Terminal

LMMs-Lab Writer includes a full-featured terminal emulator, so you never need to leave the app for command-line tasks.

Overview

The built-in terminal uses xterm.js and connects to a real shell process via Tauri's PTY (pseudo-terminal) integration. It's not a simple command runner — it's a fully interactive terminal with support for colors, cursor movement, tab completion, and everything you'd expect from a native terminal.

Default Shell

The terminal uses your system's default shell:

macOS: Bash or Zsh (whichever is your default)
Windows: PowerShell

You can switch to a custom shell path in the terminal settings.

Features

Full shell access — Run any command, install packages, use CLI tools
Color support — ANSI colors rendered correctly
Scrollback — 10,000 lines of history
Auto-resize — Adapts to window size changes
Theme-aware — Matches the app's light/dark mode
Monospace font — SF Mono (macOS), Cascadia Code (Windows)

Common Use Cases

Running AI CLI Tools

# Claude Code
claude "Rewrite the introduction to be more compelling"
 
# Codex CLI
codex "Add error bars to all figures in the results section"

LaTeX Package Management

# TinyTeX
tlmgr install <package-name>
 
# MiKTeX (Windows)
mpm --install <package-name>

Git Operations

While the Git panel handles most operations, the terminal is useful for advanced git workflows:

git rebase -i HEAD~3
git stash
git cherry-pick <commit-hash>

Running Scripts

python scripts/generate_figures.py
bash scripts/build_appendix.sh

Settings

Open Settings to configure the terminal:

Shell mode: Auto (system default) or Custom
Custom shell path: Specify a custom shell executable (e.g., /bin/fish, C:\Program Files\Git\bin\bash.exe)