Multi-Soft Key Bars
Configure and stack multiple custom soft key bars, create workflow-specific toolbars, and dynamically swap or cycle bars with actions and gestures in Casshper Pro Admin.
Unlimited Toolbars for Mobile Command-Line Power
While Casshper's Core edition includes a powerful, single modifiable Soft Key Bar with 32 preset keys and custom keycodes, Casshper Pro Admin takes mobile terminal efficiency to the next level with Multi-Soft Key Bars. Create unlimited bespoke toolbars tailored to specific tasks, stack multiple bars simultaneously on screen, and seamlessly switch between layouts on the fly.
Multi-Soft Key Bars, multi-bar stacking, toolbar duplication, and dynamic swapping/cycling are part of the Casshper Pro Admin lifetime upgrade. The Core edition continues to include a single, fully modifiable soft-key bar.
Core vs. Pro Admin Soft-Key Capabilities
| Capability | Core Edition | Pro Admin |
|---|---|---|
| Number of Soft-Key Bars | 1 Single Modifiable Bar | Unlimited Custom Bars |
| Key Modes (Press, Latch, Toggle) | Included | Included |
| 32 Preset Keys and Custom Keycodes | Included | Included |
Text Command Macros (TEXT) | Included | Included |
| Multi-Bar Stacking | — | Included (Stack 2+ bars simultaneously) |
| Dynamic Bar Swapping | — | Included |
| Dynamic Bar Cycling | — | Included |
| Gesture-Driven Bar Switching | — | Included (via Custom Gestures) |
Multi-Bar Stacking
For complex operations on tablets, foldables, or landscape phones, a single row of soft keys may not be enough. With Pro Admin, you can enable Multi-Bar Stacking to display two or more soft-key bars stacked vertically at the same time:
- Primary + Secondary Rows: Keep your essential navigation keys (
Esc,Tab,Ctrl,Alt, Arrows) anchored on the bottom row, while displaying a secondary row of task-specific keys above it. - Independent Row Configurations: Each stacked bar retains its own distinct key presets, tactile modes, haptic feedback settings, and custom action bindings.
- Adaptive Sizing: Stacked bars automatically scale to your terminal viewport and respect your safe-area insets above the software keyboard.
Flexible Active Bar Count (0 or More Active Bars)
Casshper provides total flexibility over how much screen real estate your soft keys occupy:
- 0 Active Bars (Distraction-Free Mode): When paired with an external hardware keyboard or when using Custom Gestures for navigation, you can configure 0 active bars. This completely hides the soft-key bar row, recovering 100% of your screen height for code, logs, and split panes.
- Single Active Bar: Standard mobile setup providing essential keys right above the soft keyboard.
- Stacked Multi-Bar: Stacks multiple active bars for rapid, multi-tier command and multiplexer access.
Workflow-Specific Toolbars
Instead of cramming every shortcut onto one bar, Pro Admin lets you build purpose-built toolbars for each phase of your development workflow:
Essential terminal control keys: Esc, Tab, Ctrl (Latch), Alt (Latch), Shift, Arrow navigation, Return, and Backspace.
Pre-configured multiplexer commands: Ctrl+B prefix, horizontal split, vertical split, window navigation, and pane zoom. Learn more in the tmux and Screen Guide.
Text command macros for rapid execution: git status, git diff, docker ps, kubectl get pods, and Sneaky Input scratchpad triggers.
Complete set of F1 through F12 function keys with modifier chording for gdb, lldb, and full-screen terminal IDE debugging.
Dynamic Bar Swapping and Cycling
Pro Admin provides two dedicated Action Bindings that let you switch between your toolbars without ever opening the settings menu:
- Swap Soft-Key Bar: Instantly swaps the active bar to a specific target bar layout (e.g., tap a button labeled
tmux ⇥on your navigation bar to jump directly to your tmux bar). - Cycle Soft-Key Bar: Cycles forward through all enabled soft-key bars in sequence, wrapping back to the first bar.
Gesture-Driven Toolbar Switching
You can also map bar swapping directly to Custom Gestures. For instance, assign Double Tap + Swipe Up to swap to your tmux bar, and Double Tap + Swipe Down to return to your default navigation bar—achieving instant toolbar transitions with zero visual clutter.
Configuring Multi-Soft Key Bars in Pro Admin
- Open Casshper and open the sidebar menu to select Settings.
- Navigate to the Soft Key Bars section.
- Tap + Add Soft-Key Bar to create a new bar from scratch, or tap the duplicate icon next to an existing bar.
- Enter a descriptive name for your new bar (e.g., tmux Workflow or DevOps Commands).
- Tap keys on the interactive preview to add, remove, or modify buttons using the Key Editor.
- Configure key modes (Press, Latch, Toggle) and binding types (Keycode, Text, or Action).
- Under Layout Options, choose whether to stack multiple bars simultaneously or switch between them dynamically.
- Tap Save Settings to apply your changes immediately.
When creating specialized toolbars (like a Git or tmux bar), dedicate the first key as a Swap Soft-Key Bar action bound to your Default Bar (labeled Default ⇥ or ⎋ Home). This allows you to jump into a specialized workflow and return to standard navigation with a single tap.