In this blog post, we will learn how to customize Windows Terminal. First, we will understand the two important settings.json and defaults.json configuration files to build a better understanding. If you are completely new to Windows Terminal, then I would highly recommend you to go through the introductory post of installing and understanding Windows Terminal. At the time of writing the current version of Windows Terminal is 1.0
“Windows Terminal is a modern terminal application for users of command-line tools and shells like Command Prompt, PowerShell, and Windows Subsystem for Linux (WSL). Its main features include multiple tabs, panes, Unicode and UTF-8 character support, a GPU accelerated text rendering engine, and the ability to create your own themes and customize text, colors, backgrounds, and shortcut key bindings“. [source: Microsoft Docs]
Configuration Files
The best feature of Windows Terminal is the ability to customize it. The user can customize, its text color, cursor shape, background color, background image, opacity, icon settings, etc. The user can have multiple customized profiles and can have global settings to apply to all the available profiles as well. All these settings are stored in different JSON configuration files. Let us look into these files and have a brief overview of them.
settings.json
This file contains details about the default profiles, settings that can be applied to all available profiles, a list of available profiles, a place to declare custom color schemes and custom key bindings.
The settings.json file can be opened by using the shortcut “Ctrl + ,” or from the drop-down menu and select Settings
The content of the settings.json file is given below, please note that your file will have the details based on your machine and the details might look a bit different then what is given below.
// This file was initially generated by Windows Terminal 1.0.1401.0
// It should still be usable in newer versions, but newer versions might have additional
// settings, help text, or changes that you will not see unless you clear this file
// and let us generate a new one for you.
// To view the default settings, hold "alt" while clicking on the "Settings" button.
// For documentation on these settings, see: https://aka.ms/terminal-documentation
{
"$schema": "https://aka.ms/terminal-profiles-schema",
"defaultProfile": "{61c54bbd-c2c6-5271-96e7-009a87ff44ba}",
// You can add more global application settings here.
// To learn more about global settings, visit https://aka.ms/terminal-global-settings
// If enabled, selections are automatically copied to your clipboard.
"copyOnSelect": false,
// If enabled, formatted data is also copied to your clipboard
"copyFormatting": false,
// A profile specifies a command to execute paired with information about how it should look and feel.
// Each one of them will appear in the 'New Tab' dropdown,
// and can be invoked from the commandline with `wt.exe -p xxx`
// To learn more about profiles, visit https://aka.ms/terminal-profile-settings
"profiles": {
"defaults": {
// Put settings here that you want to apply to all profiles.
"theme": "dark"
},
"list": [
{
// Make changes here to the powershell.exe profile.
"guid": "{61c54bbd-c2c6-5271-96e7-009a87ff44ba}",
"name": "Windows PowerShell",
"commandline": "powershell.exe",
"hidden": false
},
{
// Make changes here to the cmd.exe profile.
"guid": "{0caa0dad-35be-5f56-a8ff-afceeeaa6102}",
"name": "Command Prompt",
"commandline": "cmd.exe",
"hidden": false
},
{
"guid": "{b453ae62-4e3d-5e58-b989-0a998ec441b9}",
"hidden": false,
"name": "Azure Cloud Shell",
"source": "Windows.Terminal.Azure"
}
]
},
// Add custom color schemes to this array.
// To learn more about color schemes, visit https://aka.ms/terminal-color-schemes
"schemes": [
],
// Add custom keybindings to this array.
// To unbind a key combination from your defaults.json, set the command to "unbound".
// To learn more about keybindings, visit https://aka.ms/terminal-keybindings
"keybindings": [
// Copy and paste are bound to Ctrl+Shift+C and Ctrl+Shift+V in your defaults.json.
// These two lines additionally bind them to Ctrl+C and Ctrl+V.
// To learn more about selection, visit https://aka.ms/terminal-selection
{
"command": {
"action": "copy",
"singleLine": false
},
"keys": "ctrl+c"
},
{
"command": "paste",
"keys": "ctrl+v"
},
// Press Ctrl+Shift+F to open the search box
{
"command": "find",
"keys": "ctrl+shift+f"
},
// Press Alt+Shift+D to open a new pane.
