Terminal UI
Last updated on May 21, 2026
The terminal UI shows the operator UI in the same terminal that runs the CLI, so you need no browser, no display server, and no graphical environment. Every prompt, measurement, and phase status updates live in the same shell.
There are three operator UI modes in total, so see Kiosk for the full-screen browser and Streaming for remote supervision.
Enable the TUI
The terminal_ui station config key controls the TUI, and you set it at Station > Configuration > Terminal UI on the dashboard. The change syncs on the next config push, and the CLI reads the key when a run starts.
To override the setting for a single run, pass one of the TUI flags.
tofupilot run ./procedure.yaml --tui # force on
tofupilot run ./procedure.yaml --no-tui # force offThe CLI resolves the value in this order: CLI flag, then station config, then the default (off). The --tui and --no-tui flags cannot be combined.
What the TUI renders
The TUI maps each operator UI component to a terminal equivalent, and a few rich components fall back to text.
| Component | Behavior |
|---|---|
| Text, number, slider, switch inputs | Keyboard field that blocks on submit until enter. |
| Radio, select, checklist, multi-select | Keyboard list. |
| Image choice, image checklist | Label-based selection with images referenced by name. |
| Live text, progress | Reactive, and rerenders on ui.<key> = value. |
| Image display | No bitmap rendering, so the panel shows the file path and count. |
Phase status, measurements, logs, and timing all stream into the same screen, and SIGWINCH resizes the layout.
Limits
A few capabilities are not available in the terminal, so plan operator workflows accordingly.
- No image rendering, so only the label fallback is shown.
- No multi-touch.
- Plain text only, so prompts have no HTML or markdown styling.
- No video.
TUI and kiosk are not mutually exclusive in code, so enable one per station. If both are on, kiosk takes operator input and the TUI shows read-only output.
How is this guide?
Remote UI
Watch and drive a running TofuPilot station from the dashboard in real time so anyone with access can supervise procedures, answer prompts, and step in remotely.
Kiosk UI
Learn how to boot a TofuPilot station into a full-screen browser with no tabs or chrome so operators see only the procedure they need to run.