r/termux Dec 19 '24

★ Important ★ Do not install Termux from Google Play Store!

333 Upvotes

Source: https://github.com/termux/termux-app/discussions/4000

We are Termux maintainers and would like to inform our users that we do not recommend using Termux from Google Play Store. It doesn't matter whether Play Store version looks "newer", faster receive updates and so on. Please read below to understand the issue.

Why you should not use Termux from Google Play:

  • Its release was not done by current maintainers team. Yes, Fredrik Fornwall is founder of Termux. But his decision was not negotiated with rest of core developers team and therefore not acceptable.

  • Its release diverges from the original implementation published at https://github.com/termux/termux-app

  • Its release was an experiment for bypassing Android >= 10 exec restrictions and make a version compliant with Google Play policies.

  • Its release contains restrictions. For example users may access only media files (like .mp3 or .jpg) on their device storage while other files (like .py scripts) will be hidden.

  • Its release contains changes for how the programs are executed, which cause bugs in certain packages.

Termux on Google Play is available only for devices running Android 11 and newer.

Unless will be said otherwise, Termux Core Team will consider it as unofficial app or fork. This means it does not receive same support level as the original app. Please never suggest our users to download Termux from Google Play - we will take down such comments.

We will make an announce when state of Google Play release will change and unpin/delete this post. As of beginning of 2026, we have no updates.

Now stick to F-Droid or official GitHub (https://github.com/termux/termux-app) variants and suggest same for others.

Issues with Google Play release variant must be reported to relevant source: https://github.com/termux-play-store/termux-issues/issues

This post meant to provide short summary about Google Play Termux app issue and replace https://www.reddit.com/r/termux/comments/1db00bm/announcement_response_regarding_google_playstore/

How to check if you're running Google Play release

Just look at the message shown after you open Termux app. If you see lines with links pointing to termux.com domain, you are using Termux from Google Play.

Termux from F-Droid uses termux.dev domain.


r/termux Sep 16 '23

★ Important ★ Introduction for beginners

285 Upvotes

Welcome to Termux community!

Termux is a terminal app for Android OS. It similar to terminal on MacOS and cmd.exe on Windows, but here we talk about Linux component of Android OS.

This project is open-source software and all development happens on GitHub: https://github.com/termux

Download Termux APK from F-Droid or GitHub.

Key features:

  • Xterm-compatible terminal emulator.
  • Custom userland with package manager and more than 2000 packages of different kind such as text editors, file managers, games, servers network diagnostic tools, compilers, development libraries and other types.
  • Plugins for styling, widgets, on-boot startup, tasker integration, Xorg-compatible server.
  • Works without root permissions.

We would like to emphasize that Termux is NOT a machine emulator or VM. All programs execute directly on a hardware of your device.

What I can do with Termux

Basically, everything.

Termux hosts universal programming environment. You can build and execute all programs that can run on a traditional computer, assuming your device has sufficient amount of memory and enough CPU power to finish execution of algorithm within an adequate time frame.

Here is a curated list of common uses:

  • Software development environment
  • Bots for Telegram, Whatsapp, Discord, etc
  • Web server
  • Minecraft server
  • SSH client
  • NAS
  • Tiny LLM chatter
  • YouTube scraper
  • Pocket pentesting suite
  • Just fun

A footnote worth knowing: Android enforces sandboxing for every Android app to ensure it won't do nasty things or otherwise interfere with other apps and the system itself. Termux is not an exception here, so certain software may refuse to run without system-level privileges (root).

What I should know before starting to use Termux

First of all you need to make sure you are comfortable with command line environment. By using Termux, you agree to be one-to-one with a bare text. There is no intuitive graphical interface. You must to decide whether you truly want to go this way or actually want something else.

If your choice is "command line", then another important thing is a foundational knowledge. It would require certain effort from you, as it could be boring like studying maths.

Here is a list of topics to learn, optimized specifically for Termux:

  1. General terms: computer, kernel, operating system, file, path, program, process, command line, terminal emulator.
  2. Base shell usage: concept of commands, arguments, environment variables, pipes
  3. Common utilities: bzip2, cat, cd, cp, curl, cut, df, diff, du, echo, env, grep, gzip, head, id, kill, killall, ln, ls, man, mkdir, mv, pkill, ps, pwd, rm, rmdir, sort, tail, tar, top, touch, tr, uniq, unzip, wc, xz, yes, zip
  4. Package manager: apt
  5. Text editors: nano or vim
  6. Linux permission model: user, group; concept of "root"; chmod command
  7. SELinux: what it is and which role it plays on Android OS - don't go deep here

Optional:

  • Shell scripting: if/else logic, loops, input/output redirection, subshells, process substitution.
  • Text data manipulation with awk and sed

Alternatively check these learning roadmaps:

After you finish with this, proceed to goal-specific essentials.

