SOP-001: tmux Installation

Fresh

Field	Value
Document ID	SOP-001
Version	1.1
Status	Active
tmux Version	3.6b
Last Updated	2026-05-26

Purpose

Install tmux on your system using either binary packages (recommended) or from source.

Prerequisites

Terminal access with administrative privileges
Internet connection
For source builds: C compiler, make, bison, pkg-config

Decision Tree

Procedure

Option A: Binary Package Installation (Recommended)

macOS

HomebrewMacPorts

bash

brew install tmux

bash

port install tmux

Linux

bash

sudo apt update
sudo apt install tmux

bash

sudo yum install tmux

bash

sudo dnf install tmux

bash

sudo pacman -S tmux

bash

sudo zypper install tmux

Option B: Build from Source

Use this method when you need the latest version or binary packages are unavailable.

Step 1: Install Dependencies

Debian/UbuntuRHEL/CentOS

bash

sudo apt-get install libevent-dev ncurses-dev build-essential bison pkg-config

bash

sudo yum install libevent-devel ncurses-devel gcc make bison pkg-config

Step 2: Clone and Build

bash

# Clone repository
git clone https://github.com/tmux/tmux.git
cd tmux

# Generate configure script
sh autogen.sh

# Configure and build
./configure
make

# Install (requires sudo)
sudo make install

Alternative: Download Release Tarball

bash

# Download latest release (3.6b is current as of 2026-05-20)
wget https://github.com/tmux/tmux/releases/download/3.6b/tmux-3.6b.tar.gz

# Extract
tar xzvf tmux-3.6b.tar.gz
cd tmux-3.6b

# Build and install
./configure
make
sudo make install

Option C: Prebuilt Static Binaries

For systems where building isn't feasible:

bash

# Download from tmux-builds repository
# Visit: https://github.com/tmux/tmux-builds

Verification

Confirm successful installation:

bash

# Check version
tmux -V

# Expected output example:
# tmux 3.6b

Start a test session:

bash

tmux new -s test
# You should see the green status bar
# Exit with: exit

Troubleshooting

"libevent not found" during configure

Solution

Install the libevent development package:

bash

# Debian/Ubuntu
sudo apt-get install libevent-dev

# RHEL/CentOS
sudo yum install libevent-devel

"ncurses not found" during configure

Solution

Install the ncurses development package:

bash

# Debian/Ubuntu
sudo apt-get install ncurses-dev

# RHEL/CentOS
sudo yum install ncurses-devel

"C compiler cannot create executables"

Solution

Install build tools:

bash

# Debian/Ubuntu
sudo apt-get install build-essential

# RHEL/CentOS
sudo yum groupinstall "Development Tools"

tmux won't run from ~/local

Solution

Set LD_LIBRARY_PATH for local installations:

bash

export LD_LIBRARY_PATH=$HOME/local/lib:$LD_LIBRARY_PATH

Add this to your .bashrc or .zshrc for persistence.

SOP-001: tmux Installation ​

Purpose ​

Prerequisites ​

Decision Tree ​

Procedure ​

Option A: Binary Package Installation (Recommended) ​

macOS ​

Linux ​

Option B: Build from Source ​

Step 1: Install Dependencies ​

Step 2: Clone and Build ​

Alternative: Download Release Tarball ​

Option C: Prebuilt Static Binaries ​

Verification ​

Troubleshooting ​

"libevent not found" during configure ​

"ncurses not found" during configure ​

"C compiler cannot create executables" ​

tmux won't run from ~/local ​

See Also ​

SOP-001: tmux Installation

Purpose

Prerequisites

Decision Tree

Procedure

Option A: Binary Package Installation (Recommended)

macOS

Linux

Option B: Build from Source

Step 1: Install Dependencies

Step 2: Clone and Build

Alternative: Download Release Tarball

Option C: Prebuilt Static Binaries

Verification

Troubleshooting

"libevent not found" during configure

"ncurses not found" during configure

"C compiler cannot create executables"

tmux won't run from ~/local

See Also