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Migrating from TPM

tpack is a drop-in replacement for TPM. You can switch without changing your tmux.conf.

What stays the same

Everything you already have continues to work:

  • set -g @plugin '...' syntax
  • set -g @tpm_plugins '...' legacy syntax
  • @tpm-install, @tpm-update, @tpm-clean options
  • TMUX_PLUGIN_MANAGER_PATH environment variable
  • Install path ~/.tmux/plugins/tpm
  • Key bindings:
    • ++prefix+shift+i++ — install plugins
    • ++prefix+shift+u++ — update plugins
    • ++prefix+alt+u++ — clean (remove unused) plugins

What's new

tpack adds features that TPM does not have:

Feature Details
Interactive TUI ++prefix+shift+t++ opens a terminal UI for browsing, installing, updating, and removing plugins.
Plugin Registry Browse a curated plugin registry from the TUI. Search, filter by category, and install with a single key press.
CLI The tpack binary provides command-line management outside of tmux.
Automatic update checking tpack can check for plugin updates in the background and prompt or auto-update.
Color-customizable TUI Configure colors for the TUI via tmux options.
Self-update tpack can update itself without manual intervention.

How to switch

If you installed TPM with git clone, you can switch in place — no config changes needed:

cd ~/.tmux/plugins/tpm
git remote set-url origin https://github.com/tmuxpack/tpack
git pull

The run '~/.tmux/plugins/tpm/tpm' line in your tmux.conf stays the same.

Reload tmux to pick up the new binary:

tmux source ~/.tmux.conf

If you prefer installing through a package manager (Homebrew, AUR, DEB/RPM) or go install:

  1. Install tpack using any method from the Installation page.

  2. Replace the run line at the bottom of your tmux.conf:

    # Remove or comment out the old line:
# run '~/.tmux/plugins/tpm/tpm'

# Add:
run 'tpack init'

  3. Optionally remove the old TPM directory:

    rm -rf ~/.tmux/plugins/tpm

  4. Reload tmux:

    tmux source ~/.tmux.conf

Note

Your existing plugins stay in place. tpack will manage them going forward exactly as TPM did, plus you get the new features listed above.