1 *options.txt* For Vim version 7.2. Last change: 2008 Nov 25
4 VIM REFERENCE MANUAL by Bram Moolenaar
9 1. Setting options |set-option|
10 2. Automatically setting options |auto-setting|
11 3. Options summary |option-summary|
13 For an overview of options see help.txt |option-list|.
15 Vim has a number of internal variables and switches which can be set to
16 achieve special effects. These options come in three forms:
17 boolean can only be on or off *boolean* *toggle*
18 number has a numeric value
19 string has a string value
21 ==============================================================================
22 1. Setting options *set-option* *E764*
25 :se[t] Show all options that differ from their default value.
27 :se[t] all Show all but terminal options.
29 :se[t] termcap Show all terminal options. Note that in the GUI the
30 key codes are not shown, because they are generated
31 internally and can't be changed. Changing the terminal
32 codes in the GUI is not useful either...
35 :se[t] {option}? Show value of {option}.
37 :se[t] {option} Toggle option: set, switch it on.
38 Number option: show value.
39 String option: show value.
41 :se[t] no{option} Toggle option: Reset, switch it off.
44 :se[t] inv{option} Toggle option: Invert value. {not in Vi}
46 *:set-default* *:set-&* *:set-&vi* *:set-&vim*
47 :se[t] {option}& Reset option to its default value. May depend on the
48 current value of 'compatible'. {not in Vi}
49 :se[t] {option}&vi Reset option to its Vi default value. {not in Vi}
50 :se[t] {option}&vim Reset option to its Vim default value. {not in Vi}
52 :se[t] all& Set all options, except terminal options, to their
53 default value. The values of 'term', 'lines' and
54 'columns' are not changed. {not in Vi}
56 *:set-args* *E487* *E521*
57 :se[t] {option}={value} or
58 :se[t] {option}:{value}
59 Set string or number option to {value}.
60 For numeric options the value can be given in decimal,
61 hex (preceded with 0x) or octal (preceded with '0')
62 (hex and octal are only available for machines which
63 have the strtol() function).
64 The old value can be inserted by typing 'wildchar' (by
65 default this is a <Tab> or CTRL-E if 'compatible' is
66 set). See |cmdline-completion|.
67 White space between {option} and '=' is allowed and
68 will be ignored. White space between '=' and {value}
70 See |option-backslash| for using white space and
71 backslashes in {value}.
73 :se[t] {option}+={value} *:set+=*
74 Add the {value} to a number option, or append the
75 {value} to a string option. When the option is a
76 comma separated list, a comma is added, unless the
78 If the option is a list of flags, superfluous flags
79 are removed. When adding a flag that was already
80 present the option value doesn't change.
81 Also see |:set-args| above.
84 :se[t] {option}^={value} *:set^=*
85 Multiply the {value} to a number option, or prepend
86 the {value} to a string option. When the option is a
87 comma separated list, a comma is added, unless the
89 Also see |:set-args| above.
92 :se[t] {option}-={value} *:set-=*
93 Subtract the {value} from a number option, or remove
94 the {value} from a string option, if it is there.
95 If the {value} is not found in a string option, there
96 is no error or warning. When the option is a comma
97 separated list, a comma is deleted, unless the option
99 When the option is a list of flags, {value} must be
100 exactly as they appear in the option. Remove flags
101 one by one to avoid problems.
102 Also see |:set-args| above.
105 The {option} arguments to ":set" may be repeated. For example: >
106 :set ai nosi sw=3 ts=3
107 If you make an error in one of the arguments, an error message will be given
108 and the following arguments will be ignored.
111 When 'verbose' is non-zero, displaying an option value will also tell where it
112 was last set. Example: >
113 :verbose set shiftwidth cindent?
115 Last set from modeline ~
117 Last set from /usr/local/share/vim/vim60/ftplugin/c.vim ~
118 This is only done when specific option values are requested, not for ":verbose
119 set all" or ":verbose set" without an argument.
120 When the option was set by hand there is no "Last set" message.
121 When the option was set while executing a function, user command or
122 autocommand, the script in which it was defined is reported.
123 Note that an option may also have been set as a side effect of setting
126 Last set from modeline ~
127 Option was set in a |modeline|.
128 Last set from --cmd argument ~
129 Option was set with command line argument |--cmd| or +.
130 Last set from -c argument ~
131 Option was set with command line argument |-c|, +, |-S| or
133 Last set from environment variable ~
134 Option was set from an environment variable, $VIMINIT,
135 $GVIMINIT or $EXINIT.
136 Last set from error handler ~
137 Option was cleared when evaluating it resulted in an error.
139 {not available when compiled without the +eval feature}
141 *:set-termcap* *E522*
142 For {option} the form "t_xx" may be used to set a terminal option. This will
143 override the value from the termcap. You can then use it in a mapping. If
144 the "xx" part contains special characters, use the <t_xx> form: >
146 This can also be used to translate a special code for a normal key. For
147 example, if Alt-b produces <Esc>b, use this: >
149 (the ^[ is a real <Esc> here, use CTRL-V <Esc> to enter it)
150 The advantage over a mapping is that it works in all situations.
152 The t_xx options cannot be set from a |modeline| or in the |sandbox|, for
155 The listing from ":set" looks different from Vi. Long string options are put
156 at the end of the list. The number of options is quite large. The output of
157 "set all" probably does not fit on the screen, causing Vim to give the
161 To include white space in a string option value it has to be preceded with a
162 backslash. To include a backslash you have to use two. Effectively this
163 means that the number of backslashes in an option value is halved (rounded
166 :set tags=tags\ /usr/tags results in "tags /usr/tags"
167 :set tags=tags\\,file results in "tags\,file"
168 :set tags=tags\\\ file results in "tags\ file"
170 The "|" character separates a ":set" command from a following command. To
171 include the "|" in the option value, use "\|" instead. This example sets the
172 'titlestring' option to "hi|there": >
173 :set titlestring=hi\|there
174 This sets the 'titlestring' option to "hi" and 'iconstring' to "there": >
175 :set titlestring=hi|set iconstring=there
177 Similarly, the double quote character starts a comment. To include the '"' in
178 the option value, use '\"' instead. This example sets the 'titlestring'
179 option to 'hi "there"': >
180 :set titlestring=hi\ \"there\"
182 For MS-DOS and WIN32 backslashes in file names are mostly not removed. More
183 precise: For options that expect a file name (those where environment
184 variables are expanded) a backslash before a normal file name character is not
185 removed. But a backslash before a special character (space, backslash, comma,
186 etc.) is used like explained above.
187 There is one special situation, when the value starts with "\\": >
188 :set dir=\\machine\path results in "\\machine\path"
189 :set dir=\\\\machine\\path results in "\\machine\path"
190 :set dir=\\path\\file results in "\\path\file" (wrong!)
191 For the first one the start is kept, but for the second one the backslashes
192 are halved. This makes sure it works both when you expect backslashes to be
193 halved and when you expect the backslashes to be kept. The third gives a
194 result which is probably not what you want. Avoid it.
196 *add-option-flags* *remove-option-flags*
197 *E539* *E550* *E551* *E552*
198 Some options are a list of flags. When you want to add a flag to such an
199 option, without changing the existing ones, you can do it like this: >
201 Remove a flag from an option like this: >
203 This removes the 'a' flag from 'guioptions'.
204 Note that you should add or remove one flag at a time. If 'guioptions' has
205 the value "ab", using "set guioptions-=ba" won't work, because the string "ba"
208 *:set_env* *expand-env* *expand-environment-var*
209 Environment variables in specific string options will be expanded. If the
210 environment variable exists the '$' and the following environment variable
211 name is replaced with its value. If it does not exist the '$' and the name
212 are not modified. Any non-id character (not a letter, digit or '_') may
213 follow the environment variable name. That character and what follows is
214 appended to the value of the environment variable. Examples: >
216 :set path=/usr/$INCLUDE,$HOME/include,.
217 When adding or removing a string from an option with ":set opt-=val" or ":set
218 opt+=val" the expansion is done before the adding or removing.
221 Handling of local options *local-options*
223 Some of the options only apply to a window or buffer. Each window or buffer
224 has its own copy of this option, thus can each have their own value. This
225 allows you to set 'list' in one window but not in another. And set
226 'shiftwidth' to 3 in one buffer and 4 in another.
228 The following explains what happens to these local options in specific
229 situations. You don't really need to know all of this, since Vim mostly uses
230 the option values you would expect. Unfortunately, doing what the user
231 expects is a bit complicated...
233 When splitting a window, the local options are copied to the new window. Thus
234 right after the split the contents of the two windows look the same.
236 When editing a new buffer, its local option values must be initialized. Since
237 the local options of the current buffer might be specifically for that buffer,
238 these are not used. Instead, for each buffer-local option there also is a
239 global value, which is used for new buffers. With ":set" both the local and
240 global value is changed. With "setlocal" only the local value is changed,
241 thus this value is not used when editing a new buffer.
243 When editing a buffer that has been edited before, the last used window
244 options are used again. If this buffer has been edited in this window, the
245 values from back then are used. Otherwise the values from the window where
246 the buffer was edited last are used.
248 It's possible to set a local window option specifically for a type of buffer.
249 When you edit another buffer in the same window, you don't want to keep
250 using these local window options. Therefore Vim keeps a global value of the
251 local window options, which is used when editing another buffer. Each window
252 has its own copy of these values. Thus these are local to the window, but
253 global to all buffers in the window. With this you can do: >
257 Now the 'list' option will also be set in "two", since with the ":set list"
258 command you have also set the global value. >
263 Now the 'list' option is not set, because ":set nolist" resets the global
264 value, ":setlocal list" only changes the local value and ":e two" gets the
265 global value. Note that if you do this next: >
267 You will not get back the 'list' value as it was the last time you edited
268 "one". The options local to a window are not remembered for each buffer.
271 :setl[ocal] ... Like ":set" but set only the value local to the
272 current buffer or window. Not all options have a
273 local value. If the option does not have a local
274 value the global value is set.
275 With the "all" argument: display all local option's
277 Without argument: Display all local option's local
278 values which are different from the default.
279 When displaying a specific local option, show the
280 local value. For a global/local boolean option, when
281 the global value is being used, "--" is displayed
282 before the option name.
283 For a global option the global value is
284 shown (but that might change in the future).
287 :setl[ocal] {option}< Set the local value of {option} to its global value by
291 :se[t] {option}< Set the local value of {option} to its global value by
292 making it empty. Only makes sense for |global-local|
297 :setg[lobal] ... Like ":set" but set only the global value for a local
298 option without changing the local value.
299 When displaying an option, the global value is shown.
300 With the "all" argument: display all local option's
302 Without argument: display all local option's global
303 values which are different from the default.
306 For buffer-local and window-local options:
307 Command global value local value ~
308 :set option=value set set
309 :setlocal option=value - set
310 :setglobal option=value set -
311 :set option? - display
312 :setlocal option? - display
313 :setglobal option? display -
316 Global options with a local value *global-local*
318 Options are global when you mostly use one value for all buffers and windows.
319 For some global options it's useful to sometimes have a different local value.
320 You can set the local value with ":setlocal". That buffer or window will then
321 use the local value, while other buffers and windows continue using the global
324 For example, you have two windows, both on C source code. They use the global
325 'makeprg' option. If you do this in one of the two windows: >
327 then the other window will switch to the same value. There is no need to set
328 the 'makeprg' option in the other C source window too.
329 However, if you start editing a Perl file in a new window, you want to use
330 another 'makeprg' for it, without changing the value used for the C source
331 files. You use this command: >
332 :setlocal makeprg=perlmake
333 You can switch back to using the global value by making the local value empty: >
335 This only works for a string option. For a boolean option you need to use the
336 "<" flag, like this: >
338 Note that for non-boolean options using "<" copies the global value to the
339 local value, it doesn't switch back to using the global value (that matters
340 when the global value changes later). You can also use: >
342 This will make the local value of 'path' empty, so that the global value is
343 used. Thus it does the same as: >
345 Note: In the future more global options can be made global-local. Using
346 ":setlocal" on a global option might work differently then.
351 :setf[iletype] {filetype} *:setf* *:setfiletype*
352 Set the 'filetype' option to {filetype}, but only if
353 not done yet in a sequence of (nested) autocommands.
356 : setlocal filetype={filetype}
358 < This command is used in a filetype.vim file to avoid
359 setting the 'filetype' option twice, causing different
360 settings and syntax files to be loaded.
363 :bro[wse] se[t] *:set-browse* *:browse-set* *:opt* *:options*
364 :opt[ions] Open a window for viewing and setting all options.
365 Options are grouped by function.
366 Offers short help for each option. Hit <CR> on the
367 short help to open a help window with more help for
369 Modify the value of the option and hit <CR> on the
370 "set" line to set the new value. For window and
371 buffer specific options, the last accessed window is
372 used to set the option value in, unless this is a help
373 window, in which case the window below help window is
374 used (skipping the option-window).
375 {not available when compiled without the |+eval| or
379 Using "~" is like using "$HOME", but it is only recognized at the start of an
380 option and after a space or comma.
382 On Unix systems "~user" can be used too. It is replaced by the home directory
383 of user "user". Example: >
384 :set path=~mool/include,/usr/include,.
386 On Unix systems the form "${HOME}" can be used too. The name between {} can
387 contain non-id characters then. Note that if you want to use this for the
388 "gf" command, you need to add the '{' and '}' characters to 'isfname'.
390 NOTE: expanding environment variables and "~/" is only done with the ":set"
391 command, not when assigning a value to an option with ":let".
394 Note the maximum length of an expanded option is limited. How much depends on
395 the system, mostly it is something like 256 or 1024 characters.
398 :fix[del] Set the value of 't_kD':
399 't_kb' is 't_kD' becomes ~
403 (CTRL-? is 0177 octal, 0x7f hex) {not in Vi}
405 If your delete key terminal code is wrong, but the
406 code for backspace is alright, you can put this in
409 < This works no matter what the actual code for
412 If the backspace key terminal code is wrong you can
414 :if &term == "termname"
418 < Where "^V" is CTRL-V and "<BS>" is the backspace key
419 (don't type four characters!). Replace "termname"
420 with your terminal name.
422 If your <Delete> key sends a strange key sequence (not
423 CTRL-? or CTRL-H) you cannot use ":fixdel". Then use: >
424 :if &term == "termname"
425 : set t_kD=^V<Delete>
427 < Where "^V" is CTRL-V and "<Delete>" is the delete key
428 (don't type eight characters!). Replace "termname"
429 with your terminal name.
432 Note about Linux: By default the backspace key
433 produces CTRL-?, which is wrong. You can fix it by
434 putting this line in your rc.local: >
435 echo "keycode 14 = BackSpace" | loadkeys
438 Note about NetBSD: If your backspace doesn't produce
439 the right code, try this: >
440 xmodmap -e "keycode 22 = BackSpace"
441 < If this works, add this in your .Xmodmap file: >
442 keysym 22 = BackSpace
443 < You need to restart for this to take effect.
445 ==============================================================================
446 2. Automatically setting options *auto-setting*
448 Besides changing options with the ":set" command, there are three alternatives
449 to set options automatically for one or more files:
451 1. When starting Vim initializations are read from various places. See
452 |initialization|. Most of them are performed for all editing sessions,
453 and some of them depend on the directory where Vim is started.
454 You can create an initialization file with |:mkvimrc|, |:mkview| and
456 2. If you start editing a new file, the automatic commands are executed.
457 This can be used to set options for files matching a particular pattern and
458 many other things. See |autocommand|.
459 3. If you start editing a new file, and the 'modeline' option is on, a
460 number of lines at the beginning and end of the file are checked for
461 modelines. This is explained here.
463 *modeline* *vim:* *vi:* *ex:* *E520*
464 There are two forms of modelines. The first form:
465 [text]{white}{vi:|vim:|ex:}[white]{options}
467 [text] any text or empty
468 {white} at least one blank character (<Space> or <Tab>)
469 {vi:|vim:|ex:} the string "vi:", "vim:" or "ex:"
470 [white] optional white space
471 {options} a list of option settings, separated with white space or ':',
472 where each part between ':' is the argument for a ":set"
473 command (can be empty)
478 The second form (this is compatible with some versions of Vi):
480 [text]{white}{vi:|vim:|ex:}[white]se[t] {options}:[text]
482 [text] any text or empty
483 {white} at least one blank character (<Space> or <Tab>)
484 {vi:|vim:|ex:} the string "vi:", "vim:" or "ex:"
485 [white] optional white space
486 se[t] the string "set " or "se " (note the space)
487 {options} a list of options, separated with white space, which is the
488 argument for a ":set" command
490 [text] any text or empty
493 /* vim: set ai tw=75: */ ~
495 The white space before {vi:|vim:|ex:} is required. This minimizes the chance
496 that a normal word like "lex:" is caught. There is one exception: "vi:" and
497 "vim:" can also be at the start of the line (for compatibility with version
498 3.0). Using "ex:" at the start of the line will be ignored (this could be
499 short for "example:").
502 The options are set like with ":setlocal": The new value only applies to the
503 buffer and window that contain the file. Although it's possible to set global
504 options from a modeline, this is unusual. If you have two windows open and
505 the files in it set the same global option to a different value, the result
506 depends on which one was opened last.
508 When editing a file that was already loaded, only the window-local options
509 from the modeline are used. Thus if you manually changed a buffer-local
510 option after opening the file, it won't be changed if you edit the same buffer
511 in another window. But window-local options will be set.
514 If the modeline is only to be used for some versions of Vim, the version
515 number can be specified where "vim:" is used:
516 vim{vers}: version {vers} or later
517 vim<{vers}: version before {vers}
518 vim={vers}: version {vers}
519 vim>{vers}: version after {vers}
520 {vers} is 600 for Vim 6.0 (hundred times the major version plus minor).
521 For example, to use a modeline only for Vim 6.0 and later:
522 /* vim600: set foldmethod=marker: */ ~
523 To use a modeline for Vim before version 5.7:
524 /* vim<570: set sw=4: */ ~
525 There can be no blanks between "vim" and the ":".
528 The number of lines that are checked can be set with the 'modelines' option.
529 If 'modeline' is off or 'modelines' is 0 no lines are checked.
531 Note that for the first form all of the rest of the line is used, thus a line
534 will give an error message for the trailing "*/". This line is OK:
537 If an error is detected the rest of the line is skipped.
539 If you want to include a ':' in a set command precede it with a '\'. The
540 backslash in front of the ':' will be removed. Example:
541 /* vi:set dir=c\:\tmp: */ ~
542 This sets the 'dir' option to "c:\tmp". Only a single backslash before the
543 ':' is removed. Thus to include "\:" you have to specify "\\:".
545 No other commands than "set" are supported, for security reasons (somebody
546 might create a Trojan horse text file with modelines). And not all options
547 can be set. For some options a flag is set, so that when it's used the
548 |sandbox| is effective. Still, there is always a small risk that a modeline
549 causes trouble. E.g., when some joker sets 'textwidth' to 5 all your lines
550 are wrapped unexpectedly. So disable modelines before editing untrusted text.
551 The mail ftplugin does this, for example.
553 Hint: If you would like to do something else than setting an option, you could
554 define an autocommand that checks the file for a specific string. For
556 au BufReadPost * if getline(1) =~ "VAR" | call SetVar() | endif
557 And define a function SetVar() that does something with the line containing
560 ==============================================================================
561 3. Options summary *option-summary*
563 In the list below all the options are mentioned with their full name and with
564 an abbreviation if there is one. Both forms may be used.
566 In this document when a boolean option is "set" that means that ":set option"
567 is entered. When an option is "reset", ":set nooption" is used.
569 For some options there are two default values: The "Vim default", which is
570 used when 'compatible' is not set, and the "Vi default", which is used when
573 Most options are the same in all windows and buffers. There are a few that
574 are specific to how the text is presented in a window. These can be set to a
575 different value in each window. For example the 'list' option can be set in
576 one window and reset in another for the same text, giving both types of view
577 at the same time. There are a few options that are specific to a certain
578 file. These can have a different value for each file or buffer. For example
579 the 'textwidth' option can be 78 for a normal text file and 0 for a C
582 global one option for all buffers and windows
583 local to window each window has its own copy of this option
584 local to buffer each buffer has its own copy of this option
586 When creating a new window the option values from the currently active window
587 are used as a default value for the window-specific options. For the
588 buffer-specific options this depends on the 's' and 'S' flags in the
589 'cpoptions' option. If 's' is included (which is the default) the values for
590 buffer options are copied from the currently active buffer when a buffer is
591 first entered. If 'S' is present the options are copied each time the buffer
592 is entered, this is almost like having global options. If 's' and 'S' are not
593 present, the options are copied from the currently active buffer when the
596 Hidden options *hidden-options*
598 Not all options are supported in all versions. This depends on the supported
599 features and sometimes on the system. A remark about this is in curly braces
600 below. When an option is not supported it may still be set without getting an
601 error, this is called a hidden option. You can't get the value of a hidden
602 option though, it is not stored.
604 To test if option "foo" can be used with ":set" use something like this: >
606 This also returns true for a hidden option. To test if option "foo" is really
607 supported use something like this: >
611 A jump table for the options with a short description can be found at |Q_op|.
613 *'aleph'* *'al'* *aleph* *Aleph*
614 'aleph' 'al' number (default 128 for MS-DOS, 224 otherwise)
617 {only available when compiled with the |+rightleft|
619 The ASCII code for the first letter of the Hebrew alphabet. The
620 routine that maps the keyboard in Hebrew mode, both in Insert mode
621 (when hkmap is set) and on the command-line (when hitting CTRL-_)
622 outputs the Hebrew characters in the range [aleph..aleph+26].
623 aleph=128 applies to PC code, and aleph=224 applies to ISO 8859-8.
626 *'allowrevins'* *'ari'* *'noallowrevins'* *'noari'*
627 'allowrevins' 'ari' boolean (default off)
630 {only available when compiled with the |+rightleft|
632 Allow CTRL-_ in Insert and Command-line mode. This is default off, to
633 avoid that users that accidentally type CTRL-_ instead of SHIFT-_ get
634 into reverse Insert mode, and don't know how to get out. See
636 NOTE: This option is reset when 'compatible' is set.
638 *'altkeymap'* *'akm'* *'noaltkeymap'* *'noakm'*
639 'altkeymap' 'akm' boolean (default off)
642 {only available when compiled with the |+farsi|
644 When on, the second language is Farsi. In editing mode CTRL-_ toggles
645 the keyboard map between Farsi and English, when 'allowrevins' set.
647 When off, the keyboard map toggles between Hebrew and English. This
648 is useful to start the Vim in native mode i.e. English (left-to-right
649 mode) and have default second language Farsi or Hebrew (right-to-left
650 mode). See |farsi.txt|.
652 *'ambiwidth'* *'ambw'*
653 'ambiwidth' 'ambw' string (default: "single")
656 {only available when compiled with the |+multi_byte|
658 Only effective when 'encoding' is "utf-8" or another Unicode encoding.
659 Tells Vim what to do with characters with East Asian Width Class
660 Ambiguous (such as Euro, Registered Sign, Copyright Sign, Greek
661 letters, Cyrillic letters).
663 There are currently two possible values:
664 "single": Use the same width as characters in US-ASCII. This is
665 expected by most users.
666 "double": Use twice the width of ASCII characters.
668 There are a number of CJK fonts for which the width of glyphs for
669 those characters are solely based on how many octets they take in
670 legacy/traditional CJK encodings. In those encodings, Euro,
671 Registered sign, Greek/Cyrillic letters are represented by two octets,
672 therefore those fonts have "wide" glyphs for them. This is also
673 true of some line drawing characters used to make tables in text
674 file. Therefore, when a CJK font is used for GUI Vim or
675 Vim is running inside a terminal (emulators) that uses a CJK font
676 (or Vim is run inside an xterm invoked with "-cjkwidth" option.),
677 this option should be set to "double" to match the width perceived
678 by Vim with the width of glyphs in the font. Perhaps it also has
679 to be set to "double" under CJK Windows 9x/ME or Windows 2k/XP
680 when the system locale is set to one of CJK locales. See Unicode
681 Standard Annex #11 (http://www.unicode.org/reports/tr11).
683 *'antialias'* *'anti'* *'noantialias'* *'noanti'*
684 'antialias' 'anti' boolean (default: off)
687 {only available when compiled with GUI enabled
689 This option only has an effect in the GUI version of Vim on Mac OS X
690 v10.2 or later. When on, Vim will use smooth ("antialiased") fonts,
691 which can be easier to read at certain sizes on certain displays.
692 Setting this option can sometimes cause problems if 'guifont' is set
693 to its default (empty string).
695 *'autochdir'* *'acd'* *'noautochdir'* *'noacd'*
696 'autochdir' 'acd' boolean (default off)
699 {only available when compiled with the
700 |+netbeans_intg| or |+sun_workshop| feature}
701 When on, Vim will change the current working directory whenever you
702 open a file, switch buffers, delete a buffer or open/close a window.
703 It will change to the directory containing the file which was opened
705 This option is provided for backward compatibility with the Vim
706 released with Sun ONE Studio 4 Enterprise Edition.
707 Note: When this option is on some plugins may not work.
709 *'arabic'* *'arab'* *'noarabic'* *'noarab'*
710 'arabic' 'arab' boolean (default off)
713 {only available when compiled with the |+arabic|
715 This option can be set to start editing Arabic text.
716 Setting this option will:
717 - Set the 'rightleft' option, unless 'termbidi' is set.
718 - Set the 'arabicshape' option, unless 'termbidi' is set.
719 - Set the 'keymap' option to "arabic"; in Insert mode CTRL-^ toggles
720 between typing English and Arabic key mapping.
721 - Set the 'delcombine' option
722 Note that 'encoding' must be "utf-8" for working with Arabic text.
724 Resetting this option will:
725 - Reset the 'rightleft' option.
726 - Disable the use of 'keymap' (without changing its value).
727 Note that 'arabicshape' and 'delcombine' are not reset (it is a global
729 Also see |arabic.txt|.
731 *'arabicshape'* *'arshape'*
732 *'noarabicshape'* *'noarshape'*
733 'arabicshape' 'arshape' boolean (default on)
736 {only available when compiled with the |+arabic|
738 When on and 'termbidi' is off, the required visual character
739 corrections that need to take place for displaying the Arabic language
740 take affect. Shaping, in essence, gets enabled; the term is a broad
741 one which encompasses:
742 a) the changing/morphing of characters based on their location
743 within a word (initial, medial, final and stand-alone).
744 b) the enabling of the ability to compose characters
745 c) the enabling of the required combining of some characters
746 When disabled the character display reverts back to each character's
747 true stand-alone form.
748 Arabic is a complex language which requires other settings, for
749 further details see |arabic.txt|.
751 *'autoindent'* *'ai'* *'noautoindent'* *'noai'*
752 'autoindent' 'ai' boolean (default off)
754 Copy indent from current line when starting a new line (typing <CR>
755 in Insert mode or when using the "o" or "O" command). If you do not
756 type anything on the new line except <BS> or CTRL-D and then type
757 <Esc>, CTRL-O or <CR>, the indent is deleted again. Moving the cursor
758 to another line has the same effect, unless the 'I' flag is included
760 When autoindent is on, formatting (with the "gq" command or when you
761 reach 'textwidth' in Insert mode) uses the indentation of the first
763 When 'smartindent' or 'cindent' is on the indent is changed in
765 The 'autoindent' option is reset when the 'paste' option is set.
766 {small difference from Vi: After the indent is deleted when typing
767 <Esc> or <CR>, the cursor position when moving up or down is after the
768 deleted indent; Vi puts the cursor somewhere in the deleted indent}.
770 *'autoread'* *'ar'* *'noautoread'* *'noar'*
771 'autoread' 'ar' boolean (default off)
772 global or local to buffer |global-local|
774 When a file has been detected to have been changed outside of Vim and
775 it has not been changed inside of Vim, automatically read it again.
776 When the file has been deleted this is not done. |timestamp|
777 If this option has a local value, use this command to switch back to
778 using the global value: >
781 *'autowrite'* *'aw'* *'noautowrite'* *'noaw'*
782 'autowrite' 'aw' boolean (default off)
784 Write the contents of the file, if it has been modified, on each
785 :next, :rewind, :last, :first, :previous, :stop, :suspend, :tag, :!,
786 :make, CTRL-] and CTRL-^ command; and when a :buffer, CTRL-O, CTRL-I,
787 '{A-Z0-9}, or `{A-Z0-9} command takes one to another file.
788 Note that for some commands the 'autowrite' option is not used, see
789 'autowriteall' for that.
791 *'autowriteall'* *'awa'* *'noautowriteall'* *'noawa'*
792 'autowriteall' 'awa' boolean (default off)
795 Like 'autowrite', but also used for commands ":edit", ":enew", ":quit",
796 ":qall", ":exit", ":xit", ":recover" and closing the Vim window.
797 Setting this option also implies that Vim behaves like 'autowrite' has
800 *'background'* *'bg'*
801 'background' 'bg' string (default "dark" or "light")
804 When set to "dark", Vim will try to use colors that look good on a
805 dark background. When set to "light", Vim will try to use colors that
806 look good on a light background. Any other value is illegal.
807 Vim tries to set the default value according to the terminal used.
808 This will not always be correct.
809 Setting this option does not change the background color, it tells Vim
810 what the background color looks like. For changing the background
811 color, see |:hi-normal|.
813 When 'background' is set Vim will adjust the default color groups for
814 the new value. But the colors used for syntax highlighting will not
815 change. *g:colors_name*
816 When a color scheme is loaded (the "colors_name" variable is set)
817 setting 'background' will cause the color scheme to be reloaded. If
818 the color scheme adjusts to the value of 'background' this will work.
819 However, if the color scheme sets 'background' itself the effect may
820 be undone. First delete the "colors_name" variable when needed.
822 When setting 'background' to the default value with: >
824 < Vim will guess the value. In the GUI this should work correctly,
825 in other cases Vim might not be able to guess the right value.
827 When starting the GUI, the default value for 'background' will be
828 "light". When the value is not set in the .gvimrc, and Vim detects
829 that the background is actually quite dark, 'background' is set to
830 "dark". But this happens only AFTER the .gvimrc file has been read
831 (because the window needs to be opened to find the actual background
832 color). To get around this, force the GUI window to be opened by
833 putting a ":gui" command in the .gvimrc file, before where the value
834 of 'background' is used (e.g., before ":syntax on").
835 Normally this option would be set in the .vimrc file. Possibly
836 depending on the terminal name. Example: >
837 :if &term == "pcterm"
838 : set background=dark
840 < When this option is set, the default settings for the highlight groups
841 will change. To use other settings, place ":highlight" commands AFTER
842 the setting of the 'background' option.
843 This option is also used in the "$VIMRUNTIME/syntax/syntax.vim" file
844 to select the colors for syntax highlighting. After changing this
845 option, you must load syntax.vim again to see the result. This can be
846 done with ":syntax on".
849 'backspace' 'bs' string (default "")
852 Influences the working of <BS>, <Del>, CTRL-W and CTRL-U in Insert
853 mode. This is a list of items, separated by commas. Each item allows
854 a way to backspace over something:
856 indent allow backspacing over autoindent
857 eol allow backspacing over line breaks (join lines)
858 start allow backspacing over the start of insert; CTRL-W and CTRL-U
859 stop once at the start of insert.
861 When the value is empty, Vi compatible backspacing is used.
863 For backwards compatibility with version 5.4 and earlier:
865 0 same as ":set backspace=" (Vi compatible)
866 1 same as ":set backspace=indent,eol"
867 2 same as ":set backspace=indent,eol,start"
869 See |:fixdel| if your <BS> or <Del> key does not do what you want.
870 NOTE: This option is set to "" when 'compatible' is set.
872 *'backup'* *'bk'* *'nobackup'* *'nobk'*
873 'backup' 'bk' boolean (default off)
876 Make a backup before overwriting a file. Leave it around after the
877 file has been successfully written. If you do not want to keep the
878 backup file, but you do want a backup while the file is being
879 written, reset this option and set the 'writebackup' option (this is
880 the default). If you do not want a backup file at all reset both
881 options (use this if your file system is almost full). See the
882 |backup-table| for more explanations.
883 When the 'backupskip' pattern matches, a backup is not made anyway.
884 When 'patchmode' is set, the backup may be renamed to become the
885 oldest version of a file.
886 NOTE: This option is reset when 'compatible' is set.
888 *'backupcopy'* *'bkc'*
889 'backupcopy' 'bkc' string (Vi default for Unix: "yes", otherwise: "auto")
892 When writing a file and a backup is made, this option tells how it's
893 done. This is a comma separated list of words.
896 "yes" make a copy of the file and overwrite the original one
897 "no" rename the file and write a new one
898 "auto" one of the previous, what works best
900 Extra values that can be combined with the ones above are:
901 "breaksymlink" always break symlinks when writing
902 "breakhardlink" always break hardlinks when writing
904 Making a copy and overwriting the original file:
905 - Takes extra time to copy the file.
906 + When the file has special attributes, is a (hard/symbolic) link or
907 has a resource fork, all this is preserved.
908 - When the file is a link the backup will have the name of the link,
909 not of the real file.
911 Renaming the file and writing a new one:
913 - Sometimes not all attributes of the file can be copied to the new
915 - When the file is a link the new file will not be a link.
917 The "auto" value is the middle way: When Vim sees that renaming file
918 is possible without side effects (the attributes can be passed on and
919 the file is not a link) that is used. When problems are expected, a
922 The "breaksymlink" and "breakhardlink" values can be used in
923 combination with any of "yes", "no" and "auto". When included, they
924 force Vim to always break either symbolic or hard links by doing
925 exactly what the "no" option does, renaming the original file to
926 become the backup and writing a new file in its place. This can be
927 useful for example in source trees where all the files are symbolic or
928 hard links and any changes should stay in the local source tree, not
929 be propagated back to the original source.
931 One situation where "no" and "auto" will cause problems: A program
932 that opens a file, invokes Vim to edit that file, and then tests if
933 the open file was changed (through the file descriptor) will check the
934 backup file instead of the newly created file. "crontab -e" is an
937 When a copy is made, the original file is truncated and then filled
938 with the new text. This means that protection bits, owner and
939 symbolic links of the original file are unmodified. The backup file
940 however, is a new file, owned by the user who edited the file. The
941 group of the backup is set to the group of the original file. If this
942 fails, the protection bits for the group are made the same as for
945 When the file is renamed this is the other way around: The backup has
946 the same attributes of the original file, and the newly written file
947 is owned by the current user. When the file was a (hard/symbolic)
948 link, the new file will not! That's why the "auto" value doesn't
949 rename when the file is a link. The owner and group of the newly
950 written file will be set to the same ones as the original file, but
951 the system may refuse to do this. In that case the "auto" value will
952 again not rename the file.
954 *'backupdir'* *'bdir'*
955 'backupdir' 'bdir' string (default for Amiga: ".,t:",
956 for MS-DOS and Win32: ".,c:/tmp,c:/temp"
957 for Unix: ".,~/tmp,~/")
960 List of directories for the backup file, separated with commas.
961 - The backup file will be created in the first directory in the list
962 where this is possible.
963 - Empty means that no backup file will be created ('patchmode' is
964 impossible!). Writing may fail because of this.
965 - A directory "." means to put the backup file in the same directory
967 - A directory starting with "./" (or ".\" for MS-DOS et al.) means to
968 put the backup file relative to where the edited file is. The
969 leading "." is replaced with the path name of the edited file.
970 ("." inside a directory name has no special meaning).
971 - Spaces after the comma are ignored, other spaces are considered part
972 of the directory name. To have a space at the start of a directory
973 name, precede it with a backslash.
974 - To include a comma in a directory name precede it with a backslash.
975 - A directory name may end in an '/'.
976 - Environment variables are expanded |:set_env|.
977 - Careful with '\' characters, type one before a space, type two to
978 get one in the option (see |option-backslash|), for example: >
979 :set bdir=c:\\tmp,\ dir\\,with\\,commas,\\\ dir\ with\ spaces
980 < - For backwards compatibility with Vim version 3.0 a '>' at the start
981 of the option is removed.
982 See also 'backup' and 'writebackup' options.
983 If you want to hide your backup files on Unix, consider this value: >
984 :set backupdir=./.backup,~/.backup,.,/tmp
985 < You must create a ".backup" directory in each directory and in your
986 home directory for this to work properly.
987 The use of |:set+=| and |:set-=| is preferred when adding or removing
988 directories from the list. This avoids problems when a future version
989 uses another default.
990 This option cannot be set from a |modeline| or in the |sandbox|, for
993 *'backupext'* *'bex'* *E589*
994 'backupext' 'bex' string (default "~", for VMS: "_")
997 String which is appended to a file name to make the name of the
998 backup file. The default is quite unusual, because this avoids
999 accidentally overwriting existing files with a backup file. You might
1000 prefer using ".bak", but make sure that you don't have files with
1001 ".bak" that you want to keep.
1002 Only normal file name characters can be used, "/\*?[|<>" are illegal.
1004 If you like to keep a lot of backups, you could use a BufWritePre
1005 autocommand to change 'backupext' just before writing the file to
1006 include a timestamp. >
1007 :au BufWritePre * let &bex = '-' . strftime("%Y%b%d%X") . '~'
1008 < Use 'backupdir' to put the backup in a different directory.
1010 *'backupskip'* *'bsk'*
1011 'backupskip' 'bsk' string (default: "/tmp/*,$TMPDIR/*,$TMP/*,$TEMP/*")
1014 {not available when compiled without the |+wildignore|
1016 A list of file patterns. When one of the patterns matches with the
1017 name of the file which is written, no backup file is created. Both
1018 the specified file name and the full path name of the file are used.
1019 The pattern is used like with |:autocmd|, see |autocmd-patterns|.
1020 Watch out for special characters, see |option-backslash|.
1021 When $TMPDIR, $TMP or $TEMP is not defined, it is not used for the
1022 default value. "/tmp/*" is only used for Unix.
1024 Note that environment variables are not expanded. If you want to use
1025 $HOME you must expand it explicitly, e.g.: >
1026 :let backupskip = escape(expand('$HOME'), '\') . '/tmp/*'
1028 < Note that the default also makes sure that "crontab -e" works (when a
1029 backup would be made by renaming the original file crontab won't see
1030 the newly created file). Also see 'backupcopy' and |crontab|.
