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jian xu
jian xu

Posted on Fully Autonomous

xtty — A terminal that makes everyday work easier

Spend your time on the work, not the terminal.

I'm the developer of xtty, a native macOS terminal for everyday shell, SSH and coding-agent work. The goal is to reduce repeated setup and switching between sessions, so you can stay focused on the work you opened the terminal to do.

Everyday workflows, in one terminal

  • Connect to servers: open several saved SSH hosts together, including configured jump-host routes.
  • Handle repeated password prompts: use configured matching rules and saved credentials for automatic filling.
  • Open another remote shell: Duplicate Tab starts a fresh, independent SSH connection to the same server and restores the remote working directory.
  • Move files: transfer files with sz/rz using native macOS file dialogs.
  • Work across sessions: arrange tabs and split panes, broadcast input to selected panes, and see coding-agent status indicators.

These features share one purpose: spend less time recreating the working environment and more time using it.

Watch the actual UI

The walkthrough shows the real app with fictional servers and terminal data:

A concrete example: opening a second SSH shell

Suppose a command is running on a server and you want a separate shell in the same project directory. Duplicate Tab opens another connection and restores that directory, while the original shell stays separate.

It does not clone running processes or preserve a session across disconnections. For persistent remote sessions, tools such as tmux address a different need. With broadcast input, check the selected destinations before entering commands.

Availability and tradeoffs

xtty is proprietary and macOS-only, with Apple Silicon and Intel downloads. There is a Free edition, a seven-day Pro trial, and an optional US$29.90 one-time Pro purchase. No subscription.

iTerm2 remains a mature, free, open-source choice. xtty focuses on making everyday connection, session and file-transfer workflows accessible directly in the UI.

Website and downloads

Which repeated step in your terminal workflow would you most like to remove?

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