// - "split": "auto" makes this pane open in the direction that provides the most surface area.
// - "splitMode": "duplicate" makes the new pane use the focused pane's profile.
// To learn more about panes, visit https://aka.ms/terminal-panes
{
"command": {
"action": "splitPane",
"split": "auto",
"splitMode": "duplicate"
},
"keys": "alt+shift+d"
}
]
} defaults.json
The defaults.json file as the name suggests contains all the default configuration of the terminal application. This file contains details like the launch settings, tab configurations, default color schemes, profile details, and all available default key bindings.
One thing to note is this file is an auto-generated file and changes made to this file will not work if you want to apply any changes this needs to be done in settings.json file. To open the defaults.json file, go to the Settings menu item and hold your Alt key and click Settings.
The content of the file is shown below, please note your default.json might look a bit different based on your available profiles on your machine, but most of the details will be the same.
// THIS IS AN AUTO-GENERATED FILE! Changes to this file will be ignored.
{
"defaultProfile": "{61c54bbd-c2c6-5271-96e7-009a87ff44bf}",
// Launch Settings
"initialCols": 120,
"initialRows": 30,
"launchMode": "default",
// Selection
"copyOnSelect": false,
"copyFormatting": true,
"wordDelimiters": " /\\()\"'-.,:;<>~!@#$%^&*|+=[]{}~?\u2502",
// Tab UI
"alwaysShowTabs": true,
"showTabsInTitlebar": true,
"showTerminalTitleInTitlebar": true,
"tabWidthMode": "equal",
// Miscellaneous
"confirmCloseAllTabs": true,
"theme": "system",
"rowsToScroll": "system",
"snapToGridOnResize": true,
"profiles":
[
{
"guid": "{61c54bbd-c2c6-5271-96e7-009a87ff44bf}",
"name": "Windows PowerShell",
"commandline": "powershell.exe",
"icon": "ms-appx:///ProfileIcons/{61c54bbd-c2c6-5271-96e7-009a87ff44bf}.png",
"colorScheme": "Campbell",
"antialiasingMode": "grayscale",
"closeOnExit": "graceful",
"cursorShape": "bar",
"fontFace": "Cascadia Mono",
"fontSize": 12,
"hidden": false,
"historySize": 9001,
"padding": "8, 8, 8, 8",
"snapOnInput": true,
"startingDirectory": "%USERPROFILE%",
"useAcrylic": false
},
{
"guid": "{0caa0dad-35be-5f56-a8ff-afceeeaa6101}",
"name": "Command Prompt",
"commandline": "cmd.exe",
"icon": "ms-appx:///ProfileIcons/{0caa0dad-35be-5f56-a8ff-afceeeaa6101}.png",
"colorScheme": "Campbell",
"antialiasingMode": "grayscale",
"closeOnExit": "graceful",
"cursorShape": "bar",
"fontFace": "Cascadia Mono",
"fontSize": 12,
"hidden": false,
"historySize": 9001,
"padding": "8, 8, 8, 8",
"snapOnInput": true,
"startingDirectory": "%USERPROFILE%",
"useAcrylic": false
}
],
"schemes":
[
// A profile can override the following color scheme values:
// - "foreground"
// - "background"
// - "cursorColor"
{
"name": "Campbell",
"foreground": "#CCCCCC",
"background": "#0C0C0C",
"cursorColor": "#FFFFFF",
"black": "#0C0C0C",
"red": "#C50F1F",
"green": "#13A10E",
"yellow": "#C19C00",
"blue": "#0037DA",
"purple": "#881798",