1032 *'balloondelay'* *'bdlay'*
1033 'balloondelay' 'bdlay' number (default: 600)
1036 {only available when compiled with the |+balloon_eval|
1038 Delay in milliseconds before a balloon may pop up. See |balloon-eval|.
1040 *'ballooneval'* *'beval'* *'noballooneval'* *'nobeval'*
1041 'ballooneval' 'beval' boolean (default off)
1044 {only available when compiled with the |+balloon_eval|
1046 Switch on the |balloon-eval| functionality.
1048 *'balloonexpr'* *'bexpr'*
1049 'balloonexpr' 'bexpr' string (default "")
1050 global or local to buffer |global-local|
1052 {only available when compiled with the |+balloon_eval|
1054 Expression for text to show in evaluation balloon. It is only used
1055 when 'ballooneval' is on. These variables can be used:
1057 v:beval_bufnr number of the buffer in which balloon is going to show
1058 v:beval_winnr number of the window
1059 v:beval_lnum line number
1060 v:beval_col column number (byte index)
1061 v:beval_text word under or after the mouse pointer
1063 The evaluation of the expression must not have side effects!
1065 function! MyBalloonExpr()
1066 return 'Cursor is at line ' . v:beval_lnum .
1067 \', column ' . v:beval_col .
1068 \ ' of file ' . bufname(v:beval_bufnr) .
1069 \ ' on word "' . v:beval_text . '"'
1071 set bexpr=MyBalloonExpr()
1074 NOTE: The balloon is displayed only if the cursor is on a text
1075 character. If the result of evaluating 'balloonexpr' is not empty,
1076 Vim does not try to send a message to an external debugger (Netbeans
1079 The expression may be evaluated in the |sandbox|, see
1082 It is not allowed to change text or jump to another window while
1083 evaluating 'balloonexpr' |textlock|.
1085 To check whether line breaks in the balloon text work use this check: >
1086 if has("balloon_multiline")
1087 < When they are supported "\n" characters will start a new line. If the
1088 expression evaluates to a |List| this is equal to using each List item
1089 as a string and putting "\n" in between them.
1091 *'binary'* *'bin'* *'nobinary'* *'nobin'*
1092 'binary' 'bin' boolean (default off)
1095 This option should be set before editing a binary file. You can also
1096 use the |-b| Vim argument. When this option is switched on a few
1097 options will be changed (also when it already was on):
1098 'textwidth' will be set to 0
1099 'wrapmargin' will be set to 0
1100 'modeline' will be off
1101 'expandtab' will be off
1102 Also, 'fileformat' and 'fileformats' options will not be used, the
1103 file is read and written like 'fileformat' was "unix" (a single <NL>
1105 The 'fileencoding' and 'fileencodings' options will not be used, the
1106 file is read without conversion.
1107 NOTE: When you start editing a(nother) file while the 'bin' option is
1108 on, settings from autocommands may change the settings again (e.g.,
1109 'textwidth'), causing trouble when editing. You might want to set
1110 'bin' again when the file has been loaded.
1111 The previous values of these options are remembered and restored when
1112 'bin' is switched from on to off. Each buffer has its own set of
1113 saved option values.
1114 To edit a file with 'binary' set you can use the |++bin| argument.
1115 This avoids you have to do ":set bin", which would have effect for all
1117 When writing a file the <EOL> for the last line is only written if
1118 there was one in the original file (normally Vim appends an <EOL> to
1119 the last line if there is none; this would make the file longer). See
1120 the 'endofline' option.
1122 *'bioskey'* *'biosk'* *'nobioskey'* *'nobiosk'*
1123 'bioskey' 'biosk' boolean (default on)
1125 {not in Vi} {only for MS-DOS}
1126 When on the BIOS is called to obtain a keyboard character. This works
1127 better to detect CTRL-C, but only works for the console. When using a
1128 terminal over a serial port reset this option.
1129 Also see |'conskey'|.
1132 'bomb' boolean (default off)
1135 {only available when compiled with the |+multi_byte|
1137 When writing a file and the following conditions are met, a BOM (Byte
1138 Order Mark) is prepended to the file:
1140 - the 'binary' option is off
1141 - 'fileencoding' is "utf-8", "ucs-2", "ucs-4" or one of the little/big
1143 Some applications use the BOM to recognize the encoding of the file.
1144 Often used for UCS-2 files on MS-Windows. For other applications it
1145 causes trouble, for example: "cat file1 file2" makes the BOM of file2
1146 appear halfway the resulting file.
1147 When Vim reads a file and 'fileencodings' starts with "ucs-bom", a
1148 check for the presence of the BOM is done and 'bomb' set accordingly.
1149 Unless 'binary' is set, it is removed from the first line, so that you
1150 don't see it when editing. When you don't change the options, the BOM
1151 will be restored when writing the file.
1154 'breakat' 'brk' string (default " ^I!@*-+;:,./?")
1157 {not available when compiled without the |+linebreak|
1159 This option lets you choose which characters might cause a line
1160 break if 'linebreak' is on. Only works for ASCII and also for 8-bit
1161 characters when 'encoding' is an 8-bit encoding.
1163 *'browsedir'* *'bsdir'*
1164 'browsedir' 'bsdir' string (default: "last")
1166 {not in Vi} {only for Motif, Athena, GTK, Mac and
1168 Which directory to use for the file browser:
1169 last Use same directory as with last file browser, where a
1170 file was opened or saved.
1171 buffer Use the directory of the related buffer.
1172 current Use the current directory.
1173 {path} Use the specified directory
1175 *'bufhidden'* *'bh'*
1176 'bufhidden' 'bh' string (default: "")
1179 {not available when compiled without the |+quickfix|
1181 This option specifies what happens when a buffer is no longer
1182 displayed in a window:
1183 <empty> follow the global 'hidden' option
1184 hide hide the buffer (don't unload it), also when 'hidden'
1186 unload unload the buffer, also when 'hidden' is set or using
1188 delete delete the buffer from the buffer list, also when
1189 'hidden' is set or using |:hide|, like using
1191 wipe wipe out the buffer from the buffer list, also when
1192 'hidden' is set or using |:hide|, like using
1195 CAREFUL: when "unload", "delete" or "wipe" is used changes in a buffer
1196 are lost without a warning.
1197 This option is used together with 'buftype' and 'swapfile' to specify
1198 special kinds of buffers. See |special-buffers|.
1200 *'buflisted'* *'bl'* *'nobuflisted'* *'nobl'* *E85*
1201 'buflisted' 'bl' boolean (default: on)
1204 When this option is set, the buffer shows up in the buffer list. If
1205 it is reset it is not used for ":bnext", "ls", the Buffers menu, etc.
1206 This option is reset by Vim for buffers that are only used to remember
1207 a file name or marks. Vim sets it when starting to edit a buffer.
1208 But not when moving to a buffer with ":buffer".
1210 *'buftype'* *'bt'* *E382*
1211 'buftype' 'bt' string (default: "")
1214 {not available when compiled without the |+quickfix|
1216 The value of this option specifies the type of a buffer:
1217 <empty> normal buffer
1218 nofile buffer which is not related to a file and will not be
1220 nowrite buffer which will not be written
1221 acwrite buffer which will always be written with BufWriteCmd
1222 autocommands. {not available when compiled without the
1224 quickfix quickfix buffer, contains list of errors |:cwindow|
1225 or list of locations |:lwindow|
1226 help help buffer (you are not supposed to set this
1229 This option is used together with 'bufhidden' and 'swapfile' to
1230 specify special kinds of buffers. See |special-buffers|.
1232 Be careful with changing this option, it can have many side effects!
1234 A "quickfix" buffer is only used for the error list and the location
1235 list. This value is set by the |:cwindow| and |:lwindow| commands and
1236 you are not supposed to change it.
1238 "nofile" and "nowrite" buffers are similar:
1239 both: The buffer is not to be written to disk, ":w" doesn't
1240 work (":w filename" does work though).
1241 both: The buffer is never considered to be |'modified'|.
1242 There is no warning when the changes will be lost, for
1243 example when you quit Vim.
1244 both: A swap file is only created when using too much memory
1245 (when 'swapfile' has been reset there is never a swap
1247 nofile only: The buffer name is fixed, it is not handled like a
1248 file name. It is not modified in response to a |:cd|
1251 "acwrite" implies that the buffer name is not related to a file, like
1252 "nofile", but it will be written. Thus, in contrast to "nofile" and
1253 "nowrite", ":w" does work and a modified buffer can't be abandoned
1254 without saving. For writing there must be matching |BufWriteCmd|,
1255 |FileWriteCmd| or |FileAppendCmd| autocommands.
1258 'casemap' 'cmp' string (default: "internal,keepascii")
1261 {only available when compiled with the |+multi_byte|
1263 Specifies details about changing the case of letters. It may contain
1264 these words, separated by a comma:
1265 internal Use internal case mapping functions, the current
1266 locale does not change the case mapping. This only
1267 matters when 'encoding' is a Unicode encoding,
1268 "latin1" or "iso-8859-15". When "internal" is
1269 omitted, the towupper() and towlower() system library
1270 functions are used when available.
1271 keepascii For the ASCII characters (0x00 to 0x7f) use the US
1272 case mapping, the current locale is not effective.
1273 This probably only matters for Turkish.
1275 *'cdpath'* *'cd'* *E344* *E346*
1276 'cdpath' 'cd' string (default: equivalent to $CDPATH or ",,")
1279 {not available when compiled without the
1280 |+file_in_path| feature}
1281 This is a list of directories which will be searched when using the
1282 |:cd| and |:lcd| commands, provided that the directory being searched
1283 for has a relative path, not an absolute part starting with "/", "./"
1284 or "../", the 'cdpath' option is not used then.
1285 The 'cdpath' option's value has the same form and semantics as
1286 |'path'|. Also see |file-searching|.
1287 The default value is taken from $CDPATH, with a "," prepended to look
1288 in the current directory first.
1289 If the default value taken from $CDPATH is not what you want, include
1290 a modified version of the following command in your vimrc file to
1292 :let &cdpath = ',' . substitute(substitute($CDPATH, '[, ]', '\\\0', 'g'), ':', ',', 'g')
1293 < This option cannot be set from a |modeline| or in the |sandbox|, for
1295 (parts of 'cdpath' can be passed to the shell to expand file names).
1298 'cedit' string (Vi default: "", Vim default: CTRL-F)
1301 {not available when compiled without the |+vertsplit|
1303 The key used in Command-line Mode to open the command-line window.
1304 The default is CTRL-F when 'compatible' is off.
1305 Only non-printable keys are allowed.
1306 The key can be specified as a single character, but it is difficult to
1307 type. The preferred way is to use the <> notation. Examples: >
1310 < |Nvi| also has this option, but it only uses the first character.
1313 *'charconvert'* *'ccv'* *E202* *E214* *E513*
1314 'charconvert' 'ccv' string (default "")
1316 {only available when compiled with the |+multi_byte|
1317 feature and the |+eval| feature}
1319 An expression that is used for character encoding conversion. It is
1320 evaluated when a file that is to be read or has been written has a
1321 different encoding from what is desired.
1322 'charconvert' is not used when the internal iconv() function is
1323 supported and is able to do the conversion. Using iconv() is
1324 preferred, because it is much faster.
1325 'charconvert' is not used when reading stdin |--|, because there is no
1326 file to convert from. You will have to save the text in a file first.
1327 The expression must return zero or an empty string for success,
1328 non-zero for failure.
1329 The possible encoding names encountered are in 'encoding'.
1330 Additionally, names given in 'fileencodings' and 'fileencoding' are
1332 Conversion between "latin1", "unicode", "ucs-2", "ucs-4" and "utf-8"
1333 is done internally by Vim, 'charconvert' is not used for this.
1334 'charconvert' is also used to convert the viminfo file, if the 'c'
1335 flag is present in 'viminfo'. Also used for Unicode conversion.
1337 set charconvert=CharConvert()
1340 \ . v:charconvert_from . ".." . v:charconvert_to
1341 \ . " <" . v:fname_in . " >" v:fname_out)
1342 return v:shell_error
1344 < The related Vim variables are:
1345 v:charconvert_from name of the current encoding
1346 v:charconvert_to name of the desired encoding
1347 v:fname_in name of the input file
1348 v:fname_out name of the output file
1349 Note that v:fname_in and v:fname_out will never be the same.
1350 Note that v:charconvert_from and v:charconvert_to may be different
1351 from 'encoding'. Vim internally uses UTF-8 instead of UCS-2 or UCS-4.
1352 Encryption is not done by Vim when using 'charconvert'. If you want
1353 to encrypt the file after conversion, 'charconvert' should take care
1355 This option cannot be set from a |modeline| or in the |sandbox|, for
1358 *'cindent'* *'cin'* *'nocindent'* *'nocin'*
1359 'cindent' 'cin' boolean (default off)
1362 {not available when compiled without the |+cindent|
1364 Enables automatic C program indenting. See 'cinkeys' to set the keys
1365 that trigger reindenting in insert mode and 'cinoptions' to set your
1366 preferred indent style.
1367 If 'indentexpr' is not empty, it overrules 'cindent'.
1368 If 'lisp' is not on and both 'indentexpr' and 'equalprg' are empty,
1369 the "=" operator indents using this algorithm rather than calling an
1372 When you don't like the way 'cindent' works, try the 'smartindent'
1373 option or 'indentexpr'.
1374 This option is not used when 'paste' is set.
1375 NOTE: This option is reset when 'compatible' is set.
1377 *'cinkeys'* *'cink'*
1378 'cinkeys' 'cink' string (default "0{,0},0),:,0#,!^F,o,O,e")
1381 {not available when compiled without the |+cindent|
1383 A list of keys that, when typed in Insert mode, cause reindenting of
1384 the current line. Only used if 'cindent' is on and 'indentexpr' is
1386 For the format of this option see |cinkeys-format|.
1389 *'cinoptions'* *'cino'*
1390 'cinoptions' 'cino' string (default "")
1393 {not available when compiled without the |+cindent|
1395 The 'cinoptions' affect the way 'cindent' reindents lines in a C
1396 program. See |cinoptions-values| for the values of this option, and
1397 |C-indenting| for info on C indenting in general.
1400 *'cinwords'* *'cinw'*
1401 'cinwords' 'cinw' string (default "if,else,while,do,for,switch")
1404 {not available when compiled without both the
1405 |+cindent| and the |+smartindent| features}
1406 These keywords start an extra indent in the next line when
1407 'smartindent' or 'cindent' is set. For 'cindent' this is only done at
1408 an appropriate place (inside {}).
1409 Note that 'ignorecase' isn't used for 'cinwords'. If case doesn't
1410 matter, include the keyword both the uppercase and lowercase:
1413 *'clipboard'* *'cb'*
1414 'clipboard' 'cb' string (default "autoselect,exclude:cons\|linux"
1415 for X-windows, "" otherwise)
1418 {only in GUI versions or when the |+xterm_clipboard|
1419 feature is included}
1420 This option is a list of comma separated names.
1421 These names are recognized:
1423 unnamed When included, Vim will use the clipboard register '*'
1424 for all yank, delete, change and put operations which
1425 would normally go to the unnamed register. When a
1426 register is explicitly specified, it will always be
1427 used regardless of whether "unnamed" is in 'clipboard'
1428 or not. The clipboard register can always be
1429 explicitly accessed using the "* notation. Also see
1432 autoselect Works like the 'a' flag in 'guioptions': If present,
1433 then whenever Visual mode is started, or the Visual
1434 area extended, Vim tries to become the owner of the
1435 windowing system's global selection or put the
1436 selected text on the clipboard used by the selection
1437 register "*. See |guioptions_a| and |quotestar| for
1438 details. When the GUI is active, the 'a' flag in
1439 'guioptions' is used, when the GUI is not active, this
1440 "autoselect" flag is used.
1441 Also applies to the modeless selection.
1443 autoselectml Like "autoselect", but for the modeless selection
1444 only. Compare to the 'A' flag in 'guioptions'.
1446 html When the clipboard contains HTML, use this when
1447 pasting. When putting text on the clipboard, mark it
1448 as HTML. This works to copy rendered HTML from
1449 Firefox, paste it as raw HTML in Vim, select the HTML
1450 in Vim and paste it in a rich edit box in Firefox.
1451 Only supported for GTK version 2 and later.
1452 Only available with the |+multi_byte| feature.
1455 Defines a pattern that is matched against the name of
1456 the terminal 'term'. If there is a match, no
1457 connection will be made to the X server. This is
1458 useful in this situation:
1459 - Running Vim in a console.
1460 - $DISPLAY is set to start applications on another
1462 - You do not want to connect to the X server in the
1463 console, but do want this in a terminal emulator.
1464 To never connect to the X server use: >
1466 < This has the same effect as using the |-X| argument.
1467 Note that when there is no connection to the X server
1468 the window title won't be restored and the clipboard
1470 The value of 'magic' is ignored, {pattern} is
1471 interpreted as if 'magic' was on.
1472 The rest of the option value will be used for
1473 {pattern}, this must be the last entry.
1475 *'cmdheight'* *'ch'*
1476 'cmdheight' 'ch' number (default 1)
1479 Number of screen lines to use for the command-line. Helps avoiding
1480 |hit-enter| prompts.
1481 The value of this option is stored with the tab page, so that each tab
1482 page can have a different value.
1484 *'cmdwinheight'* *'cwh'*
1485 'cmdwinheight' 'cwh' number (default 7)
1488 {not available when compiled without the |+vertsplit|
1490 Number of screen lines to use for the command-line window. |cmdwin|
1492 *'columns'* *'co'* *E594*
1493 'columns' 'co' number (default 80 or terminal width)
1496 Number of columns of the screen. Normally this is set by the terminal
1497 initialization and does not have to be set by hand. Also see
1498 |posix-screen-size|.
1499 When Vim is running in the GUI or in a resizable window, setting this
1500 option will cause the window size to be changed. When you only want
1501 to use the size for the GUI, put the command in your |gvimrc| file.
1502 When you set this option and Vim is unable to change the physical
1503 number of columns of the display, the display may be messed up. For
1504 the GUI it is always possible and Vim limits the number of columns to
1505 what fits on the screen. You can use this command to get the widest
1508 < Minimum value is 12, maximum value is 10000.
1510 *'comments'* *'com'* *E524* *E525*
1511 'comments' 'com' string (default
1512 "s1:/*,mb:*,ex:*/,://,b:#,:%,:XCOMM,n:>,fb:-")
1515 {not available when compiled without the |+comments|
1517 A comma separated list of strings that can start a comment line. See
1518 |format-comments|. See |option-backslash| about using backslashes to
1521 *'commentstring'* *'cms'* *E537*
1522 'commentstring' 'cms' string (default "/*%s*/")
1525 {not available when compiled without the |+folding|
1527 A template for a comment. The "%s" in the value is replaced with the
1528 comment text. Currently only used to add markers for folding, see
1531 *'compatible'* *'cp'* *'nocompatible'* *'nocp'*
1532 'compatible' 'cp' boolean (default on, off when a |vimrc| or |gvimrc|
1536 This option has the effect of making Vim either more Vi-compatible, or
1537 make Vim behave in a more useful way.
1538 This is a special kind of option, because when it's set or reset,
1539 other options are also changed as a side effect. CAREFUL: Setting or
1540 resetting this option can have a lot of unexpected effects: Mappings
1541 are interpreted in another way, undo behaves differently, etc. If you
1542 set this option in your vimrc file, you should probably put it at the
1544 By default this option is on and the Vi defaults are used for the
1545 options. This default was chosen for those people who want to use Vim
1546 just like Vi, and don't even (want to) know about the 'compatible'
1548 When a |vimrc| or |gvimrc| file is found while Vim is starting up,
1549 this option is switched off, and all options that have not been
1550 modified will be set to the Vim defaults. Effectively, this means
1551 that when a |vimrc| or |gvimrc| file exists, Vim will use the Vim
1552 defaults, otherwise it will use the Vi defaults. (Note: This doesn't
1553 happen for the system-wide vimrc or gvimrc file, nor for a file given
1554 with the |-u| argument). Also see |compatible-default| and
1556 You can also set this option with the "-C" argument, and reset it with
1557 "-N". See |-C| and |-N|.
1558 Switching this option off makes the Vim defaults be used for options
1559 that have a different Vi and Vim default value. See the options
1560 marked with a '+' below. Other options are not modified.
1561 At the moment this option is set, several other options will be set
1562 or reset to make Vim as Vi-compatible as possible. See the table
1563 below. This can be used if you want to revert to Vi compatible
1565 See also 'cpoptions'.
1567 option + set value effect ~
1569 'allowrevins' off no CTRL-_ command
1570 'backupcopy' Unix: "yes" backup file is a copy
1571 others: "auto" copy or rename backup file
1572 'backspace' "" normal backspace
1573 'backup' off no backup file
1574 'cindent' off no C code indentation
1575 'cedit' + "" no key to open the |cmdwin|
1576 'cpoptions' + (all flags) Vi-compatible flags
1577 'cscopetag' off don't use cscope for ":tag"
1578 'cscopetagorder' 0 see |cscopetagorder|
1579 'cscopeverbose' off see |cscopeverbose|
1580 'digraph' off no digraphs
1581 'esckeys' + off no <Esc>-keys in Insert mode
1582 'expandtab' off tabs not expanded to spaces
1583 'fileformats' + "" no automatic file format detection,
1584 "dos,unix" except for DOS, Windows and OS/2
1585 'formatoptions' + "vt" Vi compatible formatting
1586 'gdefault' off no default 'g' flag for ":s"
1587 'history' + 0 no commandline history
1588 'hkmap' off no Hebrew keyboard mapping
1589 'hkmapp' off no phonetic Hebrew keyboard mapping
1590 'hlsearch' off no highlighting of search matches
1591 'incsearch' off no incremental searching
1592 'indentexpr' "" no indenting by expression
1593 'insertmode' off do not start in Insert mode
1594 'iskeyword' + "@,48-57,_" keywords contain alphanumeric
1596 'joinspaces' on insert 2 spaces after period
1597 'modeline' + off no modelines
1598 'more' + off no pauses in listings
1599 'revins' off no reverse insert
1600 'ruler' off no ruler
1601 'scrolljump' 1 no jump scroll
1602 'scrolloff' 0 no scroll offset
1603 'shiftround' off indent not rounded to shiftwidth
1604 'shortmess' + "" no shortening of messages
1605 'showcmd' + off command characters not shown
1606 'showmode' + off current mode not shown
1607 'smartcase' off no automatic ignore case switch
1608 'smartindent' off no smart indentation
1609 'smarttab' off no smart tab size
1610 'softtabstop' 0 tabs are always 'tabstop' positions
1611 'startofline' on goto startofline with some commands
1612 'tagrelative' + off tag file names are not relative
1613 'textauto' + off no automatic textmode detection
1614 'textwidth' 0 no automatic line wrap
1615 'tildeop' off tilde is not an operator
1616 'ttimeout' off no terminal timeout
1617 'whichwrap' + "" left-right movements don't wrap
1618 'wildchar' + CTRL-E only when the current value is <Tab>
1619 use CTRL-E for cmdline completion
1620 'writebackup' on or off depends on +writebackup feature
1622 *'complete'* *'cpt'* *E535*
1623 'complete' 'cpt' string (default: ".,w,b,u,t,i")
1626 This option specifies how keyword completion |ins-completion| works
1627 when CTRL-P or CTRL-N are used. It is also used for whole-line
1628 completion |i_CTRL-X_CTRL-L|. It indicates the type of completion
1629 and the places to scan. It is a comma separated list of flags:
1630 . scan the current buffer ('wrapscan' is ignored)
1631 w scan buffers from other windows
1632 b scan other loaded buffers that are in the buffer list
1633 u scan the unloaded buffers that are in the buffer list
1634 U scan the buffers that are not in the buffer list
1635 k scan the files given with the 'dictionary' option
1636 kspell use the currently active spell checking |spell|
1637 k{dict} scan the file {dict}. Several "k" flags can be given,
1638 patterns are valid too. For example: >
1639 :set cpt=k/usr/dict/*,k~/spanish
1640 < s scan the files given with the 'thesaurus' option
1641 s{tsr} scan the file {tsr}. Several "s" flags can be given, patterns
1643 i scan current and included files
1644 d scan current and included files for defined name or macro
1649 Unloaded buffers are not loaded, thus their autocmds |:autocmd| are
1650 not executed, this may lead to unexpected completions from some files
1651 (gzipped files for example). Unloaded buffers are not scanned for
1652 whole-line completion.
1654 The default is ".,w,b,u,t,i", which means to scan:
1655 1. the current buffer
1656 2. buffers in other windows
1657 3. other loaded buffers
1662 As you can see, CTRL-N and CTRL-P can be used to do any 'iskeyword'-
1663 based expansion (e.g., dictionary |i_CTRL-X_CTRL-K|, included patterns
1664 |i_CTRL-X_CTRL-I|, tags |i_CTRL-X_CTRL-]| and normal expansions).
1666 *'completefunc'* *'cfu'*
1667 'completefunc' 'cfu' string (default: empty)
1670 {not available when compiled without the +eval
1671 or +insert_expand feature}
1672 This option specifies a function to be used for Insert mode completion
1673 with CTRL-X CTRL-U. |i_CTRL-X_CTRL-U|
1674 See |complete-functions| for an explanation of how the function is
1675 invoked and what it should return.
1678 *'completeopt'* *'cot'*
1679 'completeopt' 'cot' string (default: "menu,preview")
1681 {not available when compiled without the
1682 |+insert_expand| feature}
1684 A comma separated list of options for Insert mode completion
1685 |ins-completion|. The supported values are:
1687 menu Use a popup menu to show the possible completions. The
1688 menu is only shown when there is more than one match and
1689 sufficient colors are available. |ins-completion-menu|
1691 menuone Use the popup menu also when there is only one match.
1692 Useful when there is additional information about the
1693 match, e.g., what file it comes from.
1695 longest Only insert the longest common text of the matches. If
1696 the menu is displayed you can use CTRL-L to add more
1697 characters. Whether case is ignored depends on the kind
1698 of completion. For buffer text the 'ignorecase' option is
1701 preview Show extra information about the currently selected
1702 completion in the preview window. Only works in
1703 combination with "menu" or "menuone".
1706 *'confirm'* *'cf'* *'noconfirm'* *'nocf'*
1707 'confirm' 'cf' boolean (default off)
1710 When 'confirm' is on, certain operations that would normally
1711 fail because of unsaved changes to a buffer, e.g. ":q" and ":e",
1712 instead raise a |dialog| asking if you wish to save the current
1713 file(s). You can still use a ! to unconditionally |abandon| a buffer.
1714 If 'confirm' is off you can still activate confirmation for one
1715 command only (this is most useful in mappings) with the |:confirm|
1717 Also see the |confirm()| function and the 'v' flag in 'guioptions'.
1719 *'conskey'* *'consk'* *'noconskey'* *'noconsk'*
1720 'conskey' 'consk' boolean (default off)
1722 {not in Vi} {only for MS-DOS}
1723 When on direct console I/O is used to obtain a keyboard character.
1724 This should work in most cases. Also see |'bioskey'|. Together,
1725 three methods of console input are available:
1726 'conskey' 'bioskey' action ~
1727 on on or off direct console input
1731 *'copyindent'* *'ci'* *'nocopyindent'* *'noci'*
1732 'copyindent' 'ci' boolean (default off)
1735 Copy the structure of the existing lines indent when autoindenting a
1736 new line. Normally the new indent is reconstructed by a series of
1737 tabs followed by spaces as required (unless |'expandtab'| is enabled,
1738 in which case only spaces are used). Enabling this option makes the
1739 new line copy whatever characters were used for indenting on the
1740 existing line. 'expandtab' has no effect on these characters, a Tab
1741 remains a Tab. If the new indent is greater than on the existing
1742 line, the remaining space is filled in the normal manner.
1743 NOTE: 'copyindent' is reset when 'compatible' is set.
1744 Also see 'preserveindent'.
1746 *'cpoptions'* *'cpo'*
1747 'cpoptions' 'cpo' string (Vim default: "aABceFs",
1748 Vi default: all flags)
1751 A sequence of single character flags. When a character is present
1752 this indicates vi-compatible behavior. This is used for things where
1753 not being vi-compatible is mostly or sometimes preferred.
1754 'cpoptions' stands for "compatible-options".
1755 Commas can be added for readability.
1756 To avoid problems with flags that are added in the future, use the
1757 "+=" and "-=" feature of ":set" |add-option-flags|.
1758 NOTE: This option is set to the Vi default value when 'compatible' is
1759 set and to the Vim default value when 'compatible' is reset.
1760 NOTE: This option is set to the POSIX default value at startup when
1761 the Vi default value would be used and the $VIM_POSIX environment
1762 variable exists |posix|. This means tries to behave like the POSIX
1767 a When included, a ":read" command with a file name
1768 argument will set the alternate file name for the
1771 A When included, a ":write" command with a file name
1772 argument will set the alternate file name for the
1775 b "\|" in a ":map" command is recognized as the end of
1776 the map command. The '\' is included in the mapping,
1777 the text after the '|' is interpreted as the next
1778 command. Use a CTRL-V instead of a backslash to
1779 include the '|' in the mapping. Applies to all
1780 mapping, abbreviation, menu and autocmd commands.
1783 B A backslash has no special meaning in mappings,
1784 abbreviations and the "to" part of the menu commands.
1785 Remove this flag to be able to use a backslash like a
1786 CTRL-V. For example, the command ":map X \<Esc>"
1787 results in X being mapped to:
1788 'B' included: "\^[" (^[ is a real <Esc>)
1789 'B' excluded: "<Esc>" (5 characters)
1790 ('<' excluded in both cases)
1792 c Searching continues at the end of any match at the
1793 cursor position, but not further than the start of the
1794 next line. When not present searching continues
1795 one character from the cursor position. With 'c'
1796 "abababababab" only gets three matches when repeating
1797 "/abab", without 'c' there are five matches.
1799 C Do not concatenate sourced lines that start with a
1800 backslash. See |line-continuation|.
1802 d Using "./" in the 'tags' option doesn't mean to use
1803 the tags file relative to the current file, but the
1804 tags file in the current directory.
1806 D Can't use CTRL-K to enter a digraph after Normal mode
1807 commands with a character argument, like |r|, |f| and
1810 e When executing a register with ":@r", always add a
1811 <CR> to the last line, also when the register is not
1812 linewise. If this flag is not present, the register
1813 is not linewise and the last line does not end in a
1814 <CR>, then the last line is put on the command-line
1815 and can be edited before hitting <CR>.
1817 E It is an error when using "y", "d", "c", "g~", "gu" or
1818 "gU" on an Empty region. The operators only work when
1819 at least one character is to be operate on. Example:
1820 This makes "y0" fail in the first column.
1822 f When included, a ":read" command with a file name
1823 argument will set the file name for the current buffer,
1824 if the current buffer doesn't have a file name yet.
1826 F When included, a ":write" command with a file name
1827 argument will set the file name for the current
1828 buffer, if the current buffer doesn't have a file name
1829 yet. Also see |cpo-P|.
1831 g Goto line 1 when using ":edit" without argument.
1833 H When using "I" on a line with only blanks, insert
1834 before the last blank. Without this flag insert after
1837 i When included, interrupting the reading of a file will
1840 I When moving the cursor up or down just after inserting
1841 indent for 'autoindent', do not delete the indent.
1843 j When joining lines, only add two spaces after a '.',
1844 not after '!' or '?'. Also see 'joinspaces'.
1846 J A |sentence| has to be followed by two spaces after
1847 the '.', '!' or '?'. A <Tab> is not recognized as
1850 k Disable the recognition of raw key codes in
1851 mappings, abbreviations, and the "to" part of menu
1852 commands. For example, if <Key> sends ^[OA (where ^[
1853 is <Esc>), the command ":map X ^[OA" results in X
1855 'k' included: "^[OA" (3 characters)
1856 'k' excluded: "<Key>" (one key code)
1857 Also see the '<' flag below.
1859 K Don't wait for a key code to complete when it is
1860 halfway a mapping. This breaks mapping <F1><F1> when
1861 only part of the second <F1> has been read. It
1862 enables cancelling the mapping by typing <F1><Esc>.
1864 l Backslash in a [] range in a search pattern is taken
1865 literally, only "\]", "\^", "\-" and "\\" are special.
1867 'l' included: "/[ \t]" finds <Space>, '\' and 't'
1868 'l' excluded: "/[ \t]" finds <Space> and <Tab>
1871 L When the 'list' option is set, 'wrapmargin',
1872 'textwidth', 'softtabstop' and Virtual Replace mode
1873 (see |gR|) count a <Tab> as two characters, instead of
1874 the normal behavior of a <Tab>.
1876 m When included, a showmatch will always wait half a
1877 second. When not included, a showmatch will wait half
1878 a second or until a character is typed. |'showmatch'|
1880 M When excluded, "%" matching will take backslashes into
1881 account. Thus in "( \( )" and "\( ( \)" the outer
1882 parenthesis match. When included "%" ignores
1883 backslashes, which is Vi compatible.
1885 n When included, the column used for 'number' will also
1886 be used for text of wrapped lines.
1888 o Line offset to search command is not remembered for
1891 O Don't complain if a file is being overwritten, even
1892 when it didn't exist when editing it. This is a
1893 protection against a file unexpectedly created by
1894 someone else. Vi didn't complain about this.
1896 p Vi compatible Lisp indenting. When not present, a
1897 slightly better algorithm is used.
1899 P When included, a ":write" command that appends to a
1900 file will set the file name for the current buffer, if
1901 the current buffer doesn't have a file name yet and
1902 the 'F' flag is also included |cpo-F|.
1904 q When joining multiple lines leave the cursor at the
1905 position where it would be when joining two lines.
1907 r Redo ("." command) uses "/" to repeat a search
1908 command, instead of the actually used search string.
1910 R Remove marks from filtered lines. Without this flag
1911 marks are kept like |:keepmarks| was used.
1913 s Set buffer options when entering the buffer for the
1914 first time. This is like it is in Vim version 3.0.
1915 And it is the default. If not present the options are
1916 set when the buffer is created.
1918 S Set buffer options always when entering a buffer
1919 (except 'readonly', 'fileformat', 'filetype' and
1920 'syntax'). This is the (most) Vi compatible setting.
1921 The options are set to the values in the current
1922 buffer. When you change an option and go to another
1923 buffer, the value is copied. Effectively makes the
1924 buffer options global to all buffers.
1926 's' 'S' copy buffer options
1927 no no when buffer created
1928 yes no when buffer first entered (default)
1929 X yes each time when buffer entered (vi comp.)
1931 t Search pattern for the tag command is remembered for
1932 "n" command. Otherwise Vim only puts the pattern in
1933 the history for search pattern, but doesn't change the
1934 last used search pattern.
1936 u Undo is Vi compatible. See |undo-two-ways|.
1938 v Backspaced characters remain visible on the screen in
1939 Insert mode. Without this flag the characters are
1940 erased from the screen right away. With this flag the
1941 screen newly typed text overwrites backspaced
1944 w When using "cw" on a blank character, only change one
1945 character and not all blanks until the start of the
1948 W Don't overwrite a readonly file. When omitted, ":w!"
1949 overwrites a readonly file, if possible.
1951 x <Esc> on the command-line executes the command-line.
1952 The default in Vim is to abandon the command-line,
1953 because <Esc> normally aborts a command. |c_<Esc>|
1955 X When using a count with "R" the replaced text is
1956 deleted only once. Also when repeating "R" with "."
1959 y A yank command can be redone with ".".
1961 Z When using "w!" while the 'readonly' option is set,
1962 don't reset 'readonly'.
1964 ! When redoing a filter command, use the last used
1965 external command, whatever it was. Otherwise the last
1966 used -filter- command is used.
1968 $ When making a change to one line, don't redisplay the
1969 line, but put a '$' at the end of the changed text.
1970 The changed text will be overwritten when you type the
1971 new text. The line is redisplayed if you type any
1972 command that moves the cursor from the insertion
1975 % Vi-compatible matching is done for the "%" command.
1976 Does not recognize "#if", "#endif", etc.
1977 Does not recognize "/*" and "*/".
1978 Parens inside single and double quotes are also
1979 counted, causing a string that contains a paren to
1980 disturb the matching. For example, in a line like
1981 "if (strcmp("foo(", s))" the first paren does not
1982 match the last one. When this flag is not included,
1983 parens inside single and double quotes are treated
1984 specially. When matching a paren outside of quotes,
1985 everything inside quotes is ignored. When matching a
1986 paren inside quotes, it will find the matching one (if
1987 there is one). This works very well for C programs.
1988 This flag is also used for other features, such as
1991 - When included, a vertical movement command fails when
1992 it would go above the first line or below the last
1993 line. Without it the cursor moves to the first or
1994 last line, unless it already was in that line.
1995 Applies to the commands "-", "k", CTRL-P, "+", "j",
1996 CTRL-N, CTRL-J and ":1234".
1998 + When included, a ":write file" command will reset the
1999 'modified' flag of the buffer, even though the buffer
2000 itself may still be different from its file.
2002 * Use ":*" in the same way as ":@". When not included,
2003 ":*" is an alias for ":'<,'>", select the Visual area.
2005 < Disable the recognition of special key codes in |<>|
2006 form in mappings, abbreviations, and the "to" part of
2007 menu commands. For example, the command
2008 ":map X <Tab>" results in X being mapped to:
2009 '<' included: "<Tab>" (5 characters)
2010 '<' excluded: "^I" (^I is a real <Tab>)
2011 Also see the 'k' flag above.
2013 > When appending to a register, put a line break before
2016 POSIX flags. These are not included in the Vi default value, except
2017 when $VIM_POSIX was set on startup. |posix|
2021 # A count before "D", "o" and "O" has no effect.
2023 & When ":preserve" was used keep the swap file when
2024 exiting normally while this buffer is still loaded.
2025 This flag is tested when exiting.
2027 \ Backslash in a [] range in a search pattern is taken
2028 literally, only "\]" is special See |/[]|
2029 '\' included: "/[ \-]" finds <Space>, '\' and '-'
2030 '\' excluded: "/[ \-]" finds <Space> and '-'
2033 / When "%" is used as the replacement string in a |:s|
2034 command, use the previous replacement string. |:s%|
2036 { The |{| and |}| commands also stop at a "{" character
2037 at the start of a line.
2039 . The ":chdir" and ":cd" commands fail if the current
2040 buffer is modified, unless ! is used. Vim doesn't
2041 need this, since it remembers the full path of an
2044 | The value of the $LINES and $COLUMNS environment
2045 variables overrule the terminal size values obtained
2046 with system specific functions.
