Introduction
As a developer or power user, you may find yourself in a situation where you need to keep a process running on your Mac's Terminal, even when you're away from your computer. This article will explore various methods to keep your Terminal tasks running, ensuring that they continue to execute commands and scripts even when your screen is locked or you're away from your computer for an extended period.
Using Screen or TMUX
One of the most popular solutions for keeping Terminal tasks running is using the screen or tmux utilities. These tools create a virtual terminal session, allowing you to detach from it and reattach later, even if your computer has been restarted.
Installing Screen or TMUX
screen is pre-installed on macOS, but if you prefer using tmux, you can install it via Homebrew:
brew install tmux
Creating a Screen or TMUX Session
To create a new screen or tmux session, use the following commands:
# For screen
screen -S mysession
# For tmux
tmux new -s mysession
Detaching from a Screen or TMUX Session
To detach from the session, use the following commands:
# For screen
Ctrl-a d
# For tmux
Ctrl-b d
Listing Screen or TMUX Sessions
To list existing sessions, use the following commands:
# For screen
screen -ls
# For tmux
tmux ls
Reattaching to a Screen or TMUX Session
To reattach to a session, use the following commands:
# For screen
screen -r mysession
# For tmux
tmux attach -t mysession
Using nohup
nohup is a command that allows you to run a process in the background, disassociating it from the terminal session. This way, even if the terminal session is closed, the process will continue to run.
nohup mycommand &
Using & and disown
You can use the & symbol to run a process in the background, followed by the disown command to ensure the process continues to run even if the terminal session is closed:
mycommand &
disown
- Using
screenortmuxallows you to create a virtual terminal session, detach from it, and reattach later. nohupdisassociates a process from the terminal session, allowing it to continue running even if the terminal session is closed.- Using the
&symbol followed bydisownallows you to run a process in the background and disassociate it from the terminal session.