This week, Microsoft will provide complete theme support to its Windows Terminal. Windows Terminal users may customize the look of tabs, the window, and even the background pictures for the Terminal interface. Microsoft has also modified Windows Terminal such that it always uses a dark theme rather than the Windows system theme.
Unless you’re a developer, creating themes for Windows Terminal is a difficult task. Themes can only be edited using a JSON file, and they will show in the theme option in the Windows Terminal settings area. Microsoft has supplied some example JSON to get users started, and you can be as creative as you want with the color and backdrop picture combinations.
According to Microsoft program manager Kayla Cinnamon, Microsoft is also changing the default colors in Windows Terminal “for a more consistent aesthetic.” Underneath Windows Terminal is a new text rendering engine that allows bold text as well as underline, overline, or hyperlink lines.
Microsoft first released Windows Terminal for Windows 10 in 2019, after a surprise revelation at Microsoft’s annual Build conference that excited developers. This year, it will be the default command line experience in Windows 11, replacing the current Windows Console Host.