1 *options.txt* For Vim version 7.2. Last change: 2010 May 13
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.
45 :se[t] inv{option} Toggle option: Invert value. {not in Vi}
47 *:set-default* *:set-&* *:set-&vi* *:set-&vim*
48 :se[t] {option}& Reset option to its default value. May depend on the
49 current value of 'compatible'. {not in Vi}
50 :se[t] {option}&vi Reset option to its Vi default value. {not in Vi}
51 :se[t] {option}&vim Reset option to its Vim default value. {not in Vi}
53 :se[t] all& Set all options, except terminal options, to their
54 default value. The values of 'term', 'lines' and
55 'columns' are not changed. {not in Vi}
57 *:set-args* *E487* *E521*
58 :se[t] {option}={value} or
59 :se[t] {option}:{value}
60 Set string or number option to {value}.
61 For numeric options the value can be given in decimal,
62 hex (preceded with 0x) or octal (preceded with '0')
63 (hex and octal are only available for machines which
64 have the strtol() function).
65 The old value can be inserted by typing 'wildchar' (by
66 default this is a <Tab> or CTRL-E if 'compatible' is
67 set). See |cmdline-completion|.
68 White space between {option} and '=' is allowed and
69 will be ignored. White space between '=' and {value}
71 See |option-backslash| for using white space and
72 backslashes in {value}.
74 :se[t] {option}+={value} *:set+=*
75 Add the {value} to a number option, or append the
76 {value} to a string option. When the option is a
77 comma separated list, a comma is added, unless the
79 If the option is a list of flags, superfluous flags
80 are removed. When adding a flag that was already
81 present the option value doesn't change.
82 Also see |:set-args| above.
85 :se[t] {option}^={value} *:set^=*
86 Multiply the {value} to a number option, or prepend
87 the {value} to a string option. When the option is a
88 comma separated list, a comma is added, unless the
90 Also see |:set-args| above.
93 :se[t] {option}-={value} *:set-=*
94 Subtract the {value} from a number option, or remove
95 the {value} from a string option, if it is there.
96 If the {value} is not found in a string option, there
97 is no error or warning. When the option is a comma
98 separated list, a comma is deleted, unless the option
100 When the option is a list of flags, {value} must be
101 exactly as they appear in the option. Remove flags
102 one by one to avoid problems.
103 Also see |:set-args| above.
106 The {option} arguments to ":set" may be repeated. For example: >
107 :set ai nosi sw=3 ts=3
108 If you make an error in one of the arguments, an error message will be given
109 and the following arguments will be ignored.
112 When 'verbose' is non-zero, displaying an option value will also tell where it
113 was last set. Example: >
114 :verbose set shiftwidth cindent?
116 Last set from modeline ~
118 Last set from /usr/local/share/vim/vim60/ftplugin/c.vim ~
119 This is only done when specific option values are requested, not for ":verbose
120 set all" or ":verbose set" without an argument.
121 When the option was set by hand there is no "Last set" message.
122 When the option was set while executing a function, user command or
123 autocommand, the script in which it was defined is reported.
124 Note that an option may also have been set as a side effect of setting
127 Last set from modeline ~
128 Option was set in a |modeline|.
129 Last set from --cmd argument ~
130 Option was set with command line argument |--cmd| or +.
131 Last set from -c argument ~
132 Option was set with command line argument |-c|, +, |-S| or
134 Last set from environment variable ~
135 Option was set from an environment variable, $VIMINIT,
136 $GVIMINIT or $EXINIT.
137 Last set from error handler ~
138 Option was cleared when evaluating it resulted in an error.
140 {not available when compiled without the +eval feature}
142 *:set-termcap* *E522*
143 For {option} the form "t_xx" may be used to set a terminal option. This will
144 override the value from the termcap. You can then use it in a mapping. If
145 the "xx" part contains special characters, use the <t_xx> form: >
147 This can also be used to translate a special code for a normal key. For
148 example, if Alt-b produces <Esc>b, use this: >
150 (the ^[ is a real <Esc> here, use CTRL-V <Esc> to enter it)
151 The advantage over a mapping is that it works in all situations.
153 The t_xx options cannot be set from a |modeline| or in the |sandbox|, for
156 The listing from ":set" looks different from Vi. Long string options are put
157 at the end of the list. The number of options is quite large. The output of
158 "set all" probably does not fit on the screen, causing Vim to give the
162 To include white space in a string option value it has to be preceded with a
163 backslash. To include a backslash you have to use two. Effectively this
164 means that the number of backslashes in an option value is halved (rounded
167 :set tags=tags\ /usr/tags results in "tags /usr/tags"
168 :set tags=tags\\,file results in "tags\,file"
169 :set tags=tags\\\ file results in "tags\ file"
171 The "|" character separates a ":set" command from a following command. To
172 include the "|" in the option value, use "\|" instead. This example sets the
173 'titlestring' option to "hi|there": >
174 :set titlestring=hi\|there
175 This sets the 'titlestring' option to "hi" and 'iconstring' to "there": >
176 :set titlestring=hi|set iconstring=there
178 Similarly, the double quote character starts a comment. To include the '"' in
179 the option value, use '\"' instead. This example sets the 'titlestring'
180 option to 'hi "there"': >
181 :set titlestring=hi\ \"there\"
183 For MS-DOS and WIN32 backslashes in file names are mostly not removed. More
184 precise: For options that expect a file name (those where environment
185 variables are expanded) a backslash before a normal file name character is not
186 removed. But a backslash before a special character (space, backslash, comma,
187 etc.) is used like explained above.
188 There is one special situation, when the value starts with "\\": >
189 :set dir=\\machine\path results in "\\machine\path"
190 :set dir=\\\\machine\\path results in "\\machine\path"
191 :set dir=\\path\\file results in "\\path\file" (wrong!)
192 For the first one the start is kept, but for the second one the backslashes
193 are halved. This makes sure it works both when you expect backslashes to be
194 halved and when you expect the backslashes to be kept. The third gives a
195 result which is probably not what you want. Avoid it.
197 *add-option-flags* *remove-option-flags*
198 *E539* *E550* *E551* *E552*
199 Some options are a list of flags. When you want to add a flag to such an
200 option, without changing the existing ones, you can do it like this: >
202 Remove a flag from an option like this: >
204 This removes the 'a' flag from 'guioptions'.
205 Note that you should add or remove one flag at a time. If 'guioptions' has
206 the value "ab", using "set guioptions-=ba" won't work, because the string "ba"
209 *:set_env* *expand-env* *expand-environment-var*
210 Environment variables in specific string options will be expanded. If the
211 environment variable exists the '$' and the following environment variable
212 name is replaced with its value. If it does not exist the '$' and the name
213 are not modified. Any non-id character (not a letter, digit or '_') may
214 follow the environment variable name. That character and what follows is
215 appended to the value of the environment variable. Examples: >
217 :set path=/usr/$INCLUDE,$HOME/include,.
218 When adding or removing a string from an option with ":set opt-=val" or ":set
219 opt+=val" the expansion is done before the adding or removing.
222 Handling of local options *local-options*
224 Some of the options only apply to a window or buffer. Each window or buffer
225 has its own copy of this option, thus can each have their own value. This
226 allows you to set 'list' in one window but not in another. And set
227 'shiftwidth' to 3 in one buffer and 4 in another.
229 The following explains what happens to these local options in specific
230 situations. You don't really need to know all of this, since Vim mostly uses
231 the option values you would expect. Unfortunately, doing what the user
232 expects is a bit complicated...
234 When splitting a window, the local options are copied to the new window. Thus
235 right after the split the contents of the two windows look the same.
237 When editing a new buffer, its local option values must be initialized. Since
238 the local options of the current buffer might be specifically for that buffer,
239 these are not used. Instead, for each buffer-local option there also is a
240 global value, which is used for new buffers. With ":set" both the local and
241 global value is changed. With "setlocal" only the local value is changed,
242 thus this value is not used when editing a new buffer.
244 When editing a buffer that has been edited before, the last used window
245 options are used again. If this buffer has been edited in this window, the
246 values from back then are used. Otherwise the values from the window where
247 the buffer was edited last are used.
