Access other ttys: Difference between revisions

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| CTRL+ALT+F3
| CTRL+ALT+F3
| tty3
| tty3
| terminal 1
| terminal
|-
|-
| CTRL+ALT+F4
| CTRL+ALT+F4
| tty4
| tty4
| terminal 2
| terminal
|-
|-
| CTRL+ALT+F5
| CTRL+ALT+F5
| tty5
| tty5
| terminal 3
| terminal
|-
|-
| CTRL+ALT+F6
| CTRL+ALT+F6
| tty6
| tty6
| terminal 4
| terminal
|}
|}

Revision as of 02:10, 13 February 2026

Linux normally has multiple terminals (ttys) running. You can switch between the different terminal sessions using keyboard shortcut. It's essentially the old-school version of having multiple terminal windows open.

In the world of desktop Linux, the login screen and the main desktop are usually run in terminals #1 and #2 respectively. This leaves terminals 3-6 free to still be used. You can use this to recover your system in the event of the desktop not starting, etc.

Keyboard shortcuts and purpose of each terminal

Key combo tty# Purpose
CTRL+ALT+F1 tty1 login screen
CTRL+ALT+F2 tty2 desktop
CTRL+ALT+F3 tty3 terminal
CTRL+ALT+F4 tty4 terminal
CTRL+ALT+F5 tty5 terminal
CTRL+ALT+F6 tty6 terminal