fg

Overview

fg resumes a job in the foreground, giving it the terminal again (stdin/stdout/signals). Use it to continue a stopped job interactively or to pull a background job back for interaction.

Syntax

fg [job_spec]

Default is the current job (%+).

Job specification

Spec	Meaning
%n	Job number n
%name	Command begins with name
%?str	Command contains str
%% / %+	Current
%-	Previous

Examples with Explanations

After Ctrl-Z

vim bigfile.txt
# Ctrl-Z
jobs
fg
# or
fg %vim

Classic suspend-and-resume editor workflow.

Pull background job forward

./server &
jobs -l
fg %1
# Ctrl-C now kills the server (foreground signals)

Switch between jobs

jobs
fg %1
# Ctrl-Z
fg %2

With pipelines

tar czf - dir | ssh host 'cat > backup.tgz' &
jobs
fg %1

Script note

set -m
sleep 5 &
fg %1

Usually unnecessary — scripts should wait on PIDs instead.

Notes / Pitfalls

• Only jobs of the current shell.
• Foreground job receives terminal-generated signals (Ctrl-C → SIGINT, Ctrl-Z → SIGTSTP).
• If job is already foreground, fg errors.
• Background jobs needing stdin will stop with SIGTTIN — fg to provide input.
• Job numbers change as jobs complete — verify with jobs first.

2026-relevant notes

• Interactive recovery still common; long-running prod work belongs in systemd/tmux.
• SSH drop kills foreground jobs; use multiplexers for remote interactive work.
• Know difference: fg (shell job) vs docker attach / kubectl attach (container).

Related Commands

• bg — resume in background
• jobs — list
• kill %1 — signal a job
• Ctrl-Z — stop foreground
• tmux — better multi-tasking than many suspended jobs

Additional Resources

• help fg, man bash