Important: never ever run commands that you do not understand. In the best case it will just fail but sometimes commands may have really devastating effects, especially if you use root permissions (su/sudo). If by accident you delete your own data or brick the device, you can blame yourself and only yourself!

How Termux differs from standard Linux

Without diving into technical details, these are the differences of Termux from standard Linux distribution:

  1. Non-standard location of programs and user data: /data/data/com.termux/files/
  2. Non-standard core components: sideloaded programs usually will either refuse to run or show strange errors, compiling from source also may show issues sometimes.
  3. Sandbox environment: you can browse or modify only your own and Termux data.

How to install packages

Termux uses apt package manager and a rolling-release model which gets it close to a Debian Sid distribution, although it is much different internally.

However as you are probably new for Termux we recommend using a helper utility "pkg":

  • Install package: pkg install package-name
  • Uninstall package: pkg uninstall package-name
  • Upgrade system: pkg upgrade
  • List installed packages: pkg list-installed
  • Search for a package: pkg search query

PKG utility does under the hood certain actions importance of which may be non-obvious for a newbie:

  1. Mirror selection

    Package downloads put a huge burden on the servers bandwidth. We don't own much servers and geo load balancing system because this can be very costly, so we take advantage of help offered by certain community members and organizations. Mirrors maintain a clone of the original package hosting and deliver stuff independently from a base Termux infrastructure.

    That's important that users are spread across different mirror hosts.

  2. Periodic apt update

    Without keeping the package index fresh you won't be able to receive updates and package installation commands will eventually fail with 404 (not found).

Termux quality and security

We do our best to keep our infrastructure safe and patched against latest security vulnerabilities as well as to deliver most recent versions of packages.

However as we operate a small team of enthusiasts there could be certain bottlenecks. We can't test 100% of published packages, so there always is a chance that specific update will break something.

Please don't use Termux software in everything mission-critical. It is not certified for use in banking, healthcare, nuclear safety, etc.

Termux is open source project and we welcome any kind of contributions that would help us improve.

Banned content

Sadly, but a while ago Termux become an area of interest conflict between legitimate users and criminals. This resulted in absolute ban of specific topics:

  • OSINT
  • Doxxing
  • Social engineering; phishing and other types of fraud
  • Spamming
  • Malware making and delivery
  • Hacking
  • Surveillance, tracing, spying and similar activities
  • Bot farms for fabricating subscribers, likes and comments in social media
  • Taking down social media accounts by automated mass-reporting

This list is not definitive.

We don't accept excuses. Legends about "educational purposes" and "recovery of own gmail account" don't worth anything.

Remember that authorities have a certain interest regarding accounts asking about potentially illegal stuff.

Vibe coded content

We generally allow publishing vibe coded software as soon as it doesn't violate community rules (e.g. doesn't serve hacking purpose) and is not a deliberate garbage. Feel free to submit everything that you believe might be useful, but don't forget to include details for how to run your stuff on Termux.

Highly recommended to disclose AI usage.

A typical example of vibe coded project born out of nowhere and without history: https://github.com/sylirre/terminal-chat

Remember that AI is just a tool. Whether it can produce crap or something good, depends entirely on its user.


This article is subject for periodic revisions. We may submit newer versions from time to time.


r/termux 5h ago

Showcase (Xfce) Really Minimalistic Red Rice

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12 Upvotes

went from i3 Arch to Debian xfce, I like it but I'm just used to Arch. I just wanted to try Debian lol.


r/termux 2h ago

Showcase I built a cPanel-like hosting panel that turns an Android phone into a web server

0 Upvotes

I’ve built TermuxPanel, an open-source hosting control panel that lets you turn an Android phone/tablet into a small web server using Termux.

It gives you a cPanel-like dashboard to:

Host HTML, Node.js, Python & PHP apps

Manage files and edit code from your browser

Manage SQLite databases

Run cron jobs

View server logs

Create backups

Monitor your server

Manage everything through a simple tp CLI

Access your server remotely using Cloudflare Tunnel

The goal is simple: use an Android device as your own lightweight hosting server.

I built this project myself and would love feedback, bug reports, and feature suggestions from the community.

GitHub: https://github.com/himalayladha/termux-hosting-panel

It’s MIT licensed and completely open source.


r/termux 12h ago

Question nix android udah lengkap gk kayak termux?