"cyan": "#3A96DD",
"white": "#CCCCCC",
"brightBlack": "#767676",
"brightRed": "#E74856",
"brightGreen": "#16C60C",
"brightYellow": "#F9F1A5",
"brightBlue": "#3B78FF",
"brightPurple": "#B4009E",
"brightCyan": "#61D6D6",
"brightWhite": "#F2F2F2"
},
{
"name": "Campbell Powershell",
"foreground": "#CCCCCC",
"background": "#012456",
"cursorColor": "#FFFFFF",
"black": "#0C0C0C",
"red": "#C50F1F",
"green": "#13A10E",
"yellow": "#C19C00",
"blue": "#0037DA",
"purple": "#881798",
"cyan": "#3A96DD",
"white": "#CCCCCC",
"brightBlack": "#767676",
"brightRed": "#E74856",
"brightGreen": "#16C60C",
"brightYellow": "#F9F1A5",
"brightBlue": "#3B78FF",
"brightPurple": "#B4009E",
"brightCyan": "#61D6D6",
"brightWhite": "#F2F2F2"
},
{
"name": "Vintage",
"foreground": "#C0C0C0",
"background": "#000000",
"cursorColor": "#FFFFFF",
"black": "#000000",
"red": "#800000",
"green": "#008000",
"yellow": "#808000",
"blue": "#000080",
"purple": "#800080",
"cyan": "#008080",
"white": "#C0C0C0",
"brightBlack": "#808080",
"brightRed": "#FF0000",
"brightGreen": "#00FF00",
"brightYellow": "#FFFF00",
"brightBlue": "#0000FF",
"brightPurple": "#FF00FF",
"brightCyan": "#00FFFF",
"brightWhite": "#FFFFFF"
},
{
"name": "One Half Dark",
"foreground": "#DCDFE4",
"background": "#282C34",
"cursorColor": "#FFFFFF",
"black": "#282C34",
"red": "#E06C75",
"green": "#98C379",
"yellow": "#E5C07B",
"blue": "#61AFEF",
"purple": "#C678DD",
"cyan": "#56B6C2",
"white": "#DCDFE4",
"brightBlack": "#5A6374",
"brightRed": "#E06C75",
"brightGreen": "#98C379",
"brightYellow": "#E5C07B",
"brightBlue": "#61AFEF",
"brightPurple": "#C678DD",
"brightCyan": "#56B6C2",
"brightWhite": "#DCDFE4"
},
{
"name": "One Half Light",
"foreground": "#383A42",
"background": "#FAFAFA",
"cursorColor": "#4F525D",
"black": "#383A42",
"red": "#E45649",
"green": "#50A14F",
"yellow": "#C18301",
"blue": "#0184BC",
"purple": "#A626A4",
"cyan": "#0997B3",
"white": "#FAFAFA",
"brightBlack": "#4F525D",
"brightRed": "#DF6C75",
"brightGreen": "#98C379",
"brightYellow": "#E4C07A",
"brightBlue": "#61AFEF",
"brightPurple": "#C577DD",
"brightCyan": "#56B5C1",
"brightWhite": "#FFFFFF"
},
{
"name": "Solarized Dark",
"foreground": "#839496",
"background": "#002B36",
"cursorColor": "#FFFFFF",
"black": "#073642",
"red": "#DC322F",
"green": "#859900",
"yellow": "#B58900",
"blue": "#268BD2",
"purple": "#D33682",
"cyan": "#2AA198",
"white": "#EEE8D5",
"brightBlack": "#002B36",
"brightRed": "#CB4B16",
"brightGreen": "#586E75",
"brightYellow": "#657B83",
"brightBlue": "#839496",
"brightPurple": "#6C71C4",
"brightCyan": "#93A1A1",
"brightWhite": "#FDF6E3"
},
{
"name": "Solarized Light",
"foreground": "#657B83",
"background": "#FDF6E3",
"cursorColor": "#002B36",
"black": "#073642",
"red": "#DC322F",
"green": "#859900",
"yellow": "#B58900",
"blue": "#268BD2",
"purple": "#D33682",
"cyan": "#2AA198",
"white": "#EEE8D5",
"brightBlack": "#002B36",
"brightRed": "#CB4B16",
"brightGreen": "#586E75",
"brightYellow": "#657B83",
"brightBlue": "#839496",
"brightPurple": "#6C71C4",
