Reference
Keyboard shortcuts
A reference of every keyboard shortcut in Orkestra, grouped by where it works.
On this page
Purpose
This chapter lists every keyboard shortcut of Orkestra in tables. Use it to find a key fast. Each row links to the chapter that explains the feature. This chapter does not explain the features.
Where to find it
No screen shows this list. Each table says where its keys work. Some tooltips and menu rows show a key too, for example Ask Helm (⌘J), Exit focus (Esc), "Next (⏎)" and "Previous (⇧⏎)". The right-click menu of the terminal shows its keys at the right of each row.
What you see
How to read the tables
- Keys — the keys to press together. "Ctrl+J (Cmd+J on macOS)" means Orkestra accepts Ctrl and Cmd. A key with Ctrl and no Cmd note works with Ctrl only, also on macOS.
- Where it works — the place that must have the keyboard focus.
- What it does — one line. The chapter in Details has the full explanation.
- Letter shortcuts work on any keyboard layout, for example a Cyrillic layout. If your layout gives no Latin letter, Orkestra reads the key by its place on the keyboard.
Anywhere in the app
| Keys | Where it works | What it does | Details |
|---|---|---|---|
| Ctrl+J (Cmd+J on macOS) | Anywhere. On Windows and Linux, not while the cursor is in a terminal: the terminal sends Ctrl+J to the program as a new line. | Opens Helm when it is closed. Closes Helm in any other mode. | Helm assistant |
| Ctrl+Shift+A (Cmd+Shift+A on macOS) | Anywhere. While the cursor is in a terminal, Ctrl+Shift+A selects the terminal text instead. | Brings the next waiting agent into view. Press again for the next one. | Agents panel and agent status |
Terminal windows
| Keys | Where it works | What it does | Details |
|---|---|---|---|
| Ctrl+C | Terminal text | With text selected: copies it and clears the selection. With no selection: goes to the program as the interrupt. | Copy text |
| Ctrl+Shift+C | Terminal text | Copies the selected text and keeps it selected. | Copy text |
| Ctrl+V or Ctrl+Shift+V | Terminal text | Pastes the clipboard text into the program. | Paste text |
| Ctrl+Shift+A | Terminal text | Selects all the text of the terminal. Ctrl+A alone goes to the program. | Limits and tips |
| Ctrl+F or Ctrl+Shift+F (Cmd+F or Cmd+Shift+F on macOS) | Terminal text | Opens the find bar. A running program does not get Ctrl+F. | Find text in a terminal |
| Shift+Enter, Ctrl+Enter | Terminal text | Reach the program as a modified Enter only if Modified key encoding (advanced) allows it. | Limits and tips |
| Up, Down, Home, End, Tab, Shift+Tab | Right-click menu of a terminal | Move between the rows of the menu. | Use the right-click menu |
| Esc | Right-click menu of a terminal | Closes the menu. The cursor returns to the terminal. | Use the right-click menu |
| Enter or Space | Body of a restored or sleeping terminal | Reconnects or wakes the terminal. | Reconnect one terminal |
| Page Up, Page Down, Home, End, arrow keys | Body of a restored or sleeping terminal | Scroll the saved text without a wake. Shift with these keys, or Ctrl+A (Cmd+A), wakes the terminal. | Read the saved output |
| Esc | History view of a terminal | Closes the history view. | Close the history view |
The find bar (terminals, file windows and Markdown Source)
| Keys | Where it works | What it does | Details |
|---|---|---|---|
| Enter | Find field | Goes to the next match. | Find text in a file |
| Shift+Enter | Find field | Goes to the previous match. | Find text in a file |
| Esc | Find field or Replace field | Closes the bar. The cursor returns to the terminal or the text. | Close the find bar |
| Enter | Replace field (file windows only) | Replaces the current match, as the Replace button does. | Replace text |
File and Markdown editors
| Keys | Where it works | What it does | Details |
|---|---|---|---|
| Ctrl+S (Cmd+S on macOS) | Text, toolbar and title bar of a file or Markdown window; text of a merge window | Saves the file. In a merge window it does Save & Stage. | Edit and save a file, Save the document, Resolve a conflict by hand |
| Ctrl+Z (Cmd+Z on macOS) | Code text, Markdown Rich and Source, task description | Undoes one step. | Undo and redo a change |
| Ctrl+Y or Ctrl+Shift+Z (Cmd+Y or Cmd+Shift+Z on macOS) | Same places as Ctrl+Z | Redoes one step. | Undo and redo a change |
| Ctrl+F (Cmd+F on macOS) | Text of a file window and Markdown Source, while the text has the focus | Opens the find bar. | Find text in the Markdown source |
| Tab, Shift+Tab | Markdown Rich, in a list item | Indents or outdents the item. | Limits and tips |
The Files panel — click a row first. Tree shortcuts do nothing while the right-click menu or a name field is open; use the menu keys below while a menu is open.