249 It's possible to set a local window option specifically for a type of buffer.
250 When you edit another buffer in the same window, you don't want to keep
251 using these local window options. Therefore Vim keeps a global value of the
252 local window options, which is used when editing another buffer. Each window
253 has its own copy of these values. Thus these are local to the window, but
254 global to all buffers in the window. With this you can do: >
258 Now the 'list' option will also be set in "two", since with the ":set list"
259 command you have also set the global value. >
264 Now the 'list' option is not set, because ":set nolist" resets the global
265 value, ":setlocal list" only changes the local value and ":e two" gets the
266 global value. Note that if you do this next: >
268 You will not get back the 'list' value as it was the last time you edited
269 "one". The options local to a window are not remembered for each buffer.
272 :setl[ocal] ... Like ":set" but set only the value local to the
273 current buffer or window. Not all options have a
274 local value. If the option does not have a local
275 value the global value is set.
276 With the "all" argument: display all local option's
278 Without argument: Display all local option's local
279 values which are different from the default.
280 When displaying a specific local option, show the
281 local value. For a global/local boolean option, when
282 the global value is being used, "--" is displayed
283 before the option name.
284 For a global option the global value is
285 shown (but that might change in the future).
288 :setl[ocal] {option}< Set the local value of {option} to its global value by
292 :se[t] {option}< Set the local value of {option} to its global value by
293 making it empty. Only makes sense for |global-local|
298 :setg[lobal] ... Like ":set" but set only the global value for a local
299 option without changing the local value.
300 When displaying an option, the global value is shown.
301 With the "all" argument: display all local option's
303 Without argument: display all local option's global
304 values which are different from the default.
307 For buffer-local and window-local options:
308 Command global value local value ~
309 :set option=value set set
310 :setlocal option=value - set
311 :setglobal option=value set -
312 :set option? - display
313 :setlocal option? - display
314 :setglobal option? display -
317 Global options with a local value *global-local*
319 Options are global when you mostly use one value for all buffers and windows.
320 For some global options it's useful to sometimes have a different local value.
321 You can set the local value with ":setlocal". That buffer or window will then
322 use the local value, while other buffers and windows continue using the global
325 For example, you have two windows, both on C source code. They use the global
326 'makeprg' option. If you do this in one of the two windows: >
328 then the other window will switch to the same value. There is no need to set
329 the 'makeprg' option in the other C source window too.
330 However, if you start editing a Perl file in a new window, you want to use
331 another 'makeprg' for it, without changing the value used for the C source
332 files. You use this command: >
333 :setlocal makeprg=perlmake
334 You can switch back to using the global value by making the local value empty: >
336 This only works for a string option. For a boolean option you need to use the
337 "<" flag, like this: >
339 Note that for non-boolean options using "<" copies the global value to the
340 local value, it doesn't switch back to using the global value (that matters
341 when the global value changes later). You can also use: >
343 This will make the local value of 'path' empty, so that the global value is
344 used. Thus it does the same as: >
346 Note: In the future more global options can be made global-local. Using
347 ":setlocal" on a global option might work differently then.
352 :setf[iletype] {filetype} *:setf* *:setfiletype*
353 Set the 'filetype' option to {filetype}, but only if
354 not done yet in a sequence of (nested) autocommands.
357 : setlocal filetype={filetype}
359 < This command is used in a filetype.vim file to avoid
360 setting the 'filetype' option twice, causing different
361 settings and syntax files to be loaded.
364 :bro[wse] se[t] *:set-browse* *:browse-set* *:opt* *:options*
365 :opt[ions] Open a window for viewing and setting all options.
366 Options are grouped by function.
367 Offers short help for each option. Hit <CR> on the
368 short help to open a help window with more help for
370 Modify the value of the option and hit <CR> on the
371 "set" line to set the new value. For window and
372 buffer specific options, the last accessed window is
373 used to set the option value in, unless this is a help
374 window, in which case the window below help window is
375 used (skipping the option-window).
376 {not available when compiled without the |+eval| or
380 Using "~" is like using "$HOME", but it is only recognized at the start of an
381 option and after a space or comma.
383 On Unix systems "~user" can be used too. It is replaced by the home directory
384 of user "user". Example: >
385 :set path=~mool/include,/usr/include,.
387 On Unix systems the form "${HOME}" can be used too. The name between {} can
388 contain non-id characters then. Note that if you want to use this for the
389 "gf" command, you need to add the '{' and '}' characters to 'isfname'.
391 NOTE: expanding environment variables and "~/" is only done with the ":set"
392 command, not when assigning a value to an option with ":let".
395 Note the maximum length of an expanded option is limited. How much depends on
396 the system, mostly it is something like 256 or 1024 characters.
399 :fix[del] Set the value of 't_kD':
400 't_kb' is 't_kD' becomes ~
404 (CTRL-? is 0177 octal, 0x7f hex) {not in Vi}
406 If your delete key terminal code is wrong, but the
407 code for backspace is alright, you can put this in
410 < This works no matter what the actual code for
413 If the backspace key terminal code is wrong you can
415 :if &term == "termname"
419 < Where "^V" is CTRL-V and "<BS>" is the backspace key
420 (don't type four characters!). Replace "termname"
421 with your terminal name.
423 If your <Delete> key sends a strange key sequence (not
424 CTRL-? or CTRL-H) you cannot use ":fixdel". Then use: >
425 :if &term == "termname"
426 : set t_kD=^V<Delete>
428 < Where "^V" is CTRL-V and "<Delete>" is the delete key
429 (don't type eight characters!). Replace "termname"
430 with your terminal name.
433 Note about Linux: By default the backspace key
434 produces CTRL-?, which is wrong. You can fix it by
435 putting this line in your rc.local: >
436 echo "keycode 14 = BackSpace" | loadkeys
439 Note about NetBSD: If your backspace doesn't produce
440 the right code, try this: >
441 xmodmap -e "keycode 22 = BackSpace"
442 < If this works, add this in your .Xmodmap file: >
443 keysym 22 = BackSpace
444 < You need to restart for this to take effect.
446 ==============================================================================
447 2. Automatically setting options *auto-setting*
449 Besides changing options with the ":set" command, there are three alternatives
450 to set options automatically for one or more files:
452 1. When starting Vim initializations are read from various places. See
453 |initialization|. Most of them are performed for all editing sessions,
454 and some of them depend on the directory where Vim is started.
455 You can create an initialization file with |:mkvimrc|, |:mkview| and
457 2. If you start editing a new file, the automatic commands are executed.
458 This can be used to set options for files matching a particular pattern and
459 many other things. See |autocommand|.
460 3. If you start editing a new file, and the 'modeline' option is on, a
461 number of lines at the beginning and end of the file are checked for
462 modelines. This is explained here.
464 *modeline* *vim:* *vi:* *ex:* *E520*
465 There are two forms of modelines. The first form:
466 [text]{white}{vi:|vim:|ex:}[white]{options}
468 [text] any text or empty
469 {white} at least one blank character (<Space> or <Tab>)
470 {vi:|vim:|ex:} the string "vi:", "vim:" or "ex:"
471 [white] optional white space
472 {options} a list of option settings, separated with white space or ':',
473 where each part between ':' is the argument for a ":set"
474 command (can be empty)
479 The second form (this is compatible with some versions of Vi):
481 [text]{white}{vi:|vim:|ex:}[white]se[t] {options}:[text]
483 [text] any text or empty
484 {white} at least one blank character (<Space> or <Tab>)
485 {vi:|vim:|ex:} the string "vi:", "vim:" or "ex:"
486 [white] optional white space
487 se[t] the string "set " or "se " (note the space)
488 {options} a list of options, separated with white space, which is the
489 argument for a ":set" command
491 [text] any text or empty
494 /* vim: set ai tw=75: */ ~
496 The white space before {vi:|vim:|ex:} is required. This minimizes the chance
497 that a normal word like "lex:" is caught. There is one exception: "vi:" and
498 "vim:" can also be at the start of the line (for compatibility with version
499 3.0). Using "ex:" at the start of the line will be ignored (this could be
500 short for "example:").
