lxterminal

Open an LXTerminal window

$ lxterminal

$ lxterminal [[-e|--command]] "[command]"

$ lxterminal --tabs=[tab_name1,tab_name2,...]

$ lxterminal --title=[title_name]

$ lxterminal --working-directory=[path/to/directory]

lxterminal [OPTIONS]

-e, --command=COMMAND
    Executes the specified COMMAND instead of the default shell.

-t, --title=TITLE
    Sets the window title for the terminal.

-g, --geometry=GEOMETRY
    Sets the initial size and position of the window (e.g., 80x24+100+100).

-s, --hide-tab
    Hides the tab bar. By default, the tab bar is shown if there's more than one tab.

-w, --working-directory=DIR
    Sets the initial current working directory for the terminal session to DIR.

--tab
    Opens a new tab in an existing lxterminal instance, or a new window if no instance is running.

--role=ROLE
    Sets the X window role property.

--session=SESSION_NAME
    Sets the X session name property.

--display=DISPLAY
    Specifies the X display to use.

--version
    Displays the lxterminal version information and exits.

--help
    Shows a help message with available command-line options and exits.

lxterminal is a fast, lightweight, and tabbed terminal emulator, serving as the default for the LXDE (Lightweight X11 Desktop Environment) and often used within LXQt. It's designed to be resource-efficient, making it an excellent choice for systems with limited hardware resources or users who prefer a minimalist command-line interface.

While providing core terminal functionalities like executing commands, supporting shell interaction, and managing multiple tabs, lxterminal focuses on speed and low memory usage. It offers essential customization options for fonts, colors, and keybindings, ensuring a comfortable user experience without the overhead of more feature-rich alternatives. It's built using the GTK+ toolkit.

While efficient, lxterminal may lack advanced features such as split panes, extensive plugin architectures, or highly sophisticated scripting capabilities found in more feature-rich terminal emulators like Terminator or Kitty. Its primary focus remains on being lightweight and fast for general command-line usage within desktop environments like LXDE/LXQt.

User-specific settings for lxterminal are typically stored in a configuration file, often located at ~/.config/lxterminal/lxterminal.conf. This file contains preferences for appearance, behavior, and keybindings.

Most customization options, including font, colors, scrollback buffer size, and cursor style, can be easily configured through lxterminal's graphical preferences dialog, accessible from its menu.

lxterminal was developed as an integral part of the LXDE (Lightweight X11 Desktop Environment) project, which began around 2006. Its creation was driven by the need for a terminal emulator that was both functional and exceptionally lightweight, aligning with LXDE's core philosophy of providing a fast desktop experience on older or less powerful hardware. It quickly became the default terminal for LXDE and remains a popular choice for resource-constrained systems due to its efficiency and simplicity.

xterm(1), gnome-terminal(1), konsole(1), terminator(1), urxvt(1), qterminal(1)