"brightCyan": "#93A1A1",
"brightWhite": "#FDF6E3"
},
{
"name": "Tango Dark",
"foreground": "#D3D7CF",
"background": "#000000",
"cursorColor": "#FFFFFF",
"black": "#000000",
"red": "#CC0000",
"green": "#4E9A06",
"yellow": "#C4A000",
"blue": "#3465A4",
"purple": "#75507B",
"cyan": "#06989A",
"white": "#D3D7CF",
"brightBlack": "#555753",
"brightRed": "#EF2929",
"brightGreen": "#8AE234",
"brightYellow": "#FCE94F",
"brightBlue": "#729FCF",
"brightPurple": "#AD7FA8",
"brightCyan": "#34E2E2",
"brightWhite": "#EEEEEC"
},
{
"name": "Tango Light",
"foreground": "#555753",
"background": "#FFFFFF",
"cursorColor": "#000000",
"black": "#000000",
"red": "#CC0000",
"green": "#4E9A06",
"yellow": "#C4A000",
"blue": "#3465A4",
"purple": "#75507B",
"cyan": "#06989A",
"white": "#D3D7CF",
"brightBlack": "#555753",
"brightRed": "#EF2929",
"brightGreen": "#8AE234",
"brightYellow": "#FCE94F",
"brightBlue": "#729FCF",
"brightPurple": "#AD7FA8",
"brightCyan": "#34E2E2",
"brightWhite": "#EEEEEC"
}
],
"keybindings":
[
// Application-level Keys
{ "command": "closeWindow", "keys": "alt+f4" },
{ "command": "toggleFullscreen", "keys": "alt+enter" },
{ "command": "toggleFullscreen", "keys": "f11" },
{ "command": "openNewTabDropdown", "keys": "ctrl+shift+space" },
{ "command": "openSettings", "keys": "ctrl+," },
{ "command": "find", "keys": "ctrl+shift+f" },
// Tab Management
// "command": "closeTab" is unbound by default.
// The closeTab command closes a tab without confirmation, even if it has multiple panes.
{ "command": "newTab", "keys": "ctrl+shift+t" },
{ "command": { "action": "newTab", "index": 0 }, "keys": "ctrl+shift+1" },
{ "command": { "action": "newTab", "index": 1 }, "keys": "ctrl+shift+2" },
{ "command": { "action": "newTab", "index": 2 }, "keys": "ctrl+shift+3" },
{ "command": { "action": "newTab", "index": 3 }, "keys": "ctrl+shift+4" },
{ "command": { "action": "newTab", "index": 4 }, "keys": "ctrl+shift+5" },
{ "command": { "action": "newTab", "index": 5 }, "keys": "ctrl+shift+6" },
{ "command": { "action": "newTab", "index": 6 }, "keys": "ctrl+shift+7" },
{ "command": { "action": "newTab", "index": 7 }, "keys": "ctrl+shift+8" },
{ "command": { "action": "newTab", "index": 8 }, "keys": "ctrl+shift+9" },
{ "command": "duplicateTab", "keys": "ctrl+shift+d" },
{ "command": "nextTab", "keys": "ctrl+tab" },
{ "command": "prevTab", "keys": "ctrl+shift+tab" },
{ "command": { "action": "switchToTab", "index": 0 }, "keys": "ctrl+alt+1" },
{ "command": { "action": "switchToTab", "index": 1 }, "keys": "ctrl+alt+2" },
{ "command": { "action": "switchToTab", "index": 2 }, "keys": "ctrl+alt+3" },
{ "command": { "action": "switchToTab", "index": 3 }, "keys": "ctrl+alt+4" },
{ "command": { "action": "switchToTab", "index": 4 }, "keys": "ctrl+alt+5" },
{ "command": { "action": "switchToTab", "index": 5 }, "keys": "ctrl+alt+6" },
{ "command": { "action": "switchToTab", "index": 6 }, "keys": "ctrl+alt+7" },
{ "command": { "action": "switchToTab", "index": 7 }, "keys": "ctrl+alt+8" },