503 The options are set like with ":setlocal": The new value only applies to the
504 buffer and window that contain the file. Although it's possible to set global
505 options from a modeline, this is unusual. If you have two windows open and
506 the files in it set the same global option to a different value, the result
507 depends on which one was opened last.
509 When editing a file that was already loaded, only the window-local options
510 from the modeline are used. Thus if you manually changed a buffer-local
511 option after opening the file, it won't be changed if you edit the same buffer
512 in another window. But window-local options will be set.
515 If the modeline is only to be used for some versions of Vim, the version
516 number can be specified where "vim:" is used:
517 vim{vers}: version {vers} or later
518 vim<{vers}: version before {vers}
519 vim={vers}: version {vers}
520 vim>{vers}: version after {vers}
521 {vers} is 600 for Vim 6.0 (hundred times the major version plus minor).
522 For example, to use a modeline only for Vim 6.0 and later:
523 /* vim600: set foldmethod=marker: */ ~
524 To use a modeline for Vim before version 5.7:
525 /* vim<570: set sw=4: */ ~
526 There can be no blanks between "vim" and the ":".
529 The number of lines that are checked can be set with the 'modelines' option.
530 If 'modeline' is off or 'modelines' is 0 no lines are checked.
532 Note that for the first form all of the rest of the line is used, thus a line
535 will give an error message for the trailing "*/". This line is OK:
538 If an error is detected the rest of the line is skipped.
540 If you want to include a ':' in a set command precede it with a '\'. The
541 backslash in front of the ':' will be removed. Example:
542 /* vi:set dir=c\:\tmp: */ ~
543 This sets the 'dir' option to "c:\tmp". Only a single backslash before the
544 ':' is removed. Thus to include "\:" you have to specify "\\:".
546 No other commands than "set" are supported, for security reasons (somebody
547 might create a Trojan horse text file with modelines). And not all options
548 can be set. For some options a flag is set, so that when it's used the
549 |sandbox| is effective. Still, there is always a small risk that a modeline
550 causes trouble. E.g., when some joker sets 'textwidth' to 5 all your lines
551 are wrapped unexpectedly. So disable modelines before editing untrusted text.
552 The mail ftplugin does this, for example.
554 Hint: If you would like to do something else than setting an option, you could
555 define an autocommand that checks the file for a specific string. For
557 au BufReadPost * if getline(1) =~ "VAR" | call SetVar() | endif
558 And define a function SetVar() that does something with the line containing
561 ==============================================================================
562 3. Options summary *option-summary*
564 In the list below all the options are mentioned with their full name and with
565 an abbreviation if there is one. Both forms may be used.
567 In this document when a boolean option is "set" that means that ":set option"
568 is entered. When an option is "reset", ":set nooption" is used.
570 For some options there are two default values: The "Vim default", which is
571 used when 'compatible' is not set, and the "Vi default", which is used when
574 Most options are the same in all windows and buffers. There are a few that
575 are specific to how the text is presented in a window. These can be set to a
576 different value in each window. For example the 'list' option can be set in
577 one window and reset in another for the same text, giving both types of view
578 at the same time. There are a few options that are specific to a certain
579 file. These can have a different value for each file or buffer. For example
580 the 'textwidth' option can be 78 for a normal text file and 0 for a C
583 global one option for all buffers and windows
584 local to window each window has its own copy of this option
585 local to buffer each buffer has its own copy of this option
587 When creating a new window the option values from the currently active window
588 are used as a default value for the window-specific options. For the
589 buffer-specific options this depends on the 's' and 'S' flags in the
590 'cpoptions' option. If 's' is included (which is the default) the values for
591 buffer options are copied from the currently active buffer when a buffer is
592 first entered. If 'S' is present the options are copied each time the buffer
593 is entered, this is almost like having global options. If 's' and 'S' are not
594 present, the options are copied from the currently active buffer when the
597 Hidden options *hidden-options*
599 Not all options are supported in all versions. This depends on the supported
600 features and sometimes on the system. A remark about this is in curly braces
601 below. When an option is not supported it may still be set without getting an
602 error, this is called a hidden option. You can't get the value of a hidden
603 option though, it is not stored.
605 To test if option "foo" can be used with ":set" use something like this: >
607 This also returns true for a hidden option. To test if option "foo" is really
608 supported use something like this: >
612 A jump table for the options with a short description can be found at |Q_op|.
614 *'aleph'* *'al'* *aleph* *Aleph*
615 'aleph' 'al' number (default 128 for MS-DOS, 224 otherwise)
618 {only available when compiled with the |+rightleft|
620 The ASCII code for the first letter of the Hebrew alphabet. The
621 routine that maps the keyboard in Hebrew mode, both in Insert mode
622 (when hkmap is set) and on the command-line (when hitting CTRL-_)
623 outputs the Hebrew characters in the range [aleph..aleph+26].
624 aleph=128 applies to PC code, and aleph=224 applies to ISO 8859-8.
627 *'allowrevins'* *'ari'* *'noallowrevins'* *'noari'*
628 'allowrevins' 'ari' boolean (default off)
631 {only available when compiled with the |+rightleft|
633 Allow CTRL-_ in Insert and Command-line mode. This is default off, to
634 avoid that users that accidentally type CTRL-_ instead of SHIFT-_ get
635 into reverse Insert mode, and don't know how to get out. See
637 NOTE: This option is reset when 'compatible' is set.
639 *'altkeymap'* *'akm'* *'noaltkeymap'* *'noakm'*
640 'altkeymap' 'akm' boolean (default off)
643 {only available when compiled with the |+farsi|
645 When on, the second language is Farsi. In editing mode CTRL-_ toggles
646 the keyboard map between Farsi and English, when 'allowrevins' set.
648 When off, the keyboard map toggles between Hebrew and English. This
649 is useful to start the Vim in native mode i.e. English (left-to-right
650 mode) and have default second language Farsi or Hebrew (right-to-left
651 mode). See |farsi.txt|.
653 *'ambiwidth'* *'ambw'*
654 'ambiwidth' 'ambw' string (default: "single")
657 {only available when compiled with the |+multi_byte|
659 Only effective when 'encoding' is "utf-8" or another Unicode encoding.
660 Tells Vim what to do with characters with East Asian Width Class
661 Ambiguous (such as Euro, Registered Sign, Copyright Sign, Greek
662 letters, Cyrillic letters).
664 There are currently two possible values:
665 "single": Use the same width as characters in US-ASCII. This is
666 expected by most users.
667 "double": Use twice the width of ASCII characters.
669 There are a number of CJK fonts for which the width of glyphs for
670 those characters are solely based on how many octets they take in
671 legacy/traditional CJK encodings. In those encodings, Euro,
672 Registered sign, Greek/Cyrillic letters are represented by two octets,
673 therefore those fonts have "wide" glyphs for them. This is also
674 true of some line drawing characters used to make tables in text
675 file. Therefore, when a CJK font is used for GUI Vim or
676 Vim is running inside a terminal (emulators) that uses a CJK font
677 (or Vim is run inside an xterm invoked with "-cjkwidth" option.),
678 this option should be set to "double" to match the width perceived
679 by Vim with the width of glyphs in the font. Perhaps it also has
680 to be set to "double" under CJK Windows 9x/ME or Windows 2k/XP
681 when the system locale is set to one of CJK locales. See Unicode
682 Standard Annex #11 (http://www.unicode.org/reports/tr11).
684 *'antialias'* *'anti'* *'noantialias'* *'noanti'*
685 'antialias' 'anti' boolean (default: off)
688 {only available when compiled with GUI enabled
690 This option only has an effect in the GUI version of Vim on Mac OS X
691 v10.2 or later. When on, Vim will use smooth ("antialiased") fonts,
692 which can be easier to read at certain sizes on certain displays.
693 Setting this option can sometimes cause problems if 'guifont' is set
694 to its default (empty string).
696 *'autochdir'* *'acd'* *'noautochdir'* *'noacd'*
697 'autochdir' 'acd' boolean (default off)
700 {only available when compiled with it, use
701 exists("+autochdir") to check}
702 When on, Vim will change the current working directory whenever you
703 open a file, switch buffers, delete a buffer or open/close a window.
