Overview

Terminal multiplexer for AI coding agents (Claude, Codex, Gemini). Runs multiple agents in split panes with unified input routing and FIPA ACL inter-agent communication.

Agent output is captured into virtual terminal buffers rather than written directly to stdout. The compositor extracts only visible lines and renders the entire frame in a single DEC 2026 synchronized update. This eliminates scrollback pollution from high-volume agent output - the terminal only sees final composited frames, not thousands of intermediate render states.

Install

npm install
npm link  # optional, makes `bukowski` available globally

Usage

node multi.js          # or `bukowski` if linked
bukowski --session myproject      # name this session "myproject"
bukowski --resume myproject       # resume existing session "myproject"

Session flags:

• --session <name> - Names the current session (creates new if doesn't exist)
• --resume <name> - Resumes an existing session with its full conversation history

Quick multi-agent guide

• Split panes: Ctrl+Space w s (horizontal) or w v (vertical) - spawns Claude by default
• Focus navigation: Ctrl+Space w then h/j/k/l (directional) or w/W (cycle next/prev)
• Pane management: Ctrl+Space w then c (close), o (close others), z (zoom toggle)
• Chat pane: Ctrl+Space c to focus or create chat pane for inter-agent messaging
• Resume session: bukowski --resume <name> reloads layout, scrollback, and FIPA conversations

MCP Server Setup

Each agent needs the bukowski MCP server configured to enable inter-agent FIPA messaging.

Automatic installation:

node -e "require('./src/mcp/install').installAll()"

Check status:

node -e "console.log(require('./src/mcp/install').checkStatus())"

Uninstall:

node -e "require('./src/mcp/install').uninstallAll()"

The install script configures:

• Claude Code (~/.claude.json)
• Codex (~/.codex/config.toml)
• Gemini (~/.gemini/settings.json)

The MCP bridge auto-detects the socket path via BUKOWSKI_MCP_SOCKET environment variable set by the parent bukowski process.

Input modes: insert (default), normal, visual, search, command, chat Prefix key: Ctrl+Space followed by:

• w - layout operations (split, resize, zoom, close)
• a - IPC operations
• c - focus/create chat pane

Navigation: vim-style (hjkl, gg, G, / search) Mouse: scroll wheel, Ctrl+scroll vertical resize, Alt+scroll horizontal resize

Runtime tuning (ex command): :set output_silence=32 (applies immediately) :set scrollback=2000 (applies to newly spawned agents)

Environment overrides

• BUKOWSKI_SESSION - default session name (overrides --session)
• BUKOWSKI_SPLASH - splash screen duration in ms (default: 2000)
• BUKOWSKI_OUTPUT_SILENCE_DURATION - PTY output debounce in ms (default: 16)
• BUKOWSKI_ROWS - virtual terminal rows per pane (default: pane height)
• BUKOWSKI_SCROLLBACK - scrollback lines per agent (default: 10000)
• BUKOWSKI_MCP_SOCKET - override MCP socket path for the bridge

Limitations

• OSC 10/11 queries don't work through PTY intermediaries (affects Codex input box styling)
• Final terminal row reserved for status bar
• :help shows status hint, not full help dialog

License

Source-available, pay-what-you-want ($10 suggested). Free for open source development. See LICENSE for details.

Website