An iTerm2 Hotkey Window for Your Coding Agent

Sold for macOS, Left-Hand Pad combines twelve keys in a four-column by three-row layout with two rotary knobs. One remapped key can reveal an iTerm2 agent terminal from another application and hide it again.

What is an iTerm2 hotkey window?

iTerm2 can associate a special window with a system-wide shortcut. The shortcut opens or closes that window even while another application is active. It is more direct than cycling through every open app and terminal window.

The hotkey window belongs to a profile, so it can have its own appearance and startup command. Treat it as a quick view into one known session, not a place where every shell happens to accumulate.

How do you set one up for an agent session?

In iTerm2 Settings, open Keys and choose the option to create a dedicated hotkey window. Configure the resulting profile, then test its assigned shortcut from a normal keyboard. A startup command can attach to a named tmux session, but it should fail visibly if the session or project does not exist.

Keep the project path and tmux target in the profile notes. When the agent stops, close or repurpose the profile deliberately so yesterday's shortcut does not open an unrelated shell.

How do you bind the toggle to a dedicated key?

Make one pad position emit an uncommon shortcut through the product's configuration software, then assign the same shortcut to the iTerm2 hotkey window. Test that output in a harmless key viewer before enabling the global binding. Avoid combinations already claimed by macOS accessibility, input-source or screenshot controls.

The toggle should only change visibility. Do not append Enter, an approval response or a shell command to the hardware action. Once the terminal appears, read its working directory, tmux name and current prompt before typing.

What are the focus quirks to expect?

By default, a hotkey window can hide when focus moves to another window. iTerm2 also offers a pinning choice that keeps it open after focus changes, plus placement choices such as floating or full-screen display. Pick one behavior and test it across Spaces and full-screen applications.

If the same shortcut seems unreliable, check whether another app intercepts it and whether iTerm2 is allowed to receive global input. Multiple hotkey windows need distinct shortcuts and profiles. Restart iTerm2 once during setup and confirm the profile returns with the intended command and placement.

The Left-Hand Pad can give this terminal view a stable physical location. Label it Focus Agent, keep an ordinary iTerm2 route available and retest after changing macOS shortcuts or iTerm2 profiles.