Salesforce Console apps provide a tab-based user interface well suited for fast-paced work environments. It facilitates the management of multiple records on a single screen and allows users to quickly find the information they need and make edits by reducing time spent clicking and scrolling to find, update, and create records.
The console is ideal for Sales and Service folks. Support agents can easily track cases as priorities of cases change and can use more than one application at once. Sales reps have quick access to all the tools for generating leads, close deals, and manage relationships.
Console can also be customized by personalizing navigation’s item menu, or by using Lightning App Builder to create custom Lightning pages so that users always have the records they need in a layout. Customizations can also include customizing console utilities for quick access to productivity tools, like softphones and History, assigning the app to the appropriate user profiles, displaying knowledgebase articles alongside cases, creating custom actions with keyboard shortcuts, or chatting with customers over the web with Chat.
Business problems can also be solved with custom console components and the use of Salesforce Console API to add third-party integrations.

Lightning Console App User Interface

1. Navigation Menu that lets users select navigation items, such as standard or custom object tabs.
2. Main work item or record is displayed in a workspace tab, such as an account, while a subtab displays related records, such as an account’s contacts or opportunities.
3. The utility bar in the footer gives users access to frequently used items such as History where each utility is a single-column Lightning page that includes a standard or custom Lightning component. Available in Lightning Experience only.
4. Split view is used to quickly navigate between records and provide an option to switch between different list views.

Lightning Console JavaScript API for Lightning Experience

The Lightning Console JavaScript API provides programmatic access to Lightning console apps like integrating app with Aura component, open a record and its related records in tab and subtabs, etc. It aids in meeting complex business needs.

The Lightning Console JavaScript API includes the following three libraries:

1. Navigation Item API
2. Utility Bar API
3. Workspace API.

Navigation item API
It allows you to access methods for programmatically controlling navigation items in Lightning console apps.

Utility bar API
It allows you to access methods for programmatically controlling a utility within the utility bar of a Lightning app such as using Aura components in the utility bar, open, resize, or minimize a utility.

Workspace API
This API allows you to access methods for programmatically controlling workspace tabs and subtabs in a Lightning console app such as opening, closing and getting information about tabs and subtabs
The utility bar API can be used in Lightning apps with standard or console navigation, while the navigation item API and workspace API are used only in Lightning console apps.