2049 *'cscopepathcomp'* *'cspc'*
2050 'cscopepathcomp' 'cspc' number (default 0)
2052 {not available when compiled without the |+cscope|
2055 Determines how many components of the path to show in a list of tags.
2056 See |cscopepathcomp|.
2058 *'cscopeprg'* *'csprg'*
2059 'cscopeprg' 'csprg' string (default "cscope")
2061 {not available when compiled without the |+cscope|
2064 Specifies the command to execute cscope. See |cscopeprg|.
2065 This option cannot be set from a |modeline| or in the |sandbox|, for
2068 *'cscopequickfix'* *'csqf'*
2069 'cscopequickfix' 'csqf' string (default "")
2071 {not available when compiled without the |+cscope|
2072 or |+quickfix| features}
2074 Specifies whether to use quickfix window to show cscope results.
2075 See |cscopequickfix|.
2077 *'cscopetag'* *'cst'* *'nocscopetag'* *'nocst'*
2078 'cscopetag' 'cst' boolean (default off)
2080 {not available when compiled without the |+cscope|
2083 Use cscope for tag commands. See |cscope-options|.
2084 NOTE: This option is reset when 'compatible' is set.
2086 *'cscopetagorder'* *'csto'*
2087 'cscopetagorder' 'csto' number (default 0)
2089 {not available when compiled without the |+cscope|
2092 Determines the order in which ":cstag" performs a search. See
2094 NOTE: This option is set to 0 when 'compatible' is set.
2096 *'cscopeverbose'* *'csverb'*
2097 *'nocscopeverbose'* *'nocsverb'*
2098 'cscopeverbose' 'csverb' boolean (default off)
2100 {not available when compiled without the |+cscope|
2103 Give messages when adding a cscope database. See |cscopeverbose|.
2104 NOTE: This option is reset when 'compatible' is set.
2107 *'cursorcolumn'* *'cuc'* *'nocursorcolumn'* *'nocuc'*
2108 'cursorcolumn' 'cuc' boolean (default off)
2111 {not available when compiled without the |+syntax|
2113 Highlight the screen column of the cursor with CursorColumn
2114 |hl-CursorColumn|. Useful to align text. Will make screen redrawing
2116 If you only want the highlighting in the current window you can use
2117 these autocommands: >
2118 au WinLeave * set nocursorline nocursorcolumn
2119 au WinEnter * set cursorline cursorcolumn
2122 *'cursorline'* *'cul'* *'nocursorline'* *'nocul'*
2123 'cursorline' 'cul' boolean (default off)
2126 {not available when compiled without the |+syntax|
2128 Highlight the screen line of the cursor with CursorLine
2129 |hl-CursorLine|. Useful to easily spot the cursor. Will make screen
2131 When Visual mode is active the highlighting isn't used to make it
2132 easier to see the selected text.
2136 'debug' string (default "")
2139 These values can be used:
2140 msg Error messages that would otherwise be omitted will be given
2142 throw Error messages that would otherwise be omitted will be given
2143 anyway and also throw an exception and set |v:errmsg|.
2144 beep A message will be given when otherwise only a beep would be
2146 The values can be combined, separated by a comma.
2147 "msg" and "throw" are useful for debugging 'foldexpr', 'formatexpr' or
2151 'define' 'def' string (default "^\s*#\s*define")
2152 global or local to buffer |global-local|
2154 Pattern to be used to find a macro definition. It is a search
2155 pattern, just like for the "/" command. This option is used for the
2156 commands like "[i" and "[d" |include-search|. The 'isident' option is
2157 used to recognize the defined name after the match:
2158 {match with 'define'}{non-ID chars}{defined name}{non-ID char}
2159 See |option-backslash| about inserting backslashes to include a space
2161 The default value is for C programs. For C++ this value would be
2162 useful, to include const type declarations: >
2163 ^\(#\s*define\|[a-z]*\s*const\s*[a-z]*\)
2164 < When using the ":set" command, you need to double the backslashes!
2166 *'delcombine'* *'deco'* *'nodelcombine'* *'nodeco'*
2167 'delcombine' 'deco' boolean (default off)
2170 {only available when compiled with the |+multi_byte|
2172 If editing Unicode and this option is set, backspace and Normal mode
2173 "x" delete each combining character on its own. When it is off (the
2174 default) the character along with its combining characters are
2176 Note: When 'delcombine' is set "xx" may work different from "2x"!
2178 This is useful for Arabic, Hebrew and many other languages where one
2179 may have combining characters overtop of base characters, and want
2180 to remove only the combining ones.
2182 *'dictionary'* *'dict'*
2183 'dictionary' 'dict' string (default "")
2184 global or local to buffer |global-local|
2186 List of file names, separated by commas, that are used to lookup words
2187 for keyword completion commands |i_CTRL-X_CTRL-K|. Each file should
2188 contain a list of words. This can be one word per line, or several
2189 words per line, separated by non-keyword characters (white space is
2190 preferred). Maximum line length is 510 bytes.
2191 When this option is empty, or an entry "spell" is present, spell
2192 checking is enabled the currently active spelling is used. |spell|
2193 To include a comma in a file name precede it with a backslash. Spaces
2194 after a comma are ignored, otherwise spaces are included in the file
2195 name. See |option-backslash| about using backslashes.
2196 This has nothing to do with the |Dictionary| variable type.
2197 Where to find a list of words?
2198 - On FreeBSD, there is the file "/usr/share/dict/words".
2199 - In the Simtel archive, look in the "msdos/linguist" directory.
2200 - In "miscfiles" of the GNU collection.
2201 The use of |:set+=| and |:set-=| is preferred when adding or removing
2202 directories from the list. This avoids problems when a future version
2203 uses another default.
2204 Backticks cannot be used in this option for security reasons.
2207 'diff' boolean (default off)
2210 {not available when compiled without the |+diff|
2212 Join the current window in the group of windows that shows differences
2213 between files. See |vimdiff|.
2215 *'dex'* *'diffexpr'*
2216 'diffexpr' 'dex' string (default "")
2219 {not available when compiled without the |+diff|
2221 Expression which is evaluated to obtain an ed-style diff file from two
2222 versions of a file. See |diff-diffexpr|.
2223 This option cannot be set from a |modeline| or in the |sandbox|, for
2227 'diffopt' 'dip' string (default "filler")
2230 {not available when compiled without the |+diff|
2232 Option settings for diff mode. It can consist of the following items.
2233 All are optional. Items must be separated by a comma.
2235 filler Show filler lines, to keep the text
2236 synchronized with a window that has inserted
2237 lines at the same position. Mostly useful
2238 when windows are side-by-side and 'scrollbind'
2241 context:{n} Use a context of {n} lines between a change
2242 and a fold that contains unchanged lines.
2243 When omitted a context of six lines is used.
2246 icase Ignore changes in case of text. "a" and "A"
2247 are considered the same. Adds the "-i" flag
2248 to the "diff" command if 'diffexpr' is empty.
2250 iwhite Ignore changes in amount of white space. Adds
2251 the "-b" flag to the "diff" command if
2252 'diffexpr' is empty. Check the documentation
2253 of the "diff" command for what this does
2254 exactly. It should ignore adding trailing
2255 white space, but not leading white space.
2257 horizontal Start diff mode with horizontal splits (unless
2258 explicitly specified otherwise).
2260 vertical Start diff mode with vertical splits (unless
2261 explicitly specified otherwise).
2263 foldcolumn:{n} Set the 'foldcolumn' option to {n} when
2264 starting diff mode. Without this 2 is used.
2268 :set diffopt=filler,context:4
2270 :set diffopt=filler,foldcolumn:3
2272 *'digraph'* *'dg'* *'nodigraph'* *'nodg'*
2273 'digraph' 'dg' boolean (default off)
2276 {not available when compiled without the |+digraphs|
2278 Enable the entering of digraphs in Insert mode with {char1} <BS>
2279 {char2}. See |digraphs|.
2280 NOTE: This option is reset when 'compatible' is set.
2282 *'directory'* *'dir'*
2283 'directory' 'dir' string (default for Amiga: ".,t:",
2284 for MS-DOS and Win32: ".,c:\tmp,c:\temp"
2285 for Unix: ".,~/tmp,/var/tmp,/tmp")
2287 List of directory names for the swap file, separated with commas.
2288 - The swap file will be created in the first directory where this is
2290 - Empty means that no swap file will be used (recovery is
2292 - A directory "." means to put the swap file in the same directory as
2293 the edited file. On Unix, a dot is prepended to the file name, so
2294 it doesn't show in a directory listing. On MS-Windows the "hidden"
2295 attribute is set and a dot prepended if possible.
2296 - A directory starting with "./" (or ".\" for MS-DOS et al.) means to
2297 put the swap file relative to where the edited file is. The leading
2298 "." is replaced with the path name of the edited file.
2299 - For Unix and Win32, if a directory ends in two path separators "//"
2300 or "\\", the swap file name will be built from the complete path to
2301 the file with all path separators substituted to percent '%' signs.
2302 This will ensure file name uniqueness in the preserve directory.
2303 On Win32, when a separating comma is following, you must use "//",
2304 since "\\" will include the comma in the file name.
2305 - Spaces after the comma are ignored, other spaces are considered part
2306 of the directory name. To have a space at the start of a directory
2307 name, precede it with a backslash.
2308 - To include a comma in a directory name precede it with a backslash.
2309 - A directory name may end in an ':' or '/'.
2310 - Environment variables are expanded |:set_env|.
2311 - Careful with '\' characters, type one before a space, type two to
2312 get one in the option (see |option-backslash|), for example: >
2313 :set dir=c:\\tmp,\ dir\\,with\\,commas,\\\ dir\ with\ spaces
2314 < - For backwards compatibility with Vim version 3.0 a '>' at the start
2315 of the option is removed.
2316 Using "." first in the list is recommended. This means that editing
2317 the same file twice will result in a warning. Using "/tmp" on Unix is
2318 discouraged: When the system crashes you lose the swap file.
2319 "/var/tmp" is often not cleared when rebooting, thus is a better
2320 choice than "/tmp". But it can contain a lot of files, your swap
2321 files get lost in the crowd. That is why a "tmp" directory in your
2322 home directory is tried first.
2323 The use of |:set+=| and |:set-=| is preferred when adding or removing
2324 directories from the list. This avoids problems when a future version
2325 uses another default.
2326 This option cannot be set from a |modeline| or in the |sandbox|, for
2328 {Vi: directory to put temp file in, defaults to "/tmp"}
2331 'display' 'dy' string (default "")
2334 Change the way text is displayed. This is comma separated list of
2336 lastline When included, as much as possible of the last line
2337 in a window will be displayed. When not included, a
2338 last line that doesn't fit is replaced with "@" lines.
2339 uhex Show unprintable characters hexadecimal as <xx>
2340 instead of using ^C and ~C.
2342 *'eadirection'* *'ead'*
2343 'eadirection' 'ead' string (default "both")
2346 {not available when compiled without the +vertsplit
2348 Tells when the 'equalalways' option applies:
2349 ver vertically, width of windows is not affected
2350 hor horizontally, height of windows is not affected
2351 both width and height of windows is affected
2353 *'ed'* *'edcompatible'* *'noed'* *'noedcompatible'*
2354 'edcompatible' 'ed' boolean (default off)
2356 Makes the 'g' and 'c' flags of the ":substitute" command to be
2357 toggled each time the flag is given. See |complex-change|. See
2358 also 'gdefault' option.
2359 Switching this option on is discouraged!
2361 *'encoding'* *'enc'* *E543*
2362 'encoding' 'enc' string (default: "latin1" or value from $LANG)
2364 {only available when compiled with the |+multi_byte|
2367 Sets the character encoding used inside Vim. It applies to text in
2368 the buffers, registers, Strings in expressions, text stored in the
2369 viminfo file, etc. It sets the kind of characters which Vim can work
2370 with. See |encoding-names| for the possible values.
2372 NOTE: Changing this option will not change the encoding of the
2373 existing text in Vim. It may cause non-ASCII text to become invalid.
2374 It should normally be kept at its default value, or set when Vim
2375 starts up. See |multibyte|. To reload the menus see |:menutrans|.
2377 NOTE: For GTK+ 2 it is highly recommended to set 'encoding' to
2378 "utf-8". Although care has been taken to allow different values of
2379 'encoding', "utf-8" is the natural choice for the environment and
2380 avoids unnecessary conversion overhead. "utf-8" has not been made
2381 the default to prevent different behavior of the GUI and terminal
2382 versions, and to avoid changing the encoding of newly created files
2383 without your knowledge (in case 'fileencodings' is empty).
2385 The character encoding of files can be different from 'encoding'.
2386 This is specified with 'fileencoding'. The conversion is done with
2387 iconv() or as specified with 'charconvert'.
2389 Normally 'encoding' will be equal to your current locale. This will
2390 be the default if Vim recognizes your environment settings. If
2391 'encoding' is not set to the current locale, 'termencoding' must be
2392 set to convert typed and displayed text. See |encoding-table|.
2394 When you set this option, it fires the |EncodingChanged| autocommand
2395 event so that you can set up fonts if necessary.
2397 When the option is set, the value is converted to lowercase. Thus
2398 you can set it with uppercase values too. Underscores are translated
2400 When the encoding is recognized, it is changed to the standard name.
2401 For example "Latin-1" becomes "latin1", "ISO_88592" becomes
2402 "iso-8859-2" and "utf8" becomes "utf-8".
2404 Note: "latin1" is also used when the encoding could not be detected.
2405 This only works when editing files in the same encoding! When the
2406 actual character set is not latin1, make sure 'fileencoding' and
2407 'fileencodings' are empty. When conversion is needed, switch to using
2410 When "unicode", "ucs-2" or "ucs-4" is used, Vim internally uses utf-8.
2411 You don't notice this while editing, but it does matter for the
2412 |viminfo-file|. And Vim expects the terminal to use utf-8 too. Thus
2413 setting 'encoding' to one of these values instead of utf-8 only has
2414 effect for encoding used for files when 'fileencoding' is empty.
2416 When 'encoding' is set to a Unicode encoding, and 'fileencodings' was
2417 not set yet, the default for 'fileencodings' is changed.
2419 *'endofline'* *'eol'* *'noendofline'* *'noeol'*
2420 'endofline' 'eol' boolean (default on)
2423 When writing a file and this option is off and the 'binary' option
2424 is on, no <EOL> will be written for the last line in the file. This
2425 option is automatically set when starting to edit a new file, unless
2426 the file does not have an <EOL> for the last line in the file, in
2427 which case it is reset. Normally you don't have to set or reset this
2428 option. When 'binary' is off the value is not used when writing the
2429 file. When 'binary' is on it is used to remember the presence of a
2430 <EOL> for the last line in the file, so that when you write the file
2431 the situation from the original file can be kept. But you can change
2434 *'equalalways'* *'ea'* *'noequalalways'* *'noea'*
2435 'equalalways' 'ea' boolean (default on)
2438 When on, all the windows are automatically made the same size after
2439 splitting or closing a window. This also happens the moment the
2440 option is switched on. When off, splitting a window will reduce the
2441 size of the current window and leave the other windows the same. When
2442 closing a window the extra lines are given to the window next to it
2443 (depending on 'splitbelow' and 'splitright').
2444 When mixing vertically and horizontally split windows, a minimal size
2445 is computed and some windows may be larger if there is room. The
2446 'eadirection' option tells in which direction the size is affected.
2447 Changing the height and width of a window can be avoided by setting
2448 'winfixheight' and 'winfixwidth', respectively.
2451 'equalprg' 'ep' string (default "")
2452 global or local to buffer |global-local|
2454 External program to use for "=" command. When this option is empty
2455 the internal formatting functions are used; either 'lisp', 'cindent'
2457 Environment variables are expanded |:set_env|. See |option-backslash|
2458 about including spaces and backslashes.
2459 This option cannot be set from a |modeline| or in the |sandbox|, for
2462 *'errorbells'* *'eb'* *'noerrorbells'* *'noeb'*
2463 'errorbells' 'eb' boolean (default off)
2465 Ring the bell (beep or screen flash) for error messages. This only
2466 makes a difference for error messages, the bell will be used always
2467 for a lot of errors without a message (e.g., hitting <Esc> in Normal
2468 mode). See 'visualbell' on how to make the bell behave like a beep,
2469 screen flash or do nothing.
2471 *'errorfile'* *'ef'*
2472 'errorfile' 'ef' string (Amiga default: "AztecC.Err",
2473 others: "errors.err")
2476 {not available when compiled without the |+quickfix|
2478 Name of the errorfile for the QuickFix mode (see |:cf|).
2479 When the "-q" command-line argument is used, 'errorfile' is set to the
2480 following argument. See |-q|.
2481 NOT used for the ":make" command. See 'makeef' for that.
2482 Environment variables are expanded |:set_env|.
2483 See |option-backslash| about including spaces and backslashes.
2484 This option cannot be set from a |modeline| or in the |sandbox|, for
2487 *'errorformat'* *'efm'*
2488 'errorformat' 'efm' string (default is very long)
2489 global or local to buffer |global-local|
2491 {not available when compiled without the |+quickfix|
2493 Scanf-like description of the format for the lines in the error file
2494 (see |errorformat|).
2496 *'esckeys'* *'ek'* *'noesckeys'* *'noek'*
2497 'esckeys' 'ek' boolean (Vim default: on, Vi default: off)
2500 Function keys that start with an <Esc> are recognized in Insert
2501 mode. When this option is off, the cursor and function keys cannot be
2502 used in Insert mode if they start with an <Esc>. The advantage of
2503 this is that the single <Esc> is recognized immediately, instead of
2504 after one second. Instead of resetting this option, you might want to
2505 try changing the values for 'timeoutlen' and 'ttimeoutlen'. Note that
2506 when 'esckeys' is off, you can still map anything, but the cursor keys
2507 won't work by default.
2508 NOTE: This option is set to the Vi default value when 'compatible' is
2509 set and to the Vim default value when 'compatible' is reset.
2511 *'eventignore'* *'ei'*
2512 'eventignore' 'ei' string (default "")
2515 {not available when compiled without the |+autocmd|
2517 A list of autocommand event names, which are to be ignored.
2518 When set to "all" or when "all" is one of the items, all autocommand
2519 events are ignored, autocommands will not be executed.
2520 Otherwise this is a comma separated list of event names. Example: >
2521 :set ei=WinEnter,WinLeave
2523 *'expandtab'* *'et'* *'noexpandtab'* *'noet'*
2524 'expandtab' 'et' boolean (default off)
2527 In Insert mode: Use the appropriate number of spaces to insert a
2528 <Tab>. Spaces are used in indents with the '>' and '<' commands and
2529 when 'autoindent' is on. To insert a real tab when 'expandtab' is
2530 on, use CTRL-V<Tab>. See also |:retab| and |ins-expandtab|.
2531 NOTE: This option is reset when 'compatible' is set.
2533 *'exrc'* *'ex'* *'noexrc'* *'noex'*
2534 'exrc' 'ex' boolean (default off)
2537 Enables the reading of .vimrc, .exrc and .gvimrc in the current
2538 directory. If you switch this option on you should also consider
2539 setting the 'secure' option (see |initialization|). Using a local
2540 .exrc, .vimrc or .gvimrc is a potential security leak, use with care!
2541 also see |.vimrc| and |gui-init|.
2542 This option cannot be set from a |modeline| or in the |sandbox|, for
2545 *'fileencoding'* *'fenc'* *E213*
2546 'fileencoding' 'fenc' string (default: "")
2548 {only available when compiled with the |+multi_byte|
2551 Sets the character encoding for the file of this buffer.
2552 When 'fileencoding' is different from 'encoding', conversion will be
2553 done when reading and writing the file.
2554 When 'fileencoding' is empty, the same value as 'encoding' will be
2555 used (no conversion when reading or writing a file).
2556 WARNING: Conversion can cause loss of information! When
2557 'encoding' is "utf-8" conversion is most likely done in a way
2558 that the reverse conversion results in the same text. When
2559 'encoding' is not "utf-8" some characters may be lost!
2560 See 'encoding' for the possible values. Additionally, values may be
2561 specified that can be handled by the converter, see
2563 When reading a file 'fileencoding' will be set from 'fileencodings'.
2564 To read a file in a certain encoding it won't work by setting
2565 'fileencoding', use the |++enc| argument. One exception: when
2566 'fileencodings' is empty the value of 'fileencoding' is used.
2567 For a new file the global value of 'fileencoding' is used.
2568 Prepending "8bit-" and "2byte-" has no meaning here, they are ignored.
2569 When the option is set, the value is converted to lowercase. Thus
2570 you can set it with uppercase values too. '_' characters are
2571 replaced with '-'. If a name is recognized from the list for
2572 'encoding', it is replaced by the standard name. For example
2573 "ISO8859-2" becomes "iso-8859-2".
2574 When this option is set, after starting to edit a file, the 'modified'
2575 option is set, because the file would be different when written.
2576 If you do this in a modeline, you might want to set 'nomodified' to
2578 This option can not be changed when 'modifiable' is off.
2581 NOTE: Before version 6.0 this option specified the encoding for the
2582 whole of Vim, this was a mistake. Now use 'encoding' instead. The
2583 old short name was 'fe', which is no longer used.
2585 *'fileencodings'* *'fencs'*
2586 'fileencodings' 'fencs' string (default: "ucs-bom",
2587 "ucs-bom,utf-8,default,latin1" when
2588 'encoding' is set to a Unicode value)
2590 {only available when compiled with the |+multi_byte|
2593 This is a list of character encodings considered when starting to edit
2594 an existing file. When a file is read, Vim tries to use the first
2595 mentioned character encoding. If an error is detected, the next one
2596 in the list is tried. When an encoding is found that works,
2597 'fileencoding' is set to it. If all fail, 'fileencoding' is set to
2598 an empty string, which means the value of 'encoding' is used.
2599 WARNING: Conversion can cause loss of information! When
2600 'encoding' is "utf-8" (or one of the other Unicode variants)
2601 conversion is most likely done in a way that the reverse
2602 conversion results in the same text. When 'encoding' is not
2603 "utf-8" some non-ASCII characters may be lost! You can use
2604 the |++bad| argument to specify what is done with characters
2605 that can't be converted.
2606 For an empty file or a file with only ASCII characters most encodings
2607 will work and the first entry of 'fileencodings' will be used (except
2608 "ucs-bom", which requires the BOM to be present). If you prefer
2609 another encoding use an BufReadPost autocommand event to test if your
2610 preferred encoding is to be used. Example: >
2611 au BufReadPost * if search('\S', 'w') == 0 |
2612 \ set fenc=iso-2022-jp | endif
2613 < This sets 'fileencoding' to "iso-2022-jp" if the file does not contain
2614 non-blank characters.
2615 When the |++enc| argument is used then the value of 'fileencodings' is
2617 Note that 'fileencodings' is not used for a new file, the global value
2618 of 'fileencoding' is used instead. You can set it with: >
2619 :setglobal fenc=iso-8859-2
2620 < This means that a non-existing file may get a different encoding than
2622 The special value "ucs-bom" can be used to check for a Unicode BOM
2623 (Byte Order Mark) at the start of the file. It must not be preceded
2624 by "utf-8" or another Unicode encoding for this to work properly.
2625 An entry for an 8-bit encoding (e.g., "latin1") should be the last,
2626 because Vim cannot detect an error, thus the encoding is always
2628 The special value "default" can be used for the encoding from the
2629 environment. This is the default value for 'encoding'. It is useful
2630 when 'encoding' is set to "utf-8" and your environment uses a
2631 non-latin1 encoding, such as Russian.
2632 When 'encoding' is "utf-8" and a file contains an illegal byte
2633 sequence it won't be recognized as UTF-8. You can use the |8g8|
2634 command to find the illegal byte sequence.
2635 WRONG VALUES: WHAT'S WRONG:
2636 latin1,utf-8 "latin1" will always be used
2637 utf-8,ucs-bom,latin1 BOM won't be recognized in an utf-8
2639 cp1250,latin1 "cp1250" will always be used
2640 If 'fileencodings' is empty, 'fileencoding' is not modified.
2641 See 'fileencoding' for the possible values.
2642 Setting this option does not have an effect until the next time a file
2645 *'fileformat'* *'ff'*
2646 'fileformat' 'ff' string (MS-DOS, MS-Windows, OS/2 default: "dos",
2647 Unix default: "unix",
2648 Macintosh default: "mac")
2651 This gives the <EOL> of the current buffer, which is used for
2652 reading/writing the buffer from/to a file:
2656 When "dos" is used, CTRL-Z at the end of a file is ignored.
2657 See |file-formats| and |file-read|.
2658 For the character encoding of the file see 'fileencoding'.
2659 When 'binary' is set, the value of 'fileformat' is ignored, file I/O
2660 works like it was set to "unix'.
2661 This option is set automatically when starting to edit a file and
2662 'fileformats' is not empty and 'binary' is off.
2663 When this option is set, after starting to edit a file, the 'modified'
2664 option is set, because the file would be different when written.
2665 This option can not be changed when 'modifiable' is off.
2666 For backwards compatibility: When this option is set to "dos",
2667 'textmode' is set, otherwise 'textmode' is reset.
2669 *'fileformats'* *'ffs'*
2670 'fileformats' 'ffs' string (default:
2671 Vim+Vi MS-DOS, MS-Windows OS/2: "dos,unix",
2672 Vim Unix: "unix,dos",
2673 Vim Mac: "mac,unix,dos",
2674 Vi Cygwin: "unix,dos",
2678 This gives the end-of-line (<EOL>) formats that will be tried when
2679 starting to edit a new buffer and when reading a file into an existing
2681 - When empty, the format defined with 'fileformat' will be used
2682 always. It is not set automatically.
2683 - When set to one name, that format will be used whenever a new buffer
2684 is opened. 'fileformat' is set accordingly for that buffer. The
2685 'fileformats' name will be used when a file is read into an existing
2686 buffer, no matter what 'fileformat' for that buffer is set to.
2687 - When more than one name is present, separated by commas, automatic
2688 <EOL> detection will be done when reading a file. When starting to
2689 edit a file, a check is done for the <EOL>:
2690 1. If all lines end in <CR><NL>, and 'fileformats' includes "dos",
2691 'fileformat' is set to "dos".
2692 2. If a <NL> is found and 'fileformats' includes "unix", 'fileformat'
2693 is set to "unix". Note that when a <NL> is found without a
2694 preceding <CR>, "unix" is preferred over "dos".
2695 3. If 'fileformats' includes "mac", 'fileformat' is set to "mac".
2696 This means that "mac" is only chosen when "unix" is not present,
2697 or when no <NL> is found in the file, and when "dos" is not
2698 present, or no <CR><NL> is present in the file.
2699 Also if "unix" was first chosen, but the first <CR> is before
2700 the first <NL> and there appears to be more <CR>'s than <NL>'s in
2701 the file, then 'fileformat' is set to "mac".
2702 4. If 'fileformat' is still not set, the first name from
2703 'fileformats' is used.
2704 When reading a file into an existing buffer, the same is done, but
2705 this happens like 'fileformat' has been set appropriately for that
2706 file only, the option is not changed.
2707 When 'binary' is set, the value of 'fileformats' is not used.
2709 For systems with a Dos-like <EOL> (<CR><NL>), when reading files that
2710 are ":source"ed and for vimrc files, automatic <EOL> detection may be
2712 - When 'fileformats' is empty, there is no automatic detection. Dos
2713 format will be used.
2714 - When 'fileformats' is set to one or more names, automatic detection
2715 is done. This is based on the first <NL> in the file: If there is a
2716 <CR> in front of it, Dos format is used, otherwise Unix format is
2718 Also see |file-formats|.
2719 For backwards compatibility: When this option is set to an empty
2720 string or one format (no comma is included), 'textauto' is reset,
2721 otherwise 'textauto' is set.
2722 NOTE: This option is set to the Vi default value when 'compatible' is
2723 set and to the Vim default value when 'compatible' is reset.
2726 'filetype' 'ft' string (default: "")
2729 {not available when compiled without the |+autocmd|
2731 When this option is set, the FileType autocommand event is triggered.
2732 All autocommands that match with the value of this option will be
2733 executed. Thus the value of 'filetype' is used in place of the file
2735 Otherwise this option does not always reflect the current file type.
2736 This option is normally set when the file type is detected. To enable
2737 this use the ":filetype on" command. |:filetype|
2738 Setting this option to a different value is most useful in a modeline,
2739 for a file for which the file type is not automatically recognized.
2740 Example, for in an IDL file:
2741 /* vim: set filetype=idl : */ ~
2742 |FileType| |filetypes|
2743 When a dot appears in the value then this separates two filetype
2745 /* vim: set filetype=c.doxygen : */ ~
2746 This will use the "c" filetype first, then the "doxygen" filetype.
2747 This works both for filetype plugins and for syntax files. More than
2749 Do not confuse this option with 'osfiletype', which is for the file
2750 type that is actually stored with the file.
2751 This option is not copied to another buffer, independent of the 's' or
2752 'S' flag in 'cpoptions'.
2753 Only normal file name characters can be used, "/\*?[|<>" are illegal.
2755 *'fillchars'* *'fcs'*
2756 'fillchars' 'fcs' string (default "vert:|,fold:-")
2759 {not available when compiled without the |+windows|
2760 and |+folding| features}
2761 Characters to fill the statuslines and vertical separators.
2762 It is a comma separated list of items:
2764 item default Used for ~
2765 stl:c ' ' or '^' statusline of the current window
2766 stlnc:c ' ' or '-' statusline of the non-current windows
2767 vert:c '|' vertical separators |:vsplit|
2768 fold:c '-' filling 'foldtext'
2769 diff:c '-' deleted lines of the 'diff' option
2771 Any one that is omitted will fall back to the default. For "stl" and
2772 "stlnc" the space will be used when there is highlighting, '^' or '-'
2776 :set fillchars=stl:^,stlnc:-,vert:\|,fold:-,diff:-
2777 < This is similar to the default, except that these characters will also
2778 be used when there is highlighting.
2780 for "stl" and "stlnc" only single-byte values are supported.
2782 The highlighting used for these items:
2783 item highlight group ~
2784 stl:c StatusLine |hl-StatusLine|
2785 stlnc:c StatusLineNC |hl-StatusLineNC|
2786 vert:c VertSplit |hl-VertSplit|
2787 fold:c Folded |hl-Folded|
2788 diff:c DiffDelete |hl-DiffDelete|
2790 *'fkmap'* *'fk'* *'nofkmap'* *'nofk'*
2791 'fkmap' 'fk' boolean (default off) *E198*
2794 {only available when compiled with the |+rightleft|
2796 When on, the keyboard is mapped for the Farsi character set.
2797 Normally you would set 'allowrevins' and use CTRL-_ in insert mode to
2798 toggle this option |i_CTRL-_|. See |farsi.txt|.
2800 *'foldclose'* *'fcl'*
2801 'foldclose' 'fcl' string (default "")
2804 {not available when compiled without the |+folding|
2806 When set to "all", a fold is closed when the cursor isn't in it and
2807 its level is higher than 'foldlevel'. Useful if you want folds to
2808 automatically close when moving out of them.
2810 *'foldcolumn'* *'fdc'*
2811 'foldcolumn' 'fdc' number (default 0)
2814 {not available when compiled without the |+folding|
2816 When non-zero, a column with the specified width is shown at the side
2817 of the window which indicates open and closed folds. The maximum
2821 *'foldenable'* *'fen'* *'nofoldenable'* *'nofen'*
2822 'foldenable' 'fen' boolean (default on)
2825 {not available when compiled without the |+folding|
2827 When off, all folds are open. This option can be used to quickly
2828 switch between showing all text unfolded and viewing the text with
2829 folds (including manually opened or closed folds). It can be toggled
2830 with the |zi| command. The 'foldcolumn' will remain blank when
2831 'foldenable' is off.
2832 This option is set by commands that create a new fold or close a fold.
2835 *'foldexpr'* *'fde'*
2836 'foldexpr' 'fde' string (default: "0")
2839 {not available when compiled without the |+folding|
2841 The expression used for when 'foldmethod' is "expr". It is evaluated
2842 for each line to obtain its fold level. See |fold-expr|.
2844 The expression may be evaluated in the |sandbox|, see
2847 It is not allowed to change text or jump to another window while
2848 evaluating 'foldexpr' |textlock|.
2850 *'foldignore'* *'fdi'*
2851 'foldignore' 'fdi' string (default: "#")
2854 {not available when compiled without the |+folding|
2856 Used only when 'foldmethod' is "indent". Lines starting with
2857 characters in 'foldignore' will get their fold level from surrounding
2858 lines. White space is skipped before checking for this character.
2859 The default "#" works well for C programs. See |fold-indent|.
2861 *'foldlevel'* *'fdl'*
2862 'foldlevel' 'fdl' number (default: 0)
2865 {not available when compiled without the |+folding|
2867 Sets the fold level: Folds with a higher level will be closed.
2868 Setting this option to zero will close all folds. Higher numbers will
2870 This option is set by commands like |zm|, |zM| and |zR|.
2871 See |fold-foldlevel|.
2873 *'foldlevelstart'* *'fdls'*
2874 'foldlevelstart' 'fdls' number (default: -1)
2877 {not available when compiled without the |+folding|
2879 Sets 'foldlevel' when starting to edit another buffer in a window.
2880 Useful to always start editing with all folds closed (value zero),
2881 some folds closed (one) or no folds closed (99).
2882 This is done before reading any modeline, thus a setting in a modeline
2883 overrules this option. Starting to edit a file for |diff-mode| also
2884 ignores this option and closes all folds.
2885 It is also done before BufReadPre autocommands, to allow an autocmd to
2886 overrule the 'foldlevel' value for specific files.
2887 When the value is negative, it is not used.
2889 *'foldmarker'* *'fmr'* *E536*
2890 'foldmarker' 'fmr' string (default: "{{{,}}}")
2893 {not available when compiled without the |+folding|
2895 The start and end marker used when 'foldmethod' is "marker". There
2896 must be one comma, which separates the start and end marker. The
2897 marker is a literal string (a regular expression would be too slow).
2900 *'foldmethod'* *'fdm'*
2901 'foldmethod' 'fdm' string (default: "manual")
2904 {not available when compiled without the |+folding|
2906 The kind of folding used for the current window. Possible values:
2907 |fold-manual| manual Folds are created manually.
2908 |fold-indent| indent Lines with equal indent form a fold.
2909 |fold-expr| expr 'foldexpr' gives the fold level of a line.
2910 |fold-marker| marker Markers are used to specify folds.
2911 |fold-syntax| syntax Syntax highlighting items specify folds.
2912 |fold-diff| diff Fold text that is not changed.
2914 *'foldminlines'* *'fml'*
2915 'foldminlines' 'fml' number (default: 1)
2918 {not available when compiled without the |+folding|
2920 Sets the minimum number of screen lines for a fold to be displayed
2921 closed. Also for manually closed folds.
2922 Note that this only has an effect of what is displayed. After using
2923 "zc" to close a fold, which is displayed open because it's smaller
2924 than 'foldminlines', a following "zc" may close a containing fold.
2926 *'foldnestmax'* *'fdn'*
2927 'foldnestmax' 'fdn' number (default: 20)
2930 {not available when compiled without the |+folding|
2932 Sets the maximum nesting of folds for the "indent" and "syntax"
2933 methods. This avoids that too many folds will be created. Using more
2934 than 20 doesn't work, because the internal limit is 20.
2936 *'foldopen'* *'fdo'*
2937 'foldopen' 'fdo' string (default: "block,hor,mark,percent,quickfix,
2941 {not available when compiled without the |+folding|
2943 Specifies for which type of commands folds will be opened, if the
2944 command moves the cursor into a closed fold. It is a comma separated
2948 block "(", "{", "[[", "[{", etc.
2949 hor horizontal movements: "l", "w", "fx", etc.
2950 insert any command in Insert mode
2951 jump far jumps: "G", "gg", etc.
2952 mark jumping to a mark: "'m", CTRL-O, etc.
2954 quickfix ":cn", ":crew", ":make", etc.
2955 search search for a pattern: "/", "n", "*", "gd", etc.
2956 (not for a search pattern in a ":" command)
2957 Also for |[s| and |]s|.
2958 tag jumping to a tag: ":ta", CTRL-T, etc.
2959 undo undo or redo: "u" and CTRL-R
2960 When the command is part of a mapping this option is not used. Add
2961 the |zv| command to the mapping to get the same effect.
2962 When a movement command is used for an operator (e.g., "dl" or "y%")
2963 this option is not used. This means the operator will include the
2965 Note that vertical movements are not here, because it would make it
2966 very difficult to move onto a closed fold.
2967 In insert mode the folds containing the cursor will always be open
2968 when text is inserted.
2969 To close folds you can re-apply 'foldlevel' with the |zx| command or
2970 set the 'foldclose' option to "all".
2972 *'foldtext'* *'fdt'*
2973 'foldtext' 'fdt' string (default: "foldtext()")
2976 {not available when compiled without the |+folding|
2978 An expression which is used to specify the text displayed for a closed
2979 fold. See |fold-foldtext|.
2981 The expression may be evaluated in the |sandbox|, see
2984 It is not allowed to change text or jump to another window while
2985 evaluating 'foldtext' |textlock|.
2987 *'formatoptions'* *'fo'*
2988 'formatoptions' 'fo' string (Vim default: "tcq", Vi default: "vt")
2991 This is a sequence of letters which describes how automatic
2992 formatting is to be done. See |fo-table|. When the 'paste' option is
2993 on, no formatting is done (like 'formatoptions' is empty). Commas can
2994 be inserted for readability.
2995 To avoid problems with flags that are added in the future, use the
2996 "+=" and "-=" feature of ":set" |add-option-flags|.
2997 NOTE: This option is set to the Vi default value when 'compatible' is
2998 set and to the Vim default value when 'compatible' is reset.
3000 *'formatlistpat'* *'flp'*
3001 'formatlistpat' 'flp' string (default: "^\s*\d\+[\]:.)}\t ]\s*")
3004 A pattern that is used to recognize a list header. This is used for
3005 the "n" flag in 'formatoptions'.
3006 The pattern must match exactly the text that will be the indent for
3007 the line below it. You can use |/\ze| to mark the end of the match
3008 while still checking more characters. There must be a character
3009 following the pattern, when it matches the whole line it is handled
3010 like there is no match.
3011 The default recognizes a number, followed by an optional punctuation
3012 character and white space.
