Will list all the names of currently running sessions.
kill-sessions [target-session]
short: k
Will kill the session with the name of [target-session], if it is currently
running.
kill-all-sessions
short: ka
Will prompt the user to kill all running sessions.
options
Can be used to change the behaviour of zellij on startup. Will supercede options defined in the config file. To see a list of options look here.
setup
Functionality to help with the setup of zellij.
| Flag | Description |
|---|---|
| --check | Check the configuration |
| --clean | Start with default configuration |
| --dump-config | Dump the default configuration file to stdout |
| --dump-layout [LAYOUT] | Dump a specified default layout file to stdout |
| --generate-completion [SHELL] | Generate completions for the specified shell |
Flags
These flags can be invoked with zellij --flag.
| Flag | Description |
|---|---|
| --help | Display the help prompt |
| --debug | Gather additional debug information |
| --version | Print version information |
| --layout-string [KDL] | Use a raw KDL layout string instead of a layout file |
--layout-string
Takes a layout as a raw KDL string rather than as a path to a layout file. Useful for scripting and for generating layouts on the fly.
If invoked from inside a Zellij session (or with an explicit --session), the layout is added to the running session as new tab(s). Otherwise, a new session is started with it.
This flag conflicts with --layout and --new-session-with-layout.
$ zellij --layout-string 'layout { pane split_direction="vertical" { pane; pane; } }'
The layout is parsed and validated before being sent to the session, so syntax errors are reported immediately.