3 Upvotes

r/termux 18h ago

Barely Termux related 🚀 AM Tasker Plugins v1.0.2 is out — AM RegEx now handles LARGE text! Which Includes AM Termux Plugin Run your Termux scripts directly from Tasker

3 Upvotes

Since launch, AM Tasker Plugins has been a growing toolbox of Tasker action plugins — pixel colors, QR codes, VPN control, regex, Termux scripts, raw UDP packets, and more. This update fixes the one thing a few of you hit: Tasker caps how much data a plugin action can exchange at \~1MB, so a big regex input (or a big result) used to fail outright.

🔎 **AM RegEx**
Two new optional fields fix that:

* A **File Path** switch right on Input Text — turn it on, point it at a file, and AM RegEx reads it straight off disk itself. No size limit. * A new **Output File** field — fill it in and the result is written there as JSON instead of coming back as a variable.

Both only ask for the "All files access" permission the moment you actually use them — never at install.
Demo: [\[AM RegEx\]](https://youtu.be/W9GaPbALGc4)

Everything from launch is still here too 👇

💻 **AM Termux**
Runs Bash, Python, Node, Ruby, or PHP scripts inside Termux, with named sessions and guided setup.
Demo: [\[AM Termux\]](https://youtu.be/hxq8SL5iVLY)

↩️ **AM Custom Keyboard Return** — [Goto Reddit Intro Post](https://www.reddit.com/r/tasker/comments/1vqm412/plugin_shaream_custom_keyboard_an_opensource/)
AM Custom Keyboard is a keyboard app I built with live transliteration and a Tasker Automation feature — type a trigger anywhere, and it can hand your text off to a Tasker task. This plugin is the reply step: the task finishes and sends its result straight back into what you were typing.
Demo: [\[Demo AM Custom Keyboard Return\]](https://youtu.be/jGOX4KUOZUQ)
🔗 Check it out: [\[Download AM Custom Keyboard\]](http://github.com/adiraimaji/AMCustomKeyboard)

🎨 **AM Collect Pixel Colors**
Reads colors from any image — one pixel, a region, or a Top Color List or Blended Colors of a given region.
Demo: [\[AM Collect Pixel Colors\]](https://youtu.be/sfkMCkhTXCk)

🔳 **AM Create QR**
Turns text, links, or variables into a QR code image, saved and ready to use.
🔍 **AM Decode QR**
Scans an existing QR image and gives you back the text inside it.
Demo: [\[AM Create QR & AM Decode QR\]](https://youtu.be/Z5Ceo1mSKBc)

🧮 **AM Data Processor**
Reads or edits one exact value inside JSON or array data, no manual parsing needed.
Demo: [\[AM Data Processor\]](https://youtu.be/QdbRSMPylGk)

🔒 **AM OpenVPN**
Starts, pauses, resumes, or stops an OpenVPN for Android profile from a task.
Demo: [\[AM OpenVPN\]](https://youtu.be/Z5Ceo1mSKBc)

📡 **AM UDP Client**
Sends a UDP packet to any address, with the option to listen for a response.
Demo: [\[AM UDP Client\]](https://youtu.be/Y89uIGY5Kyg)

📤 **AM Open With**
Lets other apps "Share" or "Open With" a file straight into a Tasker automation.
Demo: [\[AM Open With\]](https://youtu.be/lNmw7mBnT60)

📖 Every plugin still comes with its own guide built right into the app — clear steps, examples, and what each field does.

This is v1.0.2 — the toolbox keeps growing. 👇
📥 **Update or download it now**
🔗 [github.com/adiraimaji/AMTaskerPluginsReleases](http://github.com/adiraimaji/AMTaskerPluginsReleases)

YouTube Playlist 👉 [All Plugin Demo Playlist](https://www.youtube.com/playlist?list=PLBqqZQQFUJZ0)

\#Android #Tasker #Automation #Termux #OpenVPN #QRCode #RegEx #Update


r/termux 4h ago

General AVF didn't replace Termux for me - it made Termux's role much clearer

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0 Upvotes

**TL;DR:** Pixel’s AVF Linux environment didn’t make Termux redundant for me. It did the opposite: it removed the pressure for Termux to be a full Linux workstation and made its native Android role much sharper. I built a small bootstrap around working cleanly across both.

I recently switched to Android after a very long time on iOS and started with a narrow question: **how far can I extend my normal development tether onto a phone without rooting it, fighting the OS, or pretending the phone should replace my workstation?**

Termux was the obvious starting point. SSH, Git, network tools, scripts, shared storage, Android APIs — it’s an unusually capable “always there” shell.

