Using the Shared Terminal

Work collaboratively in the shared terminal environment

Duet’s shared terminal is the heart of pair programming sessions. Every user in a room shares the same terminal - all input and output is synchronized in real-time.

Terminal Features

Real-time Synchronization

When any user types in the terminal:

• Their input is broadcast to all users in the room
• Everyone sees the same terminal state
• Terminal updates are pushed to all clients via subscription channels (internal/ui/model.go:637-671)

Typing Indicators

You can see when others are actively typing:

• Appears when a user sends input to the terminal
• Displays “[username] is typing…”
• Automatically clears after 2 seconds of inactivity
• Debounced to avoid spam (500ms between broadcasts)

See internal/ui/model.go:456-462 for implementation.

Pre-installed Tools

Each room’s workspace includes:

• nvim - Text editor for collaborative coding
• Node.js - JavaScript runtime for running scripts
• Standard Unix utilities (git, grep, find, etc.)

Working in the Terminal

Basic Terminal Input

The terminal accepts all standard keyboard input (internal/ui/model.go:418-464):

• Regular keys - Type normally
• Enter - Send command
• Backspace - Delete character (sends ASCII 127)
• Tab - Auto-completion
• Arrow keys - Navigate command history and cursor
  • Up: \x1b[A
  • Down: \x1b[B
  • Right: \x1b[C
  • Left: \x1b[D
• Home/End - Jump to line start/end
• Delete - Forward delete
• Esc - Escape key

Running Commands

Simply type commands as you would in any terminal:

# Clone a repository
git clone https://github.com/user/repo.git

# Navigate and explore
cd repo
ls -la

# Edit files
nvim src/index.js

# Run scripts
node index.js
npm install
npm test

All collaborators will see:

• The commands being executed
• Real-time output
• Any errors or results

Working with Files

Using nvim

The workspace includes nvim for collaborative editing:

nvim myfile.js

All users will see the nvim interface, but keep in mind:

• Only one person should edit at a time to avoid conflicts
• Use the AI assistant or sandbox for file operations when working simultaneously

File Operations

Standard Unix file commands work as expected:

# Create files and directories
mkdir src
touch src/app.js

# View file contents
cat src/app.js
less README.md

# Copy and move
cp file1.js file2.js
mv old.js new.js

# Search
grep -r "function" src/
find . -name "*.js"

Terminal Modes

Duet has different input modes (internal/ui/screen.go:16-23):

Normal Mode (Default)

• Standard terminal interaction
• All keyboard input goes to the terminal
• Use keyboard shortcuts to access other features

AI Mode

See AI Interaction for details on the AI prompt mode.

Sandbox Mode

See AI Interaction for details on direct sandbox command execution.

Special Keyboard Shortcuts

These shortcuts are reserved for Duet features and won’t be sent to the terminal:

• ctrl+g - Enter AI prompt mode
• ctrl+r - Enter sandbox command mode
• ctrl+a - Toggle AI sidebar visibility
• ctrl+j - Scroll AI sidebar down
• ctrl+k - Scroll AI sidebar up
• ctrl+l - Leave room and return to launch screen

See internal/ui/model.go:379-416 for the full keyboard shortcut map.

Workspace Directory

Your terminal starts in the room’s workspace directory:

• Path: /app/workspaces/<workspace-name>/
• Isolated per room
• Persists for the lifetime of the room
• Automatically deleted when the last user leaves

The workspace is initialized from a template (internal/room/manager.go:85-91) that includes necessary tools.

Best Practices

Coordination

• Communicate before running destructive commands - Everyone shares the same filesystem
• Take turns editing files - Multiple simultaneous edits can cause conflicts
• Use descriptive commit messages - Others can see your git activity

Performance

• The terminal auto-resizes based on window dimensions (internal/ui/model.go:156-159)
• Minimum recommended size: 120x24 for optimal layout with sidebars
• Terminal content is efficiently streamed via update channels

Troubleshooting

• If the terminal seems frozen, it may be waiting for input in a program (like nvim or less)
• Press ctrl+c in the terminal to cancel a running command
• Use ctrl+l (Duet shortcut) to leave the room if something goes wrong

Terminal Limitations

• The terminal runs in a chroot environment for security
• Some system-level commands may not be available
• Network access depends on server configuration
• Terminal size is shared - one user’s window resize affects everyone