Projects

Projects

A project is a folder on a server. You work in its tabs, and its terminals belong to it. Projects are shared by every app on that server; tabs, splits, workspaces, and project order are kept by each app.

Projects

  • Add one with Add Project at the bottom of the sidebar, File → Open Project…, or Ctrl+Shift+O. Type to search folders, or type a path. With remote servers set up, choose Local or a server.
  • nana <folder> in a shell opens a folder in the desktop app.
  • Right-click a project to rename it, or change its icon, logo, or color.
  • Remove Project… removes it from every app and ends its terminals. Files stay on disk.
  • If a project’s folder disappears, it shows as missing and can only be removed.

Home is the built-in project for your home folder. It is always first and can’t be removed. Ctrl+Shift+N opens a tab in Home.

  • Ctrl+Shift+B shows or hides the sidebar.
  • Pick a layout from the sidebar header:
    • Project Focused (default): projects, with worktrees under them.
    • Tab Focused: projects with their tabs listed in the sidebar.
    • Agents Focused: only tabs running an AI agent.
  • Sort by Manual Order and drag to reorder, or by Name.
  • Ctrl+1–Ctrl+9 jumps to a project. Hold a modifier to see the numbers.

Workspaces

A workspace is a named filter for the sidebar. Create one from the workspace menu in the sidebar header. Add projects from a project’s Workspaces menu. A project can be in any number of workspaces. Deleting a workspace never removes its projects.

Worktrees

For Git projects, worktrees appear under their project and have their own tabs. Turn them on with Worktrees → Show Worktrees in the project menu. Worktrees created outside Nana show up on their own.

New Worktree… asks for:

  • A name, and a new branch (from a base branch) or an existing one.
  • A location: Default (~/.nana/worktrees/<project>/<name>), a Template, or a Folder. Templates must contain {branch} and can use {base-dir} and {project-name}, for example ../{base-dir}.{branch}. Set the default in Settings → General; each project remembers its choice.

Remove Worktree and Files… deletes the worktree folder and its project, and ends its terminals. Nana warns about uncommitted changes.

Setup and teardown commands

Nana can run commands when it creates or removes a worktree. List them in .nana/worktree.json in the project, or for every project in ~/.config/nana/worktree.json ($XDG_CONFIG_HOME/nana/worktree.json):

{
  "setup": ["npm ci", { "name": "Start services", "command": "docker compose up -d" }],
  "teardown": ["docker compose down"]
}
  • Nana shows the commands and runs them only if you turn them on in the dialog.
  • Setup runs your own commands first, then the project’s. Teardown runs the project’s first.
  • Commands run in the worktree with NANA_PROJECT_PATH, NANA_WORKTREE_ID, NANA_WORKTREE_PATH, NANA_WORKTREE_NAME, and NANA_WORKTREE_BRANCH. They share a five-minute limit.
  • A failed setup keeps the new worktree. A failed teardown stops the removal.

Layouts

Check a .nana/layouts/ folder into a project to open a ready-made set of split terminals. See Layouts.

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