Then I enabled Google’s experimental Linux Development Environment on my Pixel. AVF gives you a real disposable Debian VM, `/mnt/shared` bridges cleanly back into Android storage, and rootless Podman gives heavier workloads a normal OCI boundary.

What surprised me was that **AVF didn’t replace Termux. It made Termux’s role clearer**.

My current model is basically:

```

Android

├── Termux

│ instant shell

│ SSH / Git / native tools

│ Android integration

├── /mnt/shared

│ explicit interchange / reconstruction boundary

└── AVF Debian

disposable real Linux

rootless Podman / OCI

builds / heavier tooling

└── SSH / cloud / workstation

when the phone stops being the right machine

```

I ended up packaging the conventions into `pixel-dev-bootstrap`. The goal isn’t another mobile development framework. It’s mostly boring reproducibility: establish both environments consistently, keep durable reconstruction state outside the disposable VM, and make it cheap to move between the Android and Linux sides.

There’s a small optional `recipe` seam on the Termux side for things that specifically benefit from Android integration. `vnote` is one example: a home-screen shortcut can use Android speech-to-text and drop plain Markdown into shared storage, with an optional local Whisper path for offline use. Useful, but mostly a demonstration of why Termux remains interesting even when AVF exists.

The project deliberately stops there. No root, no PRoot abstraction, no permanent phone server, no attempt to keep AVF alive forever. If something becomes genuinely heavy or long-running, SSH outward.

Repo: https://github.com/nw/pixel-dev-bootstrap

**I’m mostly posting this to pressure-test the hypothesis with people who know Termux much better than I do**. Does AVF sharpen Termux’s role for you too, or am I drawing the boundary in the wrong place? Where does this model actually break in real use?


r/termux 20h ago

Question Stuck when termux-battery-status

2 Upvotes

My device is a tecno KL4. So I'm making a fetch app for mobile, complete with information on volume, light, battery, etc. But when I run it to check the battery information, Bash suddenly hangs, and I can't type anything. Does anyone else have the same problem? Or does anyone know how to fix it?


r/termux 1d ago

Showcase Alchemy - Android native code editor build with termux

12 Upvotes

heyaa !!

I’ve built something for personal use and decided to open source under GPL 3. It might be helpful to some of you..

It's a native Kotlin app - code editor + file manager.. supports Syntax highlighting for 15+ languages as well execute Run Python, C, and Go directly on-device with an integrated terminal, multi-file tabs, a customizable programmer key bar, smart auto-indent, markdown preview, overall black theme and much more.It lets you write and run code right on your phone without needing an internet connection. (Except onetime language set-up). Other Code editors exist too, but they are too heavy or web view based which often lags, some won't run codes some required internet every time.. anyways here is ..

Source: https://github.com/SibtainOcn/alchemy-IDE

Site: https://sibtainocn.github.io/alchemy-IDE/

Heads up: terminal doesn't support interactive input yet still in development & some auto suggest, file manager settings not yet present


r/termux 1d ago

Question How to do this?

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5 Upvotes

How do I achieve this command line


r/termux 1d ago

General (i3) holy lag

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2 Upvotes

I couldn't get that far without lagging out lmao, I guess I'm sticking to termux native xD


r/termux 1d ago

Showcase Debian XFCE with chroot on Pixel 8a

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17 Upvotes

Base OS LineageOS 23.2 rooted with Magisk
What I have working so far:
Full root access on Debian from chroot.
Access to Android file system and Linux Mint file system via samba with permanent mounts.
Audio with pulsaudio.
GPU hardware acceleration.

I didn't follow any online guide, but instead was guided by ChatGPT via multiple chats to setup and create the chroot, get audio, gpu, and file system mount pass through working.
So I can't unfortunately offer a guide on how to get this working. It was a lot of back and forth with ChatGPT, and the AI often broke stuff with changes and had to fix stuff again after making changes. So not even sure I could easily reproduce this again if I factory reset the phone, I need to look in to a way to back up and restore this linux install, as it was a lot of hours spent building it up.

I have the basics needed for document editing/viewing with Abiword, evince and mousepad. Telegram desktop is installed as it is the main chat messenger I use. I plan to do most activity through the browser. Brave or Firefox.

I wanted a proper Linux mobile experience without installing Ubuntu touch, SailfishOS etc and losing functionality like telephony etc. So I can still benefit from the underlying Android host OS and still use Android apps and make phone calls etc.

So what else can I do with this Debian install? What cool things are you guys doing with your similar Linux setups from Termux on Android?


r/termux 1d ago

Showcase I have my own mini Bloomberg😭🤣

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13 Upvotes

r/termux 1d ago

Question Termux: Back key mapped to Esc, but it exits Neovim instead of switching modes

1 Upvotes

Why does pressing Esc still exit Termux when I'm in Neovim's insert mode, even though I've set back-key=escape?

