How can I run shell (terminal) in Google Colab?

Question

I know that I can call !ls to issue ls command to shell.

But I want features like history or tab-completion.

Is it possible to do so in Google Colab?

Answer 1

You can use jQuery Terminal Emulator backed with google.colab.kernel.invokeFunction

Here's an example notebook.

The key part is here, where you back it with shell function.

def shell(command):
  return JSON([getoutput(command)])
output.register_callback('shell', shell)

And here's how you use invokeFunction:

try {
    let res = await google.colab.kernel.invokeFunction('shell', [command])
    let out = res.data['application/json'][0]
    this.echo(new String(out))
} catch(e) {
    this.error(new String(e));
}

Here's a screenshot.

Update (7/2020)

I have taken @Anant's answer and add it into my library. Now you can run console easily with just

!pip install kora
from kora import console
console.start()  # and click link

Update (12/2020)

If you subscribe to Colab Pro, terminal is now available. Just click the 'Terminal' icon on the left pane.