Split Terminals - Netcatty

Overview

Split terminals allow you to divide your workspace into multiple panes, each with its own terminal session. This is essential for monitoring multiple servers, comparing outputs, or working on related tasks simultaneously.

Creating Splits

Split Directions

Netcatty supports two split directions:

Horizontal Split

Divides a pane top-to-bottom.

Before:        After:
┌─────────┐    ┌─────────┐
│         │    │  Top    │
│  Pane   │ →  ├─────────┤
│         │    │ Bottom  │
└─────────┘    └─────────┘

Vertical Split

Divides a pane left-to-right.

Before:        After:
┌─────────┐    ┌────┬────┐
│         │    │    │    │
│  Pane   │ →  │Left│Right│
│         │    │    │    │
└─────────┘    └────┴────┘

Methods to Split

Keyboard (Recommended)
Context Menu
Toolbar

Horizontal Split (top/bottom):

Mac: Cmd+D
Windows/Linux: Ctrl+Shift+D

Vertical Split (left/right):

Mac: Cmd+Shift+D
Windows/Linux: Ctrl+Shift+E

Think of D as “Divide” - no shift for horizontal, shift for vertical.

Split Behavior

Initial Split

When you split a pane:

Current pane becomes one half
New pane appears as the other half
Both panes get equal size (50/50)
New pane shows the connection selector
Focus moves to the new pane

Choosing Split Direction

Use Horizontal Split When...

Viewing logs (need vertical scrolling)
Comparing output from two servers
Running commands and monitoring results
Working with wide terminals (code editors)

Use Vertical Split When...

Monitoring multiple narrow streams (htop, watch)
Editing files side-by-side
Comparing configurations
Working on widescreen monitors

Move focus between panes without touching your mouse.

Focus Movement

move-focus

keyboard shortcut

Navigate between split panes using arrow keys

Direction	Mac	Windows/Linux
Up	`Cmd+Opt+↑`	`Ctrl+Alt+↑`
Down	`Cmd+Opt+↓`	`Ctrl+Alt+↓`
Left	`Cmd+Opt+←`	`Ctrl+Alt+←`
Right	`Cmd+Opt+→`	`Ctrl+Alt+→`

Spatial Navigation: Netcatty calculates pane positions and moves to the closest pane in the requested direction.
Wraparound: When no pane exists in a direction, focus wraps to the opposite edge.
Overlap Detection: For horizontal movement, panes that vertically overlap are prioritized. For vertical movement, panes that horizontally overlap are prioritized.

Layout:
┌──────┬──────┬──────┐
│  1   │  2   │  3   │
├──────┴──────┼──────┤
│      4      │  5   │
└─────────────┴──────┘

From Pane 1:
- Right → Pane 2 (horizontally adjacent)
- Down → Pane 4 (overlaps horizontally)

From Pane 2:
- Left → Pane 1
- Right → Pane 3
- Down → Pane 4 (overlaps horizontally)

From Pane 4:
- Up → Pane 2 (overlaps horizontally)
- Right → Pane 5
- Left → Wraps to Pane 5

The navigation algorithm ensures intuitive movement even in complex nested layouts.

Resizing Panes

Mouse Resize

Hover over the divider between two panes
Cursor changes to a resize handle (↔ or ↕)
Click and drag to adjust size
Release to set the new size

Size Distribution

Pane sizes are stored as relative proportions (not absolute pixels). Example:

{
  type: "split",
  direction: "vertical",
  children: [pane1, pane2],
  sizes: [0.3, 0.7] // 30% and 70%
}

When you resize:

Dragging the divider adjusts the ratio
Other panes in the split adjust proportionally
Layout adapts to window resizes automatically

Minimum Size

Panes have a minimum size (typically 200px) to prevent unusable terminals.

Closing Panes

Close Methods

Keyboard
Tab Close Button
Context Menu

Mac: Cmd+WWindows/Linux: Ctrl+WCloses the currently focused pane.

Close Behavior

When you close a pane:

From a Split:
- The sibling pane expands to fill the space
- The parent split node is removed
- Sizes are recalculated
Last Pane in Workspace:
- The entire workspace tab closes
- Session is disconnected

Example:

Before (3 panes):     Close Pane 2:       Close Pane 3:
┌────┬────┬────┐      ┌─────────┬────┐   ┌──────────────┐
│ 1  │ 2  │ 3  │  →   │    1    │ 3  │ → │      1       │
└────┴────┴────┘      └─────────┴────┘   └──────────────┘

Layout Management

Simple Layouts

Side-by-Side
Top-and-Bottom
Quad Layout

Two panes, equal width.

┌──────────┬──────────┐
│          │          │
│  Left    │  Right   │
│          │          │
└──────────┴──────────┘

Creating:

Start with one pane
Vertical split (Cmd+Shift+D)

Two panes, equal height.

┌────────────────────┐
│        Top         │
├────────────────────┤
│       Bottom       │
└────────────────────┘

Creating:

Start with one pane
Horizontal split (Cmd+D)

Four panes in a grid.

