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Add three new articles to 03-opensource/dev-tools/: - tmux: persistent terminal sessions, background jobs, capture-pane - screen: lightweight alternative, comparison table - rsync: flags reference, resumable transfers, SSH usage Update all indexes (SUMMARY, section index, main index, README). Article count: 28 → 31. Remove tmux from writing backlog. Co-Authored-By: Claude Sonnet 4.6 <noreply@anthropic.com>
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1.7 KiB
screen — Simple Persistent Terminal Sessions
Problem
Same problem as tmux: SSH sessions die, jobs get killed, long-running tasks need to survive disconnects. screen is the older, simpler alternative to tmux — universally available and gets the job done with minimal setup.
Solution
screen creates detachable terminal sessions. It's installed by default on many systems, making it useful when tmux isn't available.
Installation (Fedora)
sudo dnf install screen
Core Workflow
# Start a named session
screen -S mysession
# Detach (keeps running)
Ctrl+a, d
# List sessions
screen -list
# Reattach
screen -r mysession
# If session shows as "Attached" (stuck)
screen -d -r mysession
Start a Background Job Directly
screen -dmS mysession bash -c "long-running-command 2>&1 | tee /root/output.log"
-d— start detached-m— create new session even if already inside screen-S— name the session
Capture Current Output Without Attaching
screen -S mysession -X hardcopy /tmp/screen_output.txt
cat /tmp/screen_output.txt
Send a Command to a Running Session
screen -S mysession -X stuff "tail -f /root/output.log\n"
screen vs tmux
| Feature | screen | tmux |
|---|---|---|
| Availability | Installed by default on most systems | Usually needs installing |
| Split panes | Basic (Ctrl+a, S) | Better (Ctrl+b, ") |
| Scripting | Limited | More capable |
| Config complexity | Simple | More options |
Use screen when it's already there or for quick throwaway sessions. Use tmux for anything more complex. See tmux.
Tags
#screen #terminal #linux #ssh #productivity #dev-tools