3014 *'formatprg'* *'fp'*
3015 'formatprg' 'fp' string (default "")
3018 The name of an external program that will be used to format the lines
3019 selected with the |gq| operator. The program must take the input on
3020 stdin and produce the output on stdout. The Unix program "fmt" is
3022 If the 'formatexpr' option is not empty it will be used instead.
3023 Otherwise, if 'formatprg' option is an empty string, the internal
3024 format function will be used |C-indenting|.
3025 Environment variables are expanded |:set_env|. See |option-backslash|
3026 about including spaces and backslashes.
3027 The expression may be evaluated in the |sandbox|, see
3030 *'formatexpr'* *'fex'*
3031 'formatexpr' 'fex' string (default "")
3034 {not available when compiled without the |+eval|
3036 Expression which is evaluated to format a range of lines for the |gq|
3037 operator. When this option is empty 'formatprg' is used.
3039 The |v:lnum| variable holds the first line to be formatted.
3040 The |v:count| variable holds the number of lines to be formatted.
3041 The |v:char| variable holds the character that is going to be
3042 inserted. This can be empty. Don't insert it yet!
3045 :set formatexpr=mylang#Format()
3046 < This will invoke the mylang#Format() function in the
3047 autoload/mylang.vim file in 'runtimepath'. |autoload|
3049 The expression is also evaluated when 'textwidth' is set and adding
3050 text beyond that limit. This happens under the same conditions as
3051 when internal formatting is used. Make sure the cursor is kept in the
3052 same spot relative to the text then! The |mode()| function will
3053 return "i" or "R" in this situation. When the function returns
3054 non-zero Vim will fall back to using the internal format mechanism.
3056 The expression may be evaluated in the |sandbox|, see
3060 'fsync' 'fs' boolean (default on)
3063 When on, the library function fsync() will be called after writing a
3064 file. This will flush a file to disk, ensuring that it is safely
3065 written even on filesystems which do metadata-only journaling. This
3066 will force the harddrive to spin up on Linux systems running in laptop
3067 mode, so it may be undesirable in some situations. Be warned that
3068 turning this off increases the chances of data loss after a crash. On
3069 systems without an fsync() implementation, this variable is always
3071 Also see 'swapsync' for controlling fsync() on swap files.
3073 *'gdefault'* *'gd'* *'nogdefault'* *'nogd'*
3074 'gdefault' 'gd' boolean (default off)
3077 When on, the ":substitute" flag 'g' is default on. This means that
3078 all matches in a line are substituted instead of one. When a 'g' flag
3079 is given to a ":substitute" command, this will toggle the substitution
3080 of all or one match. See |complex-change|.
3082 command 'gdefault' on 'gdefault' off ~
3083 :s/// subst. all subst. one
3084 :s///g subst. one subst. all
3085 :s///gg subst. all subst. one
3087 NOTE: This option is reset when 'compatible' is set.
3089 *'grepformat'* *'gfm'*
3090 'grepformat' 'gfm' string (default "%f:%l%m,%f %l%m")
3093 Format to recognize for the ":grep" command output.
3094 This is a scanf-like string that uses the same format as the
3095 'errorformat' option: see |errorformat|.
3098 'grepprg' 'gp' string (default "grep -n ",
3099 Unix: "grep -n $* /dev/null",
3100 Win32: "findstr /n" or "grep -n",
3101 VMS: "SEARCH/NUMBERS ")
3102 global or local to buffer |global-local|
3104 Program to use for the |:grep| command. This option may contain '%'
3105 and '#' characters, which are expanded like when used in a command-
3106 line. The placeholder "$*" is allowed to specify where the arguments
3107 will be included. Environment variables are expanded |:set_env|. See
3108 |option-backslash| about including spaces and backslashes.
3109 When your "grep" accepts the "-H" argument, use this to make ":grep"
3110 also work well with a single file: >
3111 :set grepprg=grep\ -nH
3112 < Special value: When 'grepprg' is set to "internal" the |:grep| command
3113 works like |:vimgrep|, |:lgrep| like |:lvimgrep|, |:grepadd| like
3114 |:vimgrepadd| and |:lgrepadd| like |:lvimgrepadd|.
3115 See also the section |:make_makeprg|, since most of the comments there
3116 apply equally to 'grepprg'.
3117 For Win32, the default is "findstr /n" if "findstr.exe" can be found,
3118 otherwise it's "grep -n".
3119 This option cannot be set from a |modeline| or in the |sandbox|, for
3122 *'guicursor'* *'gcr'* *E545* *E546* *E548* *E549*
3123 'guicursor' 'gcr' string (default "n-v-c:block-Cursor/lCursor,
3126 i-ci:ver25-Cursor/lCursor,
3127 r-cr:hor20-Cursor/lCursor,
3129 -blinkwait175-blinkoff150-blinkon175",
3130 for MS-DOS and Win32 console:
3131 "n-v-c:block,o:hor50,i-ci:hor15,
3132 r-cr:hor30,sm:block")
3135 {only available when compiled with GUI enabled, and
3136 for MS-DOS and Win32 console}
3137 This option tells Vim what the cursor should look like in different
3138 modes. It fully works in the GUI. In an MSDOS or Win32 console, only
3139 the height of the cursor can be changed. This can be done by
3140 specifying a block cursor, or a percentage for a vertical or
3142 For a console the 't_SI' and 't_EI' escape sequences are used.
3144 The option is a comma separated list of parts. Each part consist of a
3145 mode-list and an argument-list:
3146 mode-list:argument-list,mode-list:argument-list,..
3147 The mode-list is a dash separated list of these modes:
3150 ve Visual mode with 'selection' "exclusive" (same as 'v',
3152 o Operator-pending mode
3155 c Command-line Normal (append) mode
3156 ci Command-line Insert mode
3157 cr Command-line Replace mode
3158 sm showmatch in Insert mode
3160 The argument-list is a dash separated list of these arguments:
3161 hor{N} horizontal bar, {N} percent of the character height
3162 ver{N} vertical bar, {N} percent of the character width
3163 block block cursor, fills the whole character
3164 [only one of the above three should be present]
3165 blinkwait{N} *cursor-blinking*
3168 blink times for cursor: blinkwait is the delay before
3169 the cursor starts blinking, blinkon is the time that
3170 the cursor is shown and blinkoff is the time that the
3171 cursor is not shown. The times are in msec. When one
3172 of the numbers is zero, there is no blinking. The
3173 default is: "blinkwait700-blinkon400-blinkoff250".
3174 These numbers are used for a missing entry. This
3175 means that blinking is enabled by default. To switch
3176 blinking off you can use "blinkon0". The cursor only
3177 blinks when Vim is waiting for input, not while
3178 executing a command.
3179 To make the cursor blink in an xterm, see
3182 a highlight group name, that sets the color and font
3184 {group-name}/{group-name}
3185 Two highlight group names, the first is used when
3186 no language mappings are used, the other when they
3187 are. |language-mapping|
3190 n-c-v:block-nCursor in Normal, Command-line and Visual mode, use a
3191 block cursor with colors from the "nCursor"
3193 i-ci:ver30-iCursor-blinkwait300-blinkon200-blinkoff150
3194 In Insert and Command-line Insert mode, use a
3195 30% vertical bar cursor with colors from the
3196 "iCursor" highlight group. Blink a bit
3199 The 'a' mode is different. It will set the given argument-list for
3200 all modes. It does not reset anything to defaults. This can be used
3201 to do a common setting for all modes. For example, to switch off
3202 blinking: "a:blinkon0"
3204 Examples of cursor highlighting: >
3205 :highlight Cursor gui=reverse guifg=NONE guibg=NONE
3206 :highlight Cursor gui=NONE guifg=bg guibg=fg
3209 *E235* *E596* *E610* *E611*
3210 'guifont' 'gfn' string (default "")
3213 {only available when compiled with GUI enabled}
3214 This is a list of fonts which will be used for the GUI version of Vim.
3215 In its simplest form the value is just one font name. When
3216 the font cannot be found you will get an error message. To try other
3217 font names a list can be specified, font names separated with commas.
3218 The first valid font is used.
3220 On systems where 'guifontset' is supported (X11) and 'guifontset' is
3221 not empty, then 'guifont' is not used.
3223 Spaces after a comma are ignored. To include a comma in a font name
3224 precede it with a backslash. Setting an option requires an extra
3225 backslash before a space and a backslash. See also
3226 |option-backslash|. For example: >
3227 :set guifont=Screen15,\ 7x13,font\\,with\\,commas
3228 < will make Vim try to use the font "Screen15" first, and if it fails it
3229 will try to use "7x13" and then "font,with,commas" instead.
3231 If none of the fonts can be loaded, Vim will keep the current setting.
3232 If an empty font list is given, Vim will try using other resource
3233 settings (for X, it will use the Vim.font resource), and finally it
3234 will try some builtin default which should always be there ("7x13" in
3235 the case of X). The font names given should be "normal" fonts. Vim
3236 will try to find the related bold and italic fonts.
3238 For Win32, GTK, Mac OS and Photon: >
3240 < will bring up a font requester, where you can pick the font you want.
3242 The font name depends on the GUI used. See |setting-guifont| for a
3243 way to set 'guifont' for various systems.
3245 For the GTK+ 2 GUI the font name looks like this: >
3246 :set guifont=Andale\ Mono\ 11
3247 < That's all. XLFDs are no longer accepted.
3249 For Mac OSX you can use something like this: >
3250 :set guifont=Monaco:h10
3251 < Also see 'macatsui', it can help fix display problems.
3253 Note that the fonts must be mono-spaced (all characters have the same
3254 width). An exception is GTK 2: all fonts are accepted, but
3255 mono-spaced fonts look best.
3257 To preview a font on X11, you might be able to use the "xfontsel"
3258 program. The "xlsfonts" program gives a list of all available fonts.
3260 For the Win32 GUI *E244* *E245*
3261 - takes these options in the font name:
3262 hXX - height is XX (points, can be floating-point)
3263 wXX - width is XX (points, can be floating-point)
3268 cXX - character set XX. Valid charsets are: ANSI, ARABIC,
3269 BALTIC, CHINESEBIG5, DEFAULT, EASTEUROPE, GB2312, GREEK,
3270 HANGEUL, HEBREW, JOHAB, MAC, OEM, RUSSIAN, SHIFTJIS,
3271 SYMBOL, THAI, TURKISH, VIETNAMESE ANSI and BALTIC.
3272 Normally you would use "cDEFAULT".
3274 Use a ':' to separate the options.
3275 - A '_' can be used in the place of a space, so you don't need to use
3276 backslashes to escape the spaces.
3278 :set guifont=courier_new:h12:w5:b:cRUSSIAN
3279 :set guifont=Andale_Mono:h7.5:w4.5
3280 < See also |font-sizes|.
3282 *'guifontset'* *'gfs'*
3283 *E250* *E252* *E234* *E597* *E598*
3284 'guifontset' 'gfs' string (default "")
3287 {only available when compiled with GUI enabled and
3288 with the |+xfontset| feature}
3289 {not available in the GTK+ 2 GUI}
3290 When not empty, specifies two (or more) fonts to be used. The first
3291 one for normal English, the second one for your special language. See
3293 Setting this option also means that all font names will be handled as
3294 a fontset name. Also the ones used for the "font" argument of the
3295 |:highlight| command.
3296 The fonts must match with the current locale. If fonts for the
3297 character sets that the current locale uses are not included, setting
3298 'guifontset' will fail.
3299 Note the difference between 'guifont' and 'guifontset': In 'guifont'
3300 the comma-separated names are alternative names, one of which will be
3301 used. In 'guifontset' the whole string is one fontset name,
3302 including the commas. It is not possible to specify alternative
3304 This example works on many X11 systems: >
3305 :set guifontset=-*-*-medium-r-normal--16-*-*-*-c-*-*-*
3307 *'guifontwide'* *'gfw'* *E231* *E533* *E534*
3308 'guifontwide' 'gfw' string (default "")
3311 {only available when compiled with GUI enabled}
3312 When not empty, specifies a comma-separated list of fonts to be used
3313 for double-width characters. The first font that can be loaded is
3315 Note: The size of these fonts must be exactly twice as wide as the one
3316 specified with 'guifont' and the same height.
3318 All GUI versions but GTK+ 2:
3320 'guifontwide' is only used when 'encoding' is set to "utf-8" and
3321 'guifontset' is empty or invalid.
3322 When 'guifont' is set and a valid font is found in it and
3323 'guifontwide' is empty Vim will attempt to find a matching
3324 double-width font and set 'guifontwide' to it.
3326 GTK+ 2 GUI only: *guifontwide_gtk2*
3328 If set and valid, 'guifontwide' is always used for double width
3329 characters, even if 'encoding' is not set to "utf-8".
3330 Vim does not attempt to find an appropriate value for 'guifontwide'
3331 automatically. If 'guifontwide' is empty Pango/Xft will choose the
3332 font for characters not available in 'guifont'. Thus you do not need
3333 to set 'guifontwide' at all unless you want to override the choice
3336 *'guiheadroom'* *'ghr'*
3337 'guiheadroom' 'ghr' number (default 50)
3339 {not in Vi} {only for GTK and X11 GUI}
3340 The number of pixels subtracted from the screen height when fitting
3341 the GUI window on the screen. Set this before the GUI is started,
3342 e.g., in your |gvimrc| file. When zero, the whole screen height will
3343 be used by the window. When positive, the specified number of pixel
3344 lines will be left for window decorations and other items on the
3345 screen. Set it to a negative value to allow windows taller than the
3348 *'guioptions'* *'go'*
3349 'guioptions' 'go' string (default "gmrLtT" (MS-Windows),
3350 "agimrLtT" (GTK, Motif and Athena))
3353 {only available when compiled with GUI enabled}
3354 This option only has an effect in the GUI version of Vim. It is a
3355 sequence of letters which describes what components and options of the
3357 To avoid problems with flags that are added in the future, use the
3358 "+=" and "-=" feature of ":set" |add-option-flags|.
3360 Valid letters are as follows:
3361 *guioptions_a* *'go-a'*
3362 'a' Autoselect: If present, then whenever VISUAL mode is started,
3363 or the Visual area extended, Vim tries to become the owner of
3364 the windowing system's global selection. This means that the
3365 Visually highlighted text is available for pasting into other
3366 applications as well as into Vim itself. When the Visual mode
3367 ends, possibly due to an operation on the text, or when an
3368 application wants to paste the selection, the highlighted text
3369 is automatically yanked into the "* selection register.
3370 Thus the selection is still available for pasting into other
3371 applications after the VISUAL mode has ended.
3372 If not present, then Vim won't become the owner of the
3373 windowing system's global selection unless explicitly told to
3374 by a yank or delete operation for the "* register.
3375 The same applies to the modeless selection.
3377 'A' Autoselect for the modeless selection. Like 'a', but only
3378 applies to the modeless selection.
3380 'guioptions' autoselect Visual autoselect modeless ~
3387 'c' Use console dialogs instead of popup dialogs for simple
3390 'e' Add tab pages when indicated with 'showtabline'.
3391 'guitablabel' can be used to change the text in the labels.
3392 When 'e' is missing a non-GUI tab pages line may be used.
3393 The GUI tabs are only supported on some systems, currently
3394 GTK, Motif, Mac OS/X and MS-Windows.
3396 'f' Foreground: Don't use fork() to detach the GUI from the shell
3397 where it was started. Use this for programs that wait for the
3398 editor to finish (e.g., an e-mail program). Alternatively you
3399 can use "gvim -f" or ":gui -f" to start the GUI in the
3400 foreground. |gui-fork|
3401 Note: Set this option in the vimrc file. The forking may have
3402 happened already when the |gvimrc| file is read.
3404 'i' Use a Vim icon. For GTK with KDE it is used in the left-upper
3405 corner of the window. It's black&white on non-GTK, because of
3406 limitations of X11. For a color icon, see |X11-icon|.
3408 'm' Menu bar is present.
3410 'M' The system menu "$VIMRUNTIME/menu.vim" is not sourced. Note
3411 that this flag must be added in the .vimrc file, before
3412 switching on syntax or filetype recognition (when the |gvimrc|
3413 file is sourced the system menu has already been loaded; the
3414 ":syntax on" and ":filetype on" commands load the menu too).
3416 'g' Grey menu items: Make menu items that are not active grey. If
3417 'g' is not included inactive menu items are not shown at all.
3418 Exception: Athena will always use grey menu items.
3420 't' Include tearoff menu items. Currently only works for Win32,
3421 GTK+, and Motif 1.2 GUI.
3423 'T' Include Toolbar. Currently only in Win32, GTK+, Motif, Photon
3426 'r' Right-hand scrollbar is always present.
3428 'R' Right-hand scrollbar is present when there is a vertically
3431 'l' Left-hand scrollbar is always present.
3433 'L' Left-hand scrollbar is present when there is a vertically
3436 'b' Bottom (horizontal) scrollbar is present. Its size depends on
3437 the longest visible line, or on the cursor line if the 'h'
3438 flag is included. |gui-horiz-scroll|
3440 'h' Limit horizontal scrollbar size to the length of the cursor
3441 line. Reduces computations. |gui-horiz-scroll|
3443 And yes, you may even have scrollbars on the left AND the right if
3444 you really want to :-). See |gui-scrollbars| for more information.
3447 'v' Use a vertical button layout for dialogs. When not included,
3448 a horizontal layout is preferred, but when it doesn't fit a
3449 vertical layout is used anyway.
3451 'p' Use Pointer callbacks for X11 GUI. This is required for some
3452 window managers. If the cursor is not blinking or hollow at
3453 the right moment, try adding this flag. This must be done
3454 before starting the GUI. Set it in your |gvimrc|. Adding or
3455 removing it after the GUI has started has no effect.
3457 'F' Add a footer. Only for Motif. See |gui-footer|.
3460 *'guipty'* *'noguipty'*
3461 'guipty' boolean (default on)
3464 {only available when compiled with GUI enabled}
3465 Only in the GUI: If on, an attempt is made to open a pseudo-tty for
3466 I/O to/from shell commands. See |gui-pty|.
3468 *'guitablabel'* *'gtl'*
3469 'guitablabel' 'gtl' string (default empty)
3472 {only available when compiled with GUI enabled and
3473 with the +windows feature}
3474 When nonempty describes the text to use in a label of the GUI tab
3475 pages line. When empty and when the result is empty Vim will use a
3476 default label. See |setting-guitablabel| for more info.
3478 The format of this option is like that of 'statusline'.
3479 'guitabtooltip' is used for the tooltip, see below.
3481 Only used when the GUI tab pages line is displayed. 'e' must be
3482 present in 'guioptions'. For the non-GUI tab pages line 'tabline' is
3485 *'guitabtooltip'* *'gtt'*
3486 'guitabtooltip' 'gtt' string (default empty)
3489 {only available when compiled with GUI enabled and
3490 with the +windows feature}
3491 When nonempty describes the text to use in a tooltip for the GUI tab
3492 pages line. When empty Vim will use a default tooltip.
3493 This option is otherwise just like 'guitablabel' above.
3497 'helpfile' 'hf' string (default (MSDOS) "$VIMRUNTIME\doc\help.txt"
3498 (others) "$VIMRUNTIME/doc/help.txt")
3501 Name of the main help file. All distributed help files should be
3502 placed together in one directory. Additionally, all "doc" directories
3503 in 'runtimepath' will be used.
3504 Environment variables are expanded |:set_env|. For example:
3505 "$VIMRUNTIME/doc/help.txt". If $VIMRUNTIME is not set, $VIM is also
3506 tried. Also see |$VIMRUNTIME| and |option-backslash| about including
3507 spaces and backslashes.
3508 This option cannot be set from a |modeline| or in the |sandbox|, for
3511 *'helpheight'* *'hh'*
3512 'helpheight' 'hh' number (default 20)
3515 {not available when compiled without the +windows
3517 Minimal initial height of the help window when it is opened with the
3518 ":help" command. The initial height of the help window is half of the
3519 current window, or (when the 'ea' option is on) the same as other
3520 windows. When the height is less than 'helpheight', the height is
3521 set to 'helpheight'. Set to zero to disable.
3523 *'helplang'* *'hlg'*
3524 'helplang' 'hlg' string (default: messages language or empty)
3526 {only available when compiled with the |+multi_lang|
3529 Comma separated list of languages. Vim will use the first language
3530 for which the desired help can be found. The English help will always
3531 be used as a last resort. You can add "en" to prefer English over
3532 another language, but that will only find tags that exist in that
3533 language and not in the English help.
3536 < This will first search German, then Italian and finally English help
3538 When using |CTRL-]| and ":help!" in a non-English help file Vim will
3539 try to find the tag in the current language before using this option.
3540 See |help-translated|.
3542 *'hidden'* *'hid'* *'nohidden'* *'nohid'*
3543 'hidden' 'hid' boolean (default off)
3546 When off a buffer is unloaded when it is |abandon|ed. When on a
3547 buffer becomes hidden when it is |abandon|ed. If the buffer is still
3548 displayed in another window, it does not become hidden, of course.
3549 The commands that move through the buffer list sometimes make a buffer
3550 hidden although the 'hidden' option is off: When the buffer is
3551 modified, 'autowrite' is off or writing is not possible, and the '!'
3552 flag was used. See also |windows.txt|.
3553 To only make one buffer hidden use the 'bufhidden' option.
3554 This option is set for one command with ":hide {command}" |:hide|.
3555 WARNING: It's easy to forget that you have changes in hidden buffers.
3556 Think twice when using ":q!" or ":qa!".
3558 *'highlight'* *'hl'*
3559 'highlight' 'hl' string (default (as a single string):
3560 "8:SpecialKey,@:NonText,d:Directory,
3561 e:ErrorMsg,i:IncSearch,l:Search,m:MoreMsg,
3562 M:ModeMsg,n:LineNr,r:Question,
3563 s:StatusLine,S:StatusLineNC,c:VertSplit,
3564 t:Title,v:Visual,w:WarningMsg,W:WildMenu,
3565 f:Folded,F:FoldColumn,A:DiffAdd,
3566 C:DiffChange,D:DiffDelete,T:DiffText,
3567 >:SignColumn,B:SpellBad,P:SpellCap,
3568 R:SpellRare,L:SpellLocal,
3570 x:PmenuSbar,X:PmenuThumb")
3573 This option can be used to set highlighting mode for various
3574 occasions. It is a comma separated list of character pairs. The
3575 first character in a pair gives the occasion, the second the mode to
3576 use for that occasion. The occasions are:
3577 |hl-SpecialKey| 8 Meta and special keys listed with ":map"
3578 |hl-NonText| @ '~' and '@' at the end of the window and
3579 characters from 'showbreak'
3580 |hl-Directory| d directories in CTRL-D listing and other special
3582 |hl-ErrorMsg| e error messages
3583 h (obsolete, ignored)
3584 |hl-IncSearch| i 'incsearch' highlighting
3585 |hl-Search| l last search pattern highlighting (see 'hlsearch')
3586 |hl-MoreMsg| m |more-prompt|
3587 |hl-ModeMsg| M Mode (e.g., "-- INSERT --")
3588 |hl-LineNr| n line number for ":number" and ":#" commands
3589 |hl-Question| r |hit-enter| prompt and yes/no questions
3590 |hl-StatusLine| s status line of current window |status-line|
3591 |hl-StatusLineNC| S status lines of not-current windows
3592 |hl-Title| t Titles for output from ":set all", ":autocmd" etc.
3593 |hl-VertSplit| c column used to separate vertically split windows
3594 |hl-Visual| v Visual mode
3595 |hl-VisualNOS| V Visual mode when Vim does is "Not Owning the
3596 Selection" Only X11 Gui's |gui-x11| and
3598 |hl-WarningMsg| w warning messages
3599 |hl-WildMenu| W wildcard matches displayed for 'wildmenu'
3600 |hl-Folded| f line used for closed folds
3601 |hl-FoldColumn| F 'foldcolumn'
3602 |hl-DiffAdd| A added line in diff mode
3603 |hl-DiffChange| C changed line in diff mode
3604 |hl-DiffDelete| D deleted line in diff mode
3605 |hl-DiffText| T inserted text in diff mode
3606 |hl-SignColumn| > column used for |signs|
3607 |hl-SpellBad| B misspelled word |spell|
3608 |hl-SpellCap| P word that should start with capital|spell|
3609 |hl-SpellRare| R rare word |spell|
3610 |hl-SpellLocal| L word from other region |spell|
3611 |hl-Pmenu| + popup menu normal line
3612 |hl-PmenuSel| = popup menu normal line
3613 |hl-PmenuSbar| x popup menu scrollbar
3614 |hl-PmenuThumb| X popup menu scrollbar thumb
3616 The display modes are:
3617 r reverse (termcap entry "mr" and "me")
3618 i italic (termcap entry "ZH" and "ZR")
3619 b bold (termcap entry "md" and "me")
3620 s standout (termcap entry "so" and "se")
3621 u underline (termcap entry "us" and "ue")
3622 c undercurl (termcap entry "Cs" and "Ce")
3625 : use a highlight group
3626 The default is used for occasions that are not included.
3627 If you want to change what the display modes do, see |dos-colors|
3629 When using the ':' display mode, this must be followed by the name of
3630 a highlight group. A highlight group can be used to define any type
3631 of highlighting, including using color. See |:highlight| on how to
3632 define one. The default uses a different group for each occasion.
3633 See |highlight-default| for the default highlight groups.
3635 *'hlsearch'* *'hls'* *'nohlsearch'* *'nohls'*
3636 'hlsearch' 'hls' boolean (default off)
3639 {not available when compiled without the
3640 |+extra_search| feature}
3641 When there is a previous search pattern, highlight all its matches.
3642 The type of highlighting used can be set with the 'l' occasion in the
3643 'highlight' option. This uses the "Search" highlight group by
3644 default. Note that only the matching text is highlighted, any offsets
3646 See also: 'incsearch' and |:match|.
3647 When you get bored looking at the highlighted matches, you can turn it
3648 off with |:nohlsearch|. As soon as you use a search command, the
3649 highlighting comes back.
3650 'redrawtime' specifies the maximum time spent on finding matches.
3651 When the search pattern can match an end-of-line, Vim will try to
3652 highlight all of the matched text. However, this depends on where the
3653 search starts. This will be the first line in the window or the first
3654 line below a closed fold. A match in a previous line which is not
3655 drawn may not continue in a newly drawn line.
3656 NOTE: This option is reset when 'compatible' is set.
3659 'history' 'hi' number (Vim default: 20, Vi default: 0)
3662 A history of ":" commands, and a history of previous search patterns
3663 are remembered. This option decides how many entries may be stored in
3664 each of these histories (see |cmdline-editing|).
3665 NOTE: This option is set to the Vi default value when 'compatible' is
3666 set and to the Vim default value when 'compatible' is reset.
3668 *'hkmap'* *'hk'* *'nohkmap'* *'nohk'*
3669 'hkmap' 'hk' boolean (default off)
3672 {only available when compiled with the |+rightleft|
3674 When on, the keyboard is mapped for the Hebrew character set.
3675 Normally you would set 'allowrevins' and use CTRL-_ in insert mode to
3676 toggle this option. See |rileft.txt|.
3677 NOTE: This option is reset when 'compatible' is set.
3679 *'hkmapp'* *'hkp'* *'nohkmapp'* *'nohkp'*
3680 'hkmapp' 'hkp' boolean (default off)
3683 {only available when compiled with the |+rightleft|
3685 When on, phonetic keyboard mapping is used. 'hkmap' must also be on.
3686 This is useful if you have a non-Hebrew keyboard.
3688 NOTE: This option is reset when 'compatible' is set.
3691 'icon' boolean (default off, on when title can be restored)
3694 {not available when compiled without the |+title|
3696 When on, the icon text of the window will be set to the value of
3697 'iconstring' (if it is not empty), or to the name of the file
3698 currently being edited. Only the last part of the name is used.
3699 Overridden by the 'iconstring' option.
3700 Only works if the terminal supports setting window icons (currently
3701 only X11 GUI and terminals with a non-empty 't_IS' option - these are
3702 Unix xterm and iris-ansi by default, where 't_IS' is taken from the
3704 When Vim was compiled with HAVE_X11 defined, the original icon will be
3705 restored if possible |X11|. See |X11-icon| for changing the icon on
3709 'iconstring' string (default "")
3712 {not available when compiled without the |+title|
3714 When this option is not empty, it will be used for the icon text of
3715 the window. This happens only when the 'icon' option is on.
3716 Only works if the terminal supports setting window icon text
3717 (currently only X11 GUI and terminals with a non-empty 't_IS' option).
3718 Does not work for MS Windows.
3719 When Vim was compiled with HAVE_X11 defined, the original icon will be
3720 restored if possible |X11|.
3721 When this option contains printf-style '%' items, they will be
3722 expanded according to the rules used for 'statusline'. See
3723 'titlestring' for example settings.
3724 {not available when compiled without the |+statusline| feature}
3726 *'ignorecase'* *'ic'* *'noignorecase'* *'noic'*
3727 'ignorecase' 'ic' boolean (default off)
3729 Ignore case in search patterns. Also used when searching in the tags
3731 Also see 'smartcase'.
3732 Can be overruled by using "\c" or "\C" in the pattern, see
3735 *'imactivatekey'* *'imak'*
3736 'imactivatekey' 'imak' string (default "")
3739 {only available when compiled with |+xim| and
3741 Specifies the key that your Input Method in X-Windows uses for
3742 activation. When this is specified correctly, vim can fully control
3743 IM with 'imcmdline', 'iminsert' and 'imsearch'.
3744 You can't use this option to change the activation key, the option
3745 tells Vim what the key is.
3747 [MODIFIER_FLAG-]KEY_STRING
3749 These characters can be used for MODIFIER_FLAG (case is ignored):
3758 Combinations are allowed, for example "S-C-space" or "SC-space" are
3759 both shift+ctrl+space.
3760 See <X11/keysymdef.h> and XStringToKeysym for KEY_STRING.
3763 :set imactivatekey=S-space
3764 < "S-space" means shift+space. This is the activation key for kinput2 +
3765 canna (Japanese), and ami (Korean).
3767 *'imcmdline'* *'imc'* *'noimcmdline'* *'noimc'*
3768 'imcmdline' 'imc' boolean (default off)
3771 {only available when compiled with the |+xim|
3772 |+multi_byte_ime| or |global-ime| feature}
3773 When set the Input Method is always on when starting to edit a command
3774 line, unless entering a search pattern (see 'imsearch' for that).
3775 Setting this option is useful when your input method allows entering
3776 English characters directly, e.g., when it's used to type accented
3777 characters with dead keys.
3779 *'imdisable'* *'imd'* *'nodisable'* *'noimd'*
3780 'imdisable' 'imd' boolean (default off, on for some systems (SGI))
3783 {only available when compiled with the |+xim|
3784 |+multi_byte_ime| or |global-ime| feature}
3785 When set the Input Method is never used. This is useful to disable
3786 the IM when it doesn't work properly.
3787 Currently this option is on by default for SGI/IRIX machines. This
3788 may change in later releases.
3790 *'iminsert'* *'imi'*
3791 'iminsert' 'imi' number (default 0, 2 when an input method is supported)
3794 Specifies whether :lmap or an Input Method (IM) is to be used in
3795 Insert mode. Valid values:
3796 0 :lmap is off and IM is off
3797 1 :lmap is ON and IM is off
3798 2 :lmap is off and IM is ON
3799 2 is available only when compiled with the |+multi_byte_ime|, |+xim|
3801 To always reset the option to zero when leaving Insert mode with <Esc>
3803 :inoremap <ESC> <ESC>:set iminsert=0<CR>
3804 < This makes :lmap and IM turn off automatically when leaving Insert
3806 Note that this option changes when using CTRL-^ in Insert mode
3808 The value is set to 1 when setting 'keymap' to a valid keymap name.
3809 It is also used for the argument of commands like "r" and "f".
3810 The value 0 may not work correctly with Athena and Motif with some XIM
3811 methods. Use 'imdisable' to disable XIM then.
3813 *'imsearch'* *'ims'*
3814 'imsearch' 'ims' number (default 0, 2 when an input method is supported)
3817 Specifies whether :lmap or an Input Method (IM) is to be used when
3818 entering a search pattern. Valid values:
3819 -1 the value of 'iminsert' is used, makes it look like
3820 'iminsert' is also used when typing a search pattern
3821 0 :lmap is off and IM is off
3822 1 :lmap is ON and IM is off
3823 2 :lmap is off and IM is ON
3824 Note that this option changes when using CTRL-^ in Command-line mode
3826 The value is set to 1 when it is not -1 and setting the 'keymap'
3827 option to a valid keymap name.
3828 The value 0 may not work correctly with Athena and Motif with some XIM
3829 methods. Use 'imdisable' to disable XIM then.
3832 'include' 'inc' string (default "^\s*#\s*include")
3833 global or local to buffer |global-local|
3835 {not available when compiled without the
3836 |+find_in_path| feature}
3837 Pattern to be used to find an include command. It is a search
3838 pattern, just like for the "/" command (See |pattern|). The default
3839 value is for C programs. This option is used for the commands "[i",
3841 Normally the 'isfname' option is used to recognize the file name that
3842 comes after the matched pattern. But if "\zs" appears in the pattern
3843 then the text matched from "\zs" to the end, or until "\ze" if it
3844 appears, is used as the file name. Use this to include characters
3845 that are not in 'isfname', such as a space. You can then use
3846 'includeexpr' to process the matched text.
3847 See |option-backslash| about including spaces and backslashes.
3849 *'includeexpr'* *'inex'*
3850 'includeexpr' 'inex' string (default "")
3853 {not available when compiled without the
3854 |+find_in_path| or |+eval| feature}
3855 Expression to be used to transform the string found with the 'include'
3856 option to a file name. Mostly useful to change "." to "/" for Java: >
3857 :set includeexpr=substitute(v:fname,'\\.','/','g')
3858 < The "v:fname" variable will be set to the file name that was detected.
3860 Also used for the |gf| command if an unmodified file name can't be
3861 found. Allows doing "gf" on the name after an 'include' statement.
3862 Also used for |<cfile>|.
3864 The expression may be evaluated in the |sandbox|, see
3867 It is not allowed to change text or jump to another window while
3868 evaluating 'includeexpr' |textlock|.
3870 *'incsearch'* *'is'* *'noincsearch'* *'nois'*
3871 'incsearch' 'is' boolean (default off)
3874 {not available when compiled without the
3875 |+extra_search| feature}
3876 While typing a search command, show where the pattern, as it was typed
3877 so far, matches. The matched string is highlighted. If the pattern
3878 is invalid or not found, nothing is shown. The screen will be updated
3879 often, this is only useful on fast terminals.
3880 Note that the match will be shown, but the cursor will return to its
3881 original position when no match is found and when pressing <Esc>. You
3882 still need to finish the search command with <Enter> to move the
3883 cursor to the match.
3884 When compiled with the |+reltime| feature Vim only searches for about
3885 half a second. With a complicated pattern and/or a lot of text the
3886 match may not be found. This is to avoid that Vim hangs while you
3887 are typing the pattern.
3888 The highlighting can be set with the 'i' flag in 'highlight'.
3889 See also: 'hlsearch'.
3890 CTRL-L can be used to add one character from after the current match
3891 to the command line.
3892 CTRL-R CTRL-W can be used to add the word at the end of the current
3893 match, excluding the characters that were already typed.
3894 NOTE: This option is reset when 'compatible' is set.
3896 *'indentexpr'* *'inde'*
3897 'indentexpr' 'inde' string (default "")
3900 {not available when compiled without the |+cindent|
3901 or |+eval| features}
3902 Expression which is evaluated to obtain the proper indent for a line.
3903 It is used when a new line is created, for the |=| operator and
3904 in Insert mode as specified with the 'indentkeys' option.
3905 When this option is not empty, it overrules the 'cindent' and
3906 'smartindent' indenting.
3907 When 'paste' is set this option is not used for indenting.
3908 The expression is evaluated with |v:lnum| set to the line number for
3909 which the indent is to be computed. The cursor is also in this line
3910 when the expression is evaluated (but it may be moved around).
3911 The expression must return the number of spaces worth of indent. It
3912 can return "-1" to keep the current indent (this means 'autoindent' is
3913 used for the indent).
3914 Functions useful for computing the indent are |indent()|, |cindent()|
3916 The evaluation of the expression must not have side effects! It must
3917 not change the text, jump to another window, etc. Afterwards the
3918 cursor position is always restored, thus the cursor may be moved.
3919 Normally this option would be set to call a function: >
3920 :set indentexpr=GetMyIndent()
3921 < Error messages will be suppressed, unless the 'debug' option contains
3923 See |indent-expression|.
3924 NOTE: This option is made empty when 'compatible' is set.
3926 The expression may be evaluated in the |sandbox|, see
3929 It is not allowed to change text or jump to another window while
3930 evaluating 'indentexpr' |textlock|.
3933 *'indentkeys'* *'indk'*
3934 'indentkeys' 'indk' string (default "0{,0},:,0#,!^F,o,O,e")
3937 {not available when compiled without the |+cindent|
3939 A list of keys that, when typed in Insert mode, cause reindenting of
3940 the current line. Only happens if 'indentexpr' isn't empty.
3941 The format is identical to 'cinkeys', see |indentkeys-format|.
3942 See |C-indenting| and |indent-expression|.
3944 *'infercase'* *'inf'* *'noinfercase'* *'noinf'*
3945 'infercase' 'inf' boolean (default off)
3948 When doing keyword completion in insert mode |ins-completion|, and
3949 'ignorecase' is also on, the case of the match is adjusted depending
3950 on the typed text. If the typed text contains a lowercase letter
3951 where the match has an upper case letter, the completed part is made
3952 lowercase. If the typed text has no lowercase letters and the match
3953 has a lowercase letter where the typed text has an uppercase letter,
3954 and there is a letter before it, the completed part is made uppercase.
3955 With 'noinfercase' the match is used as-is.
3957 *'insertmode'* *'im'* *'noinsertmode'* *'noim'*
3958 'insertmode' 'im' boolean (default off)
3961 Makes Vim work in a way that Insert mode is the default mode. Useful
3962 if you want to use Vim as a modeless editor. Used for |evim|.
3963 These Insert mode commands will be useful:
3964 - Use the cursor keys to move around.
3965 - Use CTRL-O to execute one Normal mode command |i_CTRL-O|). When
3966 this is a mapping, it is executed as if 'insertmode' was off.
3967 Normal mode remains active until the mapping is finished.
3968 - Use CTRL-L to execute a number of Normal mode commands, then use
3969 <Esc> to get back to Insert mode. Note that CTRL-L moves the cursor
3970 left, like <Esc> does when 'insertmode' isn't set. |i_CTRL-L|
3972 These items change when 'insertmode' is set:
3973 - when starting to edit of a file, Vim goes to Insert mode.