| Keys | Where it works | What it does | Details |
|---|---|---|---|
| Shift+F10 or ContextMenu | Files tree | Opens the right-click menu for the active row. | Files panel |
| Up, Down | Files tree | Moves the selection one row. | Files panel |
| Shift+Up, Shift+Down | Files tree | Extends the selection. | Select several items |
| Ctrl+A (Cmd+A on macOS) | Files tree | Selects all visible rows. | Select several items |
| Home, End | Files tree | Jump to the first or the last row. | Files panel |
| Right, Left | Files tree | Right opens a folder or goes to its first item. Left closes a folder or goes to the parent. | Files panel |
| Enter | Files tree | Opens a file with the project's default open action (Orkestra, the default application or the project IDE, plus the extension rules). Opens or closes a folder. | Open a file |
| F2 | Files tree | Renames the selected item. | Rename an item |
| Delete or Backspace | Files tree | Moves the selected items to the trash, after a question. | Delete items |
| Ctrl+C, Ctrl+X, Ctrl+V (Cmd+C, Cmd+X, Cmd+V on macOS) | Files tree | Copies, cuts and pastes items. | Copy or move items with the clipboard |
| Ctrl+Shift+C (Cmd+Shift+C on macOS) | Files tree | Copies the path of the selected items. | Copy the path of an item |
| Ctrl+Alt+Shift+C (Cmd+Alt+Shift+C on macOS) | Files tree | Copies the relative paths. | Copy the path of an item |
| Alt+Insert, Alt+Shift+Insert | Files tree | Starts a new file, or a new folder. | Create a file or a folder |
| Esc | Files tree | Clears the selection. | Files panel |
| A letter or letters | Files tree | Jump to the next item whose name starts with the letters. | Files panel |
| Enter, Esc | Name field of a rename or a new item | Enter saves the name. Esc cancels. | Rename an item |
| Enter | Search files… field | Selects the next match. | Search for a file |
| Esc | Name conflict dialog | Cancels. | Resolve a name conflict |
| Up, Down, Home, End, Tab, Shift+Tab | Files right-click menu or Open with submenu | Moves focus between menu rows, including unavailable rows with a reason; Tab wraps at either end. | Files panel |
| Enter or Space | Files right-click menu | Activates the focused row. | Files panel |
| Right, Enter or Space | Open with row | Opens the submenu and focuses its first available row. | Files panel |
| Left, Right | Highlight colours in the Files right-click menu | Moves between the colours; Enter or Space picks one. Up, Down and Tab pass over the colours as one stop. | Files panel |
| Left or Esc | Open with submenu | Closes the submenu and returns focus to Open with. Esc from the main menu closes it. | Files panel |
| Enter | Unsaved changes dialog | Activates the focused button; focus starts on Save and open (on Open the disk version when the saved draft cannot be read). | Files panel |
| Esc | Unsaved changes dialog | Cancels and returns focus to the selected file. | Files panel |
| Tab, Shift+Tab | Unsaved changes dialog | Moves between its actions and stays inside the dialog. | Files panel |
| Left, Right | Default in Edit project › File opening, and File opening in Create project | Moves to the next choice and selects it. Project IDE is skipped while no IDE is linked. | Projects |
| Enter | A text field or the Default choice of Edit project / Create project | Saves (Edit) or creates (Create). With a rule error, focus goes to the first wrong rule instead. | Projects |
| Shift+F10 or Menu key | A project row in the project switcher | Opens the project row menu (Open project in <IDE> or Link an IDE…, Edit project…, …). | Projects |
The canvas, windows and focus mode
| Keys | Where it works | What it does | Details |
|---|---|---|---|
| Esc | A window in focus mode | Leaves focus mode. A menu, pop-up or find bar that takes Esc closes first. While the cursor is in a terminal, the terminal takes Esc. | Leave focus |
| Enter or Space | Window name in a title bar (reach it with Tab) | Starts the rename. | Rename a window |
