picocom(1)
A minimal dumb-terminal emulator and serial port communication program.
Synopsis
picocom [OPTION]... [DEVICE]Description
picocom is a lightweight serial port terminal emulator designed for embedded systems developers and system administrators. It provides a simple way to communicate with serial devices like microcontrollers, routers, and console servers without the overhead of larger terminal programs.
The program opens a serial device and allows bidirectional communication. It handles common serial port settings (baud rate, parity, data bits, stop bits) and provides escape sequences for controlling line discipline and modem signals. Exit the program with Ctrl+A followed by Ctrl+X.
Common options
| Flag | What it does |
|---|---|
-b, --baud RATE | Set baud rate (default 9600). Common values: 115200, 57600, 38400, 19200 |
-d, --databits BITS | Set number of data bits: 5, 6, 7, or 8 (default 8) |
-p, --parity PARITY | Set parity: none, odd, even (default none) |
-s, --stopbits BITS | Set number of stop bits: 1 or 2 (default 1) |
-f, --flow FLOW | Set flow control: none, xon, rts (default none) |
-e, --escape ESC | Set escape character for commands (default Ctrl+A, use 'a' for letter a) |
-r, --receive-cmd CMD | Run external command to receive file via Ctrl+A+R |
-s, --send-cmd CMD | Run external command to send file via Ctrl+A+S |
--noreset | Do not reset the serial port on open |
-q, --quiet | Suppress port settings messages at startup |
Examples
Connect to USB serial device with default 9600 baud
picocom /dev/ttyUSB0Connect at 115200 baud, common for modern embedded systems
picocom -b 115200 /dev/ttyUSB0Connect to serial port with explicit parameters: 8N1 at 9600 baud
picocom -b 9600 -d 8 -p n -s 1 /dev/ttyS0Connect with XON/XOFF software flow control enabled
picocom -f xon /dev/ttyUSB0Connect without resetting the device (useful for preserving state)
picocom --noreset -b 57600 /dev/ttyUSB0Connect with external commands for zmodem file transfer (Ctrl+A+R/S)
picocom -r sz -s sb /dev/ttyUSB0