3974 - <Esc> in Insert mode is a no-op and beeps.
3975 - <Esc> in Normal mode makes Vim go to Insert mode.
3976 - CTRL-L in Insert mode is a command, it is not inserted.
3977 - CTRL-Z in Insert mode suspends Vim, see |CTRL-Z|. *i_CTRL-Z*
3978 However, when <Esc> is used inside a mapping, it behaves like
3979 'insertmode' was not set. This was done to be able to use the same
3980 mappings with 'insertmode' set or not set.
3981 When executing commands with |:normal| 'insertmode' is not used.
3983 NOTE: This option is reset when 'compatible' is set.
3986 'isfname' 'isf' string (default for MS-DOS, Win32 and OS/2:
3987 "@,48-57,/,\,.,-,_,+,,,#,$,%,{,},[,],:,@-@,!,~,="
3988 for AMIGA: "@,48-57,/,.,-,_,+,,,$,:"
3989 for VMS: "@,48-57,/,.,-,_,+,,,#,$,%,<,>,[,],:,;,~"
3990 for OS/390: "@,240-249,/,.,-,_,+,,,#,$,%,~,="
3991 otherwise: "@,48-57,/,.,-,_,+,,,#,$,%,~,=")
3994 The characters specified by this option are included in file names and
3995 path names. Filenames are used for commands like "gf", "[i" and in
3996 the tags file. It is also used for "\f" in a |pattern|.
3997 Multi-byte characters 256 and above are always included, only the
3998 characters up to 255 are specified with this option.
3999 For UTF-8 the characters 0xa0 to 0xff are included as well.
4000 Think twice before adding white space to this option. Although a
4001 space may appear inside a file name, the effect will be that Vim
4002 doesn't know where a file name starts or ends when doing completion.
4003 It most likely works better without a space in 'isfname'.
4005 Note that on systems using a backslash as path separator, Vim tries to
4006 do its best to make it work as you would expect. That is a bit
4007 tricky, since Vi originally used the backslash to escape special
4008 characters. Vim will not remove a backslash in front of a normal file
4009 name character on these systems, but it will on Unix and alikes. The
4010 '&' and '^' are not included by default, because these are special for
4013 The format of this option is a list of parts, separated with commas.
4014 Each part can be a single character number or a range. A range is two
4015 character numbers with '-' in between. A character number can be a
4016 decimal number between 0 and 255 or the ASCII character itself (does
4017 not work for digits). Example:
4018 "_,-,128-140,#-43" (include '_' and '-' and the range
4019 128 to 140 and '#' to 43)
4020 If a part starts with '^', the following character number or range
4021 will be excluded from the option. The option is interpreted from left
4022 to right. Put the excluded character after the range where it is
4023 included. To include '^' itself use it as the last character of the
4024 option or the end of a range. Example:
4025 "^a-z,#,^" (exclude 'a' to 'z', include '#' and '^')
4026 If the character is '@', all characters where isalpha() returns TRUE
4027 are included. Normally these are the characters a to z and A to Z,
4028 plus accented characters. To include '@' itself use "@-@". Examples:
4029 "@,^a-z" All alphabetic characters, excluding lower
4031 "a-z,A-Z,@-@" All letters plus the '@' character.
4032 A comma can be included by using it where a character number is
4034 "48-57,,,_" Digits, comma and underscore.
4035 A comma can be excluded by prepending a '^'. Example:
4036 " -~,^,,9" All characters from space to '~', excluding
4038 See |option-backslash| about including spaces and backslashes.
4041 'isident' 'isi' string (default for MS-DOS, Win32 and OS/2:
4042 "@,48-57,_,128-167,224-235"
4043 otherwise: "@,48-57,_,192-255")
4046 The characters given by this option are included in identifiers.
4047 Identifiers are used in recognizing environment variables and after a
4048 match of the 'define' option. It is also used for "\i" in a
4049 |pattern|. See 'isfname' for a description of the format of this
4051 Careful: If you change this option, it might break expanding
4052 environment variables. E.g., when '/' is included and Vim tries to
4053 expand "$HOME/.viminfo". Maybe you should change 'iskeyword' instead.
4055 *'iskeyword'* *'isk'*
4056 'iskeyword' 'isk' string (Vim default for MS-DOS and Win32:
4057 "@,48-57,_,128-167,224-235"
4058 otherwise: "@,48-57,_,192-255"
4059 Vi default: "@,48-57,_")
4062 Keywords are used in searching and recognizing with many commands:
4063 "w", "*", "[i", etc. It is also used for "\k" in a |pattern|. See
4064 'isfname' for a description of the format of this option. For C
4065 programs you could use "a-z,A-Z,48-57,_,.,-,>".
4066 For a help file it is set to all non-blank printable characters except
4067 '*', '"' and '|' (so that CTRL-] on a command finds the help for that
4069 When the 'lisp' option is on the '-' character is always included.
4070 NOTE: This option is set to the Vi default value when 'compatible' is
4071 set and to the Vim default value when 'compatible' is reset.
4074 'isprint' 'isp' string (default for MS-DOS, Win32, OS/2 and Macintosh:
4075 "@,~-255"; otherwise: "@,161-255")
4078 The characters given by this option are displayed directly on the
4079 screen. It is also used for "\p" in a |pattern|. The characters from
4080 space (ASCII 32) to '~' (ASCII 126) are always displayed directly,
4081 even when they are not included in 'isprint' or excluded. See
4082 'isfname' for a description of the format of this option.
4084 Non-printable characters are displayed with two characters:
4086 32 - 126 always single characters
4088 128 - 159 "~@" - "~_"
4089 160 - 254 "| " - "|~"
4091 When 'encoding' is a Unicode one, illegal bytes from 128 to 255 are
4092 displayed as <xx>, with the hexadecimal value of the byte.
4093 When 'display' contains "uhex" all unprintable characters are
4095 The NonText highlighting will be used for unprintable characters.
4098 Multi-byte characters 256 and above are always included, only the
4099 characters up to 255 are specified with this option. When a character
4100 is printable but it is not available in the current font, a
4101 replacement character will be shown.
4102 Unprintable and zero-width Unicode characters are displayed as <xxxx>.
4103 There is no option to specify these characters.
4105 *'joinspaces'* *'js'* *'nojoinspaces'* *'nojs'*
4106 'joinspaces' 'js' boolean (default on)
4109 Insert two spaces after a '.', '?' and '!' with a join command.
4110 When 'cpoptions' includes the 'j' flag, only do this after a '.'.
4111 Otherwise only one space is inserted.
4112 NOTE: This option is set when 'compatible' is set.
4115 'key' string (default "")
4118 The key that is used for encrypting and decrypting the current buffer.
4120 Careful: Do not set the key value by hand, someone might see the typed
4121 key. Use the |:X| command. But you can make 'key' empty: >
4123 < It is not possible to get the value of this option with ":set key" or
4124 "echo &key". This is to avoid showing it to someone who shouldn't
4125 know. It also means you cannot see it yourself once you have set it,
4126 be careful not to make a typing error!
4128 *'keymap'* *'kmp'* *E544*
4129 'keymap' 'kmp' string (default "")
4132 {only available when compiled with the |+keymap|
4134 Name of a keyboard mapping. See |mbyte-keymap|.
4135 Setting this option to a valid keymap name has the side effect of
4136 setting 'iminsert' to one, so that the keymap becomes effective.
4137 'imsearch' is also set to one, unless it was -1
4138 Only normal file name characters can be used, "/\*?[|<>" are illegal.
4141 'keymodel' 'km' string (default "")
4144 List of comma separated words, which enable special things that keys
4145 can do. These values can be used:
4146 startsel Using a shifted special key starts selection (either
4147 Select mode or Visual mode, depending on "key" being
4148 present in 'selectmode').
4149 stopsel Using a not-shifted special key stops selection.
4150 Special keys in this context are the cursor keys, <End>, <Home>,
4151 <PageUp> and <PageDown>.
4152 The 'keymodel' option is set by the |:behave| command.
4154 *'keywordprg'* *'kp'*
4155 'keywordprg' 'kp' string (default "man" or "man -s", DOS: ":help",
4156 OS/2: "view /", VMS: "help")
4157 global or local to buffer |global-local|
4159 Program to use for the |K| command. Environment variables are
4160 expanded |:set_env|. ":help" may be used to access the Vim internal
4161 help. (Note that previously setting the global option to the empty
4162 value did this, which is now deprecated.)
4163 When "man" is used, Vim will automatically translate a count for the
4164 "K" command to a section number. Also for "man -s", in which case the
4165 "-s" is removed when there is no count.
4166 See |option-backslash| about including spaces and backslashes.
4168 :set keywordprg=man\ -s
4169 < This option cannot be set from a |modeline| or in the |sandbox|, for
4172 *'langmap'* *'lmap'* *E357* *E358*
4173 'langmap' 'lmap' string (default "")
4176 {only available when compiled with the |+langmap|
4178 This option allows switching your keyboard into a special language
4179 mode. When you are typing text in Insert mode the characters are
4180 inserted directly. When in command mode the 'langmap' option takes
4181 care of translating these special characters to the original meaning
4182 of the key. This means you don't have to change the keyboard mode to
4183 be able to execute Normal mode commands.
4184 This is the opposite of the 'keymap' option, where characters are
4185 mapped in Insert mode.
4187 Example (for Greek, in UTF-8): *greek* >
4188 :set langmap=ΑA,ΒB,ΨC,ΔD,ΕE,ΦF,ΓG,ΗH,ΙI,ΞJ,ΚK,ΛL,ΜM,ΝN,ΟO,ΠP,QQ,ΡR,ΣS,ΤT,ΘU,ΩV,WW,ΧX,ΥY,ΖZ,αa,βb,ψc,δd,εe,φf,γg,ηh,ιi,ξj,κk,λl,μm,νn,οo,πp,qq,ρr,σs,τt,θu,ωv,ςw,χx,υy,ζz
4189 < Example (exchanges meaning of z and y for commands): >
4190 :set langmap=zy,yz,ZY,YZ
4192 The 'langmap' option is a list of parts, separated with commas. Each
4193 part can be in one of two forms:
4194 1. A list of pairs. Each pair is a "from" character immediately
4195 followed by the "to" character. Examples: "aA", "aAbBcC".
4196 2. A list of "from" characters, a semi-colon and a list of "to"
4197 characters. Example: "abc;ABC"
4198 Example: "aA,fgh;FGH,cCdDeE"
4199 Special characters need to be preceded with a backslash. These are
4200 ";", ',' and backslash itself.
4202 This will allow you to activate vim actions without having to switch
4203 back and forth between the languages. Your language characters will
4204 be understood as normal vim English characters (according to the
4205 langmap mappings) in the following cases:
4206 o Normal/Visual mode (commands, buffer/register names, user mappings)
4207 o Insert/Replace Mode: Register names after CTRL-R
4208 o Insert/Replace Mode: Mappings
4209 Characters entered in Command-line mode will NOT be affected by
4210 this option. Note that this option can be changed at any time
4211 allowing to switch between mappings for different languages/encodings.
4212 Use a mapping to avoid having to type it each time!
4215 'langmenu' 'lm' string (default "")
4218 {only available when compiled with the |+menu| and
4219 |+multi_lang| features}
4220 Language to use for menu translation. Tells which file is loaded
4221 from the "lang" directory in 'runtimepath': >
4222 "lang/menu_" . &langmenu . ".vim"
4223 < (without the spaces). For example, to always use the Dutch menus, no
4224 matter what $LANG is set to: >
4225 :set langmenu=nl_NL.ISO_8859-1
4226 < When 'langmenu' is empty, |v:lang| is used.
4227 Only normal file name characters can be used, "/\*?[|<>" are illegal.
4228 If your $LANG is set to a non-English language but you do want to use
4229 the English menus: >
4231 < This option must be set before loading menus, switching on filetype
4232 detection or syntax highlighting. Once the menus are defined setting
4233 this option has no effect. But you could do this: >
4234 :source $VIMRUNTIME/delmenu.vim
4235 :set langmenu=de_DE.ISO_8859-1
4236 :source $VIMRUNTIME/menu.vim
4237 < Warning: This deletes all menus that you defined yourself!
4239 *'laststatus'* *'ls'*
4240 'laststatus' 'ls' number (default 1)
4243 The value of this option influences when the last window will have a
4246 1: only if there are at least two windows
4248 The screen looks nicer with a status line if you have several
4249 windows, but it takes another screen line. |status-line|
4251 *'lazyredraw'* *'lz'* *'nolazyredraw'* *'nolz'*
4252 'lazyredraw' 'lz' boolean (default off)
4255 When this option is set, the screen will not be redrawn while
4256 executing macros, registers and other commands that have not been
4257 typed. Also, updating the window title is postponed. To force an
4258 update use |:redraw|.
4260 *'linebreak'* *'lbr'* *'nolinebreak'* *'nolbr'*
4261 'linebreak' 'lbr' boolean (default off)
4264 {not available when compiled without the |+linebreak|
4266 If on Vim will wrap long lines at a character in 'breakat' rather
4267 than at the last character that fits on the screen. Unlike
4268 'wrapmargin' and 'textwidth', this does not insert <EOL>s in the file,
4269 it only affects the way the file is displayed, not its contents. The
4270 value of 'showbreak' is used to put in front of wrapped lines.
4271 This option is not used when the 'wrap' option is off or 'list' is on.
4272 Note that <Tab> characters after an <EOL> are mostly not displayed
4273 with the right amount of white space.
4276 'lines' number (default 24 or terminal height)
4278 Number of lines of the Vim window.
4279 Normally you don't need to set this. It is done automatically by the
4280 terminal initialization code. Also see |posix-screen-size|.
4281 When Vim is running in the GUI or in a resizable window, setting this
4282 option will cause the window size to be changed. When you only want
4283 to use the size for the GUI, put the command in your |gvimrc| file.
4284 Vim limits the number of lines to what fits on the screen. You can
4285 use this command to get the tallest window possible: >
4287 < Minimum value is 2, maximum value is 1000.
4288 If you get less lines than expected, check the 'guiheadroom' option.
4289 When you set this option and Vim is unable to change the physical
4290 number of lines of the display, the display may be messed up.
4292 *'linespace'* *'lsp'*
4293 'linespace' 'lsp' number (default 0, 1 for Win32 GUI)
4297 Number of pixel lines inserted between characters. Useful if the font
4298 uses the full character cell height, making lines touch each other.
4299 When non-zero there is room for underlining.
4300 With some fonts there can be too much room between lines (to have
4301 space for ascents and descents). Then it makes sense to set
4302 'linespace' to a negative value. This may cause display problems
4306 'lisp' boolean (default off)
4308 {not available when compiled without the |+lispindent|
4310 Lisp mode: When <Enter> is typed in insert mode set the indent for
4311 the next line to Lisp standards (well, sort of). Also happens with
4312 "cc" or "S". 'autoindent' must also be on for this to work. The 'p'
4313 flag in 'cpoptions' changes the method of indenting: Vi compatible or
4314 better. Also see 'lispwords'.
4315 The '-' character is included in keyword characters. Redefines the
4316 "=" operator to use this same indentation algorithm rather than
4317 calling an external program if 'equalprg' is empty.
4318 This option is not used when 'paste' is set.
4319 {Vi: Does it a little bit differently}
4321 *'lispwords'* *'lw'*
4322 'lispwords' 'lw' string (default is very long)
4325 {not available when compiled without the |+lispindent|
4327 Comma separated list of words that influence the Lisp indenting.
4331 'list' boolean (default off)
4333 List mode: Show tabs as CTRL-I, show end of line with $. Useful to
4334 see the difference between tabs and spaces and for trailing blanks.
4335 Note that this will also affect formatting (set with 'textwidth' or
4336 'wrapmargin') when 'cpoptions' includes 'L'. See 'listchars' for
4337 changing the way tabs are displayed.
4339 *'listchars'* *'lcs'*
4340 'listchars' 'lcs' string (default "eol:$")
4343 Strings to use in 'list' mode. It is a comma separated list of string
4345 eol:c Character to show at the end of each line. When
4346 omitted, there is no extra character at the end of the
4348 tab:xy Two characters to be used to show a tab. The first
4349 char is used once. The second char is repeated to
4350 fill the space that the tab normally occupies.
4351 "tab:>-" will show a tab that takes four spaces as
4352 ">---". When omitted, a tab is show as ^I.
4353 trail:c Character to show for trailing spaces. When omitted,
4354 trailing spaces are blank.
4355 extends:c Character to show in the last column, when 'wrap' is
4356 off and the line continues beyond the right of the
4358 precedes:c Character to show in the first column, when 'wrap'
4359 is off and there is text preceding the character
4360 visible in the first column.
4361 nbsp:c Character to show for a non-breakable space (character
4362 0xA0, 160). Left blank when omitted.
4364 The characters ':' and ',' should not be used. UTF-8 characters can
4365 be used when 'encoding' is "utf-8", otherwise only printable
4366 characters are allowed. All characters must be single width.
4369 :set lcs=tab:>-,trail:-
4370 :set lcs=tab:>-,eol:<,nbsp:%
4371 :set lcs=extends:>,precedes:<
4372 < The "NonText" highlighting will be used for "eol", "extends" and
4373 "precedes". "SpecialKey" for "nbsp", "tab" and "trail".
4374 |hl-NonText| |hl-SpecialKey|
4376 *'lpl'* *'nolpl'* *'loadplugins'* *'noloadplugins'*
4377 'loadplugins' 'lpl' boolean (default on)
4380 When on the plugin scripts are loaded when starting up |load-plugins|.
4381 This option can be reset in your |vimrc| file to disable the loading
4383 Note that using the "-u NONE" and "--noplugin" command line arguments
4384 reset this option. |-u| |--noplugin|
4386 *'macatsui'* *'nomacatsui'*
4387 'macatsui' boolean (default on)
4389 {only available in Mac GUI version}
4390 This is a workaround for when drawing doesn't work properly. When set
4391 and compiled with multi-byte support ATSUI text drawing is used. When
4392 not set ATSUI text drawing is not used. Switch this option off when
4393 you experience drawing problems. In a future version the problems may
4394 be solved and this option becomes obsolete. Therefore use this method
4396 if exists('&macatsui')
4399 < Another option to check if you have drawing problems is
4402 *'magic'* *'nomagic'*
4403 'magic' boolean (default on)
4405 Changes the special characters that can be used in search patterns.
4407 NOTE: To avoid portability problems with using patterns, always keep
4408 this option at the default "on". Only switch it off when working with
4409 old Vi scripts. In any other situation write patterns that work when
4410 'magic' is on. Include "\M" when you want to |/\M|.
4413 'makeef' 'mef' string (default: "")
4416 {not available when compiled without the |+quickfix|
4418 Name of the errorfile for the |:make| command (see |:make_makeprg|)
4419 and the |:grep| command.
4420 When it is empty, an internally generated temp file will be used.
4421 When "##" is included, it is replaced by a number to make the name
4422 unique. This makes sure that the ":make" command doesn't overwrite an
4424 NOT used for the ":cf" command. See 'errorfile' for that.
4425 Environment variables are expanded |:set_env|.
4426 See |option-backslash| about including spaces and backslashes.
4427 This option cannot be set from a |modeline| or in the |sandbox|, for
4431 'makeprg' 'mp' string (default "make", VMS: "MMS")
4432 global or local to buffer |global-local|
4434 Program to use for the ":make" command. See |:make_makeprg|.
4435 This option may contain '%' and '#' characters, which are expanded to
4436 the current and alternate file name. |:_%| |:_#|
4437 Environment variables are expanded |:set_env|. See |option-backslash|
4438 about including spaces and backslashes.
4439 Note that a '|' must be escaped twice: once for ":set" and once for
4440 the interpretation of a command. When you use a filter called
4441 "myfilter" do it like this: >
4442 :set makeprg=gmake\ \\\|\ myfilter
4443 < The placeholder "$*" can be given (even multiple times) to specify
4444 where the arguments will be included, for example: >
4445 :set makeprg=latex\ \\\\nonstopmode\ \\\\input\\{$*}
4446 < This option cannot be set from a |modeline| or in the |sandbox|, for
4449 *'matchpairs'* *'mps'*
4450 'matchpairs' 'mps' string (default "(:),{:},[:]")
4453 Characters that form pairs. The |%| command jumps from one to the
4454 other. Currently only single byte character pairs are allowed, and
4455 they must be different. The characters must be separated by a colon.
4456 The pairs must be separated by a comma. Example for including '<' and
4460 < A more exotic example, to jump between the '=' and ';' in an
4461 assignment, useful for languages like C and Java: >
4462 :au FileType c,cpp,java set mps+==:;
4464 < For a more advanced way of using "%", see the matchit.vim plugin in
4465 the $VIMRUNTIME/macros directory. |add-local-help|
4467 *'matchtime'* *'mat'*
4468 'matchtime' 'mat' number (default 5)
4471 Tenths of a second to show the matching paren, when 'showmatch' is
4472 set. Note that this is not in milliseconds, like other options that
4473 set a time. This is to be compatible with Nvi.
4475 *'maxcombine'* *'mco'*
4476 'maxcombine' 'mco' number (default 2)
4479 {only available when compiled with the |+multi_byte|
4481 The maximum number of combining characters supported for displaying.
4482 Only used when 'encoding' is "utf-8".
4483 The default is OK for most languages. Hebrew may require 4.
4485 Even when this option is set to 2 you can still edit text with more
4486 combining characters, you just can't see them. Use |g8| or |ga|.
4487 See |mbyte-combining|.
4489 *'maxfuncdepth'* *'mfd'*
4490 'maxfuncdepth' 'mfd' number (default 100)
4493 {not available when compiled without the +eval
4495 Maximum depth of function calls for user functions. This normally
4496 catches endless recursion. When using a recursive function with
4497 more depth, set 'maxfuncdepth' to a bigger number. But this will use
4498 more memory, there is the danger of failing when memory is exhausted.
4499 See also |:function|.
4501 *'maxmapdepth'* *'mmd'* *E223*
4502 'maxmapdepth' 'mmd' number (default 1000)
4505 Maximum number of times a mapping is done without resulting in a
4506 character to be used. This normally catches endless mappings, like
4507 ":map x y" with ":map y x". It still does not catch ":map g wg",
4508 because the 'w' is used before the next mapping is done. See also
4512 'maxmem' 'mm' number (default between 256 to 5120 (system
4513 dependent) or half the amount of memory
4517 Maximum amount of memory (in Kbyte) to use for one buffer. When this
4518 limit is reached allocating extra memory for a buffer will cause
4519 other memory to be freed. Maximum value 2000000. Use this to work
4520 without a limit. Also see 'maxmemtot'.
4522 *'maxmempattern'* *'mmp'*
4523 'maxmempattern' 'mmp' number (default 1000)
4526 Maximum amount of memory (in Kbyte) to use for pattern matching.
4527 Maximum value 2000000. Use this to work without a limit.
4529 When Vim runs into the limit it gives an error message and mostly
4530 behaves like CTRL-C was typed.
4531 Running into the limit often means that the pattern is very
4532 inefficient or too complex. This may already happen with the pattern
4533 "\(.\)*" on a very long line. ".*" works much better.
4534 Vim may run out of memory before hitting the 'maxmempattern' limit.
4536 *'maxmemtot'* *'mmt'*
4537 'maxmemtot' 'mmt' number (default between 2048 and 10240 (system
4538 dependent) or half the amount of memory
4542 Maximum amount of memory (in Kbyte) to use for all buffers together.
4543 Maximum value 2000000. Use this to work without a limit. Also see
4546 *'menuitems'* *'mis'*
4547 'menuitems' 'mis' number (default 25)
4550 {not available when compiled without the |+menu|
4552 Maximum number of items to use in a menu. Used for menus that are
4553 generated from a list of items, e.g., the Buffers menu. Changing this
4554 option has no direct effect, the menu must be refreshed first.
4556 *'mkspellmem'* *'msm'*
4557 'mkspellmem' 'msm' string (default "460000,2000,500")
4560 {not available when compiled without the |+syntax|
4562 Parameters for |:mkspell|. This tunes when to start compressing the
4563 word tree. Compression can be slow when there are many words, but
4564 it's needed to avoid running out of memory. The amount of memory used
4565 per word depends very much on how similar the words are, that's why
4566 this tuning is complicated.
4568 There are three numbers, separated by commas:
4569 {start},{inc},{added}
4571 For most languages the uncompressed word tree fits in memory. {start}
4572 gives the amount of memory in Kbyte that can be used before any
4573 compression is done. It should be a bit smaller than the amount of
4574 memory that is available to Vim.
4576 When going over the {start} limit the {inc} number specifies the
4577 amount of memory in Kbyte that can be allocated before another
4578 compression is done. A low number means compression is done after
4579 less words are added, which is slow. A high number means more memory
4582 After doing compression, {added} times 1024 words can be added before
4583 the {inc} limit is ignored and compression is done when any extra
4584 amount of memory is needed. A low number means there is a smaller
4585 chance of hitting the {inc} limit, less memory is used but it's
4588 The languages for which these numbers are important are Italian and
4589 Hungarian. The default works for when you have about 512 Mbyte. If
4590 you have 1 Gbyte you could use: >
4591 :set mkspellmem=900000,3000,800
4592 < If you have less than 512 Mbyte |:mkspell| may fail for some
4593 languages, no matter what you set 'mkspellmem' to.
4595 *'modeline'* *'ml'* *'nomodeline'* *'noml'*
4596 'modeline' 'ml' boolean (Vim default: on (off for root),
4599 *'modelines'* *'mls'*
4600 'modelines' 'mls' number (default 5)
4603 If 'modeline' is on 'modelines' gives the number of lines that is
4604 checked for set commands. If 'modeline' is off or 'modelines' is zero
4605 no lines are checked. See |modeline|.
4606 NOTE: 'modeline' is set to the Vi default value when 'compatible' is
4607 set and to the Vim default value when 'compatible' is reset.
4609 *'modifiable'* *'ma'* *'nomodifiable'* *'noma'*
4610 'modifiable' 'ma' boolean (default on)
4613 When off the buffer contents cannot be changed. The 'fileformat' and
4614 'fileencoding' options also can't be changed.
4615 Can be reset with the |-M| command line argument.
4617 *'modified'* *'mod'* *'nomodified'* *'nomod'*
4618 'modified' 'mod' boolean (default off)
4621 When on, the buffer is considered to be modified. This option is set
4623 1. A change was made to the text since it was last written. Using the
4624 |undo| command to go back to the original text will reset the
4625 option. But undoing changes that were made before writing the
4626 buffer will set the option again, since the text is different from
4627 when it was written.
4628 2. 'fileformat' or 'fileencoding' is different from its original
4629 value. The original value is set when the buffer is read or
4630 written. A ":set nomodified" command also resets the original
4631 values to the current values and the 'modified' option will be
4633 When 'buftype' is "nowrite" or "nofile" this option may be set, but
4637 'more' boolean (Vim default: on, Vi default: off)
4640 When on, listings pause when the whole screen is filled. You will get
4641 the |more-prompt|. When this option is off there are no pauses, the
4642 listing continues until finished.
4643 NOTE: This option is set to the Vi default value when 'compatible' is
4644 set and to the Vim default value when 'compatible' is reset.
4647 'mouse' string (default "", "a" for GUI, MS-DOS and Win32)
4650 Enable the use of the mouse. Only works for certain terminals
4651 (xterm, MS-DOS, Win32 |win32-mouse|, QNX pterm, *BSD console with
4652 sysmouse and Linux console with gpm). For using the mouse in the
4653 GUI, see |gui-mouse|.
4654 The mouse can be enabled for different modes:
4659 h all previous modes when editing a help file
4660 a all previous modes
4661 r for |hit-enter| and |more-prompt| prompt
4662 Normally you would enable the mouse in all four modes with: >
4664 < When the mouse is not enabled, the GUI will still use the mouse for
4665 modeless selection. This doesn't move the text cursor.
4667 See |mouse-using|. Also see |'clipboard'|.
4669 Note: When enabling the mouse in a terminal, copy/paste will use the
4670 "* register if there is access to an X-server. The xterm handling of
4671 the mouse buttons can still be used by keeping the shift key pressed.
4672 Also see the 'clipboard' option.
4674 *'mousefocus'* *'mousef'* *'nomousefocus'* *'nomousef'*
4675 'mousefocus' 'mousef' boolean (default off)
4678 {only works in the GUI}
4679 The window that the mouse pointer is on is automatically activated.
4680 When changing the window layout or window focus in another way, the
4681 mouse pointer is moved to the window with keyboard focus. Off is the
4682 default because it makes using the pull down menus a little goofy, as
4683 a pointer transit may activate a window unintentionally.
4685 *'mousehide'* *'mh'* *'nomousehide'* *'nomh'*
4686 'mousehide' 'mh' boolean (default on)
4689 {only works in the GUI}
4690 When on, the mouse pointer is hidden when characters are typed.
4691 The mouse pointer is restored when the mouse is moved.
4693 *'mousemodel'* *'mousem'*
4694 'mousemodel' 'mousem' string (default "extend", "popup" for MS-DOS and Win32)
4697 Sets the model to use for the mouse. The name mostly specifies what
4698 the right mouse button is used for:
4699 extend Right mouse button extends a selection. This works
4701 popup Right mouse button pops up a menu. The shifted left
4702 mouse button extends a selection. This works like
4703 with Microsoft Windows.
4704 popup_setpos Like "popup", but the cursor will be moved to the
4705 position where the mouse was clicked, and thus the
4706 selected operation will act upon the clicked object.
4707 If clicking inside a selection, that selection will
4708 be acted upon, i.e. no cursor move. This implies of
4709 course, that right clicking outside a selection will
4711 Overview of what button does what for each model:
4712 mouse extend popup(_setpos) ~
4713 left click place cursor place cursor
4714 left drag start selection start selection
4715 shift-left search word extend selection
4716 right click extend selection popup menu (place cursor)
4717 right drag extend selection -
4718 middle click paste paste
4720 In the "popup" model the right mouse button produces a pop-up menu.
4721 You need to define this first, see |popup-menu|.
4723 Note that you can further refine the meaning of buttons with mappings.
4724 See |gui-mouse-mapping|. But mappings are NOT used for modeless
4725 selection (because that's handled in the GUI code directly).
4727 The 'mousemodel' option is set by the |:behave| command.
4729 *'mouseshape'* *'mouses'* *E547*
4730 'mouseshape' 'mouses' string (default "i:beam,r:beam,s:updown,sd:cross,
4731 m:no,ml:up-arrow,v:rightup-arrow")
4734 {only available when compiled with the |+mouseshape|
4736 This option tells Vim what the mouse pointer should look like in
4737 different modes. The option is a comma separated list of parts, much
4738 like used for 'guicursor'. Each part consist of a mode/location-list
4739 and an argument-list:
4740 mode-list:shape,mode-list:shape,..
4741 The mode-list is a dash separated list of these modes/locations:
4742 In a normal window: ~
4745 ve Visual mode with 'selection' "exclusive" (same as 'v',
4747 o Operator-pending mode
4752 c appending to the command-line
4753 ci inserting in the command-line
4754 cr replacing in the command-line
4755 m at the 'Hit ENTER' or 'More' prompts
4756 ml idem, but cursor in the last line
4757 e any mode, pointer below last window
4758 s any mode, pointer on a status line
4759 sd any mode, while dragging a status line
4760 vs any mode, pointer on a vertical separator line
4761 vd any mode, while dragging a vertical separator line
4764 The shape is one of the following:
4765 avail name looks like ~
4766 w x arrow Normal mouse pointer
4767 w x blank no pointer at all (use with care!)
4769 w x updown up-down sizing arrows
4770 w x leftright left-right sizing arrows
4771 w x busy The system's usual busy pointer
4772 w x no The system's usual 'no input' pointer
4773 x udsizing indicates up-down resizing
4774 x lrsizing indicates left-right resizing
4775 x crosshair like a big thin +
4778 x pencil what you write with
4780 x rightup-arrow arrow pointing right-up
4781 w x up-arrow arrow pointing up
4782 x <number> any X11 pointer number (see X11/cursorfont.h)
4784 The "avail" column contains a 'w' if the shape is available for Win32,
4786 Any modes not specified or shapes not available use the normal mouse
4790 :set mouseshape=s:udsizing,m:no
4791 < will make the mouse turn to a sizing arrow over the status lines and
4792 indicate no input when the hit-enter prompt is displayed (since
4793 clicking the mouse has no effect in this state.)
4795 *'mousetime'* *'mouset'*
4796 'mousetime' 'mouset' number (default 500)
4799 Only for GUI, MS-DOS, Win32 and Unix with xterm. Defines the maximum
4800 time in msec between two mouse clicks for the second click to be
4801 recognized as a multi click.
4803 *'mzquantum'* *'mzq'*
4804 'mzquantum' 'mzq' number (default 100)
4807 {not available when compiled without the |+mzscheme|
4809 The number of milliseconds between polls for MzScheme threads.
4810 Negative or zero value means no thread scheduling.
4812 *'nrformats'* *'nf'*
4813 'nrformats' 'nf' string (default "octal,hex")
4816 This defines what bases Vim will consider for numbers when using the
4817 CTRL-A and CTRL-X commands for adding to and subtracting from a number
4818 respectively; see |CTRL-A| for more info on these commands.
4819 alpha If included, single alphabetical characters will be
4820 incremented or decremented. This is useful for a list with a
4821 letter index a), b), etc.
4822 octal If included, numbers that start with a zero will be considered
4823 to be octal. Example: Using CTRL-A on "007" results in "010".
4824 hex If included, numbers starting with "0x" or "0X" will be
4825 considered to be hexadecimal. Example: Using CTRL-X on
4826 "0x100" results in "0x0ff".
4827 Numbers which simply begin with a digit in the range 1-9 are always
4828 considered decimal. This also happens for numbers that are not
4829 recognized as octal or hex.
4831 *'number'* *'nu'* *'nonumber'* *'nonu'*
4832 'number' 'nu' boolean (default off)
4834 Print the line number in front of each line. When the 'n' option is
4835 excluded from 'cpoptions' a wrapped line will not use the column of
4836 line numbers (this is the default when 'compatible' isn't set).
4837 The 'numberwidth' option can be used to set the room used for the line
4839 When a long, wrapped line doesn't start with the first character, '-'
4840 characters are put before the number.
4841 See |hl-LineNr| for the highlighting used for the number.
4843 *'numberwidth'* *'nuw'*
4844 'numberwidth' 'nuw' number (Vim default: 4 Vi default: 8)
4847 {only available when compiled with the |+linebreak|
4849 Minimal number of columns to use for the line number. Only relevant
4850 when the 'number' option is set or printing lines with a line number.
4851 Since one space is always between the number and the text, there is
4852 one less character for the number itself.
4853 The value is the minimum width. A bigger width is used when needed to
4854 fit the highest line number in the buffer. Thus with the Vim default
4855 of 4 there is room for a line number up to 999. When the buffer has
4856 1000 lines five columns will be used.
4857 The minimum value is 1, the maximum value is 10.
4858 NOTE: 'numberwidth' is reset to 8 when 'compatible' is set.
4860 *'omnifunc'* *'ofu'*
4861 'omnifunc' 'ofu' string (default: empty)
4864 {not available when compiled without the +eval
4865 or +insert_expand feature}
4866 This option specifies a function to be used for Insert mode omni
4867 completion with CTRL-X CTRL-O. |i_CTRL-X_CTRL-O|
4868 See |complete-functions| for an explanation of how the function is
4869 invoked and what it should return.
4870 This option is usually set by a filetype plugin:
4871 |:filetype-plugin-on|
4874 *'opendevice'* *'odev'* *'noopendevice'* *'noodev'*
4875 'opendevice' 'odev' boolean (default off)
4878 {only for MS-DOS, MS-Windows and OS/2}
4879 Enable reading and writing from devices. This may get Vim stuck on a
4880 device that can be opened but doesn't actually do the I/O. Therefore
4881 it is off by default.
4882 Note that on MS-Windows editing "aux.h", "lpt1.txt" and the like also
4883 result in editing a device.
4886 *'operatorfunc'* *'opfunc'*
4887 'operatorfunc' 'opfunc' string (default: empty)
4890 This option specifies a function to be called by the |g@| operator.
4891 See |:map-operator| for more info and an example.
4893 This option cannot be set from a |modeline| or in the |sandbox|, for
4897 *'osfiletype'* *'oft'* *E366*
4898 'osfiletype' 'oft' string (RISC-OS default: "Text",
4902 {only available when compiled with the |+osfiletype|
4904 Some operating systems store extra information about files besides
4905 name, datestamp and permissions. This option contains the extra
4906 information, the nature of which will vary between systems.
4907 The value of this option is usually set when the file is loaded, and
4908 is used to set the operating system file type when file is written.
4909 It can affect the pattern matching of the automatic commands.
4910 |autocmd-osfiletypes|
4912 *'paragraphs'* *'para'*
4913 'paragraphs' 'para' string (default "IPLPPPQPP TPHPLIPpLpItpplpipbp")
4915 Specifies the nroff macros that separate paragraphs. These are pairs
4916 of two letters (see |object-motions|).
4918 *'paste'* *'nopaste'*
4919 'paste' boolean (default off)
4922 Put Vim in Paste mode. This is useful if you want to cut or copy
4923 some text from one window and paste it in Vim. This will avoid
4925 Setting this option is useful when using Vim in a terminal, where Vim
4926 cannot distinguish between typed text and pasted text. In the GUI, Vim
4927 knows about pasting and will mostly do the right thing without 'paste'
4928 being set. The same is true for a terminal where Vim handles the
4929 mouse clicks itself.
4930 This option is reset when starting the GUI. Thus if you set it in
4931 your .vimrc it will work in a terminal, but not in the GUI. Setting
4932 'paste' in the GUI has side effects: e.g., the Paste toolbar button
4933 will no longer work in Insert mode, because it uses a mapping.
4934 When the 'paste' option is switched on (also when it was already on):
4935 - mapping in Insert mode and Command-line mode is disabled
4936 - abbreviations are disabled
4937 - 'textwidth' is set to 0
4938 - 'wrapmargin' is set to 0
4939 - 'autoindent' is reset
4940 - 'smartindent' is reset
4941 - 'softtabstop' is set to 0
4944 - 'showmatch' is reset
4945 - 'formatoptions' is used like it is empty
4946 These options keep their value, but their effect is disabled:
4950 NOTE: When you start editing another file while the 'paste' option is
4951 on, settings from the modelines or autocommands may change the
4952 settings again, causing trouble when pasting text. You might want to
4953 set the 'paste' option again.
