Install tmuxinator with Homebrew, apk, apt, Nix

Project links

• Homepage
• Upstream docs
• Package manager page

Commands and aliases

• tmuxinator

Project history

The project dates to the early tmux adoption era: its license carries a 2010 copyright notice, and its changelog shows a progression from basic panes, pre commands, and project roots into a Ruby/Thor CLI with completions, hooks, local project configs, detached starts, per-window roots, ERB support, and support for new tmux releases. The README still states the core promise plainly: create and manage tmux sessions easily.

The 0.6.0 rewrite was an important internal milestone, replacing early scripts with a more structured Ruby command-line application, tests, generated shell commands, and completion support. Later releases added local `.tmuxinator.yml` files, `stop`, `stop-all`, append starts, focused panes, XDG-aware config discovery, and repeated updates to the supported tmux version matrix as tmux 2.x and 3.x changed behavior.

Adoption history

Tmuxinator spread through RubyGems first, but the README also documents Homebrew installation and notes that distribution package managers may install shell completions automatically. The supplied package facts show broader packaging in Homebrew, Debian, Ubuntu, Alpine, and Nix, which is unusually wide coverage for a tmux workflow helper.

Its adoption history tracks the habits of developers who keep a stable editor/server/logs layout per project. The default sample config in the README is Rails-flavored, and years of changelog entries around shell completions, tmux compatibility, XDG paths, hooks, and local configs reflect practical use in daily development shells.

How it is used

A common workflow is `tmuxinator new project`, editing the generated YAML, and then `tmuxinator start project` to create windows and panes with commands already placed or running. The README assumes users already understand tmux windows and panes and exposes config fields for roots, layouts, pane commands, project hooks, attach behavior, pane titles, tmux options, and custom tmux commands.

Tmuxinator also became a diagnostic and maintenance tool for tmux layouts: `debug` prints generated shell commands, `doctor` checks for tmux, `$EDITOR`, and `$SHELL`, and `stop`/`stop-all` remove sessions created from configs.

Why package nerds care

For package nerds, Tmuxinator is a canonical example of a small Ruby CLI that became part of the terminal productivity stack. It sits at the intersection of dotfiles, shell completions, XDG config directories, Homebrew/RubyGems packaging, and tmux version compatibility.

It is also historically useful as a reference point for later session managers: tmuxp explicitly supports tmuxinator-style configuration import, which shows how Tmuxinator's YAML workspace model became a recognizable format in the tmux ecosystem.

Timeline

• 2010: License copyright begins for Allen Bargi and Christopher Chow.
• 0.2.0: Added pane support and RVM support.
• 0.6.0: Core functionality rewritten around Thor, tests, debug output, and completion commands.
• 0.7.0: Added detached starts, unnamed windows, per-project `.tmuxinator.yml`, and command-line args.
• 0.10.0: Added project hooks and XDG/user configuration directory support.
• 1.0.0: Added support for tmux 2.9.
• 3.4.0: Added focused pane support and restored explicit open/edit commands.

Related projects

• Related to tmux as the underlying terminal multiplexer.
• Related to tmuxp and teamocil as declarative tmux session managers; tmuxp documents import support for tmuxinator-style configs.

Sources

• https://github.com/tmuxinator/tmuxinator#readme
• https://github.com/tmuxinator/tmuxinator/blob/master/CHANGELOG.md
• https://github.com/tmuxinator/tmuxinator/blob/master/LICENSE
• input source_facts.package-manager