How to enable settings UI on Windows Terminal

Starting with version 1.6, the Windows Terminal app for Windows 10 introduces a new graphical interface to customize virtually every aspect of the app and profiles.

However, the settings UI is not yet fully integrated, which means that selecting the “Settings” option from the context menu won’t open the experience. Instead, you need to bind the settings UI to a keyboard shortcut in the “settings.json” file.

In this guide, you will learn the steps to enable the new settings graphical interface for the Windows Terminal app.

Enable settings UI on Windows Terminal

To enable the new settings graphical interface, use these steps:

1. Open Windows Terminal.

2. Click the menu (down-arrow) button next to a tab.

3. Click the Settings option.

   Quick tip: It is recommended to use the Visual Studio Code to open the settings because it includes the JSON schema, which will make it easier to change the settings.

4. Under the “actions” brackets, at the bottom of the page, and above the last line of code, copy and paste the following code:

   { "command": { "action": "openSettings", "target": "settingsUI" }, "keys": "ctrl+shift+," },

   

5. Save the file to apply the changes.

Once you complete the steps, you can open the Windows Terminal settings UI using the “Ctrl + Shift + ,” keyboard shortcut.

Since the settings are still in preview, the app will generate a backup of the settings file in case you need to revert the changes.

If you need to undo the changes, you can find the backup opening the “settings.json” file with the Visual Studio Code app, right-clicking the tab, and selecting the Reveal in File Explorer option.