4954 When the 'paste' option is reset the mentioned options are restored to
4955 the value before the moment 'paste' was switched from off to on.
4956 Resetting 'paste' before ever setting it does not have any effect.
4957 Since mapping doesn't work while 'paste' is active, you need to use
4958 the 'pastetoggle' option to toggle the 'paste' option with some key.
4960 *'pastetoggle'* *'pt'*
4961 'pastetoggle' 'pt' string (default "")
4964 When non-empty, specifies the key sequence that toggles the 'paste'
4965 option. This is like specifying a mapping: >
4966 :map {keys} :set invpaste<CR>
4967 < Where {keys} is the value of 'pastetoggle'.
4968 The difference is that it will work even when 'paste' is set.
4969 'pastetoggle' works in Insert mode and Normal mode, but not in
4971 Mappings are checked first, thus overrule 'pastetoggle'. However,
4972 when 'paste' is on mappings are ignored in Insert mode, thus you can do
4974 :map <F10> :set paste<CR>
4975 :map <F11> :set nopaste<CR>
4976 :imap <F10> <C-O>:set paste<CR>
4978 :set pastetoggle=<F11>
4979 < This will make <F10> start paste mode and <F11> stop paste mode.
4980 Note that typing <F10> in paste mode inserts "<F10>", since in paste
4981 mode everything is inserted literally, except the 'pastetoggle' key
4983 When the value has several bytes 'ttimeoutlen' applies.
4985 *'pex'* *'patchexpr'*
4986 'patchexpr' 'pex' string (default "")
4989 {not available when compiled without the |+diff|
4991 Expression which is evaluated to apply a patch to a file and generate
4992 the resulting new version of the file. See |diff-patchexpr|.
4994 *'patchmode'* *'pm'* *E206*
4995 'patchmode' 'pm' string (default "")
4998 When non-empty the oldest version of a file is kept. This can be used
4999 to keep the original version of a file if you are changing files in a
5000 source distribution. Only the first time that a file is written a
5001 copy of the original file will be kept. The name of the copy is the
5002 name of the original file with the string in the 'patchmode' option
5003 appended. This option should start with a dot. Use a string like
5004 ".org". 'backupdir' must not be empty for this to work (Detail: The
5005 backup file is renamed to the patchmode file after the new file has
5006 been successfully written, that's why it must be possible to write a
5007 backup file). If there was no file to be backed up, an empty file is
5009 When the 'backupskip' pattern matches, a patchmode file is not made.
5010 Using 'patchmode' for compressed files appends the extension at the
5011 end (e.g., "file.gz.orig"), thus the resulting name isn't always
5012 recognized as a compressed file.
5013 Only normal file name characters can be used, "/\*?[|<>" are illegal.
5015 *'path'* *'pa'* *E343* *E345* *E347*
5016 'path' 'pa' string (default on Unix: ".,/usr/include,,"
5017 on OS/2: ".,/emx/include,,"
5018 other systems: ".,,")
5019 global or local to buffer |global-local|
5021 This is a list of directories which will be searched when using the
5022 |gf|, [f, ]f, ^Wf, |:find|, |:sfind|, |:tabfind| and other commands,
5023 provided that the file being searched for has a relative path (not
5024 starting with "/", "./" or "../"). The directories in the 'path'
5025 option may be relative or absolute.
5026 - Use commas to separate directory names: >
5027 :set path=.,/usr/local/include,/usr/include
5028 < - Spaces can also be used to separate directory names (for backwards
5029 compatibility with version 3.0). To have a space in a directory
5030 name, precede it with an extra backslash, and escape the space: >
5031 :set path=.,/dir/with\\\ space
5032 < - To include a comma in a directory name precede it with an extra
5034 :set path=.,/dir/with\\,comma
5035 < - To search relative to the directory of the current file, use: >
5037 < - To search in the current directory use an empty string between two
5040 < - A directory name may end in a ':' or '/'.
5041 - Environment variables are expanded |:set_env|.
5042 - When using |netrw.vim| URLs can be used. For example, adding
5043 "http://www.vim.org" will make ":find index.html" work.
5044 - Search upwards and downwards in a directory tree using "*", "**" and
5045 ";". See |file-searching| for info and syntax.
5046 {not available when compiled without the |+path_extra| feature}
5047 - Careful with '\' characters, type two to get one in the option: >
5048 :set path=.,c:\\include
5049 < Or just use '/' instead: >
5050 :set path=.,c:/include
5051 < Don't forget "." or files won't even be found in the same directory as
5053 The maximum length is limited. How much depends on the system, mostly
5054 it is something like 256 or 1024 characters.
5055 You can check if all the include files are found, using the value of
5056 'path', see |:checkpath|.
5057 The use of |:set+=| and |:set-=| is preferred when adding or removing
5058 directories from the list. This avoids problems when a future version
5059 uses another default. To remove the current directory use: >
5061 < To add the current directory use: >
5063 < To use an environment variable, you probably need to replace the
5064 separator. Here is an example to append $INCL, in which directory
5065 names are separated with a semi-colon: >
5066 :let &path = &path . "," . substitute($INCL, ';', ',', 'g')
5067 < Replace the ';' with a ':' or whatever separator is used. Note that
5068 this doesn't work when $INCL contains a comma or white space.
5070 *'preserveindent'* *'pi'* *'nopreserveindent'* *'nopi'*
5071 'preserveindent' 'pi' boolean (default off)
5074 When changing the indent of the current line, preserve as much of the
5075 indent structure as possible. Normally the indent is replaced by a
5076 series of tabs followed by spaces as required (unless |'expandtab'| is
5077 enabled, in which case only spaces are used). Enabling this option
5078 means the indent will preserve as many existing characters as possible
5079 for indenting, and only add additional tabs or spaces as required.
5080 'expandtab' does not apply to the preserved white space, a Tab remains
5082 NOTE: When using ">>" multiple times the resulting indent is a mix of
5083 tabs and spaces. You might not like this.
5084 NOTE: 'preserveindent' is reset when 'compatible' is set.
5085 Also see 'copyindent'.
5086 Use |:retab| to clean up white space.
5088 *'previewheight'* *'pvh'*
5089 'previewheight' 'pvh' number (default 12)
5092 {not available when compiled without the |+windows| or
5093 |+quickfix| feature}
5094 Default height for a preview window. Used for |:ptag| and associated
5095 commands. Used for |CTRL-W_}| when no count is given.
5097 *'previewwindow'* *'nopreviewwindow'*
5098 *'pvw'* *'nopvw'* *E590*
5099 'previewwindow' 'pvw' boolean (default off)
5102 {not available when compiled without the |+windows| or
5103 |+quickfix| feature}
5104 Identifies the preview window. Only one window can have this option
5105 set. It's normally not set directly, but by using one of the commands
5106 |:ptag|, |:pedit|, etc.
5108 *'printdevice'* *'pdev'*
5109 'printdevice' 'pdev' string (default empty)
5112 {only available when compiled with the |+printer|
5114 The name of the printer to be used for |:hardcopy|.
5116 This option cannot be set from a |modeline| or in the |sandbox|, for
5119 *'printencoding'* *'penc'*
5120 'printencoding' 'penc' String (default empty, except for some systems)
5123 {only available when compiled with the |+printer|
5124 and |+postscript| features}
5125 Sets the character encoding used when printing.
5128 *'printexpr'* *'pexpr'*
5129 'printexpr' 'pexpr' String (default: see below)
5132 {only available when compiled with the |+printer|
5133 and |+postscript| features}
5134 Expression used to print the PostScript produced with |:hardcopy|.
5137 *'printfont'* *'pfn'*
5138 'printfont' 'pfn' string (default "courier")
5141 {only available when compiled with the |+printer|
5143 The name of the font that will be used for |:hardcopy|.
5146 *'printheader'* *'pheader'*
5147 'printheader' 'pheader' string (default "%<%f%h%m%=Page %N")
5150 {only available when compiled with the |+printer|
5152 The format of the header produced in |:hardcopy| output.
5153 See |pheader-option|.
5155 *'printmbcharset'* *'pmbcs'*
5156 'printmbcharset' 'pmbcs' string (default "")
5159 {only available when compiled with the |+printer|,
5160 |+postscript| and |+multi_byte| features}
5161 The CJK character set to be used for CJK output from |:hardcopy|.
5164 *'printmbfont'* *'pmbfn'*
5165 'printmbfont' 'pmbfn' string (default "")
5168 {only available when compiled with the |+printer|,
5169 |+postscript| and |+multi_byte| features}
5170 List of font names to be used for CJK output from |:hardcopy|.
5173 *'printoptions'* *'popt'*
5174 'printoptions' 'popt' string (default "")
5177 {only available when compiled with |+printer| feature}
5178 List of items that control the format of the output of |:hardcopy|.
5181 *'prompt'* *'noprompt'*
5182 'prompt' boolean (default on)
5184 When on a ":" prompt is used in Ex mode.
5186 *'pumheight'* *'ph'*
5187 'pumheight' 'ph' number (default 0)
5189 {not available when compiled without the
5190 |+insert_expand| feature}
5192 Determines the maximum number of items to show in the popup menu for
5193 Insert mode completion. When zero as much space as available is used.
5194 |ins-completion-menu|.
5197 *'quoteescape'* *'qe'*
5198 'quoteescape' 'qe' string (default "\")
5201 The characters that are used to escape quotes in a string. Used for
5202 objects like a', a" and a` |a'|.
5203 When one of the characters in this option is found inside a string,
5204 the following character will be skipped. The default value makes the
5205 text "foo\"bar\\" considered to be one string.
5207 *'readonly'* *'ro'* *'noreadonly'* *'noro'*
5208 'readonly' 'ro' boolean (default off)
5210 If on, writes fail unless you use a '!'. Protects you from
5211 accidentally overwriting a file. Default on when Vim is started
5212 in read-only mode ("vim -R") or when the executable is called "view".
5213 When using ":w!" the 'readonly' option is reset for the current
5214 buffer, unless the 'Z' flag is in 'cpoptions'.
5215 {not in Vi:} When using the ":view" command the 'readonly' option is
5216 set for the newly edited buffer.
5218 *'redrawtime'* *'rdt'*
5219 'redrawtime' 'rdt' number (default 2000)
5222 {only available when compiled with the |+reltime|
5224 The time in milliseconds for redrawing the display. This applies to
5225 searching for patterns for 'hlsearch' and |:match| highlighting.
5226 When redrawing takes more than this many milliseconds no further
5227 matches will be highlighted. This is used to avoid that Vim hangs
5228 when using a very complicated pattern.
5230 *'remap'* *'noremap'*
5231 'remap' boolean (default on)
5233 Allows for mappings to work recursively. If you do not want this for
5234 a single entry, use the :noremap[!] command.
5235 NOTE: To avoid portability problems with Vim scripts, always keep
5236 this option at the default "on". Only switch it off when working with
5240 'report' number (default 2)
5242 Threshold for reporting number of lines changed. When the number of
5243 changed lines is more than 'report' a message will be given for most
5244 ":" commands. If you want it always, set 'report' to 0.
5245 For the ":substitute" command the number of substitutions is used
5246 instead of the number of lines.
5248 *'restorescreen'* *'rs'* *'norestorescreen'* *'nors'*
5249 'restorescreen' 'rs' boolean (default on)
5251 {not in Vi} {only in Windows 95/NT console version}
5252 When set, the screen contents is restored when exiting Vim. This also
5253 happens when executing external commands.
5255 For non-Windows Vim: You can set or reset the 't_ti' and 't_te'
5256 options in your .vimrc. To disable restoring:
5258 To enable restoring (for an xterm):
5259 set t_ti=^[7^[[r^[[?47h t_te=^[[?47l^[8
5260 (Where ^[ is an <Esc>, type CTRL-V <Esc> to insert it)
5262 *'revins'* *'ri'* *'norevins'* *'nori'*
5263 'revins' 'ri' boolean (default off)
5266 {only available when compiled with the |+rightleft|
5268 Inserting characters in Insert mode will work backwards. See "typing
5269 backwards" |ins-reverse|. This option can be toggled with the CTRL-_
5270 command in Insert mode, when 'allowrevins' is set.
5271 NOTE: This option is reset when 'compatible' or 'paste' is set.
5273 *'rightleft'* *'rl'* *'norightleft'* *'norl'*
5274 'rightleft' 'rl' boolean (default off)
5277 {only available when compiled with the |+rightleft|
5279 When on, display orientation becomes right-to-left, i.e., characters
5280 that are stored in the file appear from the right to the left.
5281 Using this option, it is possible to edit files for languages that
5282 are written from the right to the left such as Hebrew and Arabic.
5283 This option is per window, so it is possible to edit mixed files
5284 simultaneously, or to view the same file in both ways (this is
5285 useful whenever you have a mixed text file with both right-to-left
5286 and left-to-right strings so that both sets are displayed properly
5287 in different windows). Also see |rileft.txt|.
5289 *'rightleftcmd'* *'rlc'* *'norightleftcmd'* *'norlc'*
5290 'rightleftcmd' 'rlc' string (default "search")
5293 {only available when compiled with the |+rightleft|
5295 Each word in this option enables the command line editing to work in
5296 right-to-left mode for a group of commands:
5298 search "/" and "?" commands
5300 This is useful for languages such as Hebrew, Arabic and Farsi.
5301 The 'rightleft' option must be set for 'rightleftcmd' to take effect.
5303 *'ruler'* *'ru'* *'noruler'* *'noru'*
5304 'ruler' 'ru' boolean (default off)
5307 {not available when compiled without the
5308 |+cmdline_info| feature}
5309 Show the line and column number of the cursor position, separated by a
5310 comma. When there is room, the relative position of the displayed
5311 text in the file is shown on the far right:
5312 Top first line is visible
5313 Bot last line is visible
5314 All first and last line are visible
5315 45% relative position in the file
5316 If 'rulerformat' is set, it will determine the contents of the ruler.
5317 Each window has its own ruler. If a window has a status line, the
5318 ruler is shown there. Otherwise it is shown in the last line of the
5319 screen. If the statusline is given by 'statusline' (i.e. not empty),
5320 this option takes precedence over 'ruler' and 'rulerformat'
5321 If the number of characters displayed is different from the number of
5322 bytes in the text (e.g., for a TAB or a multi-byte character), both
5323 the text column (byte number) and the screen column are shown,
5324 separated with a dash.
5325 For an empty line "0-1" is shown.
5326 For an empty buffer the line number will also be zero: "0,0-1".
5327 This option is reset when the 'paste' option is set.
5328 If you don't want to see the ruler all the time but want to know where
5329 you are, use "g CTRL-G" |g_CTRL-G|.
5330 NOTE: This option is reset when 'compatible' is set.
5332 *'rulerformat'* *'ruf'*
5333 'rulerformat' 'ruf' string (default empty)
5336 {not available when compiled without the |+statusline|
5338 When this option is not empty, it determines the content of the ruler
5339 string, as displayed for the 'ruler' option.
5340 The format of this option is like that of 'statusline'.
5341 The default ruler width is 17 characters. To make the ruler 15
5342 characters wide, put "%15(" at the start and "%)" at the end.
5344 :set rulerformat=%15(%c%V\ %p%%%)
5346 *'runtimepath'* *'rtp'* *vimfiles*
5347 'runtimepath' 'rtp' string (default:
5351 $VIM/vimfiles/after,
5353 Amiga: "home:vimfiles,
5356 $VIM/vimfiles/after,
5357 home:vimfiles/after"
5358 PC, OS/2: "$HOME/vimfiles,
5361 $VIM/vimfiles/after,
5362 $HOME/vimfiles/after"
5363 Macintosh: "$VIM:vimfiles,
5365 $VIM:vimfiles:after"
5366 RISC-OS: "Choices:vimfiles,
5368 Choices:vimfiles/after"
5369 VMS: "sys$login:vimfiles,
5372 $VIM/vimfiles/after,
5373 sys$login:vimfiles/after")
5376 This is a list of directories which will be searched for runtime
5378 filetype.vim filetypes by file name |new-filetype|
5379 scripts.vim filetypes by file contents |new-filetype-scripts|
5380 autoload/ automatically loaded scripts |autoload-functions|
5381 colors/ color scheme files |:colorscheme|
5382 compiler/ compiler files |:compiler|
5383 doc/ documentation |write-local-help|
5384 ftplugin/ filetype plugins |write-filetype-plugin|
5385 indent/ indent scripts |indent-expression|
5386 keymap/ key mapping files |mbyte-keymap|
5387 lang/ menu translations |:menutrans|
5388 menu.vim GUI menus |menu.vim|
5389 plugin/ plugin scripts |write-plugin|
5390 print/ files for printing |postscript-print-encoding|
5391 spell/ spell checking files |spell|
5392 syntax/ syntax files |mysyntaxfile|
5393 tutor/ files for vimtutor |tutor|
5395 And any other file searched for with the |:runtime| command.
5397 The defaults for most systems are setup to search five locations:
5398 1. In your home directory, for your personal preferences.
5399 2. In a system-wide Vim directory, for preferences from the system
5401 3. In $VIMRUNTIME, for files distributed with Vim.
5403 4. In the "after" directory in the system-wide Vim directory. This is
5404 for the system administrator to overrule or add to the distributed
5405 defaults (rarely needed)
5406 5. In the "after" directory in your home directory. This is for
5407 personal preferences to overrule or add to the distributed defaults
5408 or system-wide settings (rarely needed).
5410 Note that, unlike 'path', no wildcards like "**" are allowed. Normal
5411 wildcards are allowed, but can significantly slow down searching for
5412 runtime files. For speed, use as few items as possible and avoid
5416 :set runtimepath=~/vimruntime,/mygroup/vim,$VIMRUNTIME
5417 < This will use the directory "~/vimruntime" first (containing your
5418 personal Vim runtime files), then "/mygroup/vim" (shared between a
5419 group of people) and finally "$VIMRUNTIME" (the distributed runtime
5421 You probably should always include $VIMRUNTIME somewhere, to use the
5422 distributed runtime files. You can put a directory before $VIMRUNTIME
5423 to find files which replace a distributed runtime files. You can put
5424 a directory after $VIMRUNTIME to find files which add to distributed
5426 This option cannot be set from a |modeline| or in the |sandbox|, for
5430 'scroll' 'scr' number (default: half the window height)
5432 Number of lines to scroll with CTRL-U and CTRL-D commands. Will be
5433 set to half the number of lines in the window when the window size
5434 changes. If you give a count to the CTRL-U or CTRL-D command it will
5435 be used as the new value for 'scroll'. Reset to half the window
5436 height with ":set scroll=0". {Vi is a bit different: 'scroll' gives
5437 the number of screen lines instead of file lines, makes a difference
5440 *'scrollbind'* *'scb'* *'noscrollbind'* *'noscb'*
5441 'scrollbind' 'scb' boolean (default off)
5444 {not available when compiled without the |+scrollbind|
5446 See also |scroll-binding|. When this option is set, the current
5447 window scrolls as other scrollbind windows (windows that also have
5448 this option set) scroll. This option is useful for viewing the
5449 differences between two versions of a file, see 'diff'.
5450 See |'scrollopt'| for options that determine how this option should be
5452 This option is mostly reset when splitting a window to edit another
5453 file. This means that ":split | edit file" results in two windows
5454 with scroll-binding, but ":split file" does not.
5456 *'scrolljump'* *'sj'*
5457 'scrolljump' 'sj' number (default 1)
5460 Minimal number of lines to scroll when the cursor gets off the
5461 screen (e.g., with "j"). Not used for scroll commands (e.g., CTRL-E,
5462 CTRL-D). Useful if your terminal scrolls very slowly.
5463 When set to a negative number from -1 to -100 this is used as the
5464 percentage of the window height. Thus -50 scrolls half the window
5466 NOTE: This option is set to 1 when 'compatible' is set.
5468 *'scrolloff'* *'so'*
5469 'scrolloff' 'so' number (default 0)
5472 Minimal number of screen lines to keep above and below the cursor.
5473 This will make some context visible around where you are working. If
5474 you set it to a very large value (999) the cursor line will always be
5475 in the middle of the window (except at the start or end of the file or
5476 when long lines wrap).
5477 For scrolling horizontally see 'sidescrolloff'.
5478 NOTE: This option is set to 0 when 'compatible' is set.
5480 *'scrollopt'* *'sbo'*
5481 'scrollopt' 'sbo' string (default "ver,jump")
5483 {not available when compiled without the |+scrollbind|
5486 This is a comma-separated list of words that specifies how
5487 'scrollbind' windows should behave. 'sbo' stands for ScrollBind
5489 The following words are available:
5490 ver Bind vertical scrolling for 'scrollbind' windows
5491 hor Bind horizontal scrolling for 'scrollbind' windows
5492 jump Applies to the offset between two windows for vertical
5493 scrolling. This offset is the difference in the first
5494 displayed line of the bound windows. When moving
5495 around in a window, another 'scrollbind' window may
5496 reach a position before the start or after the end of
5497 the buffer. The offset is not changed though, when
5498 moving back the 'scrollbind' window will try to scroll
5499 to the desired position when possible.
5500 When now making that window the current one, two
5501 things can be done with the relative offset:
5502 1. When "jump" is not included, the relative offset is
5503 adjusted for the scroll position in the new current
5504 window. When going back to the other window, the
5505 new relative offset will be used.
5506 2. When "jump" is included, the other windows are
5507 scrolled to keep the same relative offset. When
5508 going back to the other window, it still uses the
5509 same relative offset.
5510 Also see |scroll-binding|.
5511 When 'diff' mode is active there always is vertical scroll binding,
5512 even when "ver" isn't there.
5514 *'sections'* *'sect'*
5515 'sections' 'sect' string (default "SHNHH HUnhsh")
5517 Specifies the nroff macros that separate sections. These are pairs of
5518 two letters (See |object-motions|). The default makes a section start
5519 at the nroff macros ".SH", ".NH", ".H", ".HU", ".nh" and ".sh".
5521 *'secure'* *'nosecure'* *E523*
5522 'secure' boolean (default off)
5525 When on, ":autocmd", shell and write commands are not allowed in
5526 ".vimrc" and ".exrc" in the current directory and map commands are
5527 displayed. Switch it off only if you know that you will not run into
5528 problems, or when the 'exrc' option is off. On Unix this option is
5529 only used if the ".vimrc" or ".exrc" is not owned by you. This can be
5530 dangerous if the systems allows users to do a "chown". You better set
5531 'secure' at the end of your ~/.vimrc then.
5532 This option cannot be set from a |modeline| or in the |sandbox|, for
5535 *'selection'* *'sel'*
5536 'selection' 'sel' string (default "inclusive")
5539 This option defines the behavior of the selection. It is only used
5540 in Visual and Select mode.
5542 value past line inclusive ~
5546 "past line" means that the cursor is allowed to be positioned one
5547 character past the line.
5548 "inclusive" means that the last character of the selection is included
5549 in an operation. For example, when "x" is used to delete the
5551 Note that when "exclusive" is used and selecting from the end
5552 backwards, you cannot include the last character of a line, when
5553 starting in Normal mode and 'virtualedit' empty.
5555 The 'selection' option is set by the |:behave| command.
5557 *'selectmode'* *'slm'*
5558 'selectmode' 'slm' string (default "")
5561 This is a comma separated list of words, which specifies when to start
5562 Select mode instead of Visual mode, when a selection is started.
5564 mouse when using the mouse
5565 key when using shifted special keys
5566 cmd when using "v", "V" or CTRL-V
5568 The 'selectmode' option is set by the |:behave| command.
5570 *'sessionoptions'* *'ssop'*
5571 'sessionoptions' 'ssop' string (default: "blank,buffers,curdir,folds,
5572 help,options,tabpages,winsize")
5575 {not available when compiled without the +mksession
5577 Changes the effect of the |:mksession| command. It is a comma
5578 separated list of words. Each word enables saving and restoring
5580 word save and restore ~
5582 buffers hidden and unloaded buffers, not just those in windows
5583 curdir the current directory
5584 folds manually created folds, opened/closed folds and local
5586 globals global variables that start with an uppercase letter
5587 and contain at least one lowercase letter. Only
5588 String and Number types are stored.
5589 help the help window
5590 localoptions options and mappings local to a window or buffer (not
5591 global values for local options)
5592 options all options and mappings (also global values for local
5594 resize size of the Vim window: 'lines' and 'columns'
5595 sesdir the directory in which the session file is located
5596 will become the current directory (useful with
5597 projects accessed over a network from different
5599 slash backslashes in file names replaced with forward
5601 tabpages all tab pages; without this only the current tab page
5602 is restored, so that you can make a session for each
5604 unix with Unix end-of-line format (single <NL>), even when
5606 winpos position of the whole Vim window
5607 winsize window sizes
5609 Don't include both "curdir" and "sesdir".
5610 When "curdir" nor "sesdir" is included, file names are stored with
5612 "slash" and "unix" are useful on Windows when sharing session files
5613 with Unix. The Unix version of Vim cannot source dos format scripts,
5614 but the Windows version of Vim can source unix format scripts.
5616 *'shell'* *'sh'* *E91*
5617 'shell' 'sh' string (default $SHELL or "sh",
5618 MS-DOS and Win32: "command.com" or
5619 "cmd.exe", OS/2: "cmd")
5621 Name of the shell to use for ! and :! commands. When changing the
5622 value also check these options: 'shelltype', 'shellpipe', 'shellslash'
5623 'shellredir', 'shellquote', 'shellxquote' and 'shellcmdflag'.
5624 It is allowed to give an argument to the command, e.g. "csh -f".
5625 See |option-backslash| about including spaces and backslashes.
5626 Environment variables are expanded |:set_env|.
5627 If the name of the shell contains a space, you might need to enclose
5628 it in quotes. Example: >
5629 :set shell=\"c:\program\ files\unix\sh.exe\"\ -f
5630 < Note the backslash before each quote (to avoid starting a comment) and
5631 each space (to avoid ending the option value). Also note that the
5632 "-f" is not inside the quotes, because it is not part of the command
5633 name. And Vim automagically recognizes the backslashes that are path
5635 For Dos 32 bits (DJGPP), you can set the $DJSYSFLAGS environment
5636 variable to change the way external commands are executed. See the
5637 libc.inf file of DJGPP.
5638 Under MS-Windows, when the executable ends in ".com" it must be
5639 included. Thus setting the shell to "command.com" or "4dos.com"
5640 works, but "command" and "4dos" do not work for all commands (e.g.,
5642 For unknown reasons, when using "4dos.com" the current directory is
5643 changed to "C:\". To avoid this set 'shell' like this: >
5644 :set shell=command.com\ /c\ 4dos
5645 < This option cannot be set from a |modeline| or in the |sandbox|, for
5648 *'shellcmdflag'* *'shcf'*
5649 'shellcmdflag' 'shcf' string (default: "-c", MS-DOS and Win32, when 'shell'
5650 does not contain "sh" somewhere: "/c")
5653 Flag passed to the shell to execute "!" and ":!" commands; e.g.,
5654 "bash.exe -c ls" or "command.com /c dir". For the MS-DOS-like
5655 systems, the default is set according to the value of 'shell', to
5656 reduce the need to set this option by the user. It's not used for
5657 OS/2 (EMX figures this out itself). See |option-backslash| about
5658 including spaces and backslashes. See |dos-shell|.
5659 This option cannot be set from a |modeline| or in the |sandbox|, for
5662 *'shellpipe'* *'sp'*
5663 'shellpipe' 'sp' string (default ">", "| tee", "|& tee" or "2>&1| tee")
5666 {not available when compiled without the |+quickfix|
5668 String to be used to put the output of the ":make" command in the
5669 error file. See also |:make_makeprg|. See |option-backslash| about
5670 including spaces and backslashes.
5671 The name of the temporary file can be represented by "%s" if necessary
5672 (the file name is appended automatically if no %s appears in the value
5674 For the Amiga and MS-DOS the default is ">". The output is directly
5675 saved in a file and not echoed to the screen.
5676 For Unix the default it "| tee". The stdout of the compiler is saved
5677 in a file and echoed to the screen. If the 'shell' option is "csh" or
5678 "tcsh" after initializations, the default becomes "|& tee". If the
5679 'shell' option is "sh", "ksh", "zsh" or "bash" the default becomes
5680 "2>&1| tee". This means that stderr is also included.
5681 The initialization of this option is done after reading the ".vimrc"
5682 and the other initializations, so that when the 'shell' option is set
5683 there, the 'shellpipe' option changes automatically, unless it was
5684 explicitly set before.
5685 When 'shellpipe' is set to an empty string, no redirection of the
5686 ":make" output will be done. This is useful if you use a 'makeprg'
5687 that writes to 'makeef' by itself. If you want no piping, but do
5688 want to include the 'makeef', set 'shellpipe' to a single space.
5689 Don't forget to precede the space with a backslash: ":set sp=\ ".
5690 In the future pipes may be used for filtering and this option will
5691 become obsolete (at least for Unix).
5692 This option cannot be set from a |modeline| or in the |sandbox|, for
5695 *'shellquote'* *'shq'*
5696 'shellquote' 'shq' string (default: ""; MS-DOS and Win32, when 'shell'
5697 contains "sh" somewhere: "\"")
5700 Quoting character(s), put around the command passed to the shell, for
5701 the "!" and ":!" commands. The redirection is kept outside of the
5702 quoting. See 'shellxquote' to include the redirection. It's
5703 probably not useful to set both options.
5704 This is an empty string by default. Only known to be useful for
5705 third-party shells on MS-DOS-like systems, such as the MKS Korn Shell
5706 or bash, where it should be "\"". The default is adjusted according
5707 the value of 'shell', to reduce the need to set this option by the
5708 user. See |dos-shell|.
5709 This option cannot be set from a |modeline| or in the |sandbox|, for
5712 *'shellredir'* *'srr'*
5713 'shellredir' 'srr' string (default ">", ">&" or ">%s 2>&1")
5716 String to be used to put the output of a filter command in a temporary
5717 file. See also |:!|. See |option-backslash| about including spaces
5719 The name of the temporary file can be represented by "%s" if necessary
5720 (the file name is appended automatically if no %s appears in the value
5722 The default is ">". For Unix, if the 'shell' option is "csh", "tcsh"
5723 or "zsh" during initializations, the default becomes ">&". If the
5724 'shell' option is "sh", "ksh" or "bash" the default becomes
5725 ">%s 2>&1". This means that stderr is also included.
5726 For Win32, the Unix checks are done and additionally "cmd" is checked
5727 for, which makes the default ">%s 2>&1". Also, the same names with
5728 ".exe" appended are checked for.
5729 The initialization of this option is done after reading the ".vimrc"
5730 and the other initializations, so that when the 'shell' option is set
5731 there, the 'shellredir' option changes automatically unless it was
5732 explicitly set before.
5733 In the future pipes may be used for filtering and this option will
5734 become obsolete (at least for Unix).
5735 This option cannot be set from a |modeline| or in the |sandbox|, for
5738 *'shellslash'* *'ssl'* *'noshellslash'* *'nossl'*
5739 'shellslash' 'ssl' boolean (default off)
5741 {not in Vi} {only for MSDOS, MS-Windows and OS/2}
5742 When set, a forward slash is used when expanding file names. This is
5743 useful when a Unix-like shell is used instead of command.com or
5744 cmd.exe. Backward slashes can still be typed, but they are changed to
5745 forward slashes by Vim.
5746 Note that setting or resetting this option has no effect for some
5747 existing file names, thus this option needs to be set before opening
5748 any file for best results. This might change in the future.
5749 'shellslash' only works when a backslash can be used as a path
5750 separator. To test if this is so use: >
5751 if exists('+shellslash')
5753 *'shelltemp'* *'stmp'* *'noshelltemp'* *'nostmp'*
5754 'shelltemp' 'stmp' boolean (Vi default off, Vim default on)
5757 When on, use temp files for shell commands. When off use a pipe.
5758 When using a pipe is not possible temp files are used anyway.
5759 Currently a pipe is only supported on Unix. You can check it with: >
5760 :if has("filterpipe")
5761 < The advantage of using a pipe is that nobody can read the temp file
5762 and the 'shell' command does not need to support redirection.
5763 The advantage of using a temp file is that the file type and encoding
5765 The |FilterReadPre|, |FilterReadPost| and |FilterWritePre|,
5766 |FilterWritePost| autocommands event are not triggered when
5769 *'shelltype'* *'st'*
5770 'shelltype' 'st' number (default 0)
5772 {not in Vi} {only for the Amiga}
5773 On the Amiga this option influences the way how the commands work
5775 0 and 1: always use the shell
5776 2 and 3: use the shell only to filter lines
5777 4 and 5: use shell only for ':sh' command
5778 When not using the shell, the command is executed directly.
5780 0 and 2: use "shell 'shellcmdflag' cmd" to start external commands
5781 1 and 3: use "shell cmd" to start external commands
5783 *'shellxquote'* *'sxq'*
5784 'shellxquote' 'sxq' string (default: "";
5785 for Win32, when 'shell' contains "sh"
5787 for Unix, when using system(): "\"")
5790 Quoting character(s), put around the command passed to the shell, for
5791 the "!" and ":!" commands. Includes the redirection. See
5792 'shellquote' to exclude the redirection. It's probably not useful
5793 to set both options.
5794 This is an empty string by default. Known to be useful for
5795 third-party shells when using the Win32 version, such as the MKS Korn
5796 Shell or bash, where it should be "\"". The default is adjusted
5797 according the value of 'shell', to reduce the need to set this option
5798 by the user. See |dos-shell|.
5799 This option cannot be set from a |modeline| or in the |sandbox|, for
5802 *'shiftround'* *'sr'* *'noshiftround'* *'nosr'*
5803 'shiftround' 'sr' boolean (default off)
5806 Round indent to multiple of 'shiftwidth'. Applies to > and <
5807 commands. CTRL-T and CTRL-D in Insert mode always round the indent to
5808 a multiple of 'shiftwidth' (this is Vi compatible).
5809 NOTE: This option is reset when 'compatible' is set.
5811 *'shiftwidth'* *'sw'*
5812 'shiftwidth' 'sw' number (default 8)
5814 Number of spaces to use for each step of (auto)indent. Used for
5815 |'cindent'|, |>>|, |<<|, etc.
5817 *'shortmess'* *'shm'*
5818 'shortmess' 'shm' string (Vim default "filnxtToO", Vi default: "",
5822 This option helps to avoid all the |hit-enter| prompts caused by file
5823 messages, for example with CTRL-G, and to avoid some other messages.
5824 It is a list of flags:
5825 flag meaning when present ~
5826 f use "(3 of 5)" instead of "(file 3 of 5)"
5827 i use "[noeol]" instead of "[Incomplete last line]"
5828 l use "999L, 888C" instead of "999 lines, 888 characters"
5829 m use "[+]" instead of "[Modified]"
5830 n use "[New]" instead of "[New File]"
5831 r use "[RO]" instead of "[readonly]"
5832 w use "[w]" instead of "written" for file write message
5833 and "[a]" instead of "appended" for ':w >> file' command
5834 x use "[dos]" instead of "[dos format]", "[unix]" instead of
5835 "[unix format]" and "[mac]" instead of "[mac format]".
5836 a all of the above abbreviations
5838 o overwrite message for writing a file with subsequent message
5839 for reading a file (useful for ":wn" or when 'autowrite' on)
5840 O message for reading a file overwrites any previous message.
5841 Also for quickfix message (e.g., ":cn").
5842 s don't give "search hit BOTTOM, continuing at TOP" or "search
5843 hit TOP, continuing at BOTTOM" messages
5844 t truncate file message at the start if it is too long to fit
5845 on the command-line, "<" will appear in the left most column.
5847 T truncate other messages in the middle if they are too long to
5848 fit on the command line. "..." will appear in the middle.
5850 W don't give "written" or "[w]" when writing a file
5851 A don't give the "ATTENTION" message when an existing swap file
5853 I don't give the intro message when starting Vim |:intro|.
5855 This gives you the opportunity to avoid that a change between buffers
5856 requires you to hit <Enter>, but still gives as useful a message as
5857 possible for the space available. To get the whole message that you
5858 would have got with 'shm' empty, use ":file!"
5860 shm= No abbreviation of message.
5861 shm=a Abbreviation, but no loss of information.
5862 shm=at Abbreviation, and truncate message when necessary.
5864 NOTE: This option is set to the Vi default value when 'compatible' is
5865 set and to the Vim default value when 'compatible' is reset.
5867 *'shortname'* *'sn'* *'noshortname'* *'nosn'*
5868 'shortname' 'sn' boolean (default off)
5870 {not in Vi, not in MS-DOS versions}
5871 Filenames are assumed to be 8 characters plus one extension of 3
5872 characters. Multiple dots in file names are not allowed. When this
5873 option is on, dots in file names are replaced with underscores when
5874 adding an extension (".~" or ".swp"). This option is not available
5875 for MS-DOS, because then it would always be on. This option is useful
5876 when editing files on an MS-DOS compatible filesystem, e.g., messydos
5877 or crossdos. When running the Win32 GUI version under Win32s, this
5878 option is always on by default.
5880 *'showbreak'* *'sbr'* *E595*
5881 'showbreak' 'sbr' string (default "")
5884 {not available when compiled without the |+linebreak|
5886 String to put at the start of lines that have been wrapped. Useful
5887 values are "> " or "+++ ".
5888 Only printable single-cell characters are allowed, excluding <Tab> and
5889 comma (in a future version the comma might be used to separate the
5890 part that is shown at the end and at the start of a line).
5891 The characters are highlighted according to the '@' flag in
5893 Note that tabs after the showbreak will be displayed differently.
5894 If you want the 'showbreak' to appear in between line numbers, add the
5895 "n" flag to 'cpoptions'.
5897 *'showcmd'* *'sc'* *'noshowcmd'* *'nosc'*
5898 'showcmd' 'sc' boolean (Vim default: on, off for Unix, Vi default:
5902 {not available when compiled without the
5903 |+cmdline_info| feature}
5904 Show (partial) command in the last line of the screen. Set this
5905 option off if your terminal is slow.
5906 In Visual mode the size of the selected area is shown:
5907 - When selecting characters within a line, the number of characters.
5908 - When selecting more than one line, the number of lines.
5909 - When selecting a block, the size in screen characters: linesxcolumns.
5910 NOTE: This option is set to the Vi default value when 'compatible' is
5911 set and to the Vim default value when 'compatible' is reset.
