Getting started

OliTerm opens with a single local terminal window. Everything else — SSH favorites, snippets, the file browser — builds on that window.

First launch

On first launch OliTerm asks whether it should check for updates automatically. macOS may also ask for permission when the file browser first opens folders like Desktop, Documents, or Downloads — the same privacy prompts any file manager triggers.

Windows and tabs

OliTerm uses native macOS window tabs:

• Shell > New Window (⌘N) opens a new local terminal window.
• Shell > New Tab (⌘T) adds a local tab to the current window.
• Connecting to a host opens the SSH session as a new tab in the current window.
• The system tab commands (Show Tab Bar, Move Tab to New Window, …) appear in the Window menu, and tabs can be dragged between windows like in any macOS app.

Each tab shows a short title — “Local” or the host’s name. The window titlebar spells out the connection: for SSH sessions the title is the host’s name followed by user@host (with the port when it isn’t 22), then the resolved full DNS name and IP address, and finally the title your shell reports (typically the current directory) — all on one line, skipping whatever is unavailable or already shown. Local windows are titled “Local” followed by this Mac’s hostname.

Closing and quitting

Closing the last window does not quit OliTerm — click the Dock icon to get a new local window.

Settings

OliTerm > Settings… (⌘,) holds the AI assistant configuration: the backend choice (on-device Apple Intelligence or the Claude API), the API key, model, and workspace ID, and whether requests may include recent terminal output.

Keeping OliTerm up to date

Choose OliTerm > Check for Updates… at any time. If you allowed automatic checks on first launch, OliTerm checks once a day and offers updates with release notes; updates install in place and relaunch the app.

OliTerm Help