704 It will change to the directory containing the file which was opened
706 This option is provided for backward compatibility with the Vim
707 released with Sun ONE Studio 4 Enterprise Edition.
708 Note: When this option is on some plugins may not work.
710 *'arabic'* *'arab'* *'noarabic'* *'noarab'*
711 'arabic' 'arab' boolean (default off)
714 {only available when compiled with the |+arabic|
716 This option can be set to start editing Arabic text.
717 Setting this option will:
718 - Set the 'rightleft' option, unless 'termbidi' is set.
719 - Set the 'arabicshape' option, unless 'termbidi' is set.
720 - Set the 'keymap' option to "arabic"; in Insert mode CTRL-^ toggles
721 between typing English and Arabic key mapping.
722 - Set the 'delcombine' option
723 Note that 'encoding' must be "utf-8" for working with Arabic text.
725 Resetting this option will:
726 - Reset the 'rightleft' option.
727 - Disable the use of 'keymap' (without changing its value).
728 Note that 'arabicshape' and 'delcombine' are not reset (it is a global
730 Also see |arabic.txt|.
732 *'arabicshape'* *'arshape'*
733 *'noarabicshape'* *'noarshape'*
734 'arabicshape' 'arshape' boolean (default on)
737 {only available when compiled with the |+arabic|
739 When on and 'termbidi' is off, the required visual character
740 corrections that need to take place for displaying the Arabic language
741 take affect. Shaping, in essence, gets enabled; the term is a broad
742 one which encompasses:
743 a) the changing/morphing of characters based on their location
744 within a word (initial, medial, final and stand-alone).
745 b) the enabling of the ability to compose characters
746 c) the enabling of the required combining of some characters
747 When disabled the display shows each character's true stand-alone
749 Arabic is a complex language which requires other settings, for
750 further details see |arabic.txt|.
752 *'autoindent'* *'ai'* *'noautoindent'* *'noai'*
753 'autoindent' 'ai' boolean (default off)
755 Copy indent from current line when starting a new line (typing <CR>
756 in Insert mode or when using the "o" or "O" command). If you do not
757 type anything on the new line except <BS> or CTRL-D and then type
758 <Esc>, CTRL-O or <CR>, the indent is deleted again. Moving the cursor
759 to another line has the same effect, unless the 'I' flag is included
761 When autoindent is on, formatting (with the "gq" command or when you
762 reach 'textwidth' in Insert mode) uses the indentation of the first
764 When 'smartindent' or 'cindent' is on the indent is changed in
766 The 'autoindent' option is reset when the 'paste' option is set.
767 {small difference from Vi: After the indent is deleted when typing
768 <Esc> or <CR>, the cursor position when moving up or down is after the
769 deleted indent; Vi puts the cursor somewhere in the deleted indent}.
771 *'autoread'* *'ar'* *'noautoread'* *'noar'*
772 'autoread' 'ar' boolean (default off)
773 global or local to buffer |global-local|
775 When a file has been detected to have been changed outside of Vim and
776 it has not been changed inside of Vim, automatically read it again.
777 When the file has been deleted this is not done. |timestamp|
778 If this option has a local value, use this command to switch back to
779 using the global value: >
782 *'autowrite'* *'aw'* *'noautowrite'* *'noaw'*
783 'autowrite' 'aw' boolean (default off)
785 Write the contents of the file, if it has been modified, on each
786 :next, :rewind, :last, :first, :previous, :stop, :suspend, :tag, :!,
787 :make, CTRL-] and CTRL-^ command; and when a :buffer, CTRL-O, CTRL-I,
788 '{A-Z0-9}, or `{A-Z0-9} command takes one to another file.
789 Note that for some commands the 'autowrite' option is not used, see
790 'autowriteall' for that.
792 *'autowriteall'* *'awa'* *'noautowriteall'* *'noawa'*
793 'autowriteall' 'awa' boolean (default off)
796 Like 'autowrite', but also used for commands ":edit", ":enew", ":quit",
797 ":qall", ":exit", ":xit", ":recover" and closing the Vim window.
798 Setting this option also implies that Vim behaves like 'autowrite' has
801 *'background'* *'bg'*
802 'background' 'bg' string (default "dark" or "light")
805 When set to "dark", Vim will try to use colors that look good on a
806 dark background. When set to "light", Vim will try to use colors that
807 look good on a light background. Any other value is illegal.
808 Vim tries to set the default value according to the terminal used.
809 This will not always be correct.
810 Setting this option does not change the background color, it tells Vim
811 what the background color looks like. For changing the background
812 color, see |:hi-normal|.
814 When 'background' is set Vim will adjust the default color groups for
815 the new value. But the colors used for syntax highlighting will not
816 change. *g:colors_name*
817 When a color scheme is loaded (the "g:colors_name" variable is set)
818 setting 'background' will cause the color scheme to be reloaded. If
819 the color scheme adjusts to the value of 'background' this will work.
820 However, if the color scheme sets 'background' itself the effect may
821 be undone. First delete the "g:colors_name" variable when needed.
823 When setting 'background' to the default value with: >
825 < Vim will guess the value. In the GUI this should work correctly,
826 in other cases Vim might not be able to guess the right value.
828 When starting the GUI, the default value for 'background' will be
829 "light". When the value is not set in the .gvimrc, and Vim detects
830 that the background is actually quite dark, 'background' is set to
831 "dark". But this happens only AFTER the .gvimrc file has been read
832 (because the window needs to be opened to find the actual background
833 color). To get around this, force the GUI window to be opened by
834 putting a ":gui" command in the .gvimrc file, before where the value
835 of 'background' is used (e.g., before ":syntax on").
836 Normally this option would be set in the .vimrc file. Possibly
837 depending on the terminal name. Example: >
838 :if &term == "pcterm"
839 : set background=dark
841 < When this option is set, the default settings for the highlight groups
842 will change. To use other settings, place ":highlight" commands AFTER
843 the setting of the 'background' option.
844 This option is also used in the "$VIMRUNTIME/syntax/syntax.vim" file
845 to select the colors for syntax highlighting. After changing this
846 option, you must load syntax.vim again to see the result. This can be
847 done with ":syntax on".
850 'backspace' 'bs' string (default "")
853 Influences the working of <BS>, <Del>, CTRL-W and CTRL-U in Insert
854 mode. This is a list of items, separated by commas. Each item allows
855 a way to backspace over something:
857 indent allow backspacing over autoindent
858 eol allow backspacing over line breaks (join lines)
859 start allow backspacing over the start of insert; CTRL-W and CTRL-U
860 stop once at the start of insert.
862 When the value is empty, Vi compatible backspacing is used.
864 For backwards compatibility with version 5.4 and earlier:
866 0 same as ":set backspace=" (Vi compatible)
867 1 same as ":set backspace=indent,eol"
868 2 same as ":set backspace=indent,eol,start"
870 See |:fixdel| if your <BS> or <Del> key does not do what you want.
871 NOTE: This option is set to "" when 'compatible' is set.
873 *'backup'* *'bk'* *'nobackup'* *'nobk'*
874 'backup' 'bk' boolean (default off)
877 Make a backup before overwriting a file. Leave it around after the
878 file has been successfully written. If you do not want to keep the
879 backup file, but you do want a backup while the file is being
880 written, reset this option and set the 'writebackup' option (this is
881 the default). If you do not want a backup file at all reset both
882 options (use this if your file system is almost full). See the
883 |backup-table| for more explanations.
884 When the 'backupskip' pattern matches, a backup is not made anyway.
885 When 'patchmode' is set, the backup may be renamed to become the
886 oldest version of a file.
887 NOTE: This option is reset when 'compatible' is set.
889 *'backupcopy'* *'bkc'*
890 'backupcopy' 'bkc' string (Vi default for Unix: "yes", otherwise: "auto")
893 When writing a file and a backup is made, this option tells how it's
894 done. This is a comma separated list of words.
897 "yes" make a copy of the file and overwrite the original one
898 "no" rename the file and write a new one
899 "auto" one of the previous, what works best
901 Extra values that can be combined with the ones above are:
902 "breaksymlink" always break symlinks when writing
903 "breakhardlink" always break hardlinks when writing
905 Making a copy and overwriting the original file:
906 - Takes extra time to copy the file.