5913 *'showfulltag'* *'sft'* *'noshowfulltag'* *'nosft'*
5914 'showfulltag' 'sft' boolean (default off)
5917 When completing a word in insert mode (see |ins-completion|) from the
5918 tags file, show both the tag name and a tidied-up form of the search
5919 pattern (if there is one) as possible matches. Thus, if you have
5920 matched a C function, you can see a template for what arguments are
5921 required (coding style permitting).
5922 Note that this doesn't work well together with having "longest" in
5923 'completeopt', because the completion from the search pattern may not
5924 match the typed text.
5926 *'showmatch'* *'sm'* *'noshowmatch'* *'nosm'*
5927 'showmatch' 'sm' boolean (default off)
5929 When a bracket is inserted, briefly jump to the matching one. The
5930 jump is only done if the match can be seen on the screen. The time to
5931 show the match can be set with 'matchtime'.
5932 A Beep is given if there is no match (no matter if the match can be
5933 seen or not). This option is reset when the 'paste' option is set.
5934 When the 'm' flag is not included in 'cpoptions', typing a character
5935 will immediately move the cursor back to where it belongs.
5936 See the "sm" field in 'guicursor' for setting the cursor shape and
5937 blinking when showing the match.
5938 The 'matchpairs' option can be used to specify the characters to show
5939 matches for. 'rightleft' and 'revins' are used to look for opposite
5941 Also see the matchparen plugin for highlighting the match when moving
5942 around |pi_paren.txt|.
5943 Note: Use of the short form is rated PG.
5945 *'showmode'* *'smd'* *'noshowmode'* *'nosmd'*
5946 'showmode' 'smd' boolean (Vim default: on, Vi default: off)
5948 If in Insert, Replace or Visual mode put a message on the last line.
5949 Use the 'M' flag in 'highlight' to set the type of highlighting for
5951 When |XIM| may be used the message will include "XIM". But this
5952 doesn't mean XIM is really active, especially when 'imactivatekey' is
5954 NOTE: This option is set to the Vi default value when 'compatible' is
5955 set and to the Vim default value when 'compatible' is reset.
5957 *'showtabline'* *'stal'*
5958 'showtabline' 'stal' number (default 1)
5961 {not available when compiled without the +windows
5963 The value of this option specifies when the line with tab page labels
5966 1: only if there are at least two tab pages
5968 This is both for the GUI and non-GUI implementation of the tab pages
5970 See |tab-page| for more information about tab pages.
5972 *'sidescroll'* *'ss'*
5973 'sidescroll' 'ss' number (default 0)
5976 The minimal number of columns to scroll horizontally. Used only when
5977 the 'wrap' option is off and the cursor is moved off of the screen.
5978 When it is zero the cursor will be put in the middle of the screen.
5979 When using a slow terminal set it to a large number or 0. When using
5980 a fast terminal use a small number or 1. Not used for "zh" and "zl"
5983 *'sidescrolloff'* *'siso'*
5984 'sidescrolloff' 'siso' number (default 0)
5987 The minimal number of screen columns to keep to the left and to the
5988 right of the cursor if 'nowrap' is set. Setting this option to a
5989 value greater than 0 while having |'sidescroll'| also at a non-zero
5990 value makes some context visible in the line you are scrolling in
5991 horizontally (except at beginning of the line). Setting this option
5992 to a large value (like 999) has the effect of keeping the cursor
5993 horizontally centered in the window, as long as one does not come too
5994 close to the beginning of the line.
5995 NOTE: This option is set to 0 when 'compatible' is set.
5997 Example: Try this together with 'sidescroll' and 'listchars' as
5998 in the following example to never allow the cursor to move
5999 onto the "extends" character:
6001 :set nowrap sidescroll=1 listchars=extends:>,precedes:<
6002 :set sidescrolloff=1
6005 *'smartcase'* *'scs'* *'nosmartcase'* *'noscs'*
6006 'smartcase' 'scs' boolean (default off)
6009 Override the 'ignorecase' option if the search pattern contains upper
6010 case characters. Only used when the search pattern is typed and
6011 'ignorecase' option is on. Used for the commands "/", "?", "n", "N",
6012 ":g" and ":s". Not used for "*", "#", "gd", tag search, etc.. After
6013 "*" and "#" you can make 'smartcase' used by doing a "/" command,
6014 recalling the search pattern from history and hitting <Enter>.
6015 NOTE: This option is reset when 'compatible' is set.
6017 *'smartindent'* *'si'* *'nosmartindent'* *'nosi'*
6018 'smartindent' 'si' boolean (default off)
6021 {not available when compiled without the
6022 |+smartindent| feature}
6023 Do smart autoindenting when starting a new line. Works for C-like
6024 programs, but can also be used for other languages. 'cindent' does
6025 something like this, works better in most cases, but is more strict,
6026 see |C-indenting|. When 'cindent' is on, setting 'si' has no effect.
6027 'indentexpr' is a more advanced alternative.
6028 Normally 'autoindent' should also be on when using 'smartindent'.
6029 An indent is automatically inserted:
6030 - After a line ending in '{'.
6031 - After a line starting with a keyword from 'cinwords'.
6032 - Before a line starting with '}' (only with the "O" command).
6033 When typing '}' as the first character in a new line, that line is
6034 given the same indent as the matching '{'.
6035 When typing '#' as the first character in a new line, the indent for
6036 that line is removed, the '#' is put in the first column. The indent
6037 is restored for the next line. If you don't want this, use this
6038 mapping: ":inoremap # X^H#", where ^H is entered with CTRL-V CTRL-H.
6039 When using the ">>" command, lines starting with '#' are not shifted
6041 NOTE: 'smartindent' is reset when 'compatible' is set. When 'paste'
6042 is set smart indenting is disabled.
6044 *'smarttab'* *'sta'* *'nosmarttab'* *'nosta'*
6045 'smarttab' 'sta' boolean (default off)
6048 When on, a <Tab> in front of a line inserts blanks according to
6049 'shiftwidth'. 'tabstop' or 'softtabstop' is used in other places. A
6050 <BS> will delete a 'shiftwidth' worth of space at the start of the
6052 When off, a <Tab> always inserts blanks according to 'tabstop' or
6053 'softtabstop'. 'shiftwidth' is only used for shifting text left or
6054 right |shift-left-right|.
6055 What gets inserted (a <Tab> or spaces) depends on the 'expandtab'
6056 option. Also see |ins-expandtab|. When 'expandtab' is not set, the
6057 number of spaces is minimized by using <Tab>s.
6058 NOTE: This option is reset when 'compatible' is set.
6060 *'softtabstop'* *'sts'*
6061 'softtabstop' 'sts' number (default 0)
6064 Number of spaces that a <Tab> counts for while performing editing
6065 operations, like inserting a <Tab> or using <BS>. It "feels" like
6066 <Tab>s are being inserted, while in fact a mix of spaces and <Tab>s is
6067 used. This is useful to keep the 'ts' setting at its standard value
6068 of 8, while being able to edit like it is set to 'sts'. However,
6069 commands like "x" still work on the actual characters.
6070 When 'sts' is zero, this feature is off.
6071 'softtabstop' is set to 0 when the 'paste' option is set.
6072 See also |ins-expandtab|. When 'expandtab' is not set, the number of
6073 spaces is minimized by using <Tab>s.
6074 The 'L' flag in 'cpoptions' changes how tabs are used when 'list' is
6076 NOTE: This option is set to 0 when 'compatible' is set.
6078 *'spell'* *'nospell'*
6079 'spell' boolean (default off)
6082 {not available when compiled without the |+syntax|
6084 When on spell checking will be done. See |spell|.
6085 The languages are specified with 'spelllang'.
6087 *'spellcapcheck'* *'spc'*
6088 'spellcapcheck' 'spc' string (default "[.?!]\_[\])'" \t]\+")
6091 {not available when compiled without the |+syntax|
6093 Pattern to locate the end of a sentence. The following word will be
6094 checked to start with a capital letter. If not then it is highlighted
6095 with SpellCap |hl-SpellCap| (unless the word is also badly spelled).
6096 When this check is not wanted make this option empty.
6097 Only used when 'spell' is set.
6098 Be careful with special characters, see |option-backslash| about
6099 including spaces and backslashes.
6100 To set this option automatically depending on the language, see
6103 *'spellfile'* *'spf'*
6104 'spellfile' 'spf' string (default empty)
6107 {not available when compiled without the |+syntax|
6109 Name of the word list file where words are added for the |zg| and |zw|
6110 commands. It must end in ".{encoding}.add". You need to include the
6111 path, otherwise the file is placed in the current directory.
6113 It may also be a comma separated list of names. A count before the
6114 |zg| and |zw| commands can be used to access each. This allows using
6115 a personal word list file and a project word list file.
6116 When a word is added while this option is empty Vim will set it for
6117 you: Using the first directory in 'runtimepath' that is writable. If
6118 there is no "spell" directory yet it will be created. For the file
6119 name the first language name that appears in 'spelllang' is used,
6120 ignoring the region.
6121 The resulting ".spl" file will be used for spell checking, it does not
6122 have to appear in 'spelllang'.
6123 Normally one file is used for all regions, but you can add the region
6124 name if you want to. However, it will then only be used when
6125 'spellfile' is set to it, for entries in 'spelllang' only files
6126 without region name will be found.
6127 This option cannot be set from a |modeline| or in the |sandbox|, for
6130 *'spelllang'* *'spl'*
6131 'spelllang' 'spl' string (default "en")
6134 {not available when compiled without the |+syntax|
6136 A comma separated list of word list names. When the 'spell' option is
6137 on spellchecking will be done for these languages. Example: >
6138 set spelllang=en_us,nl,medical
6139 < This means US English, Dutch and medical words are recognized. Words
6140 that are not recognized will be highlighted.
6141 The word list name must not include a comma or dot. Using a dash is
6142 recommended to separate the two letter language name from a
6143 specification. Thus "en-rare" is used for rare English words.
6144 A region name must come last and have the form "_xx", where "xx" is
6145 the two-letter, lower case region name. You can use more than one
6146 region by listing them: "en_us,en_ca" supports both US and Canadian
6147 English, but not words specific for Australia, New Zealand or Great
6150 As a special case the name of a .spl file can be given as-is. The
6151 first "_xx" in the name is removed and used as the region name
6152 (_xx is an underscore, two letters and followed by a non-letter).
6153 This is mainly for testing purposes. You must make sure the correct
6154 encoding is used, Vim doesn't check it.
6155 When 'encoding' is set the word lists are reloaded. Thus it's a good
6156 idea to set 'spelllang' after setting 'encoding' to avoid loading the
6158 How the related spell files are found is explained here: |spell-load|.
6160 If the |spellfile.vim| plugin is active and you use a language name
6161 for which Vim cannot find the .spl file in 'runtimepath' the plugin
6162 will ask you if you want to download the file.
6164 After this option has been set successfully, Vim will source the files
6165 "spell/LANG.vim" in 'runtimepath'. "LANG" is the value of 'spelllang'
6166 up to the first comma, dot or underscore.
6167 Also see |set-spc-auto|.
6170 *'spellsuggest'* *'sps'*
6171 'spellsuggest' 'sps' string (default "best")
6174 {not available when compiled without the |+syntax|
6176 Methods used for spelling suggestions. Both for the |z=| command and
6177 the |spellsuggest()| function. This is a comma-separated list of
6180 best Internal method that works best for English. Finds
6181 changes like "fast" and uses a bit of sound-a-like
6182 scoring to improve the ordering.
6184 double Internal method that uses two methods and mixes the
6185 results. The first method is "fast", the other method
6186 computes how much the suggestion sounds like the bad
6187 word. That only works when the language specifies
6188 sound folding. Can be slow and doesn't always give
6191 fast Internal method that only checks for simple changes:
6192 character inserts/deletes/swaps. Works well for
6193 simple typing mistakes.
6195 {number} The maximum number of suggestions listed for |z=|.
6196 Not used for |spellsuggest()|. The number of
6197 suggestions is never more than the value of 'lines'
6200 file:{filename} Read file {filename}, which must have two columns,
6201 separated by a slash. The first column contains the
6202 bad word, the second column the suggested good word.
6205 Use this for common mistakes that do not appear at the
6206 top of the suggestion list with the internal methods.
6207 Lines without a slash are ignored, use this for
6209 The file is used for all languages.
6211 expr:{expr} Evaluate expression {expr}. Use a function to avoid
6212 trouble with spaces. |v:val| holds the badly spelled
6213 word. The expression must evaluate to a List of
6214 Lists, each with a suggestion and a score.
6216 [['the', 33], ['that', 44]]
6217 Set 'verbose' and use |z=| to see the scores that the
6218 internal methods use. A lower score is better.
6219 This may invoke |spellsuggest()| if you temporarily
6220 set 'spellsuggest' to exclude the "expr:" part.
6221 Errors are silently ignored, unless you set the
6222 'verbose' option to a non-zero value.
6224 Only one of "best", "double" or "fast" may be used. The others may
6225 appear several times in any order. Example: >
6226 :set sps=file:~/.vim/sugg,best,expr:MySuggest()
6228 This option cannot be set from a |modeline| or in the |sandbox|, for
6232 *'splitbelow'* *'sb'* *'nosplitbelow'* *'nosb'*
6233 'splitbelow' 'sb' boolean (default off)
6236 {not available when compiled without the +windows
6238 When on, splitting a window will put the new window below the current
6241 *'splitright'* *'spr'* *'nosplitright'* *'nospr'*
6242 'splitright' 'spr' boolean (default off)
6245 {not available when compiled without the +vertsplit
6247 When on, splitting a window will put the new window right of the
6248 current one. |:vsplit|
6250 *'startofline'* *'sol'* *'nostartofline'* *'nosol'*
6251 'startofline' 'sol' boolean (default on)
6254 When "on" the commands listed below move the cursor to the first
6255 non-blank of the line. When off the cursor is kept in the same column
6256 (if possible). This applies to the commands: CTRL-D, CTRL-U, CTRL-B,
6257 CTRL-F, "G", "H", "M", "L", gg, and to the commands "d", "<<" and ">>"
6258 with a linewise operator, with "%" with a count and to buffer changing
6259 commands (CTRL-^, :bnext, :bNext, etc.). Also for an Ex command that
6260 only has a line number, e.g., ":25" or ":+".
6261 In case of buffer changing commands the cursor is placed at the column
6262 where it was the last time the buffer was edited.
6263 NOTE: This option is set when 'compatible' is set.
6265 *'statusline'* *'stl'* *E540* *E541* *E542*
6266 'statusline' 'stl' string (default empty)
6267 global or local to window |global-local|
6269 {not available when compiled without the |+statusline|
6271 When nonempty, this option determines the content of the status line.
6272 Also see |status-line|.
6274 The option consists of printf style '%' items interspersed with
6275 normal text. Each status line item is of the form:
6276 %-0{minwid}.{maxwid}{item}
6277 All fields except the {item} is optional. A single percent sign can
6278 be given as "%%". Up to 80 items can be specified.
6280 When the option starts with "%!" then it is used as an expression,
6281 evaluated and the result is used as the option value. Example: >
6282 :set statusline=%!MyStatusLine()
6283 < The result can contain %{} items that will be evaluated too.
6285 When there is error while evaluating the option then it will be made
6286 empty to avoid further errors. Otherwise screen updating would loop.
6288 Note that the only effect of 'ruler' when this option is set (and
6289 'laststatus' is 2) is controlling the output of |CTRL-G|.
6292 - Left justify the item. The default is right justified
6293 when minwid is larger than the length of the item.
6294 0 Leading zeroes in numeric items. Overridden by '-'.
6295 minwid Minimum width of the item, padding as set by '-' & '0'.
6296 Value must be 50 or less.
6297 maxwid Maximum width of the item. Truncation occurs with a '<'
6298 on the left for text items. Numeric items will be
6299 shifted down to maxwid-2 digits followed by '>'number
6300 where number is the amount of missing digits, much like
6301 an exponential notation.
6302 item A one letter code as described below.
6304 Following is a description of the possible statusline items. The
6305 second character in "item" is the type:
6308 F for flags as described below
6312 f S Path to the file in the buffer, as typed or relative to current
6314 F S Full path to the file in the buffer.
6315 t S File name (tail) of file in the buffer.
6316 m F Modified flag, text is "[+]"; "[-]" if 'modifiable' is off.
6317 M F Modified flag, text is ",+" or ",-".
6318 r F Readonly flag, text is "[RO]".
6319 R F Readonly flag, text is ",RO".
6320 h F Help buffer flag, text is "[help]".
6321 H F Help buffer flag, text is ",HLP".
6322 w F Preview window flag, text is "[Preview]".
6323 W F Preview window flag, text is ",PRV".
6324 y F Type of file in the buffer, e.g., "[vim]". See 'filetype'.
6325 Y F Type of file in the buffer, e.g., ",VIM". See 'filetype'.
6326 {not available when compiled without |+autocmd| feature}
6327 k S Value of "b:keymap_name" or 'keymap' when |:lmap| mappings are
6328 being used: "<keymap>"
6330 b N Value of byte under cursor.
6331 B N As above, in hexadecimal.
6332 o N Byte number in file of byte under cursor, first byte is 1.
6333 Mnemonic: Offset from start of file (with one added)
6334 {not available when compiled without |+byte_offset| feature}
6335 O N As above, in hexadecimal.
6336 N N Printer page number. (Only works in the 'printheader' option.)
6338 L N Number of lines in buffer.
6340 v N Virtual column number.
6341 V N Virtual column number as -{num}. Not displayed if equal to 'c'.
6342 p N Percentage through file in lines as in |CTRL-G|.
6343 P S Percentage through file of displayed window. This is like the
6344 percentage described for 'ruler'. Always 3 in length.
6345 a S Argument list status as in default title. ({current} of {max})
6346 Empty if the argument file count is zero or one.
6347 { NF Evaluate expression between '%{' and '}' and substitute result.
6348 Note that there is no '%' before the closing '}'.
6349 ( - Start of item group. Can be used for setting the width and
6350 alignment of a section. Must be followed by %) somewhere.
6351 ) - End of item group. No width fields allowed.
6352 T N For 'tabline': start of tab page N label. Use %T after the last
6353 label. This information is used for mouse clicks.
6354 X N For 'tabline': start of close tab N label. Use %X after the
6355 label, e.g.: %3Xclose%X. Use %999X for a "close current tab"
6356 mark. This information is used for mouse clicks.
6357 < - Where to truncate line if too long. Default is at the start.
6358 No width fields allowed.
6359 = - Separation point between left and right aligned items.
6360 No width fields allowed.
6361 # - Set highlight group. The name must follow and then a # again.
6362 Thus use %#HLname# for highlight group HLname. The same
6363 highlighting is used, also for the statusline of non-current
6365 * - Set highlight group to User{N}, where {N} is taken from the
6366 minwid field, e.g. %1*. Restore normal highlight with %* or %0*.
6367 The difference between User{N} and StatusLine will be applied
6368 to StatusLineNC for the statusline of non-current windows.
6369 The number N must be between 1 and 9. See |hl-User1..9|
6371 When displaying a flag, Vim removes the leading comma, if any, when
6372 that flag comes right after plaintext. This will make a nice display
6373 when flags are used like in the examples below.
6375 When all items in a group becomes an empty string (i.e. flags that are
6376 not set) and a minwid is not set for the group, the whole group will
6377 become empty. This will make a group like the following disappear
6378 completely from the statusline when none of the flags are set. >
6379 :set statusline=...%(\ [%M%R%H]%)...
6381 Beware that an expression is evaluated each and every time the status
6382 line is displayed. The current buffer and current window will be set
6383 temporarily to that of the window (and buffer) whose statusline is
6384 currently being drawn. The expression will evaluate in this context.
6385 The variable "actual_curbuf" is set to the 'bufnr()' number of the
6386 real current buffer.
6388 The 'statusline' option may be evaluated in the |sandbox|, see
6391 It is not allowed to change text or jump to another window while
6392 evaluating 'statusline' |textlock|.
6394 If the statusline is not updated when you want it (e.g., after setting
6395 a variable that's used in an expression), you can force an update by
6396 setting an option without changing its value. Example: >
6399 < A result of all digits is regarded a number for display purposes.
6400 Otherwise the result is taken as flag text and applied to the rules
6403 Watch out for errors in expressions. They may render Vim unusable!
6404 If you are stuck, hold down ':' or 'Q' to get a prompt, then quit and
6405 edit your .vimrc or whatever with "vim -u NONE" to get it right.
6408 Emulate standard status line with 'ruler' set >
6409 :set statusline=%<%f\ %h%m%r%=%-14.(%l,%c%V%)\ %P
6410 < Similar, but add ASCII value of char under the cursor (like "ga") >
6411 :set statusline=%<%f%h%m%r%=%b\ 0x%B\ \ %l,%c%V\ %P
6412 < Display byte count and byte value, modified flag in red. >
6413 :set statusline=%<%f%=\ [%1*%M%*%n%R%H]\ %-19(%3l,%02c%03V%)%O'%02b'
6414 :hi User1 term=inverse,bold cterm=inverse,bold ctermfg=red
6415 < Display a ,GZ flag if a compressed file is loaded >
6416 :set statusline=...%r%{VarExists('b:gzflag','\ [GZ]')}%h...
6417 < In the |:autocmd|'s: >
6421 < And define this function: >
6422 :function VarExists(var, val)
6423 : if exists(a:var) | return a:val | else | return '' | endif
6427 'suffixes' 'su' string (default ".bak,~,.o,.h,.info,.swp,.obj")
6430 Files with these suffixes get a lower priority when multiple files
6431 match a wildcard. See |suffixes|. Commas can be used to separate the
6432 suffixes. Spaces after the comma are ignored. A dot is also seen as
6433 the start of a suffix. To avoid a dot or comma being recognized as a
6434 separator, precede it with a backslash (see |option-backslash| about
6435 including spaces and backslashes).
6436 See 'wildignore' for completely ignoring files.
6437 The use of |:set+=| and |:set-=| is preferred when adding or removing
6438 suffixes from the list. This avoids problems when a future version
6439 uses another default.
6441 *'suffixesadd'* *'sua'*
6442 'suffixesadd' 'sua' string (default "")
6445 {not available when compiled without the
6446 |+file_in_path| feature}
6447 Comma separated list of suffixes, which are used when searching for a
6448 file for the "gf", "[I", etc. commands. Example: >
6449 :set suffixesadd=.java
6451 *'swapfile'* *'swf'* *'noswapfile'* *'noswf'*
6452 'swapfile' 'swf' boolean (default on)
6455 Use a swapfile for the buffer. This option can be reset when a
6456 swapfile is not wanted for a specific buffer. For example, with
6457 confidential information that even root must not be able to access.
6458 Careful: All text will be in memory:
6459 - Don't use this for big files.
6460 - Recovery will be impossible!
6461 A swapfile will only be present when |'updatecount'| is non-zero and
6463 When 'swapfile' is reset, the swap file for the current buffer is
6464 immediately deleted. When 'swapfile' is set, and 'updatecount' is
6465 non-zero, a swap file is immediately created.
6466 Also see |swap-file| and |'swapsync'|.
6468 This option is used together with 'bufhidden' and 'buftype' to
6469 specify special kinds of buffers. See |special-buffers|.
6471 *'swapsync'* *'sws'*
6472 'swapsync' 'sws' string (default "fsync")
6475 When this option is not empty a swap file is synced to disk after
6476 writing to it. This takes some time, especially on busy unix systems.
6477 When this option is empty parts of the swap file may be in memory and
6478 not written to disk. When the system crashes you may lose more work.
6479 On Unix the system does a sync now and then without Vim asking for it,
6480 so the disadvantage of setting this option off is small. On some
6481 systems the swap file will not be written at all. For a unix system
6482 setting it to "sync" will use the sync() call instead of the default
6483 fsync(), which may work better on some systems.
6484 The 'fsync' option is used for the actual file.
6486 *'switchbuf'* *'swb'*
6487 'switchbuf' 'swb' string (default "")
6490 This option controls the behavior when switching between buffers.
6491 Possible values (comma separated list):
6492 useopen If included, jump to the first open window that
6493 contains the specified buffer (if there is one).
6494 Otherwise: Do not examine other windows.
6495 This setting is checked with |quickfix| commands, when
6496 jumping to errors (":cc", ":cn", "cp", etc.). It is
6497 also used in all buffer related split commands, for
6498 example ":sbuffer", ":sbnext", or ":sbrewind".
6499 usetab Like "useopen", but also consider windows in other tab
6501 split If included, split the current window before loading
6502 a buffer. Otherwise: do not split, use current window.
6503 Supported in |quickfix| commands that display errors.
6504 newtab Like "split", but open a new tab page. Overrules
6505 "split" when both are present.
6507 *'synmaxcol'* *'smc'*
6508 'synmaxcol' 'smc' number (default 3000)
6511 {not available when compiled without the |+syntax|
6513 Maximum column in which to search for syntax items. In long lines the
6514 text after this column is not highlighted and following lines may not
6515 be highlighted correctly, because the syntax state is cleared.
6516 This helps to avoid very slow redrawing for an XML file that is one
6518 Set to zero to remove the limit.
6521 'syntax' 'syn' string (default empty)
6524 {not available when compiled without the |+syntax|
6526 When this option is set, the syntax with this name is loaded, unless
6527 syntax highlighting has been switched off with ":syntax off".
6528 Otherwise this option does not always reflect the current syntax (the
6529 b:current_syntax variable does).
6530 This option is most useful in a modeline, for a file which syntax is
6531 not automatically recognized. Example, in an IDL file:
6532 /* vim: set syntax=idl : */ ~
6533 When a dot appears in the value then this separates two filetype
6535 /* vim: set syntax=c.doxygen : */ ~
6536 This will use the "c" syntax first, then the "doxygen" syntax.
6537 Note that the second one must be prepared to be loaded as an addition,
6538 otherwise it will be skipped. More than one dot may appear.
6539 To switch off syntax highlighting for the current file, use: >
6541 < To switch syntax highlighting on according to the current value of the
6542 'filetype' option: >
6544 < What actually happens when setting the 'syntax' option is that the
6545 Syntax autocommand event is triggered with the value as argument.
6546 This option is not copied to another buffer, independent of the 's' or
6547 'S' flag in 'cpoptions'.
6548 Only normal file name characters can be used, "/\*?[|<>" are illegal.
6551 'tabline' 'tal' string (default empty)
6554 {not available when compiled without the +windows
6556 When nonempty, this option determines the content of the tab pages
6557 line at the top of the Vim window. When empty Vim will use a default
6558 tab pages line. See |setting-tabline| for more info.
6560 The tab pages line only appears as specified with the 'showtabline'
6561 option and only when there is no GUI tab line. When 'e' is in
6562 'guioptions' and the GUI supports a tab line 'guitablabel' is used
6565 The value is evaluated like with 'statusline'. You can use
6566 |tabpagenr()|, |tabpagewinnr()| and |tabpagebuflist()| to figure out
6567 the text to be displayed. Use "%1T" for the first label, "%2T" for
6568 the second one, etc. Use "%X" items for closing labels.
6570 Keep in mind that only one of the tab pages is the current one, others
6571 are invisible and you can't jump to their windows.
6574 *'tabpagemax'* *'tpm'*
6575 'tabpagemax' 'tpm' number (default 10)
6578 {not available when compiled without the +windows
6580 Maximum number of tab pages to be opened by the |-p| command line
6581 argument or the ":tab all" command. |tabpage|
6585 'tabstop' 'ts' number (default 8)
6587 Number of spaces that a <Tab> in the file counts for. Also see
6588 |:retab| command, and 'softtabstop' option.
6590 Note: Setting 'tabstop' to any other value than 8 can make your file
6591 appear wrong in many places (e.g., when printing it).
6593 There are four main ways to use tabs in Vim:
6594 1. Always keep 'tabstop' at 8, set 'softtabstop' and 'shiftwidth' to 4
6595 (or 3 or whatever you prefer) and use 'noexpandtab'. Then Vim
6596 will use a mix of tabs and spaces, but typing <Tab> and <BS> will
6597 behave like a tab appears every 4 (or 3) characters.
6598 2. Set 'tabstop' and 'shiftwidth' to whatever you prefer and use
6599 'expandtab'. This way you will always insert spaces. The
6600 formatting will never be messed up when 'tabstop' is changed.
6601 3. Set 'tabstop' and 'shiftwidth' to whatever you prefer and use a
6602 |modeline| to set these values when editing the file again. Only
6603 works when using Vim to edit the file.
6604 4. Always set 'tabstop' and 'shiftwidth' to the same value, and
6605 'noexpandtab'. This should then work (for initial indents only)
6606 for any tabstop setting that people use. It might be nice to have
6607 tabs after the first non-blank inserted as spaces if you do this
6608 though. Otherwise aligned comments will be wrong when 'tabstop' is
6611 *'tagbsearch'* *'tbs'* *'notagbsearch'* *'notbs'*
6612 'tagbsearch' 'tbs' boolean (default on)
6615 When searching for a tag (e.g., for the |:ta| command), Vim can either
6616 use a binary search or a linear search in a tags file. Binary
6617 searching makes searching for a tag a LOT faster, but a linear search
6618 will find more tags if the tags file wasn't properly sorted.
6619 Vim normally assumes that your tags files are sorted, or indicate that
6620 they are not sorted. Only when this is not the case does the
6621 'tagbsearch' option need to be switched off.
6623 When 'tagbsearch' is on, binary searching is first used in the tags
6624 files. In certain situations, Vim will do a linear search instead for
6625 certain files, or retry all files with a linear search. When
6626 'tagbsearch' is off, only a linear search is done.
6628 Linear searching is done anyway, for one file, when Vim finds a line
6629 at the start of the file indicating that it's not sorted: >
6630 !_TAG_FILE_SORTED 0 /some comment/
6631 < [The whitespace before and after the '0' must be a single <Tab>]
6633 When a binary search was done and no match was found in any of the
6634 files listed in 'tags', and 'ignorecase' is set or a pattern is used
6635 instead of a normal tag name, a retry is done with a linear search.
6636 Tags in unsorted tags files, and matches with different case will only
6637 be found in the retry.
6639 If a tag file indicates that it is case-fold sorted, the second,
6640 linear search can be avoided for the 'ignorecase' case. Use a value
6641 of '2' in the "!_TAG_FILE_SORTED" line for this. A tag file can be
6642 case-fold sorted with the -f switch to "sort" in most unices, as in
6643 the command: "sort -f -o tags tags". For "Exuberant ctags" version
6644 5.3 or higher the -f or --fold-case-sort switch can be used for this
6645 as well. Note that case must be folded to uppercase for this to work.
6647 When 'tagbsearch' is off, tags searching is slower when a full match
6648 exists, but faster when no full match exists. Tags in unsorted tags
6649 files may only be found with 'tagbsearch' off.
6650 When the tags file is not sorted, or sorted in a wrong way (not on
6651 ASCII byte value), 'tagbsearch' should be off, or the line given above
6652 must be included in the tags file.
6653 This option doesn't affect commands that find all matching tags (e.g.,
6654 command-line completion and ":help").
6655 {Vi: always uses binary search in some versions}
6657 *'taglength'* *'tl'*
6658 'taglength' 'tl' number (default 0)
6660 If non-zero, tags are significant up to this number of characters.
6662 *'tagrelative'* *'tr'* *'notagrelative'* *'notr'*
6663 'tagrelative' 'tr' boolean (Vim default: on, Vi default: off)
6666 If on and using a tags file in another directory, file names in that
6667 tags file are relative to the directory where the tags file is.
6668 NOTE: This option is set to the Vi default value when 'compatible' is
6669 set and to the Vim default value when 'compatible' is reset.
6671 *'tags'* *'tag'* *E433*
6672 'tags' 'tag' string (default "./tags,tags", when compiled with
6673 |+emacs_tags|: "./tags,./TAGS,tags,TAGS")
6674 global or local to buffer |global-local|
6675 Filenames for the tag command, separated by spaces or commas. To
6676 include a space or comma in a file name, precede it with a backslash
6677 (see |option-backslash| about including spaces and backslashes).
6678 When a file name starts with "./", the '.' is replaced with the path
6679 of the current file. But only when the 'd' flag is not included in
6680 'cpoptions'. Environment variables are expanded |:set_env|. Also see
6682 "*", "**" and other wildcards can be used to search for tags files in
6683 a directory tree. See |file-searching|. {not available when compiled
6684 without the |+path_extra| feature}
6685 The |tagfiles()| function can be used to get a list of the file names
6687 If Vim was compiled with the |+emacs_tags| feature, Emacs-style tag
6688 files are also supported. They are automatically recognized. The
6689 default value becomes "./tags,./TAGS,tags,TAGS", unless case
6690 differences are ignored (MS-Windows). |emacs-tags|
6691 The use of |:set+=| and |:set-=| is preferred when adding or removing
6692 file names from the list. This avoids problems when a future version
6693 uses another default.
6694 {Vi: default is "tags /usr/lib/tags"}
6696 *'tagstack'* *'tgst'* *'notagstack'* *'notgst'*
6697 'tagstack' 'tgst' boolean (default on)
6699 {not in all versions of Vi}
6700 When on, the |tagstack| is used normally. When off, a ":tag" or
6701 ":tselect" command with an argument will not push the tag onto the
6702 tagstack. A following ":tag" without an argument, a ":pop" command or
6703 any other command that uses the tagstack will use the unmodified
6704 tagstack, but does change the pointer to the active entry.
6705 Resetting this option is useful when using a ":tag" command in a
6706 mapping which should not change the tagstack.
6708 *'term'* *E529* *E530* *E531*
6709 'term' string (default is $TERM, if that fails:
6710 in the GUI: "builtin_gui"
6712 on BeOS: "beos-ansi"
6721 Name of the terminal. Used for choosing the terminal control
6722 characters. Environment variables are expanded |:set_env|.
6727 *'termbidi'* *'tbidi'*
6728 *'notermbidi'* *'notbidi'*
6729 'termbidi' 'tbidi' boolean (default off, on for "mlterm")
6732 {only available when compiled with the |+arabic|
6734 The terminal is in charge of Bi-directionality of text (as specified
6735 by Unicode). The terminal is also expected to do the required shaping
6736 that some languages (such as Arabic) require.
6737 Setting this option implies that 'rightleft' will not be set when
6738 'arabic' is set and the value of 'arabicshape' will be ignored.
6739 Note that setting 'termbidi' has the immediate effect that
6740 'arabicshape' is ignored, but 'rightleft' isn't changed automatically.
6741 This option is reset when the GUI is started.
6742 For further details see |arabic.txt|.
6744 *'termencoding'* *'tenc'*
6745 'termencoding' 'tenc' string (default ""; with GTK+ 2 GUI: "utf-8"; with
6746 Macintosh GUI: "macroman")
6748 {only available when compiled with the |+multi_byte|
6751 Encoding used for the terminal. This specifies what character
6752 encoding the keyboard produces and the display will understand. For
6753 the GUI it only applies to the keyboard ('encoding' is used for the
6754 display). Except for the Mac when 'macatsui' is off, then
6755 'termencoding' should be "macroman".
6756 In the Win32 console version the default value is the console codepage
6757 when it differs from the ANSI codepage.
6759 Note: This does not apply to the GTK+ 2 GUI. After the GUI has been
6760 successfully initialized, 'termencoding' is forcibly set to "utf-8".
6761 Any attempts to set a different value will be rejected, and an error
6763 For the Win32 GUI 'termencoding' is not used for typed characters,
6764 because the Win32 system always passes Unicode characters.
6765 When empty, the same encoding is used as for the 'encoding' option.
6766 This is the normal value.
6767 Not all combinations for 'termencoding' and 'encoding' are valid. See
6769 The value for this option must be supported by internal conversions or
6770 iconv(). When this is not possible no conversion will be done and you
6771 will probably experience problems with non-ASCII characters.
6772 Example: You are working with the locale set to euc-jp (Japanese) and
6773 want to edit a UTF-8 file: >
6774 :let &termencoding = &encoding
6776 < You need to do this when your system has no locale support for UTF-8.
6778 *'terse'* *'noterse'*
6779 'terse' boolean (default off)
6781 When set: Add 's' flag to 'shortmess' option (this makes the message
6782 for a search that hits the start or end of the file not being
6783 displayed). When reset: Remove 's' flag from 'shortmess' option. {Vi
6784 shortens a lot of messages}
6786 *'textauto'* *'ta'* *'notextauto'* *'nota'*
6787 'textauto' 'ta' boolean (Vim default: on, Vi default: off)
6790 This option is obsolete. Use 'fileformats'.
6791 For backwards compatibility, when 'textauto' is set, 'fileformats' is
6792 set to the default value for the current system. When 'textauto' is
6793 reset, 'fileformats' is made empty.
6794 NOTE: This option is set to the Vi default value when 'compatible' is
6795 set and to the Vim default value when 'compatible' is reset.
6797 *'textmode'* *'tx'* *'notextmode'* *'notx'*
6798 'textmode' 'tx' boolean (MS-DOS, Win32 and OS/2: default on,
6799 others: default off)
6802 This option is obsolete. Use 'fileformat'.
6803 For backwards compatibility, when 'textmode' is set, 'fileformat' is
6804 set to "dos". When 'textmode' is reset, 'fileformat' is set to
6807 *'textwidth'* *'tw'*
6808 'textwidth' 'tw' number (default 0)
6811 Maximum width of text that is being inserted. A longer line will be
6812 broken after white space to get this width. A zero value disables
6813 this. 'textwidth' is set to 0 when the 'paste' option is set. When
6814 'textwidth' is zero, 'wrapmargin' may be used. See also
6815 'formatoptions' and |ins-textwidth|.
6816 When 'formatexpr' is set it will be used to break the line.
6817 NOTE: This option is set to 0 when 'compatible' is set.
6819 *'thesaurus'* *'tsr'*
6820 'thesaurus' 'tsr' string (default "")
6821 global or local to buffer |global-local|
6823 List of file names, separated by commas, that are used to lookup words
6824 for thesaurus completion commands |i_CTRL-X_CTRL-T|. Each line in
6825 the file should contain words with similar meaning, separated by
6826 non-keyword characters (white space is preferred). Maximum line
6827 length is 510 bytes.
6828 To obtain a file to be used here, check out the wordlist FAQ at
6829 http://www.hyphenologist.co.uk .
6830 To include a comma in a file name precede it with a backslash. Spaces
6831 after a comma are ignored, otherwise spaces are included in the file
6832 name. See |option-backslash| about using backslashes.