{ "command": { "action": "switchToTab", "index": 8 }, "keys": "ctrl+alt+9" },
// Pane Management
{ "command": "closePane", "keys": "ctrl+shift+w" },
{ "command": { "action": "splitPane", "split": "horizontal" }, "keys": "alt+shift+-" },
{ "command": { "action": "splitPane", "split": "vertical" }, "keys": "alt+shift+plus" },
{ "command": { "action": "resizePane", "direction": "down" }, "keys": "alt+shift+down" },
{ "command": { "action": "resizePane", "direction": "left" }, "keys": "alt+shift+left" },
{ "command": { "action": "resizePane", "direction": "right" }, "keys": "alt+shift+right" },
{ "command": { "action": "resizePane", "direction": "up" }, "keys": "alt+shift+up" },
{ "command": { "action": "moveFocus", "direction": "down" }, "keys": "alt+down" },
{ "command": { "action": "moveFocus", "direction": "left" }, "keys": "alt+left" },
{ "command": { "action": "moveFocus", "direction": "right" }, "keys": "alt+right" },
{ "command": { "action": "moveFocus", "direction": "up" }, "keys": "alt+up" },
// Clipboard Integration
{ "command": { "action": "copy", "singleLine": false }, "keys": "ctrl+shift+c" },
{ "command": { "action": "copy", "singleLine": false }, "keys": "ctrl+insert" },
{ "command": "paste", "keys": "ctrl+shift+v" },
{ "command": "paste", "keys": "shift+insert" },
// Scrollback
{ "command": "scrollDown", "keys": "ctrl+shift+down" },
{ "command": "scrollDownPage", "keys": "ctrl+shift+pgdn" },
{ "command": "scrollUp", "keys": "ctrl+shift+up" },
{ "command": "scrollUpPage", "keys": "ctrl+shift+pgup" },
// Visual Adjustments
{ "command": { "action": "adjustFontSize", "delta": 1 }, "keys": "ctrl+=" },
{ " command": { "action": "adjustFontSize", "delta": -1 }, "keys": "ctrl+-" },
{ "command": "resetFontSize", "keys": "ctrl+0" }
]
} Default Color Schemes
The windows terminal comes preloaded with 9 different color schemes, the details of the schemes can be found defaults.json.
- Campbell
- Campbell Powershell
- Vintage
- One Half Dark
- One Half Light
- Solarized Dark
- Solarized Light
- Tango Dark
- Tango Light
Applying Default Color Scheme to a Profile
In order to apply any color scheme to a selected profile, use the following JSON key-value pair: “colorScheme”: “[Name of the color profile]”. For example, if I want to apply the “Solarized Dark” scheme to my PowerShell profile. I will add the following key-value pair inside the PowerShell object inside the profile list. The changes are reflected as soon as you save the settings.json file.
"list": [
{
"guid": "{61c54bbd-c2c6-5271-96e7-009a87ff44bz}",
"name": "Windows PowerShell",
"commandline": "powershell.exe",
"hidden": false,
"colorScheme": "Solarized Dark"
}, 
Creating a custom color scheme
If the user wants to create a custom color scheme, the best way to do it is to make a copy of any existing scheme from defaults.json and paste the same inside scheme array inside the settings.json file and rename it. After pasting, the user can change the hex code of any value to suit his needs and then use the scheme name in the profile of choice.