907 + When the file has special attributes, is a (hard/symbolic) link or
908 has a resource fork, all this is preserved.
909 - When the file is a link the backup will have the name of the link,
910 not of the real file.
912 Renaming the file and writing a new one:
914 - Sometimes not all attributes of the file can be copied to the new
916 - When the file is a link the new file will not be a link.
918 The "auto" value is the middle way: When Vim sees that renaming file
919 is possible without side effects (the attributes can be passed on and
920 the file is not a link) that is used. When problems are expected, a
923 The "breaksymlink" and "breakhardlink" values can be used in
924 combination with any of "yes", "no" and "auto". When included, they
925 force Vim to always break either symbolic or hard links by doing
926 exactly what the "no" option does, renaming the original file to
927 become the backup and writing a new file in its place. This can be
928 useful for example in source trees where all the files are symbolic or
929 hard links and any changes should stay in the local source tree, not
930 be propagated back to the original source.
932 One situation where "no" and "auto" will cause problems: A program
933 that opens a file, invokes Vim to edit that file, and then tests if
934 the open file was changed (through the file descriptor) will check the
935 backup file instead of the newly created file. "crontab -e" is an
938 When a copy is made, the original file is truncated and then filled
939 with the new text. This means that protection bits, owner and
940 symbolic links of the original file are unmodified. The backup file
941 however, is a new file, owned by the user who edited the file. The
942 group of the backup is set to the group of the original file. If this
943 fails, the protection bits for the group are made the same as for
946 When the file is renamed this is the other way around: The backup has
947 the same attributes of the original file, and the newly written file
948 is owned by the current user. When the file was a (hard/symbolic)
949 link, the new file will not! That's why the "auto" value doesn't
950 rename when the file is a link. The owner and group of the newly
951 written file will be set to the same ones as the original file, but
952 the system may refuse to do this. In that case the "auto" value will
953 again not rename the file.
955 *'backupdir'* *'bdir'*
956 'backupdir' 'bdir' string (default for Amiga: ".,t:",
957 for MS-DOS and Win32: ".,c:/tmp,c:/temp"
958 for Unix: ".,~/tmp,~/")
961 List of directories for the backup file, separated with commas.
962 - The backup file will be created in the first directory in the list
963 where this is possible. The directory must exist, Vim will not
965 - Empty means that no backup file will be created ('patchmode' is
966 impossible!). Writing may fail because of this.
967 - A directory "." means to put the backup file in the same directory
969 - A directory starting with "./" (or ".\" for MS-DOS et al.) means to
970 put the backup file relative to where the edited file is. The
971 leading "." is replaced with the path name of the edited file.
972 ("." inside a directory name has no special meaning).
973 - Spaces after the comma are ignored, other spaces are considered part
974 of the directory name. To have a space at the start of a directory
975 name, precede it with a backslash.
976 - To include a comma in a directory name precede it with a backslash.
977 - A directory name may end in an '/'.
978 - Environment variables are expanded |:set_env|.
979 - Careful with '\' characters, type one before a space, type two to
980 get one in the option (see |option-backslash|), for example: >
981 :set bdir=c:\\tmp,\ dir\\,with\\,commas,\\\ dir\ with\ spaces
982 < - For backwards compatibility with Vim version 3.0 a '>' at the start
983 of the option is removed.
984 See also 'backup' and 'writebackup' options.
985 If you want to hide your backup files on Unix, consider this value: >
986 :set backupdir=./.backup,~/.backup,.,/tmp
987 < You must create a ".backup" directory in each directory and in your
988 home directory for this to work properly.
989 The use of |:set+=| and |:set-=| is preferred when adding or removing
990 directories from the list. This avoids problems when a future version
991 uses another default.
992 This option cannot be set from a |modeline| or in the |sandbox|, for
995 *'backupext'* *'bex'* *E589*
996 'backupext' 'bex' string (default "~", for VMS: "_")
999 String which is appended to a file name to make the name of the
1000 backup file. The default is quite unusual, because this avoids
1001 accidentally overwriting existing files with a backup file. You might
1002 prefer using ".bak", but make sure that you don't have files with
1003 ".bak" that you want to keep.
1004 Only normal file name characters can be used, "/\*?[|<>" are illegal.
1006 If you like to keep a lot of backups, you could use a BufWritePre
1007 autocommand to change 'backupext' just before writing the file to
1008 include a timestamp. >
1009 :au BufWritePre * let &bex = '-' . strftime("%Y%b%d%X") . '~'
1010 < Use 'backupdir' to put the backup in a different directory.
1012 *'backupskip'* *'bsk'*
1013 'backupskip' 'bsk' string (default: "/tmp/*,$TMPDIR/*,$TMP/*,$TEMP/*")
1016 {not available when compiled without the |+wildignore|
1018 A list of file patterns. When one of the patterns matches with the
1019 name of the file which is written, no backup file is created. Both
1020 the specified file name and the full path name of the file are used.
1021 The pattern is used like with |:autocmd|, see |autocmd-patterns|.
1022 Watch out for special characters, see |option-backslash|.
1023 When $TMPDIR, $TMP or $TEMP is not defined, it is not used for the
1024 default value. "/tmp/*" is only used for Unix.
1026 Note that environment variables are not expanded. If you want to use
1027 $HOME you must expand it explicitly, e.g.: >
1028 :let backupskip = escape(expand('$HOME'), '\') . '/tmp/*'
1030 < Note that the default also makes sure that "crontab -e" works (when a
1031 backup would be made by renaming the original file crontab won't see
1032 the newly created file). Also see 'backupcopy' and |crontab|.
1034 *'balloondelay'* *'bdlay'*
1035 'balloondelay' 'bdlay' number (default: 600)
1038 {only available when compiled with the |+balloon_eval|
1040 Delay in milliseconds before a balloon may pop up. See |balloon-eval|.
1042 *'ballooneval'* *'beval'* *'noballooneval'* *'nobeval'*
1043 'ballooneval' 'beval' boolean (default off)
1046 {only available when compiled with the |+balloon_eval|
1048 Switch on the |balloon-eval| functionality.
1050 *'balloonexpr'* *'bexpr'*
1051 'balloonexpr' 'bexpr' string (default "")
1052 global or local to buffer |global-local|
1054 {only available when compiled with the |+balloon_eval|
1056 Expression for text to show in evaluation balloon. It is only used
1057 when 'ballooneval' is on. These variables can be used:
1059 v:beval_bufnr number of the buffer in which balloon is going to show
1060 v:beval_winnr number of the window
1061 v:beval_lnum line number
1062 v:beval_col column number (byte index)
1063 v:beval_text word under or after the mouse pointer
1065 The evaluation of the expression must not have side effects!
1067 function! MyBalloonExpr()
1068 return 'Cursor is at line ' . v:beval_lnum .
1069 \', column ' . v:beval_col .
1070 \ ' of file ' . bufname(v:beval_bufnr) .
1071 \ ' on word "' . v:beval_text . '"'
1073 set bexpr=MyBalloonExpr()
1076 NOTE: The balloon is displayed only if the cursor is on a text
1077 character. If the result of evaluating 'balloonexpr' is not empty,
1078 Vim does not try to send a message to an external debugger (Netbeans
1081 The expression may be evaluated in the |sandbox|, see
1084 It is not allowed to change text or jump to another window while
1085 evaluating 'balloonexpr' |textlock|.
1087 To check whether line breaks in the balloon text work use this check: >
1088 if has("balloon_multiline")
1089 < When they are supported "\n" characters will start a new line. If the
1090 expression evaluates to a |List| this is equal to using each List item
1091 as a string and putting "\n" in between them.
1093 *'binary'* *'bin'* *'nobinary'* *'nobin'*
1094 'binary' 'bin' boolean (default off)
1097 This option should be set before editing a binary file. You can also
1098 use the |-b| Vim argument. When this option is switched on a few
1099 options will be changed (also when it already was on):
1100 'textwidth' will be set to 0
1101 'wrapmargin' will be set to 0
1102 'modeline' will be off
1103 'expandtab' will be off
1104 Also, 'fileformat' and 'fileformats' options will not be used, the
1105 file is read and written like 'fileformat' was "unix" (a single <NL>
1107 The 'fileencoding' and 'fileencodings' options will not be used, the
1108 file is read without conversion.
1109 NOTE: When you start editing a(nother) file while the 'bin' option is
1110 on, settings from autocommands may change the settings again (e.g.,
1111 'textwidth'), causing trouble when editing. You might want to set
1112 'bin' again when the file has been loaded.
1113 The previous values of these options are remembered and restored when
1114 'bin' is switched from on to off. Each buffer has its own set of
1115 saved option values.
1116 To edit a file with 'binary' set you can use the |++bin| argument.
1117 This avoids you have to do ":set bin", which would have effect for all
1119 When writing a file the <EOL> for the last line is only written if
1120 there was one in the original file (normally Vim appends an <EOL> to
1121 the last line if there is none; this would make the file longer). See
1122 the 'endofline' option.
1124 *'bioskey'* *'biosk'* *'nobioskey'* *'nobiosk'*
1125 'bioskey' 'biosk' boolean (default on)
1127 {not in Vi} {only for MS-DOS}
1128 When on the BIOS is called to obtain a keyboard character. This works
1129 better to detect CTRL-C, but only works for the console. When using a
1130 terminal over a serial port reset this option.
1131 Also see |'conskey'|.
1134 'bomb' boolean (default off)
1137 {only available when compiled with the |+multi_byte|
1139 When writing a file and the following conditions are met, a BOM (Byte
1140 Order Mark) is prepended to the file:
1142 - the 'binary' option is off
1143 - 'fileencoding' is "utf-8", "ucs-2", "ucs-4" or one of the little/big
1145 Some applications use the BOM to recognize the encoding of the file.
1146 Often used for UCS-2 files on MS-Windows. For other applications it
1147 causes trouble, for example: "cat file1 file2" makes the BOM of file2
1148 appear halfway the resulting file. Gcc doesn't accept a BOM.
1149 When Vim reads a file and 'fileencodings' starts with "ucs-bom", a
1150 check for the presence of the BOM is done and 'bomb' set accordingly.
1151 Unless 'binary' is set, it is removed from the first line, so that you
1152 don't see it when editing. When you don't change the options, the BOM
1153 will be restored when writing the file.
1156 'breakat' 'brk' string (default " ^I!@*-+;:,./?")
1159 {not available when compiled without the |+linebreak|
1161 This option lets you choose which characters might cause a line
1162 break if 'linebreak' is on. Only works for ASCII and also for 8-bit
1163 characters when 'encoding' is an 8-bit encoding.
1166 *'breakindent'* *'bri'*
1167 'breakindent' 'bri' boolean (default off)
1170 {not available when compiled without the |+linebreak|
1172 Every wrapped line will continue visually indented (same amount of
1173 space as the beginning of that line), thus preserving horizontal blocks
1176 *'breakindentmin'* *'brimin'*
1177 'breakindentmin' 'brimin' number (default 20)
1180 {not available when compiled without the |+linebreak|
1182 Minimum text width that will be kept after applying 'breakindent',
1183 even if the resulting text should normally be narrower. This prevents
1184 text indented almost to the right window border oocupying lot of
1185 vertical space when broken.
1187 *'breakindentshift'* *'brishift'*
1188 'breakindentshift' 'brishift' number (default 20)
1191 {not available when compiled without the |+linebreak|
1193 After applying 'breakindent', wrapped line beginning will be shift by
1194 given number of characters. It permits dynamic French paragraph
1195 indentation (negative) or emphasizing the line continuation
1198 *'browsedir'* *'bsdir'*
1199 'browsedir' 'bsdir' string (default: "last")
1201 {not in Vi} {only for Motif, Athena, GTK, Mac and
1203 Which directory to use for the file browser:
1204 last Use same directory as with last file browser, where a
1205 file was opened or saved.
1206 buffer Use the directory of the related buffer.
1207 current Use the current directory.
1208 {path} Use the specified directory
1210 *'bufhidden'* *'bh'*
1211 'bufhidden' 'bh' string (default: "")
1214 {not available when compiled without the |+quickfix|
1216 This option specifies what happens when a buffer is no longer
1217 displayed in a window:
1218 <empty> follow the global 'hidden' option
1219 hide hide the buffer (don't unload it), also when 'hidden'
1221 unload unload the buffer, also when 'hidden' is set or using
1223 delete delete the buffer from the buffer list, also when
1224 'hidden' is set or using |:hide|, like using
1226 wipe wipe out the buffer from the buffer list, also when
1227 'hidden' is set or using |:hide|, like using
1230 CAREFUL: when "unload", "delete" or "wipe" is used changes in a buffer
1231 are lost without a warning.
1232 This option is used together with 'buftype' and 'swapfile' to specify
1233 special kinds of buffers. See |special-buffers|.
1235 *'buflisted'* *'bl'* *'nobuflisted'* *'nobl'* *E85*
1236 'buflisted' 'bl' boolean (default: on)
1239 When this option is set, the buffer shows up in the buffer list. If
1240 it is reset it is not used for ":bnext", "ls", the Buffers menu, etc.
1241 This option is reset by Vim for buffers that are only used to remember
1242 a file name or marks. Vim sets it when starting to edit a buffer.
1243 But not when moving to a buffer with ":buffer".
1245 *'buftype'* *'bt'* *E382*
1246 'buftype' 'bt' string (default: "")
1249 {not available when compiled without the |+quickfix|
1251 The value of this option specifies the type of a buffer:
1252 <empty> normal buffer
1253 nofile buffer which is not related to a file and will not be
1255 nowrite buffer which will not be written
1256 acwrite buffer which will always be written with BufWriteCmd
1257 autocommands. {not available when compiled without the
1259 quickfix quickfix buffer, contains list of errors |:cwindow|
1260 or list of locations |:lwindow|
1261 help help buffer (you are not supposed to set this
1264 This option is used together with 'bufhidden' and 'swapfile' to
1265 specify special kinds of buffers. See |special-buffers|.
1267 Be careful with changing this option, it can have many side effects!
1269 A "quickfix" buffer is only used for the error list and the location
1270 list. This value is set by the |:cwindow| and |:lwindow| commands and
1271 you are not supposed to change it.
1273 "nofile" and "nowrite" buffers are similar:
1274 both: The buffer is not to be written to disk, ":w" doesn't
1275 work (":w filename" does work though).
1276 both: The buffer is never considered to be |'modified'|.
1277 There is no warning when the changes will be lost, for
1278 example when you quit Vim.
1279 both: A swap file is only created when using too much memory
1280 (when 'swapfile' has been reset there is never a swap
1282 nofile only: The buffer name is fixed, it is not handled like a
1283 file name. It is not modified in response to a |:cd|
1286 "acwrite" implies that the buffer name is not related to a file, like
1287 "nofile", but it will be written. Thus, in contrast to "nofile" and
1288 "nowrite", ":w" does work and a modified buffer can't be abandoned
1289 without saving. For writing there must be matching |BufWriteCmd|,
1290 |FileWriteCmd| or |FileAppendCmd| autocommands.
1293 'casemap' 'cmp' string (default: "internal,keepascii")
1296 {only available when compiled with the |+multi_byte|
1298 Specifies details about changing the case of letters. It may contain
1299 these words, separated by a comma:
1300 internal Use internal case mapping functions, the current
1301 locale does not change the case mapping. This only
1302 matters when 'encoding' is a Unicode encoding,
1303 "latin1" or "iso-8859-15". When "internal" is
1304 omitted, the towupper() and towlower() system library
1305 functions are used when available.
1306 keepascii For the ASCII characters (0x00 to 0x7f) use the US
1307 case mapping, the current locale is not effective.
1308 This probably only matters for Turkish.
1310 *'cdpath'* *'cd'* *E344* *E346*
1311 'cdpath' 'cd' string (default: equivalent to $CDPATH or ",,")
1314 {not available when compiled without the
1315 |+file_in_path| feature}
1316 This is a list of directories which will be searched when using the
1317 |:cd| and |:lcd| commands, provided that the directory being searched
1318 for has a relative path, not an absolute part starting with "/", "./"
1319 or "../", the 'cdpath' option is not used then.