6833 The use of |:set+=| and |:set-=| is preferred when adding or removing
6834 directories from the list. This avoids problems when a future version
6835 uses another default.
6836 Backticks cannot be used in this option for security reasons.
6838 *'tildeop'* *'top'* *'notildeop'* *'notop'*
6839 'tildeop' 'top' boolean (default off)
6842 When on: The tilde command "~" behaves like an operator.
6843 NOTE: This option is reset when 'compatible' is set.
6845 *'timeout'* *'to'* *'notimeout'* *'noto'*
6846 'timeout' 'to' boolean (default on)
6848 *'ttimeout'* *'nottimeout'*
6849 'ttimeout' boolean (default off)
6852 These two options together determine the behavior when part of a
6853 mapped key sequence or keyboard code has been received:
6855 'timeout' 'ttimeout' action ~
6856 off off do not time out
6857 on on or off time out on :mappings and key codes
6858 off on time out on key codes
6860 If both options are off, Vim will wait until either the complete
6861 mapping or key sequence has been received, or it is clear that there
6862 is no mapping or key sequence for the received characters. For
6863 example: if you have mapped "vl" and Vim has received 'v', the next
6864 character is needed to see if the 'v' is followed by an 'l'.
6865 When one of the options is on, Vim will wait for about 1 second for
6866 the next character to arrive. After that the already received
6867 characters are interpreted as single characters. The waiting time can
6868 be changed with the 'timeoutlen' option.
6869 On slow terminals or very busy systems timing out may cause
6870 malfunctioning cursor keys. If both options are off, Vim waits
6871 forever after an entered <Esc> if there are key codes that start
6872 with <Esc>. You will have to type <Esc> twice. If you do not have
6873 problems with key codes, but would like to have :mapped key
6874 sequences not timing out in 1 second, set the 'ttimeout' option and
6875 reset the 'timeout' option.
6877 NOTE: 'ttimeout' is reset when 'compatible' is set.
6879 *'timeoutlen'* *'tm'*
6880 'timeoutlen' 'tm' number (default 1000)
6882 {not in all versions of Vi}
6883 *'ttimeoutlen'* *'ttm'*
6884 'ttimeoutlen' 'ttm' number (default -1)
6887 The time in milliseconds that is waited for a key code or mapped key
6888 sequence to complete. Also used for CTRL-\ CTRL-N and CTRL-\ CTRL-G
6889 when part of a command has been typed.
6890 Normally only 'timeoutlen' is used and 'ttimeoutlen' is -1. When a
6891 different timeout value for key codes is desired set 'ttimeoutlen' to
6892 a non-negative number.
6894 ttimeoutlen mapping delay key code delay ~
6895 < 0 'timeoutlen' 'timeoutlen'
6896 >= 0 'timeoutlen' 'ttimeoutlen'
6898 The timeout only happens when the 'timeout' and 'ttimeout' options
6899 tell so. A useful setting would be >
6900 :set timeout timeoutlen=3000 ttimeoutlen=100
6901 < (time out on mapping after three seconds, time out on key codes after
6902 a tenth of a second).
6904 *'title'* *'notitle'*
6905 'title' boolean (default off, on when title can be restored)
6908 {not available when compiled without the |+title|
6910 When on, the title of the window will be set to the value of
6911 'titlestring' (if it is not empty), or to:
6912 filename [+=-] (path) - VIM
6914 filename the name of the file being edited
6915 - indicates the file cannot be modified, 'ma' off
6916 + indicates the file was modified
6917 = indicates the file is read-only
6918 =+ indicates the file is read-only and modified
6919 (path) is the path of the file being edited
6920 - VIM the server name |v:servername| or "VIM"
6921 Only works if the terminal supports setting window titles
6922 (currently Amiga console, Win32 console, all GUI versions and
6923 terminals with a non- empty 't_ts' option - these are Unix xterm and
6924 iris-ansi by default, where 't_ts' is taken from the builtin termcap).
6926 When Vim was compiled with HAVE_X11 defined, the original title will
6927 be restored if possible. The output of ":version" will include "+X11"
6928 when HAVE_X11 was defined, otherwise it will be "-X11". This also
6929 works for the icon name |'icon'|.
6930 But: When Vim was started with the |-X| argument, restoring the title
6931 will not work (except in the GUI).
6932 If the title cannot be restored, it is set to the value of 'titleold'.
6933 You might want to restore the title outside of Vim then.
6934 When using an xterm from a remote machine you can use this command:
6935 rsh machine_name xterm -display $DISPLAY &
6936 then the WINDOWID environment variable should be inherited and the
6937 title of the window should change back to what it should be after
6941 'titlelen' number (default 85)
6944 {not available when compiled without the |+title|
6946 Gives the percentage of 'columns' to use for the length of the window
6947 title. When the title is longer, only the end of the path name is
6948 shown. A '<' character before the path name is used to indicate this.
6949 Using a percentage makes this adapt to the width of the window. But
6950 it won't work perfectly, because the actual number of characters
6951 available also depends on the font used and other things in the title
6952 bar. When 'titlelen' is zero the full path is used. Otherwise,
6953 values from 1 to 30000 percent can be used.
6954 'titlelen' is also used for the 'titlestring' option.
6957 'titleold' string (default "Thanks for flying Vim")
6960 {only available when compiled with the |+title|
6962 This option will be used for the window title when exiting Vim if the
6963 original title cannot be restored. Only happens if 'title' is on or
6964 'titlestring' is not empty.
6965 This option cannot be set from a |modeline| or in the |sandbox|, for
6968 'titlestring' string (default "")
6971 {not available when compiled without the |+title|
6973 When this option is not empty, it will be used for the title of the
6974 window. This happens only when the 'title' option is on.
6975 Only works if the terminal supports setting window titles (currently
6976 Amiga console, Win32 console, all GUI versions and terminals with a
6977 non-empty 't_ts' option).
6978 When Vim was compiled with HAVE_X11 defined, the original title will
6979 be restored if possible |X11|.
6980 When this option contains printf-style '%' items, they will be
6981 expanded according to the rules used for 'statusline'.
6983 :auto BufEnter * let &titlestring = hostname() . "/" . expand("%:p")
6984 :set title titlestring=%<%F%=%l/%L-%P titlelen=70
6985 < The value of 'titlelen' is used to align items in the middle or right
6986 of the available space.
6987 Some people prefer to have the file name first: >
6988 :set titlestring=%t%(\ %M%)%(\ (%{expand(\"%:~:.:h\")})%)%(\ %a%)
6989 < Note the use of "%{ }" and an expression to get the path of the file,
6990 without the file name. The "%( %)" constructs are used to add a
6991 separating space only when needed.
6992 NOTE: Use of special characters in 'titlestring' may cause the display
6993 to be garbled (e.g., when it contains a CR or NL character).
6994 {not available when compiled without the |+statusline| feature}
6997 'toolbar' 'tb' string (default "icons,tooltips")
6999 {only for |+GUI_GTK|, |+GUI_Athena|, |+GUI_Motif| and
7001 The contents of this option controls various toolbar settings. The
7002 possible values are:
7003 icons Toolbar buttons are shown with icons.
7004 text Toolbar buttons shown with text.
7005 horiz Icon and text of a toolbar button are
7006 horizontally arranged. {only in GTK+ 2 GUI}
7007 tooltips Tooltips are active for toolbar buttons.
7008 Tooltips refer to the popup help text which appears after the mouse
7009 cursor is placed over a toolbar button for a brief moment.
7011 If you want the toolbar to be shown with icons as well as text, do the
7014 < Motif and Athena cannot display icons and text at the same time. They
7015 will show icons if both are requested.
7017 If none of the strings specified in 'toolbar' are valid or if
7018 'toolbar' is empty, this option is ignored. If you want to disable
7019 the toolbar, you need to set the 'guioptions' option. For example: >
7021 < Also see |gui-toolbar|.
7023 *'toolbariconsize'* *'tbis'*
7024 'toolbariconsize' 'tbis' string (default "small")
7027 {only in the GTK+ 2 GUI}
7028 Controls the size of toolbar icons. The possible values are:
7029 tiny Use tiny toolbar icons.
7030 small Use small toolbar icons (default).
7031 medium Use medium-sized toolbar icons.
7032 large Use large toolbar icons.
7033 The exact dimensions in pixels of the various icon sizes depend on
7034 the current theme. Common dimensions are large=32x32, medium=24x24,
7035 small=20x20 and tiny=16x16.
7037 If 'toolbariconsize' is empty, the global default size as determined
7038 by user preferences or the current theme is used.
7040 *'ttybuiltin'* *'tbi'* *'nottybuiltin'* *'notbi'*
7041 'ttybuiltin' 'tbi' boolean (default on)
7044 When on, the builtin termcaps are searched before the external ones.
7045 When off the builtin termcaps are searched after the external ones.
7046 When this option is changed, you should set the 'term' option next for
7047 the change to take effect, for example: >
7048 :set notbi term=$TERM
7049 < See also |termcap|.
7050 Rationale: The default for this option is "on", because the builtin
7051 termcap entries are generally better (many systems contain faulty
7054 *'ttyfast'* *'tf'* *'nottyfast'* *'notf'*
7055 'ttyfast' 'tf' boolean (default off, on when 'term' is xterm, hpterm,
7056 sun-cmd, screen, rxvt, dtterm or
7057 iris-ansi; also on when running Vim in
7061 Indicates a fast terminal connection. More characters will be sent to
7062 the screen for redrawing, instead of using insert/delete line
7063 commands. Improves smoothness of redrawing when there are multiple
7064 windows and the terminal does not support a scrolling region.
7065 Also enables the extra writing of characters at the end of each screen
7066 line for lines that wrap. This helps when using copy/paste with the
7067 mouse in an xterm and other terminals.
7069 *'ttymouse'* *'ttym'*
7070 'ttymouse' 'ttym' string (default depends on 'term')
7073 {only in Unix and VMS, doesn't work in the GUI; not
7074 available when compiled without |+mouse|}
7075 Name of the terminal type for which mouse codes are to be recognized.
7076 Currently these strings are valid:
7078 xterm xterm-like mouse handling. The mouse generates
7079 "<Esc>[Mscr", where "scr" is three bytes:
7081 "c" = column plus 33
7083 This only works up to 223 columns! See "dec" for a
7085 xterm2 Works like "xterm", but with the xterm reporting the
7086 mouse position while the mouse is dragged. This works
7087 much faster and more precise. Your xterm must at
7088 least at patchlevel 88 / XFree 3.3.3 for this to
7089 work. See below for how Vim detects this
7092 netterm NetTerm mouse handling. The mouse generates
7093 "<Esc>}r,c<CR>", where "r,c" are two decimal numbers
7094 for the row and column.
7096 dec DEC terminal mouse handling. The mouse generates a
7097 rather complex sequence, starting with "<Esc>[".
7098 This is also available for an Xterm, if it was
7099 configured with "--enable-dec-locator".
7101 jsbterm JSB term mouse handling.
7103 pterm QNX pterm mouse handling.
7105 The mouse handling must be enabled at compile time |+mouse_xterm|
7106 |+mouse_dec| |+mouse_netterm|.
7107 Only "xterm"(2) is really recognized. NetTerm mouse codes are always
7108 recognized, if enabled at compile time. DEC terminal mouse codes
7109 are recognized if enabled at compile time, and 'ttymouse' is not
7110 "xterm" (because the xterm and dec mouse codes conflict).
7111 This option is automatically set to "xterm", when the 'term' option is
7112 set to a name that starts with "xterm", and 'ttymouse' is not "xterm"
7113 or "xterm2" already. The main use of this option is to set it to
7114 "xterm", when the terminal name doesn't start with "xterm", but it can
7115 handle xterm mouse codes.
7116 The "xterm2" value will be set if the xterm version is reported to be
7117 95 or higher. This only works when compiled with the |+termresponse|
7118 feature and if |t_RV| is set to the escape sequence to request the
7119 xterm version number. Otherwise "xterm2" must be set explicitly.
7120 If you do not want 'ttymouse' to be set to "xterm2" automatically, set
7121 t_RV to an empty string: >
7124 *'ttyscroll'* *'tsl'*
7125 'ttyscroll' 'tsl' number (default 999)
7127 Maximum number of lines to scroll the screen. If there are more lines
7128 to scroll the window is redrawn. For terminals where scrolling is
7129 very slow and redrawing is not slow this can be set to a small number,
7130 e.g., 3, to speed up displaying.
7133 'ttytype' 'tty' string (default from $TERM)
7135 Alias for 'term', see above.
7137 *'undolevels'* *'ul'*
7138 'undolevels' 'ul' number (default 100, 1000 for Unix, VMS,
7142 Maximum number of changes that can be undone. Since undo information
7143 is kept in memory, higher numbers will cause more memory to be used
7144 (nevertheless, a single change can use an unlimited amount of memory).
7145 Set to 0 for Vi compatibility: One level of undo and "u" undoes
7148 < But you can also get Vi compatibility by including the 'u' flag in
7149 'cpoptions', and still be able to use CTRL-R to repeat undo.
7150 Set to a negative number for no undo at all: >
7152 < This helps when you run out of memory for a single change.
7153 Also see |undo-two-ways|.
7155 *'updatecount'* *'uc'*
7156 'updatecount' 'uc' number (default: 200)
7159 After typing this many characters the swap file will be written to
7160 disk. When zero, no swap file will be created at all (see chapter on
7161 recovery |crash-recovery|). 'updatecount' is set to zero by starting
7162 Vim with the "-n" option, see |startup|. When editing in readonly
7163 mode this option will be initialized to 10000.
7164 The swapfile can be disabled per buffer with |'swapfile'|.
7165 When 'updatecount' is set from zero to non-zero, swap files are
7166 created for all buffers that have 'swapfile' set. When 'updatecount'
7167 is set to zero, existing swap files are not deleted.
7168 Also see |'swapsync'|.
7169 This option has no meaning in buffers where |'buftype'| is "nofile"
7172 *'updatetime'* *'ut'*
7173 'updatetime' 'ut' number (default 4000)
7176 If this many milliseconds nothing is typed the swap file will be
7177 written to disk (see |crash-recovery|). Also used for the
7178 |CursorHold| autocommand event.
7181 'verbose' 'vbs' number (default 0)
7183 {not in Vi, although some versions have a boolean
7185 When bigger than zero, Vim will give messages about what it is doing.
7186 Currently, these messages are given:
7187 >= 1 When the viminfo file is read or written.
7188 >= 2 When a file is ":source"'ed.
7189 >= 5 Every searched tags file and include file.
7190 >= 8 Files for which a group of autocommands is executed.
7191 >= 9 Every executed autocommand.
7192 >= 12 Every executed function.
7193 >= 13 When an exception is thrown, caught, finished, or discarded.
7194 >= 14 Anything pending in a ":finally" clause.
7195 >= 15 Every executed Ex command (truncated at 200 characters).
7197 This option can also be set with the "-V" argument. See |-V|.
7198 This option is also set by the |:verbose| command.
7200 When the 'verbosefile' option is set then the verbose messages are not
7203 *'verbosefile'* *'vfile'*
7204 'verbosefile' 'vfile' string (default empty)
7207 When not empty all messages are written in a file with this name.
7208 When the file exists messages are appended.
7209 Writing to the file ends when Vim exits or when 'verbosefile' is made
7211 Setting 'verbosefile' to a new value is like making it empty first.
7212 The difference with |:redir| is that verbose messages are not
7213 displayed when 'verbosefile' is set.
7215 *'viewdir'* *'vdir'*
7216 'viewdir' 'vdir' string (default for Amiga, MS-DOS, OS/2 and Win32:
7217 "$VIM/vimfiles/view",
7218 for Unix: "~/.vim/view",
7219 for Macintosh: "$VIM:vimfiles:view"
7220 for VMS: "sys$login:vimfiles/view"
7221 for RiscOS: "Choices:vimfiles/view")
7224 {not available when compiled without the +mksession
7226 Name of the directory where to store files for |:mkview|.
7227 This option cannot be set from a |modeline| or in the |sandbox|, for
7230 *'viewoptions'* *'vop'*
7231 'viewoptions' 'vop' string (default: "folds,options,cursor")
7234 {not available when compiled without the +mksession
7236 Changes the effect of the |:mkview| command. It is a comma separated
7237 list of words. Each word enables saving and restoring something:
7238 word save and restore ~
7239 cursor cursor position in file and in window
7240 folds manually created folds, opened/closed folds and local
7242 options options and mappings local to a window or buffer (not
7243 global values for local options)
7244 slash backslashes in file names replaced with forward
7246 unix with Unix end-of-line format (single <NL>), even when
7249 "slash" and "unix" are useful on Windows when sharing view files
7250 with Unix. The Unix version of Vim cannot source dos format scripts,
7251 but the Windows version of Vim can source unix format scripts.
7253 *'viminfo'* *'vi'* *E526* *E527* *E528*
7254 'viminfo' 'vi' string (Vi default: "", Vim default for MS-DOS,
7255 Windows and OS/2: '20,<50,s10,h,rA:,rB:,
7256 for Amiga: '20,<50,s10,h,rdf0:,rdf1:,rdf2:
7257 for others: '20,<50,s10,h)
7260 {not available when compiled without the |+viminfo|
7262 When non-empty, the viminfo file is read upon startup and written
7263 when exiting Vim (see |viminfo-file|). The string should be a comma
7264 separated list of parameters, each consisting of a single character
7265 identifying the particular parameter, followed by a number or string
7266 which specifies the value of that parameter. If a particular
7267 character is left out, then the default value is used for that
7268 parameter. The following is a list of the identifying characters and
7269 the effect of their value.
7271 ! When included, save and restore global variables that start
7272 with an uppercase letter, and don't contain a lowercase
7273 letter. Thus "KEEPTHIS and "K_L_M" are stored, but "KeepThis"
7274 and "_K_L_M" are not. Only String and Number types are
7276 " Maximum number of lines saved for each register. Old name of
7277 the '<' item, with the disadvantage that you need to put a
7278 backslash before the ", otherwise it will be recognized as the
7280 % When included, save and restore the buffer list. If Vim is
7281 started with a file name argument, the buffer list is not
7282 restored. If Vim is started without a file name argument, the
7283 buffer list is restored from the viminfo file. Buffers
7284 without a file name and buffers for help files are not written
7285 to the viminfo file.
7286 When followed by a number, the number specifies the maximum
7287 number of buffers that are stored. Without a number all
7289 ' Maximum number of previously edited files for which the marks
7290 are remembered. This parameter must always be included when
7291 'viminfo' is non-empty.
7292 Including this item also means that the |jumplist| and the
7293 |changelist| are stored in the viminfo file.
7294 / Maximum number of items in the search pattern history to be
7295 saved. If non-zero, then the previous search and substitute
7296 patterns are also saved. When not included, the value of
7298 : Maximum number of items in the command-line history to be
7299 saved. When not included, the value of 'history' is used.
7300 < Maximum number of lines saved for each register. If zero then
7301 registers are not saved. When not included, all lines are
7302 saved. '"' is the old name for this item.
7303 Also see the 's' item below: limit specified in Kbyte.
7304 @ Maximum number of items in the input-line history to be
7305 saved. When not included, the value of 'history' is used.
7306 c When included, convert the text in the viminfo file from the
7307 'encoding' used when writing the file to the current
7308 'encoding'. See |viminfo-encoding|.
7309 f Whether file marks need to be stored. If zero, file marks ('0
7310 to '9, 'A to 'Z) are not stored. When not present or when
7311 non-zero, they are all stored. '0 is used for the current
7312 cursor position (when exiting or when doing ":wviminfo").
7313 h Disable the effect of 'hlsearch' when loading the viminfo
7314 file. When not included, it depends on whether ":nohlsearch"
7315 has been used since the last search command.
7316 n Name of the viminfo file. The name must immediately follow
7317 the 'n'. Must be the last one! If the "-i" argument was
7318 given when starting Vim, that file name overrides the one
7319 given here with 'viminfo'. Environment variables are expanded
7320 when opening the file, not when setting the option.
7321 r Removable media. The argument is a string (up to the next
7322 ','). This parameter can be given several times. Each
7323 specifies the start of a path for which no marks will be
7324 stored. This is to avoid removable media. For MS-DOS you
7325 could use "ra:,rb:", for Amiga "rdf0:,rdf1:,rdf2:". You can
7326 also use it for temp files, e.g., for Unix: "r/tmp". Case is
7327 ignored. Maximum length of each 'r' argument is 50
7329 s Maximum size of an item in Kbyte. If zero then registers are
7330 not saved. Currently only applies to registers. The default
7331 "s10" will exclude registers with more than 10 Kbyte of text.
7332 Also see the '<' item above: line count limit.
7335 :set viminfo='50,<1000,s100,:0,n~/vim/viminfo
7337 '50 Marks will be remembered for the last 50 files you
7339 <1000 Contents of registers (up to 1000 lines each) will be
7341 s100 Registers with more than 100 Kbyte text are skipped.
7342 :0 Command-line history will not be saved.
7343 n~/vim/viminfo The name of the file to use is "~/vim/viminfo".
7344 no / Since '/' is not specified, the default will be used,
7345 that is, save all of the search history, and also the
7346 previous search and substitute patterns.
7347 no % The buffer list will not be saved nor read back.
7348 no h 'hlsearch' highlighting will be restored.
7350 When setting 'viminfo' from an empty value you can use |:rviminfo| to
7351 load the contents of the file, this is not done automatically.
7353 This option cannot be set from a |modeline| or in the |sandbox|, for
7356 *'virtualedit'* *'ve'*
7357 'virtualedit' 've' string (default "")
7360 {not available when compiled without the
7361 |+virtualedit| feature}
7362 A comma separated list of these words:
7363 block Allow virtual editing in Visual block mode.
7364 insert Allow virtual editing in Insert mode.
7365 all Allow virtual editing in all modes.
7366 onemore Allow the cursor to move just past the end of the line
7368 Virtual editing means that the cursor can be positioned where there is
7369 no actual character. This can be halfway into a tab or beyond the end
7370 of the line. Useful for selecting a rectangle in Visual mode and
7372 "onemore" is not the same, it will only allow moving the cursor just
7373 after the last character of the line. This makes some commands more
7374 consistent. Previously the cursor was always past the end of the line
7375 if the line was empty. But it is far from Vi compatible. It may also
7376 break some plugins or Vim scripts. For example because |l| can move
7377 the cursor after the last character. Use with care!
7378 Using the |$| command will move to the last character in the line, not
7379 past it. This may actually move the cursor to the left!
7380 It doesn't make sense to combine "all" with "onemore", but you will
7381 not get a warning for it.
7383 *'visualbell'* *'vb'* *'novisualbell'* *'novb'* *beep*
7384 'visualbell' 'vb' boolean (default off)
7387 Use visual bell instead of beeping. The terminal code to display the
7388 visual bell is given with 't_vb'. When no beep or flash is wanted,
7389 use ":set vb t_vb=".
7390 Note: When the GUI starts, 't_vb' is reset to its default value. You
7391 might want to set it again in your |gvimrc|.
7392 In the GUI, 't_vb' defaults to "<Esc>|f", which inverts the display
7393 for 20 msec. If you want to use a different time, use "<Esc>|40f",
7394 where 40 is the time in msec.
7395 Does not work on the Amiga, you always get a screen flash.
7396 Also see 'errorbells'.
7399 'warn' boolean (default on)
7401 Give a warning message when a shell command is used while the buffer
7404 *'weirdinvert'* *'wiv'* *'noweirdinvert'* *'nowiv'*
7405 'weirdinvert' 'wiv' boolean (default off)
7408 This option has the same effect as the 't_xs' terminal option.
7409 It is provided for backwards compatibility with version 4.x.
7410 Setting 'weirdinvert' has the effect of making 't_xs' non-empty, and
7411 vice versa. Has no effect when the GUI is running.
7413 *'whichwrap'* *'ww'*
7414 'whichwrap' 'ww' string (Vim default: "b,s", Vi default: "")
7417 Allow specified keys that move the cursor left/right to move to the
7418 previous/next line when the cursor is on the first/last character in
7419 the line. Concatenate characters to allow this for these keys:
7421 b <BS> Normal and Visual
7422 s <Space> Normal and Visual
7423 h "h" Normal and Visual (not recommended)
7424 l "l" Normal and Visual (not recommended)
7425 < <Left> Normal and Visual
7426 > <Right> Normal and Visual
7428 [ <Left> Insert and Replace
7429 ] <Right> Insert and Replace
7432 < allows wrap only when cursor keys are used.
7433 When the movement keys are used in combination with a delete or change
7434 operator, the <EOL> also counts for a character. This makes "3h"
7435 different from "3dh" when the cursor crosses the end of a line. This
7436 is also true for "x" and "X", because they do the same as "dl" and
7437 "dh". If you use this, you may also want to use the mapping
7438 ":map <BS> X" to make backspace delete the character in front of the
7440 When 'l' is included and it is used after an operator at the end of a
7441 line then it will not move to the next line. This makes "dl", "cl",
7442 "yl" etc. work normally.
7443 NOTE: This option is set to the Vi default value when 'compatible' is
7444 set and to the Vim default value when 'compatible' is reset.
7447 'wildchar' 'wc' number (Vim default: <Tab>, Vi default: CTRL-E)
7450 Character you have to type to start wildcard expansion in the
7451 command-line, as specified with 'wildmode'.
7452 More info here: |cmdline-completion|.
7453 The character is not recognized when used inside a macro. See
7454 'wildcharm' for that.
7455 Although 'wc' is a number option, you can set it to a special key: >
7457 < NOTE: This option is set to the Vi default value when 'compatible' is
7458 set and to the Vim default value when 'compatible' is reset.
7460 *'wildcharm'* *'wcm'*
7461 'wildcharm' 'wcm' number (default: none (0))
7464 'wildcharm' works exactly like 'wildchar', except that it is
7465 recognized when used inside a macro. You can find "spare" command-line
7466 keys suitable for this option by looking at |ex-edit-index|. Normally
7467 you'll never actually type 'wildcharm', just use it in mappings that
7468 automatically invoke completion mode, e.g.: >
7470 :cnoremap ss so $vim/sessions/*.vim<C-Z>
7471 < Then after typing :ss you can use CTRL-P & CTRL-N.
7473 *'wildignore'* *'wig'*
7474 'wildignore' 'wig' string (default "")
7477 {not available when compiled without the |+wildignore|
7479 A list of file patterns. A file that matches with one of these
7480 patterns is ignored when completing file or directory names, and
7481 influences the result of |expand()|, |glob()| and |globpath()| unless
7482 a flag is passed to disable this.
7483 The pattern is used like with |:autocmd|, see |autocmd-patterns|.
7484 Also see 'suffixes'.
7486 :set wildignore=*.o,*.obj
7487 < The use of |:set+=| and |:set-=| is preferred when adding or removing
7488 a pattern from the list. This avoids problems when a future version
7489 uses another default.
7491 *'wildmenu'* *'wmnu'* *'nowildmenu'* *'nowmnu'*
7492 'wildmenu' 'wmnu' boolean (default off)
7495 {not available if compiled without the |+wildmenu|
7497 When 'wildmenu' is on, command-line completion operates in an enhanced
7498 mode. On pressing 'wildchar' (usually <Tab>) to invoke completion,
7499 the possible matches are shown just above the command line, with the
7500 first match highlighted (overwriting the status line, if there is
7501 one). Keys that show the previous/next match, such as <Tab> or
7502 CTRL-P/CTRL-N, cause the highlight to move to the appropriate match.
7503 When 'wildmode' is used, "wildmenu" mode is used where "full" is
7504 specified. "longest" and "list" do not start "wildmenu" mode.
7505 If there are more matches than can fit in the line, a ">" is shown on
7506 the right and/or a "<" is shown on the left. The status line scrolls
7508 The "wildmenu" mode is abandoned when a key is hit that is not used
7509 for selecting a completion.
7510 While the "wildmenu" is active the following keys have special
7513 <Left> <Right> - select previous/next match (like CTRL-P/CTRL-N)
7514 <Down> - in filename/menu name completion: move into a
7515 subdirectory or submenu.
7516 <CR> - in menu completion, when the cursor is just after a
7517 dot: move into a submenu.
7518 <Up> - in filename/menu name completion: move up into
7519 parent directory or parent menu.
7521 This makes the menus accessible from the console |console-menus|.
7523 If you prefer the <Left> and <Right> keys to move the cursor instead
7524 of selecting a different match, use this: >
7525 :cnoremap <Left> <Space><BS><Left>
7526 :cnoremap <Right> <Space><BS><Right>
7528 The "WildMenu" highlighting is used for displaying the current match
7531 *'wildmode'* *'wim'*
7532 'wildmode' 'wim' string (Vim default: "full")
7535 Completion mode that is used for the character specified with
7536 'wildchar'. It is a comma separated list of up to four parts. Each
7537 part specifies what to do for each consecutive use of 'wildchar'. The
7538 first part specifies the behavior for the first use of 'wildchar',
7539 The second part for the second use, etc.
7540 These are the possible values for each part:
7541 "" Complete only the first match.
7542 "full" Complete the next full match. After the last match,
7543 the original string is used and then the first match
7545 "longest" Complete till longest common string. If this doesn't
7546 result in a longer string, use the next part.
7547 "longest:full" Like "longest", but also start 'wildmenu' if it is
7549 "list" When more than one match, list all matches.
7550 "list:full" When more than one match, list all matches and
7551 complete first match.
7552 "list:longest" When more than one match, list all matches and
7553 complete till longest common string.
7554 When there is only a single match, it is fully completed in all cases.
7558 < Complete first full match, next match, etc. (the default) >
7559 :set wildmode=longest,full
7560 < Complete longest common string, then each full match >
7561 :set wildmode=list:full
7562 < List all matches and complete each full match >
7563 :set wildmode=list,full
7564 < List all matches without completing, then each full match >
7565 :set wildmode=longest,list
7566 < Complete longest common string, then list alternatives.
7567 More info here: |cmdline-completion|.
7569 *'wildoptions'* *'wop'*
7570 'wildoptions' 'wop' string (default "")
7573 {not available when compiled without the |+wildignore|
7575 A list of words that change how command line completion is done.
7576 Currently only one word is allowed:
7577 tagfile When using CTRL-D to list matching tags, the kind of
7578 tag and the file of the tag is listed. Only one match
7579 is displayed per line. Often used tag kinds are:
7582 Also see |cmdline-completion|.
7584 *'winaltkeys'* *'wak'*
7585 'winaltkeys' 'wak' string (default "menu")
7588 {only used in Win32, Motif, GTK and Photon GUI}
7589 Some GUI versions allow the access to menu entries by using the ALT
7590 key in combination with a character that appears underlined in the
7591 menu. This conflicts with the use of the ALT key for mappings and
7592 entering special characters. This option tells what to do:
7593 no Don't use ALT keys for menus. ALT key combinations can be
7594 mapped, but there is no automatic handling. This can then be
7595 done with the |:simalt| command.
7596 yes ALT key handling is done by the windowing system. ALT key
7597 combinations cannot be mapped.
7598 menu Using ALT in combination with a character that is a menu
7599 shortcut key, will be handled by the windowing system. Other
7601 If the menu is disabled by excluding 'm' from 'guioptions', the ALT
7602 key is never used for the menu.
7603 This option is not used for <F10>; on Win32 and with GTK <F10> will
7604 select the menu, unless it has been mapped.
7607 'window' 'wi' number (default screen height - 1)
7609 Window height. Do not confuse this with the height of the Vim window,
7610 use 'lines' for that.
7611 Used for |CTRL-F| and |CTRL-B| when there is only one window and the
7612 value is smaller than 'lines' minus one. The screen will scroll
7613 'window' minus two lines, with a minimum of one.
7614 When 'window' is equal to 'lines' minus one CTRL-F and CTRL-B scroll
7615 in a much smarter way, taking care of wrapping lines.
7616 When resizing the Vim window, the value is smaller than 1 or more than
7617 or equal to 'lines' it will be set to 'lines' minus 1.
7618 {Vi also uses the option to specify the number of displayed lines}
7620 *'winheight'* *'wh'* *E591*
7621 'winheight' 'wh' number (default 1)
7624 {not available when compiled without the +windows
7626 Minimal number of lines for the current window. This is not a hard
7627 minimum, Vim will use fewer lines if there is not enough room. If the
7628 focus goes to a window that is smaller, its size is increased, at the
7629 cost of the height of other windows.
7630 Set 'winheight' to a small number for normal editing.
7631 Set it to 999 to make the current window fill most of the screen.
7632 Other windows will be only 'winminheight' high. This has the drawback
7633 that ":all" will create only two windows. To avoid "vim -o 1 2 3 4"
7634 to create only two windows, set the option after startup is done,
7635 using the |VimEnter| event: >
7636 au VimEnter * set winheight=999
7637 < Minimum value is 1.
7638 The height is not adjusted after one of the commands that change the
7639 height of the current window.
7640 'winheight' applies to the current window. Use 'winminheight' to set
7641 the minimal height for other windows.
7643 *'winfixheight'* *'wfh'* *'nowinfixheight'* *'nowfh'*
7644 'winfixheight' 'wfh' boolean (default off)
7647 {not available when compiled without the +windows
7649 Keep the window height when windows are opened or closed and
7650 'equalalways' is set. Also for |CTRL-W_=|. Set by default for the
7651 |preview-window| and |quickfix-window|.
7652 The height may be changed anyway when running out of room.
7654 *'winfixwidth'* *'wfw'* *'nowinfixwidth'* *'nowfw'*
7655 'winfixwidth' 'wfw' boolean (default off)
7658 {not available when compiled without the +windows
7660 Keep the window width when windows are opened or closed and
7661 'equalalways' is set. Also for |CTRL-W_=|.
7662 The width may be changed anyway when running out of room.
7664 *'winminheight'* *'wmh'*
7665 'winminheight' 'wmh' number (default 1)
7668 {not available when compiled without the +windows
7670 The minimal height of a window, when it's not the current window.
7671 This is a hard minimum, windows will never become smaller.
7672 When set to zero, windows may be "squashed" to zero lines (i.e. just a
7673 status bar) if necessary. They will return to at least one line when
7674 they become active (since the cursor has to have somewhere to go.)
7675 Use 'winheight' to set the minimal height of the current window.
7676 This option is only checked when making a window smaller. Don't use a
7677 large number, it will cause errors when opening more than a few
7678 windows. A value of 0 to 3 is reasonable.
7680 *'winminwidth'* *'wmw'*
7681 'winminwidth' 'wmw' number (default 1)
7684 {not available when compiled without the +vertsplit
7686 The minimal width of a window, when it's not the current window.
7687 This is a hard minimum, windows will never become smaller.
7688 When set to zero, windows may be "squashed" to zero columns (i.e. just
7689 a vertical separator) if necessary. They will return to at least one
7690 line when they become active (since the cursor has to have somewhere
7692 Use 'winwidth' to set the minimal width of the current window.
7693 This option is only checked when making a window smaller. Don't use a
7694 large number, it will cause errors when opening more than a few
7695 windows. A value of 0 to 12 is reasonable.
7697 *'winwidth'* *'wiw'* *E592*
7698 'winwidth' 'wiw' number (default 20)
7701 {not available when compiled without the +vertsplit
7703 Minimal number of columns for the current window. This is not a hard
7704 minimum, Vim will use fewer columns if there is not enough room. If
7705 the current window is smaller, its size is increased, at the cost of
7706 the width of other windows. Set it to 999 to make the current window
7707 always fill the screen. Set it to a small number for normal editing.
7708 The width is not adjusted after one of the commands to change the
7709 width of the current window.
7710 'winwidth' applies to the current window. Use 'winminwidth' to set
7711 the minimal width for other windows.
7714 'wrap' boolean (default on)
7717 This option changes how text is displayed. It doesn't change the text
7718 in the buffer, see 'textwidth' for that.
7719 When on, lines longer than the width of the window will wrap and
7720 displaying continues on the next line. When off lines will not wrap
7721 and only part of long lines will be displayed. When the cursor is
7722 moved to a part that is not shown, the screen will scroll
7724 The line will be broken in the middle of a word if necessary. See
7725 'linebreak' to get the break at a word boundary.
7726 To make scrolling horizontally a bit more useful, try this: >
7728 :set listchars+=precedes:<,extends:>
7729 < See 'sidescroll', 'listchars' and |wrap-off|.
7731 *'wrapmargin'* *'wm'*
7732 'wrapmargin' 'wm' number (default 0)
7734 Number of characters from the right window border where wrapping
7735 starts. When typing text beyond this limit, an <EOL> will be inserted
7736 and inserting continues on the next line.
7737 Options that add a margin, such as 'number' and 'foldcolumn', cause
7738 the text width to be further reduced. This is Vi compatible.
7739 When 'textwidth' is non-zero, this option is not used.
7740 See also 'formatoptions' and |ins-textwidth|. {Vi: works differently
7743 *'wrapscan'* *'ws'* *'nowrapscan'* *'nows'*
7744 'wrapscan' 'ws' boolean (default on) *E384* *E385*
7746 Searches wrap around the end of the file. Also applies to |]s| and
7747 |[s|, searching for spelling mistakes.
7749 *'write'* *'nowrite'*
7750 'write' boolean (default on)
7753 Allows writing files. When not set, writing a file is not allowed.
7754 Can be used for a view-only mode, where modifications to the text are
7755 still allowed. Can be reset with the |-m| or |-M| command line
7756 argument. Filtering text is still possible, even though this requires
7757 writing a temporary file.
7759 *'writeany'* *'wa'* *'nowriteany'* *'nowa'*
7760 'writeany' 'wa' boolean (default off)
7762 Allows writing to any file with no need for "!" override.
7764 *'writebackup'* *'wb'* *'nowritebackup'* *'nowb'*
7765 'writebackup' 'wb' boolean (default on with |+writebackup| feature, off
7769 Make a backup before overwriting a file. The backup is removed after
7770 the file was successfully written, unless the 'backup' option is
7771 also on. Reset this option if your file system is almost full. See
7772 |backup-table| for another explanation.
7773 When the 'backupskip' pattern matches, a backup is not made anyway.
7774 NOTE: This option is set to the default value when 'compatible' is
7777 *'writedelay'* *'wd'*
7778 'writedelay' 'wd' number (default 0)
7781 The number of microseconds to wait for each character sent to the
7782 screen. When non-zero, characters are sent to the terminal one by
7783 one. For MS-DOS pcterm this does not work. For debugging purposes.
7785 vim:tw=78:ts=8:ft=help:norl: