kmscon

terminal emulator that runs on the Linux console using the kernel mode setting

TLDR

Start kmscon on the first available TTY

$ sudo kmscon

Start on a specific TTY

$ sudo kmscon --vt [/dev/ttyX]

Enable mouse support

$ sudo kmscon --mouse

Specify login command

$ sudo kmscon -l [command]

kmscon is a terminal emulator that runs on the Linux console using the kernel mode setting (KMS) and framebuffer. It provides a modern terminal experience on TTYs without requiring X11.Unlike the traditional text-mode VT, kmscon uses the GPU framebuffer, enabling features like Unicode support, TrueType fonts, and hardware-accelerated rendering on virtual terminals.

PARAMETERS

--vt TTY

Specify the virtual terminal to use

--mouse

Enable mouse support

-l, --login COMMAND

Specify the login command to execute

--font-name NAME

Set the font to use

--font-size SIZE

Set font size in points

INSTALL

sudo dnf install kmscon

sudo pacman -S kmscon

sudo zypper install kmscon

nix profile install nixpkgs#kmscon

CAVEATS

Requires KMS support from the graphics driver. May conflict with other framebuffer applications. Some systems may need kernel parameters adjusted for proper operation.

HISTORY

kmscon was developed as part of the systemd project to provide a modern replacement for the Linux VT subsystem. It uses libtsm for terminal emulation and works with Wayland-like infrastructure.