| Enter, Esc | Name field of a window | Enter saves the name. Esc cancels. | Rename a window |
| Esc | While you drag a marker on the minimap | Cancels the move. | Move windows with the minimap |
Workbench tabs
| Keys | Where it works | What it does | Details |
|---|---|---|---|
| Tab | Tab strip | Moves the focus into the strip, to the active tab. | Workbenches and the canvas |
| Left, Right | A focused tab | Open the previous or the next tab. They wrap at the ends. | Switch to another workbench |
| Home, End | A focused tab | Open the first or the last tab. | Workbenches and the canvas |
| Enter or Space | A focused tab | Opens the tab. | Switch to another workbench |
| F2 | A focused tab | Renames the workbench. | Rename a workbench |
| Enter, Esc | Name field of a tab | Enter saves the name. Esc keeps the old name. | Rename a workbench |
Dialogs, menus and popovers
| Keys | Where it works | What it does | Details |
|---|---|---|---|
| Esc | A dialog | Closes it. A busy Create project, Open existing folder or Scan for repositories dialog ignores Esc. | Adding projects |
| Esc | A menu, a pop-up or a status bar panel | Closes it. | Open and close a status bar panel |
| Enter | A name or value field, for example a new group, a branch, a worktree name or a budget limit | Saves or applies the value. Esc cancels in the group and branch fields. | Create a group, Create a branch, Create a worktree, Change a limit |
| Shift+F10 or Menu key | Agent button in the top bar | Opens the quick-launch menu, as a right-click does. | Start an agent with a chosen model and effort |
| Down, Up, Home, End | Quick-launch menu | Move through the model list. | Start an agent with a chosen model and effort |
| A letter or letters | Quick-launch model list | Jump to the next model whose name starts with them. | Start an agent with a chosen model and effort |
| Left, Right, Up, Down | Effort row of the quick-launch menu | Choose the previous or the next effort level. | Start an agent with a chosen model and effort |
| Esc | Quick-launch menu | Closes the menu. | Start an agent with a chosen model and effort |
| Enter, Space | Commit row in the Log tab | Enter opens the commit window. Space highlights the row. | Open a commit |
| Enter or Space | File row in a commit window | Selects the file. | Read the diff of one file in a commit |
Helm
| Keys | Where it works | What it does | Details |
|---|---|---|---|
| Enter | Helm text field | Sends the message. | Ask Helm to do something |
| Shift+Enter | Helm text field | Adds a new line. | Ask Helm to do something |
| Ctrl+V (Cmd+V on macOS) | Helm text field | Pastes text. A picture or a file on the clipboard becomes an attachment. | Paste a picture or a file |
The Settings window
| Keys | Where it works | What it does | Details |
|---|---|---|---|
| Esc | Any pane of the Settings window | Closes the window and saves nothing, like Cancel. When a dialog or menu inside Settings has taken the key, Esc closes only that, and the next Esc closes Settings. | Close Settings without saving |
| Enter | Font family field | Saves the value. Leaving the field saves it too. | Settings: the window, appearance, terminal, workbench and notifications |
Tours and setup
| Keys | Where it works | What it does | Details |
|---|---|---|---|
| Esc | While a tour callout shows (not while the cursor is in a terminal) | Ends the tour. | Stop a tour |
| Enter | Setup window, when no button, link or field has the focus | Clicks Continue or Finish. | Complete the first-run setup |
| Esc | Setup window | Opens the Skip setup? dialog. Esc in that dialog goes back to setup. | Skip the first-run setup |
| Up, Down, Home, End | Agent list of the Default agent step | Change the chosen agent. | Choose a default agent |
| Enter or Space | An agent row of the Default agent step | Chooses that agent. | Choose a default agent |
The Agents panel