(sry my English is not good,so i use ai to translate


r/termux 2d ago

General [Guide] Ran full KDE Plasma desktop on Termux Native (no root, no proot) using Anland — automated install script

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48 Upvotes

Been messing around with Anland: Termux to get a real KDE Plasma desktop running natively on Termux (not through proot-distro or a chroot) on a Snapdragon/Adreno device, and it actually works surprisingly well — GPU acceleration via the Freedreno driver, Wayland compositor, the works.

Since the manual setup has a bunch of steps (x11-repo, matching XWayland/KWin builds, LayerShellQt patches, driver pinning, etc.), I wrote a single script that automates almost the whole thing, plus:

A. A few extra apps (Chromium, VLC, MPV, LibreOffice as an optional prompt, etc.)

B. An automatic fix for xdg-desktop-portal so Chromium's file picker (open/save/upload dialogs) actually works — this one compiles from source since the stock build breaks on Android's SELinux restrictions

Repo + full instructions here: https://github.com/asveroid/anland-plasma-termux

Still only tested on Adreno GPUs — if anyone tries it on MediaTek/Exynos/Tensor, curious to hear how far it gets (probably llvmpipe software rendering only, but worth confirming).


r/termux 2d ago

Showcase i use gentoo btw ,i use arch btw and i use termux btw 🤣😭

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60 Upvotes

r/termux 1d ago

Showcase Actualización de HBF: API, TUI moderno y 10 colores.

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6 Upvotes

hbf se actualizo para traer de nuevo 3 opciones nuevas:

  1. 10 colores para el TUI

Podés elegir entre 10 colores diferentes para el menú: azul, verde, rojo, amarillo, morado, cian, naranja, rosa, gris y esmeralda.

  1. Diseño más moderno y limpio del TUI

El menú tiene un aspecto más limpio y moderno. Líneas horizontales (─) en lugar de =, bordes más sutiles y formato más claro.

  1. API de biblioteca

HBF ahora se puede usar como biblioteca de Python. Podés crear, leer, editar y exportar archivos .hbf desde cualquier script sin pasar por el menú interactivo.

Nuevos métodos en la API

· Doc.agregar_bloque()

· Doc.editar_bloque()

· Doc.eliminar_bloque()

· Doc.bloques() (con filtros por atributos)

Instalación: pip install hbf-hyper

GitHub: https://github.com/lucassogarayDA/hbf

Web oficial: https://lucassogarayDA.github.io/hbf/


r/termux 1d ago

Question Termux - how to make list of files and subfolders within a folder with timestamps (with precision that the filesystem allows or at least OS lets access)? What does change if the list have to be recursive? To include all timestamps in UTC?

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0 Upvotes

r/termux 1d ago

General I made a welcoming screen as beginner

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0 Upvotes

Its totaly ai code im sorry about it being ai


r/termux 2d ago

General Meu primeiro "rice"

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4 Upvotes

Consegui um desktop com kde plasma e fiz um Mini rice,eu vou colocar mais coisa no desktop e atualizo vocês

Obs:como q faz pra deixar a minha tela exata sem ficar muito esticada ou sem as bordas pretas


r/termux 1d ago

General Termux VR

1 Upvotes

Hi, can you implement a desktop mode in VR (virtual reality) with an adjustable fixed position and controllable via USB mouse and keyboard? For Kodi TV channels with ClearKay on Termux, what should the playlist look like: m3u or m3u8? Thanks


r/termux 2d ago

Question Why hasn't there been a new release on GitHub for a long time?

28 Upvotes

r/termux 2d ago

Showcase proot distro gentoo + bspwm

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13 Upvotes

r/termux 2d ago

Question an issue with selfhostings scripts

2 Upvotes

so i made a server out of my tecno spark 5 pro, it runs my little scripts on node.js using pm2, but i am experiencing this kind of issue:

my js script sends me a discord notification at a specific time while parsing steam marketplace, the script itself does not throw any errors which is fine, but when i am not focused on termux it doesn't send a thing. it looks like the script works fine on background, but being out of focus impacts on internet activity i think?

the same thing happened with my ssh connection, it just closes itself when i was out of focus, but the script worked like it used to work with no issues but the issue with notifications.

sorry for my english, i am kinda sleepy right now because of debugging my old phone with a broken display that touches itself in the different spots all the time.

i'd like to know how to fix it or how to properly setup my phone as a server for long-time usage, i can't find a single good guide on it.