---
title: "Moving from the muse terminal to a GUI without losing anything"
url: https://helicon.sh/guides/from-terminal-to-gui
description: "You do not have to choose. Sessions started in the terminal show up in Helicon, resume there, and the CLI keeps working exactly as before."
updated: 2026-09-19
site: Helicon
---

# Moving from the muse TUI to a GUI

Nothing has to be migrated. Helicon reads the same Muse Code state the CLI writes, so sessions you started in the terminal appear in the sidebar with their history and resume from the app. The CLI keeps working unchanged, and most people end up using both for different jobs.

## There is no migration

Helicon is a client, not a fork. It starts `muse serve` and speaks the Muse Code Session Protocol through Meta's MIT SDK. Your sessions, your login and your configuration stay where they are.

## A sensible split

| Job | Where it is faster |
| --- | --- |
| One quick fix in one repo | The terminal |
| Scripted or CI invocation | The terminal |
| Four threads across three repos | Helicon |
| Reopening last week's work | Helicon |
| Reviewing what a long run did | Helicon |
| Checking cost and plan usage | Helicon |

## First week checklist

1. Add the two or three directories you actually work in.
2. Open an old terminal session from the sidebar to see that history survived.
3. Leave a long run going and check the approval queue instead of watching it.
4. Look at the usage page once, to calibrate what your habits cost.

## Frequently asked questions

### Do I have to stop using the CLI?

No. Helicon requires it, and many people keep both open.

### Will the GUI change my Muse Code configuration?

It drives the CLI with your own settings and login. Approval modes and allow lists stay Muse Code's.

### What if I decide against it?

Uninstall the app. Your sessions and your CLI are untouched, because Helicon only ever read them.

## Related

- [The muse terminal](https://helicon.sh/compare/muse-code-terminal): How a Muse Code GUI differs from the muse CLI terminal interface: session history, inline diffs, approvals and cost, side by side with what the TUI already does well.
- [Session history and resume](https://helicon.sh/features/session-history): Every Muse Code session, grouped by project, with full history and one click resume. Sessions started in the muse terminal TUI are discovered and resumable too.
- [Resume a session](https://helicon.sh/guides/resume-a-muse-session): Find and reopen any past Muse Code thread, including ones started in the terminal TUI, with its full history, diffs and approval record intact.

---

Helicon is a free, MIT licensed, unofficial community client for Meta's Muse Code CLI. Not made, sponsored or endorsed by Meta. Source: https://helicon.sh/. Machine readable index: https://helicon.sh/llms.txt