Terminal
by microsoft
Modern Terminal Emulator for Windows Power Users
Microsoft's next-gen terminal app with tabs, GPU acceleration, and full support for PowerShell, CMD, WSL, and SSH in one unified interface.
- 101,454+ GitHub stars
- Built with C++
- Multi-tab and split-pane support for running multiple shells simultaneously
- MIT License license
About This Project
Windows Terminal is a high-performance, feature-rich terminal application that replaces the legacy Windows console with a modern, customizable interface. Built with GPU-accelerated text rendering, it delivers smooth performance even with large amounts of output, making it ideal for developers working with command-line tools daily.
This open-source project consolidates multiple shell environments into a single workspace. You can run PowerShell, Command Prompt, WSL distributions, and SSH connections simultaneously in separate tabs or split panes. The terminal supports Unicode and UTF-8 character rendering, enabling proper display of emojis, box-drawing characters, and international text.
Extensive customization options let you configure color schemes, fonts, background images, and keybindings through a JSON settings file. The terminal supports profiles for different shells, allowing you to launch specific environments with pre-configured settings instantly. Integration with Windows 11's context menus and drag-and-drop functionality enhances workflow efficiency.
As an actively maintained Microsoft project with over 100K stars, Windows Terminal receives regular updates with new features, performance improvements, and bug fixes. The community-driven development model welcomes contributions, making it an excellent project for developers interested in systems programming and UI development.
Key Features
- Multi-tab and split-pane support for running multiple shells simultaneously
- GPU-accelerated DirectWrite/DirectX text rendering for superior performance
- Full Unicode and UTF-8 support including emojis and special characters
- Deep customization through JSON configuration for themes, fonts, and keybindings
- Native integration with PowerShell, CMD, WSL, and SSH protocols
How You Can Use It
Running multiple shell sessions (PowerShell, CMD, WSL) in tabbed interface
Managing Linux development environments through WSL integration
Customizing terminal appearance with themes and transparency effects
Executing SSH sessions alongside local command-line tools
Who Is This For?
Windows developers, DevOps engineers, system administrators, and power users who frequently work with command-line interfaces