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https://github.com/mahdiarfrm/conterm

A modern macOS terminal built on libghostty
https://github.com/mahdiarfrm/conterm

ghostty macos swift swiftui terminal

Last synced: 12 days ago
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A modern macOS terminal built on libghostty

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README 

          


  Conterm — a modern macOS terminal






  Latest release

  License: MIT

  GitHub stars

  Platform






  Download ·

  Website ·

  Report a bug




**Conterm** is a macOS terminal built on [Ghostty's](https://github.com/ghostty-org/ghostty)

engine, adding Liquid Glass chrome, splittable panes, a multi-source `⌘K`

command palette, and live status for AI coding agents like Claude Code and

opencode.



> Conterm is an independent frontend built on **libghostty**. It is not

> affiliated with the Ghostty project. The terminal engine (rendering, parsing,

> fonts, themes, shell integration) is Ghostty's; Conterm adds the macOS app

> around it.





  Conterm demo






  Full demo: 90s MP4 with audio · landing page




## Contents



- [Features](#features)

- [Install](#install)

- [Updating](#updating)

- [Keyboard shortcuts](#keyboard-shortcuts)

- [Configuration](#configuration)

- [Backup & restore](#backup--restore)

- [Building from source](#building-from-source)

- [How it fits together](#how-it-fits-together)

- [License](#license)



## Features



### Panes, tabs & sessions



- **Recursive split panes** — `⌘D` splits right, `⌘⇧D` splits down, to any

  depth. Drag the dividers to resize; focus any pane by number with `⌥1`–`⌥9`.

- **Tabs, top or sidebar** — move the tab bar to a left sidebar; it can

  auto-hide and slide back in when the cursor reaches the left edge.

- **Tab groups** — color-coded groups with inline rename, reordering, and a

  live list of every tab in each group.

- **Session restore** — every window, tab, pane, split, and working directory

  comes back exactly where you left it on relaunch.



### Command palette (`⌘K`)



One launcher over many sources:



- App commands, **shell history** (re-run any zsh/bash command), your

  `~/.ssh/config` hosts (with `Include` support), and **every open pane across

  every window**.

- Built-in **notes**, **tab-group** management, and quick **"open this

  directory in Finder / Cursor"**.

- **Reorder or hide** the commands you don't use, from *Settings → Palette*.



### Agent-aware



- **Status pills** — a per-pane pill shows when

  [Claude Code](https://www.anthropic.com/claude-code) or

  [opencode](https://opencode.ai) is *ready*, *thinking*, or *needs you*, with

  a notification center for what finished while you were away. Hooks are

  installed non-destructively.

- **Command markers** *(shell integration)* — a ✓ / ✗ chip with the run time

  when a command fails or takes a while, a notification when a long command

  finishes while you've stepped away, and `⌘↑` / `⌘↓` to jump between prompts.



### Updates and backups



- **Automatic updates** — checked from GitHub on launch; a Liquid Glass pill

  appears in the toolbar when a new release is out, or run *Check for Updates*

  any time. No external service involved.

- **Backup & restore** — save your sessions, app settings, and Conterm +

  Ghostty config to a single file, and restore them on another machine

  (*Settings → Config*).



### Appearance



- **Liquid Glass chrome** *(macOS 26)* — refractive glass behind every surface

  with a Clear↔Frosted slider and light/dark tint, plus a battery-saving flat

  fill when the window is inactive. On macOS 14–15 the app runs fully with

  plain (non-glass) chrome.

- **Live system stats** — optional CPU / RAM / network sparklines in the tab

  bar, with a popover for detailed graphs.

- **Scrollback search** (`⌘F`), **SSH-host detection** in the pane chrome, and

  synthesized UI sound effects.



## Install



Download the latest `.dmg` from the

[Releases page](https://github.com/mahdiarfrm/conterm/releases/latest), open it,

and drag `Conterm.app` into `Applications`.



