Keyboard Shortcuts

Master all of Termix's keyboard shortcuts for maximum productivity. This comprehensive reference covers every key binding organized by function and context. To view this guide inside the app, press ? at any time.

Quick Reference Card

Essential Shortcuts

Key	Action	Key	Action
↑↓ / kj	Move selection	Enter / l	Open/Enter
Backspace / h	Go up	s	Search
a	Add	r	Rename
y	Yank (Copy)	x	Move/Cut
p	Paste	d	Delete
m	Bookmark Add	b	Bookmark Menu
t	Sort	v	Visual Mode
Y	Yank Path	?	Help Screen
q	Quit	Esc	Cancel/Clear
O	Open in menu	Esc	Cancel/Clear

Navigation Shortcuts

Basic Movement

Key	Action	Description
↑	Move up	Select previous item
↓	Move down	Select next item
k	Move up (Vim)	Vim-style up movement
j	Move down (Vim)	Vim-style down movement
gg	Jump to top	Select first item in list
G	Jump to bottom	Select last item in list
Ctrl+d	Scroll down	Scroll down half a page
Ctrl+u	Scroll up	Scroll up half a page

Directory Navigation

Key	Action	Description
Enter	Open/Enter	Open file or enter directory
l	Open/Enter (Vim)	Alternative key for opening
Backspace	Go up	Move to parent directory
h	Go up (Vim)	Vim-style parent navigation

Preview Pane Control

Key	Action	Description
Alt + ↑	Scroll up	Scroll preview content up
Alt + ↓	Scroll down	Scroll preview content down
Alt + ←	Scroll left	Scroll preview content left
Alt + →	Scroll right	Scroll preview content right

File Operations

Creation and Modification

Key	Action	Description
a	Add	Create new file or directory
r	Rename	Rename selected item
d	Delete	Delete selected item(s) with confirmation

Clipboard and Batch Operations

Key	Action	Description
v	Visual Mode	Enter/Exit mode for selecting multiple items
y	Yank (Copy)	Yank selected item(s) to internal clipboard
x	Cut (Move)	Cut selected item(s) to internal clipboard
p	Paste	Paste from internal clipboard
Y	Yank Path	Yank item's full path to system clipboard

Bookmark Management

Key	Context	Action	Description
m	Normal Mode	Mark (Add Bookmark)	Save the current directory as a new bookmark.
b	Normal Mode	Open Bookmark Menu	Display the list of all saved bookmarks.
Enter	Bookmark Menu	Jump to Bookmark	Navigate to the selected bookmark's directory.
s	Bookmark Menu	Filter Bookmarks	Enter filter mode to search bookmarks by name or path.
r	Bookmark Menu	Rename Bookmark	Edit the name of the selected bookmark.
d	Bookmark Menu	Delete Bookmark	Delete the selected bookmark(s) with confirmation.
v	Bookmark Menu	Visual Mode	Enter visual mode to select multiple bookmarks to delete.
Esc	Bookmark Menu	Close Menu	Return to the file navigator.

Search and Filter

Search Control

Key	Mode	Action	Description
s	Normal	Start search	Enter search mode
Esc	Search	Apply filter	Finish search, navigate results
Esc	Filtered	Clear filter	Remove filter, show all files
b	Filtered Nav	Back to results	Return to search results after entering a directory

Search Input

Key	Mode	Action
Character keys	Search	Add to query
Backspace	Search	Remove from query
Enter	Search	(Same as Esc) Apply filter

Application Control

Session Management

Key	Action	Description
q	Quit	Exit Termix
?	Help	Show/hide the help screen
Esc	Cancel	Cancel current operation

Special Contexts

Key	Context	Action
y	Delete confirm	Confirm deletion
n	Delete confirm	Cancel deletion
y	Quit confirm	Force quit with operations
n	Quit confirm	Cancel quit
S	Paste Conflict	Skip current file
L	Paste Conflict	Skip All conflicting files
R	Paste Conflict	Replace current file
A	Paste Conflict	Replace All conflicting files

Mode-Specific Shortcuts

Normal Mode

Default mode for navigation and file operations

Category	Keys	Actions
Movement	↑↓kj, gg, G	Navigate through files
Navigation	Enter/l, Backspace/h	Open/close directories
Operations	a, r, y, Y, x, p, d	File operations
Bookmarks	m (Mark), b (Open Menu)	Bookmark management
Modes	s (Search), t (Sort), v (Visual)	Switch to other modes
App	q (Quit), ? (Help)	Application control

Visual Mode

Active when selecting multiple files for batch operations

Key	Action	Notes
Space	Toggle Selection	Mark or unmark the highlighted item
a	Select All	Select every item in the current view
i	Invert Selection	Deselect all selected and select all unselected
y / x	Yank / Cut	Yank/Cut all selected items to the clipboard
d	Delete	Delete all selected items
v / Esc	Exit Mode	Return to Normal Mode

Bookmark Menu Mode

Active when viewing your list of saved bookmarks

Key	Action	Notes
↑↓ / kj	Move Selection	Navigate the list of bookmarks
Enter	Jump to Bookmark	Go to the selected bookmark's directory
s	Filter Bookmarks	Enter filter mode to search bookmarks
r	Rename Bookmark
d	Delete Bookmark
v	Enter Visual Mode	Select multiple bookmarks for deletion
Esc	Close Menu	Return to the file navigator

Bookmark Visual Mode

Active when selecting multiple bookmarks for batch deletion

Key	Action	Notes
Space	Toggle Selection	Mark or unmark the highlighted bookmark
d	Delete	Delete all selected bookmarks
v / Esc	Exit Mode	Return to the Bookmark Menu

Context-Sensitive Behavior

Esc Key Behavior

The Esc key behaves differently based on context:

Context	Action
Normal mode with filter	Clear active filter
Normal mode with clipboard	Clear clipboard
Visual Mode	Exit Visual Mode
Search mode	Apply filter and enter navigation
Add/Rename mode	Cancel operation
Delete/Quit confirm	Cancel action
Paste Conflict	Cancel paste operation
Bookmark Menu	Close the menu
Bookmark Visual Mode	Exit Visual Mode
Bookmark Filter Mode	Exit filter mode

Memory Aids

Mnemonic Devices

Key	Mnemonic	Action
a	Add	Create new item
b	Bookmark	Open bookmark menu
d	Delete	Delete item
m	Mark	Create a bookmark
p	Paste	Paste from clipboard
q	Quit	Exit application
r	Rename	Rename item
s	Search	Start search
t	Sort	Open sort menu
v	Visual	Enter Visual Mode
x	Cut (eXtract)	Move to clipboard
y	Yank	Yank to clipboard (copy)

Troubleshooting Key Issues

Keys Not Working

If shortcuts aren't responding:

1. Check terminal focus: Ensure the terminal window has focus.
2. Verify key support: Some terminals may not support all key combinations (e.g., Alt).
3. Check for conflicts: Other applications might intercept keys.

All essential functions have alternative key bindings that work in any standard terminal.