"schemes": [
{
"name": "My Custom",
"foreground": "#FFFFFF",
"background": "#012456",
"cursorColor": "#FFFF00",
"black": "#0C0C0C",
"red": "#C50F1F",
"green": "#13A10E",
"yellow": "#C19C00",
"blue": "#0037DA",
"purple": "#881798",
"cyan": "#3A96DD",
"white": "#CCCCCC",
"brightBlack": "#767676",
"brightRed": "#E74856",
"brightGreen": "#16C60C",
"brightYellow": "#F9F1A5",
"brightBlue": "#3B78FF",
"brightPurple": "#B4009E",
"brightCyan": "#61D6D6",
"brightWhite": "#F2F2F2"
}
], 
Using Open Source Free Themes
If you don’t want to create your own color schemes, then you can use the freely available Windows Terminal themes on GitHub [Link: https://atomcorp.github.io/themes/]. A huge list is available with the demo. You can copy the theme of your choice and paste the same inside your scheme array in the settings.json file and start using it with your respective profiles.
Here is the sample “Blue Matrix” themes from the link.
{
"name": "Blue Matrix",
"black": "#101116",
"red": "#ff5680",
"green": "#00ff9c",
"yellow": "#fffc58",
"blue": "#00b0ff",
"purple": "#d57bff",
"cyan": "#76c1ff",
"white": "#c7c7c7",
"brightBlack": "#686868",
"brightRed": "#ff6e67",
"brightGreen": "#5ffa68",
"brightYellow": "#fffc67",
"brightBlue": "#6871ff",
"brightPurple": "#d682ec",
"brightCyan": "#60fdff",
"brightWhite": "#ffffff",
"background": "#101116",
"foreground": "#00a2ff"
} 
Customizing Cursor Shape and Color
Windows Terminal also provides a way to customize the cursor shape, color, and height. The settings for cursor are applicable at the profile level. One thing to note is the cursor-height is applicable only when its shape is set to vintage.
There are a total of 5 cursor shape, they are bar, underscore, filledBox , emptyBox, and vintage. Each of them is displayed below.
Cursor Type: Bar and Color Red
{
"guid": "{61c54bbd-c2c6-5271-96e7-009a87ff44ba}",
"name": "Windows PowerShell",
"commandline": "powershell.exe",
"hidden": false,
"cursorShape": "bar",
"cursorColor": "#FF0000"
}, Cursor Type: FilledBox and Color Red
"cursorShape": "underscore", "cursorColor": "#FF0000"
Cursor Type: Underscore and Color Red
"cursorShape": "filledBox", "cursorColor": "#FF0000"
Cursor Type: EmptyBox and Color Red
"cursorShape": "emptyBox", "cursorColor": "#FF0000"
Cursor Type: Vintage, Color Red and Height 80
The vintage cursor type supports height parameter.
"cursorShape": "vintage", "cursorColor": "#FF0000", "cursorHeight": 70
Adding Background Image
A background image can be added at an individual profile level. A static or a GIF image can be added. To add a background image add the following JSON key-value pair at the profile level: “backgroundImage” : “image-path”.
Add a Static Background Image
{
"guid": "{61c54bbd-c2c6-5271-96e7-009a87ff44ba}",
"name": "Windows PowerShell",
"commandline": "powershell.exe",
"hidden": false,
"backgroundImage": "C:\\Windows.jpg"
}, 
Add a GIF Background Image
To add a GIF Image, provide the path of GIF image
{
"guid": "{61c54bbd-c2c6-5271-96e7-009a87ff44ba}",
"name": "Windows PowerShell",
"commandline": "powershell.exe",
"hidden": false,
"backgroundImage": "C:\\matrix.gif"
}, Supported Image properties
Background Image can be stretched, align, or have opacity values attached to them.
To stretch an image use the key-value pair “backgroundImageStretchMode”:”value”, where value can be any one of the following: none, fill, uniform, uniformToFill (default value)
To align an image use the key-value pair “backgroundImageAlignment”:”value”, where value can be any one of the following: left, top, right, bottom, topLeft, topRight, bottomLeft, bottomRight, center (default value)
Top apply opacity to an image use the key-value pair “backgroundImageOpacity”:value, where value can range from 0-1.0
I hope you found this post on how to customize Window Terminal Application helpful to you, thanks for visiting, Cheers!!!
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