1320 The 'cdpath' option's value has the same form and semantics as
1321 |'path'|. Also see |file-searching|.
1322 The default value is taken from $CDPATH, with a "," prepended to look
1323 in the current directory first.
1324 If the default value taken from $CDPATH is not what you want, include
1325 a modified version of the following command in your vimrc file to
1327 :let &cdpath = ',' . substitute(substitute($CDPATH, '[, ]', '\\\0', 'g'), ':', ',', 'g')
1328 < This option cannot be set from a |modeline| or in the |sandbox|, for
1330 (parts of 'cdpath' can be passed to the shell to expand file names).
1333 'cedit' string (Vi default: "", Vim default: CTRL-F)
1336 {not available when compiled without the |+vertsplit|
1338 The key used in Command-line Mode to open the command-line window.
1339 The default is CTRL-F when 'compatible' is off.
1340 Only non-printable keys are allowed.
1341 The key can be specified as a single character, but it is difficult to
1342 type. The preferred way is to use the <> notation. Examples: >
1345 < |Nvi| also has this option, but it only uses the first character.
1348 *'charconvert'* *'ccv'* *E202* *E214* *E513*
1349 'charconvert' 'ccv' string (default "")
1351 {only available when compiled with the |+multi_byte|
1352 feature and the |+eval| feature}
1354 An expression that is used for character encoding conversion. It is
1355 evaluated when a file that is to be read or has been written has a
1356 different encoding from what is desired.
1357 'charconvert' is not used when the internal iconv() function is
1358 supported and is able to do the conversion. Using iconv() is
1359 preferred, because it is much faster.
1360 'charconvert' is not used when reading stdin |--|, because there is no
1361 file to convert from. You will have to save the text in a file first.
1362 The expression must return zero or an empty string for success,
1363 non-zero for failure.
1364 The possible encoding names encountered are in 'encoding'.
1365 Additionally, names given in 'fileencodings' and 'fileencoding' are
1367 Conversion between "latin1", "unicode", "ucs-2", "ucs-4" and "utf-8"
1368 is done internally by Vim, 'charconvert' is not used for this.
1369 'charconvert' is also used to convert the viminfo file, if the 'c'
1370 flag is present in 'viminfo'. Also used for Unicode conversion.
1372 set charconvert=CharConvert()
1375 \ . v:charconvert_from . ".." . v:charconvert_to
1376 \ . " <" . v:fname_in . " >" v:fname_out)
1377 return v:shell_error
1379 < The related Vim variables are:
1380 v:charconvert_from name of the current encoding
1381 v:charconvert_to name of the desired encoding
1382 v:fname_in name of the input file
1383 v:fname_out name of the output file
1384 Note that v:fname_in and v:fname_out will never be the same.
1385 Note that v:charconvert_from and v:charconvert_to may be different
1386 from 'encoding'. Vim internally uses UTF-8 instead of UCS-2 or UCS-4.
1387 Encryption is not done by Vim when using 'charconvert'. If you want
1388 to encrypt the file after conversion, 'charconvert' should take care
1390 This option cannot be set from a |modeline| or in the |sandbox|, for
1393 *'cindent'* *'cin'* *'nocindent'* *'nocin'*
1394 'cindent' 'cin' boolean (default off)
1397 {not available when compiled without the |+cindent|
1399 Enables automatic C program indenting. See 'cinkeys' to set the keys
1400 that trigger reindenting in insert mode and 'cinoptions' to set your
1401 preferred indent style.
1402 If 'indentexpr' is not empty, it overrules 'cindent'.
1403 If 'lisp' is not on and both 'indentexpr' and 'equalprg' are empty,
1404 the "=" operator indents using this algorithm rather than calling an
1407 When you don't like the way 'cindent' works, try the 'smartindent'
1408 option or 'indentexpr'.
1409 This option is not used when 'paste' is set.
1410 NOTE: This option is reset when 'compatible' is set.
1412 *'cinkeys'* *'cink'*
1413 'cinkeys' 'cink' string (default "0{,0},0),:,0#,!^F,o,O,e")
1416 {not available when compiled without the |+cindent|
1418 A list of keys that, when typed in Insert mode, cause reindenting of
1419 the current line. Only used if 'cindent' is on and 'indentexpr' is
1421 For the format of this option see |cinkeys-format|.
1424 *'cinoptions'* *'cino'*
1425 'cinoptions' 'cino' string (default "")
1428 {not available when compiled without the |+cindent|
1430 The 'cinoptions' affect the way 'cindent' reindents lines in a C
1431 program. See |cinoptions-values| for the values of this option, and
1432 |C-indenting| for info on C indenting in general.
1435 *'cinwords'* *'cinw'*
1436 'cinwords' 'cinw' string (default "if,else,while,do,for,switch")
1439 {not available when compiled without both the
1440 |+cindent| and the |+smartindent| features}
1441 These keywords start an extra indent in the next line when
1442 'smartindent' or 'cindent' is set. For 'cindent' this is only done at
1443 an appropriate place (inside {}).
1444 Note that 'ignorecase' isn't used for 'cinwords'. If case doesn't
1445 matter, include the keyword both the uppercase and lowercase:
1448 *'clipboard'* *'cb'*
1449 'clipboard' 'cb' string (default "autoselect,exclude:cons\|linux"
1450 for X-windows, "" otherwise)
1453 {only in GUI versions or when the |+xterm_clipboard|
1454 feature is included}
1455 This option is a list of comma separated names.
1456 These names are recognized:
1458 unnamed When included, Vim will use the clipboard register '*'
1459 for all yank, delete, change and put operations which
1460 would normally go to the unnamed register. When a
1461 register is explicitly specified, it will always be
1462 used regardless of whether "unnamed" is in 'clipboard'
1463 or not. The clipboard register can always be
1464 explicitly accessed using the "* notation. Also see
1467 autoselect Works like the 'a' flag in 'guioptions': If present,
1468 then whenever Visual mode is started, or the Visual
1469 area extended, Vim tries to become the owner of the
1470 windowing system's global selection or put the
1471 selected text on the clipboard used by the selection
1472 register "*. See |guioptions_a| and |quotestar| for
1473 details. When the GUI is active, the 'a' flag in
1474 'guioptions' is used, when the GUI is not active, this
1475 "autoselect" flag is used.
1476 Also applies to the modeless selection.
1478 autoselectml Like "autoselect", but for the modeless selection
1479 only. Compare to the 'A' flag in 'guioptions'.
1481 html When the clipboard contains HTML, use this when
1482 pasting. When putting text on the clipboard, mark it
1483 as HTML. This works to copy rendered HTML from
1484 Firefox, paste it as raw HTML in Vim, select the HTML
1485 in Vim and paste it in a rich edit box in Firefox.
1486 Only supported for GTK version 2 and later.
1487 Only available with the |+multi_byte| feature.
1490 Defines a pattern that is matched against the name of
1491 the terminal 'term'. If there is a match, no
1492 connection will be made to the X server. This is
1493 useful in this situation:
1494 - Running Vim in a console.
1495 - $DISPLAY is set to start applications on another
1497 - You do not want to connect to the X server in the
1498 console, but do want this in a terminal emulator.
1499 To never connect to the X server use: >
1501 < This has the same effect as using the |-X| argument.
1502 Note that when there is no connection to the X server
1503 the window title won't be restored and the clipboard
1505 The value of 'magic' is ignored, {pattern} is
1506 interpreted as if 'magic' was on.
1507 The rest of the option value will be used for
1508 {pattern}, this must be the last entry.
1510 *'cmdheight'* *'ch'*
1511 'cmdheight' 'ch' number (default 1)
1514 Number of screen lines to use for the command-line. Helps avoiding
1515 |hit-enter| prompts.
1516 The value of this option is stored with the tab page, so that each tab
1517 page can have a different value.
