Package org.jline.terminal.spi

Interface TerminalProvider

All Known Implementing Classes:

DumbTerminalProvider, ExecTerminalProvider, JniTerminalProvider

public interface TerminalProvider

Service provider interface for terminal implementations.

The TerminalProvider interface defines the contract for classes that can create and manage terminal instances on specific platforms. Each provider implements platform-specific terminal functionality, allowing JLine to work across different operating systems and environments.

JLine includes several built-in terminal providers:

• FFM - Foreign Function Memory (Java 22+) based implementation
• JNI - Java Native Interface based implementation
• Jansi - Implementation based on the Jansi library
• JNA - Java Native Access based implementation
• Exec - Implementation using external commands
• Dumb - Fallback implementation with limited capabilities

Terminal providers are loaded dynamically using the load(String) method, which looks up provider implementations in the classpath based on their name.

See Also:

• Terminal
• TerminalBuilder

Method Summary

Modifier and Type	Method	Description
boolean	isSystemStream(SystemStream stream)	Checks if the specified system stream is available on this platform.
static TerminalProvider	load(String name)	Loads a terminal provider with the specified name.
String	name()	Returns the name of this terminal provider.
Terminal	newTerminal(String name, String type, InputStream masterInput, OutputStream masterOutput, Charset encoding, Terminal.SignalHandler signalHandler, boolean paused, Attributes attributes, Size size)	Creates a new terminal with custom input and output streams.
String	systemStreamName(SystemStream stream)	Returns the name of the specified system stream on this platform.
int	systemStreamWidth(SystemStream stream)	Returns the width (number of columns) of the specified system stream.
Terminal	sysTerminal(String name, String type, boolean ansiPassThrough, Charset encoding, boolean nativeSignals, Terminal.SignalHandler signalHandler, boolean paused, SystemStream systemStream)	Creates a terminal connected to a system stream.

Method Details

name

String name()

Returns the name of this terminal provider.

The provider name is a unique identifier that can be used to request this specific provider when creating terminals. Common provider names include "ffm", "jni", "jansi", "jna", "exec", and "dumb".

Returns:

the name of this terminal provider

sysTerminal

Terminal sysTerminal(String name,
 String type,
 boolean ansiPassThrough,
 Charset encoding,
 boolean nativeSignals,
 Terminal.SignalHandler signalHandler,
 boolean paused,
 SystemStream systemStream)
              throws IOException

Creates a terminal connected to a system stream.

This method creates a terminal that is connected to one of the standard system streams (standard input, standard output, or standard error). Such terminals typically represent the actual terminal window or console that the application is running in.

Parameters:

name - the name of the terminal

type - the terminal type (e.g., "xterm", "dumb")

ansiPassThrough - whether to pass through ANSI escape sequences

encoding - the character encoding to use

nativeSignals - whether to use native signal handling

signalHandler - the signal handler to use

paused - whether the terminal should start in a paused state

systemStream - the system stream to connect to

Returns:

a new terminal connected to the specified system stream

Throws:

IOException - if an I/O error occurs

newTerminal

Terminal newTerminal(String name,
 String type,
 InputStream masterInput,
 OutputStream masterOutput,
 Charset encoding,
 Terminal.SignalHandler signalHandler,
 boolean paused,
 Attributes attributes,
 Size size)
              throws IOException

Creates a new terminal with custom input and output streams.

This method creates a terminal that is connected to the specified input and output streams. Such terminals can be used for various purposes, such as connecting to remote terminals over network connections or creating virtual terminals for testing.

Parameters:

name - the name of the terminal

type - the terminal type (e.g., "xterm", "dumb")

masterInput - the input stream to read from

masterOutput - the output stream to write to

encoding - the character encoding to use

signalHandler - the signal handler to use

paused - whether the terminal should start in a paused state

attributes - the initial terminal attributes

size - the initial terminal size

Returns:

a new terminal connected to the specified streams

Throws:

IOException - if an I/O error occurs

isSystemStream

boolean isSystemStream(SystemStream stream)

Checks if the specified system stream is available on this platform.

This method determines whether the specified system stream (standard input, standard output, or standard error) is available for use on the current platform. Some platforms or environments may restrict access to certain system streams.

Parameters:

stream - the system stream to check

Returns:

true if the system stream is available, false otherwise

systemStreamName

String systemStreamName(SystemStream stream)

Returns the name of the specified system stream on this platform.

This method returns a platform-specific name or identifier for the specified system stream. The name may be used for display purposes or for accessing the stream through platform-specific APIs.

Parameters:

stream - the system stream

Returns:

the name of the system stream on this platform

systemStreamWidth

int systemStreamWidth(SystemStream stream)

Returns the width (number of columns) of the specified system stream.

This method determines the width of the terminal associated with the specified system stream. The width is measured in character cells and represents the number of columns available for display.

Parameters:

stream - the system stream

Returns:

the width of the system stream in character columns

load

static TerminalProvider load(String name)
                      throws IOException

Loads a terminal provider with the specified name.

This method loads a terminal provider implementation based on its name. Provider implementations are discovered through the Java ServiceLoader mechanism, looking for resource files in the classpath at META-INF/services/org/jline/terminal/provider/[name].

Each provider resource file should contain a class property that specifies the fully qualified name of the provider implementation class.

Parameters:

name - the name of the provider to load

Returns:

the loaded terminal provider

Throws:

IOException - if the provider cannot be loaded