| Keys | Where it works | What it does | Details |
|---|---|---|---|
| Enter or Space | A row of the Agents panel (reach it with Tab) | Brings the terminal into view. | Bring a terminal into view |
| Enter | Hours field of the Idle sleep threshold pop-up | Applies the number, as Apply does. | Change the idle-sleep threshold |
| Esc | Idle sleep threshold pop-up | Closes the pop-up with no change. | Change the idle-sleep threshold |
The mouse with a modifier key
| Keys | Where it works | What it does | Details |
|---|---|---|---|
| Ctrl+click (Cmd+click on macOS) | Terminal window | Selects or unselects the terminal for grouping. | Select terminals |
| Ctrl+click (Cmd+click on macOS) | Header of a terminal group | Selects or unselects the whole group. | Select a whole group |
| Ctrl+click (Cmd+click on macOS) | Row in the Agents panel | Selects the terminal. It does not bring it into view. | Select several terminals |
| Ctrl+click (Cmd+click on macOS) | Task row in ToDo | Selects the task. | Launch several tasks |
| Ctrl+click (Cmd+click on macOS), Shift+click | Row in the Files tree | Ctrl or Cmd adds or removes one row. Shift selects a block. | Select several items |
| Ctrl+click (Cmd+click on macOS) | Web address or file path in terminal output | Opens the link. | Open a link in terminal output |
| Ctrl+mouse wheel | Canvas | Zooms around the pointer. Cmd does not zoom. A terminal that uses the mouse keeps the wheel. | Zoom with the mouse wheel |
| Ctrl+click or Ctrl+drag (Cmd on macOS) | Window marker on the minimap | Click selects a terminal. Drag moves windows. | Move windows with the minimap |
| Ctrl while you release | A drag in the Files tree | Copies the items instead of moving them. | Move or copy items by drag and drop |
| Shift+right-click | A terminal whose program uses the mouse | Opens the right-click menu of the terminal. | Open the right-click menu in a full-screen program |
How to
Open Helm with the keyboard
Before you start, make sure the cursor is not in a terminal.
- Press Ctrl+J (Cmd+J on macOS).
Result: Helm opens as the bottom bar. Press the same keys again to close Helm in any mode. See Helm assistant.
Bring the next waiting agent into view
Before you start, make sure the cursor is not in a terminal.
- Press Ctrl+Shift+A (Cmd+Shift+A on macOS).
Result: Orkestra brings one waiting agent into view. Press the keys again for the next one. If no agent waits, nothing happens. See Agents panel and agent status.
Limits and tips
- Two app-wide keys. Only Ctrl+J and Ctrl+Shift+A work in the whole app. Every other key works only in the place named in its table.
- No keys for the canvas. No key zooms or pans the canvas. Use the zoom buttons, Ctrl and the mouse wheel, or the minimap. See Workbenches and the canvas.
- A terminal keeps most keys. While the cursor is in a terminal, the program gets nearly every key. Orkestra takes only the keys in the Terminal windows table.
- Esc and the Launch task dialog. Esc does not close the Launch task dialog. Use its buttons. No key opens the Settings window.
- Other rows. A row that acts as a button also takes Enter or Space when it has the focus. This holds for the rows of the Approvals list in the status bar and for the routine rows of the Scheduler. See Approvals and Scheduler and routines.
- Mac symbols. The right-click menu of the Files panel shows Mac key symbols on every system. See Files panel.
Related
- Terminal windows — copy, paste, find and the right-click menu of a terminal.
- File, image and HTML windows — save, undo, redo and find in the editor.
- Files panel — all the tree keys with their rules.
- Canvas windows: move, resize, dock and focus — focus mode and rename.
- Workbenches and the canvas — the tab strip, zoom and the minimap.
- Helm assistant — the Helm keys.
- Agents panel and agent status — the waiting-agent key and the panel rows.
- First-run setup, Getting started and tours — keys in setup and in tours.