Cheatsheet for Setting up Termux on Android Smartphones

Termux provides a Linux-like environment on Android and is much more capable than the ADB shell. As part of the Smartphone Setup Cheatsheet, this article explains how to set it up.

The setup reflects my development needs, which focus on AI computing tasks. It may not suit you if you are primarily interested in app development and GUI debugging.

Related reference: sanwebinfo/my-termux-setup

Installation

• Install from F-Droid for convenient plugin support
  • Termux: Style
• Install an APK if preferred; downloads are available from GitHub Releases

System Setup

System-level setup for Termux.

Update packages

• Select mirrors automatically: termux-change-repo
• Update and upgrade: pkg update && pkg upgrade

Setup SSH

• Install OpenSSH: pkg install openssh
• Check Termux username: whoami
• Set login password: passwd
• Get IP address: ifconfig
• Launch SSH server: sshd
• Connect from remote: ssh -p 8022 <username>@<ip>
  • The default SSH port of Termux is 8022

Install packages

Common packages for system setup:

• Tsu (su wrapper for Termux): pkg install tsu
• Git: pkg install git
• Wget: pkg install wget
• cURL: pkg install curl
• CMake: pkg install cmake
• tmux: pkg install tmux
• htop: pkg install htop

Environment Setup

Set up development environments.

Code

Termux does not support the Visual Studio Code remote server, but the open-source code-server is a useful alternative.

Install code-server through the TUR repository:

pkg install tur-repo
pkg install code-server

Configure the server via ~/.config/code-server/config.yaml. For example:

bind-addr: 0.0.0.0:8080
auth: password

Launch the server:

code-server

You can now access the code UI at http://<ip>:8080 with the configured password.

Note that the config path will be slightly different (under ~/.tsu) if you run in tsu mode.

Python

Termux does not support Miniconda.

Install Python: pkg install python