**First launch:** Conterm is ad-hoc codesigned (open-source, not notarized

through a paid Apple Developer account), so the first launch needs one step:

right-click `Conterm.app` → **Open** → **Open**. If macOS still refuses:



```bash

xattr -dr com.apple.quarantine /Applications/Conterm.app

```



### Requirements



- macOS **14 (Sonoma)** or later — tested through macOS 26 (Tahoe).

- **Apple Silicon** (M1 or later). Intel is untested.

- Liquid Glass / blur chrome requires **macOS 26**; on 14–15 the app is fully

  functional with plain chrome.



## Updating



Conterm checks GitHub for new releases on launch and shows an update pill in

the toolbar when one is available — click it to install and relaunch. You can

also trigger it from **Conterm → Check for Updates** or *Settings → Config*,

and turn the automatic check off there.



## Keyboard shortcuts



| Shortcut | Action |

|----------|--------|

| `⌘T` / `⌘N` | New tab / new window |

| `⌘W` | Close active pane (or tab) |

| `⌘D` / `⌘⇧D` | Split right / split down |

| `⌥1`–`⌥9` | Focus pane *N* in the current tab |

| `⌘1`–`⌘9` | Jump to tab *N* |

| `⌘↑` / `⌘↓` | Jump to previous / next prompt |

| `⌘K` | Command palette |

| `⌘F` | Search scrollback |

| `⌘,` | Settings |

| `Esc` | Dismiss palette / settings / search |



## Configuration



Conterm reads a single file: `~/.config/conterm/config`, in

[Ghostty's config syntax](https://ghostty.org/docs/config/reference).

*Settings → Config* shows the path and offers Open / Reload / Reset actions.



Already use Ghostty? Add a one-line include so both apps share settings:



```ini

config-file = ~/.config/ghostty/config

```



Edits in either file then apply to both on the next reload; anything written

*below* the include overrides Ghostty's value for Conterm only. **Safe mode**

(*Settings → Config*) boots on Ghostty's built-in defaults and ignores the

file — useful for recovering from a bad edit.



A few common options:



```ini

font-family = "JetBrains Mono"

font-size = 14



cursor-style = bar             # bar | block | underline

cursor-style-blink = true



background-opacity = 0.9

background-blur = 20



# command = "/opt/homebrew/bin/fish"   # default is $SHELL

```



## Backup & restore



From *Settings → Config*, **Back Up** writes a single `.contermbackup` file

containing your app settings, sessions, notes, tab groups, and both the Conterm

and Ghostty config files. **Restore** reads it back and relaunches — handy when

moving to a new machine.



## Building from source



Requires the Swift toolchain (Command Line Tools is enough — no full Xcode):



```bash

xcode-select --install



git clone https://github.com/mahdiarfrm/conterm.git

cd conterm



bash scripts/setup.sh    # fetch GhosttyKit.xcframework

bash scripts/build.sh    # build + assemble Conterm.app

open ./Conterm.app

```



`scripts/build.sh` produces a release, arm64, ad-hoc-codesigned `Conterm.app`

with the bundled config, terminfo, and icon.



## How it fits together



Conterm is a SwiftUI + AppKit app that drives libghostty through

`GhosttyKit.xcframework`. Each pane owns a `ghostty_surface_t` and the `NSView`

it renders into; the SwiftUI layer handles tabs, splits, the palette, and the

glass chrome. The terminal core — GPU rendering, parsing, fonts and ligatures,

themes, and shell integration — is entirely Ghostty's.



```

Sources/Conterm/

  Main.swift        @main + AppDelegate, window management

  State/            tabs, pane tree, preferences, stores

  Ghostty/          libghostty Swift bridge (surfaces, input)

  UI/               SwiftUI shell: palette, tabs, chrome, effects

```



Contributions and issue reports are welcome on the

[issue tracker](https://github.com/mahdiarfrm/conterm/issues).



## License



MIT — see [LICENSE](LICENSE). Built on

[libghostty](https://github.com/ghostty-org/ghostty); not affiliated with the

Ghostty project.