┌──────────┬──────────┐
│    1     │    2     │
├──────────┼──────────┤
│    3     │    4     │
└──────────┴──────────┘

Creating:

Start with one pane
Vertical split → 2 panes
Horizontal split left pane → 3 panes
Horizontal split right pane → 4 panes

Complex Layouts

Nested splits create sophisticated arrangements. Example: Main + Sidebar + Footer

┌────────────────┬──────┐
│                │      │
│      Main      │ Side │
│                │      │
├────────────────┴──────┤
│       Footer          │
└───────────────────────┘

Structure:

{
  type: "split",
  direction: "horizontal",
  sizes: [0.8, 0.2],
  children: [
    {
      type: "split",
      direction: "vertical",
      sizes: [0.7, 0.3],
      children: [
        { type: "pane", sessionId: "main" },
        { type: "pane", sessionId: "sidebar" }
      ]
    },
    { type: "pane", sessionId: "footer" }
  ]
}

Creating Steps:

Horizontal split → Main & Footer
Vertical split on Main → Main & Sidebar
Resize dividers to taste

Advanced Features

Broadcast Mode

Send input to all panes simultaneously. Activation:

Click the Broadcast icon in toolbar
Keyboard: Cmd+B (Mac) / Ctrl+B (Windows/Linux)

Visual Indicator:

All pane borders highlight in broadcast mode
Broadcast icon shows “active” state

Use Cases:

Run same command on multiple servers
Parallel software updates
Synchronized configuration

Be cautious with broadcast mode in production. A single destructive command affects all panes.

Focus Indicators

The active pane is indicated by:

Border highlight (accent color)
Brighter background
Cursor blinking

Other panes are slightly dimmed.

Drag and Drop

Rearrange panes by dragging tabs:

Click and hold a tab
Drag to another position
Drop to move the pane

Drag-and-drop for panes is a planned feature. Currently, use split and close operations to rearrange.

Keyboard Shortcuts Reference

Action	Mac	Windows/Linux	Description
Splits
Horizontal split	`Cmd+D`	`Ctrl+Shift+D`	Split current pane top/bottom
Vertical split	`Cmd+Shift+D`	`Ctrl+Shift+E`	Split current pane left/right
Navigation
Move focus up	`Cmd+Opt+↑`	`Ctrl+Alt+↑`	Focus pane above
Move focus down	`Cmd+Opt+↓`	`Ctrl+Alt+↓`	Focus pane below
Move focus left	`Cmd+Opt+←`	`Ctrl+Alt+←`	Focus pane to left
Move focus right	`Cmd+Opt+→`	`Ctrl+Alt+→`	Focus pane to right
Management
Close pane	`Cmd+W`	`Ctrl+W`	Close focused pane
Broadcast mode	`Cmd+B`	`Ctrl+B`	Toggle broadcast to all panes

Best Practices

Layout Design

Keep it simple: 2-4 panes is ideal for most tasks
Match your workflow: Horizontal for logs, vertical for monitoring
Use unequal sizes: Make the primary pane larger (60-70%)

Navigation Efficiency

Performance

Limit active panes: 4-6 max for smooth performance
Close disconnected panes: Free up resources
Use workspaces: Switch between layouts instead of keeping all open

Common Layouts

Development Setup

┌─────────────────┬──────┐
│                 │      │
│   Dev Server    │ Logs │
│                 │      │
├─────────────────┴──────┤
│      Database          │
└────────────────────────┘

Use: Web development with live logs and database access.

Server Monitoring

┌──────┬──────┬──────┐
│ Web1 │ Web2 │ Web3 │
├──────┴──────┴──────┤
│   Load Balancer    │
└────────────────────┘

Use: Monitor multiple web servers and load balancer simultaneously.

Debugging

┌────────────┬──────────┐
│            │  Debug   │
│  Main App  │  Console │
│            ├──────────┤
│            │  Logs    │
└────────────┴──────────┘

Use: Main application with debug console and logs side-by-side.

Troubleshooting

Split Not Creating

Possible Causes:

Pane is already at minimum size
Workspace at maximum pane limit

Solution:

Resize the window to give more space
Close unused panes

Focus Not Moving

Cause: No pane exists in that directionSolution:

Check layout visually
Remember wraparound behavior
Try a different direction

Sizes Not Saving

Solution:

Wait a moment after resizing for auto-save
Close and reopen workspace to verify
Check browser console for errors

Workspace Sessions

Create and manage workspaces

Keyboard Shortcuts

Master all Netcatty shortcuts

Snippets

Run commands across multiple panes

Get Started

Core Features

Guides

Integrations

Advanced

​Overview

​Creating Splits

​Split Directions

Horizontal Split

Vertical Split

​Methods to Split

​Split Behavior

​Initial Split

​Choosing Split Direction

​Keyboard Navigation

​Focus Movement

​Navigation Rules

​Example Navigation

​Resizing Panes

​Mouse Resize

​Size Distribution

​Minimum Size

​Closing Panes

​Close Methods

​Close Behavior

​Layout Management

​Simple Layouts

​Complex Layouts

​Advanced Features

​Broadcast Mode

​Focus Indicators

​Drag and Drop

​Keyboard Shortcuts Reference

​Best Practices

​Common Layouts

​Development Setup

​Server Monitoring

​Debugging

​Troubleshooting

​Related Resources

Workspace Sessions

Keyboard Shortcuts

Snippets

Overview

Creating Splits

Split Directions

Methods to Split

Split Behavior

Initial Split

Choosing Split Direction

Keyboard Navigation

Focus Movement

Navigation Rules

Example Navigation

Resizing Panes

Mouse Resize

Size Distribution

Minimum Size

Closing Panes

Close Methods

Close Behavior

Layout Management

Simple Layouts

Complex Layouts

Advanced Features

Broadcast Mode

Focus Indicators

Drag and Drop

Keyboard Shortcuts Reference

Best Practices

Common Layouts

Development Setup

Server Monitoring

Debugging

Troubleshooting

Related Resources