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Window title (OSC 2)

Category: extensions · Baseline: modern · Tags: Operating System Commands (OSC), Xterm Extensions · Specification ↗

ESC ] 2 ; title BEL
OSC 2 sets the terminal window title. The sequence is ESC ] 2 ; title ST where ST is the string terminator (ESC \ or BEL). Used by shells to display the current directory or running command in the window title bar or tab header.
How this is testedautomated
Send \x1b]2;Test Title\x07 (OSC 2), verify getTitle() contains "Test Title".

The same probe runs against headless backends (via Termless) and real terminal apps (via a daemon launched in each terminal). This lets us distinguish parser correctness from rendering correctness.

Analysis2026-04-06

Supported by all 12 tested terminals — universal adoption. Part of the Modern TUI baseline.

Supported by 13 of 14 backends (93%)

Terminal Applications

TerminalVersionSupportNotes
iTerm23.6.9✓ yes
Ghostty1.3.1✓ yes
VS Code✓ yes
Warp✓ yes
Cursor✓ yes
Terminal.app✓ yes

Headless Backends

Parser correctness only — a means the parser accepts the sequence.

BackendVersionSupportNotes
Alacritty0.26.0✓ yes
Kitty0.40.0✓ yes
vt100.js0.2.1✓ yes
vterm0.2.0✓ yes
xterm.js5.5.0✓ yes
WezTerm0.1.0-fork.5✗ noOSC 2 title handled by WezTerm GUI, not headless backend