1519 *'cmdwinheight'* *'cwh'*
1520 'cmdwinheight' 'cwh' number (default 7)
1523 {not available when compiled without the |+vertsplit|
1525 Number of screen lines to use for the command-line window. |cmdwin|
1527 *'columns'* *'co'* *E594*
1528 'columns' 'co' number (default 80 or terminal width)
1531 Number of columns of the screen. Normally this is set by the terminal
1532 initialization and does not have to be set by hand. Also see
1533 |posix-screen-size|.
1534 When Vim is running in the GUI or in a resizable window, setting this
1535 option will cause the window size to be changed. When you only want
1536 to use the size for the GUI, put the command in your |gvimrc| file.
1537 When you set this option and Vim is unable to change the physical
1538 number of columns of the display, the display may be messed up. For
1539 the GUI it is always possible and Vim limits the number of columns to
1540 what fits on the screen. You can use this command to get the widest
1543 < Minimum value is 12, maximum value is 10000.
1545 *'comments'* *'com'* *E524* *E525*
1546 'comments' 'com' string (default
1547 "s1:/*,mb:*,ex:*/,://,b:#,:%,:XCOMM,n:>,fb:-")
1550 {not available when compiled without the |+comments|
1552 A comma separated list of strings that can start a comment line. See
1553 |format-comments|. See |option-backslash| about using backslashes to
1556 *'commentstring'* *'cms'* *E537*
1557 'commentstring' 'cms' string (default "/*%s*/")
1560 {not available when compiled without the |+folding|
1562 A template for a comment. The "%s" in the value is replaced with the
1563 comment text. Currently only used to add markers for folding, see
1566 *'compatible'* *'cp'* *'nocompatible'* *'nocp'*
1567 'compatible' 'cp' boolean (default on, off when a |vimrc| or |gvimrc|
1571 This option has the effect of making Vim either more Vi-compatible, or
1572 make Vim behave in a more useful way.
1573 This is a special kind of option, because when it's set or reset,
1574 other options are also changed as a side effect. CAREFUL: Setting or
1575 resetting this option can have a lot of unexpected effects: Mappings
1576 are interpreted in another way, undo behaves differently, etc. If you
1577 set this option in your vimrc file, you should probably put it at the
1579 By default this option is on and the Vi defaults are used for the
1580 options. This default was chosen for those people who want to use Vim
1581 just like Vi, and don't even (want to) know about the 'compatible'
1583 When a |vimrc| or |gvimrc| file is found while Vim is starting up,
1584 this option is switched off, and all options that have not been
1585 modified will be set to the Vim defaults. Effectively, this means
1586 that when a |vimrc| or |gvimrc| file exists, Vim will use the Vim
1587 defaults, otherwise it will use the Vi defaults. (Note: This doesn't
1588 happen for the system-wide vimrc or gvimrc file, nor for a file given
1589 with the |-u| argument). Also see |compatible-default| and
1591 You can also set this option with the "-C" argument, and reset it with
1592 "-N". See |-C| and |-N|.
1593 Switching this option off makes the Vim defaults be used for options
1594 that have a different Vi and Vim default value. See the options
1595 marked with a '+' below. Other options are not modified.
1596 At the moment this option is set, several other options will be set
1597 or reset to make Vim as Vi-compatible as possible. See the table
1598 below. This can be used if you want to revert to Vi compatible
1600 See also 'cpoptions'.
1602 option + set value effect ~
1604 'allowrevins' off no CTRL-_ command
1605 'backupcopy' Unix: "yes" backup file is a copy
1606 others: "auto" copy or rename backup file
1607 'backspace' "" normal backspace
1608 'backup' off no backup file
1609 'cindent' off no C code indentation
1610 'cedit' + "" no key to open the |cmdwin|
1611 'cpoptions' + (all flags) Vi-compatible flags
1612 'cscopetag' off don't use cscope for ":tag"
1613 'cscopetagorder' 0 see |cscopetagorder|
1614 'cscopeverbose' off see |cscopeverbose|
1615 'digraph' off no digraphs
1616 'esckeys' + off no <Esc>-keys in Insert mode
1617 'expandtab' off tabs not expanded to spaces
1618 'fileformats' + "" no automatic file format detection,
1619 "dos,unix" except for DOS, Windows and OS/2
1620 'formatoptions' + "vt" Vi compatible formatting
1621 'gdefault' off no default 'g' flag for ":s"
1622 'history' + 0 no commandline history
1623 'hkmap' off no Hebrew keyboard mapping
1624 'hkmapp' off no phonetic Hebrew keyboard mapping
1625 'hlsearch' off no highlighting of search matches
1626 'incsearch' off no incremental searching
1627 'indentexpr' "" no indenting by expression
1628 'insertmode' off do not start in Insert mode
1629 'iskeyword' + "@,48-57,_" keywords contain alphanumeric
1631 'joinspaces' on insert 2 spaces after period
1632 'modeline' + off no modelines
1633 'more' + off no pauses in listings
1634 'revins' off no reverse insert
1635 'ruler' off no ruler
1636 'scrolljump' 1 no jump scroll
1637 'scrolloff' 0 no scroll offset
1638 'shiftround' off indent not rounded to shiftwidth
1639 'shortmess' + "" no shortening of messages
1640 'showcmd' + off command characters not shown
1641 'showmode' + off current mode not shown
1642 'smartcase' off no automatic ignore case switch
1643 'smartindent' off no smart indentation
1644 'smarttab' off no smart tab size
1645 'softtabstop' 0 tabs are always 'tabstop' positions
1646 'startofline' on goto startofline with some commands
1647 'tagrelative' + off tag file names are not relative
1648 'textauto' + off no automatic textmode detection
1649 'textwidth' 0 no automatic line wrap
1650 'tildeop' off tilde is not an operator
1651 'ttimeout' off no terminal timeout
1652 'whichwrap' + "" left-right movements don't wrap
1653 'wildchar' + CTRL-E only when the current value is <Tab>
1654 use CTRL-E for cmdline completion
1655 'writebackup' on or off depends on +writebackup feature
1657 *'complete'* *'cpt'* *E535*
1658 'complete' 'cpt' string (default: ".,w,b,u,t,i")
1661 This option specifies how keyword completion |ins-completion| works
1662 when CTRL-P or CTRL-N are used. It is also used for whole-line
1663 completion |i_CTRL-X_CTRL-L|. It indicates the type of completion
1664 and the places to scan. It is a comma separated list of flags:
1665 . scan the current buffer ('wrapscan' is ignored)
1666 w scan buffers from other windows
1667 b scan other loaded buffers that are in the buffer list
1668 u scan the unloaded buffers that are in the buffer list
1669 U scan the buffers that are not in the buffer list
1670 k scan the files given with the 'dictionary' option
1671 kspell use the currently active spell checking |spell|
1672 k{dict} scan the file {dict}. Several "k" flags can be given,
1673 patterns are valid too. For example: >
1674 :set cpt=k/usr/dict/*,k~/spanish
1675 < s scan the files given with the 'thesaurus' option
1676 s{tsr} scan the file {tsr}. Several "s" flags can be given, patterns
1678 i scan current and included files
1679 d scan current and included files for defined name or macro
1684 Unloaded buffers are not loaded, thus their autocmds |:autocmd| are
1685 not executed, this may lead to unexpected completions from some files
1686 (gzipped files for example). Unloaded buffers are not scanned for
1687 whole-line completion.
1689 The default is ".,w,b,u,t,i", which means to scan:
1690 1. the current buffer
1691 2. buffers in other windows
1692 3. other loaded buffers
1697 As you can see, CTRL-N and CTRL-P can be used to do any 'iskeyword'-
1698 based expansion (e.g., dictionary |i_CTRL-X_CTRL-K|, included patterns
1699 |i_CTRL-X_CTRL-I|, tags |i_CTRL-X_CTRL-]| and normal expansions).
1701 *'completefunc'* *'cfu'*
1702 'completefunc' 'cfu' string (default: empty)
1705 {not available when compiled without the +eval
1706 or +insert_expand feature}
1707 This option specifies a function to be used for Insert mode completion
1708 with CTRL-X CTRL-U. |i_CTRL-X_CTRL-U|
1709 See |complete-functions| for an explanation of how the function is
1710 invoked and what it should return.
1713 *'completeopt'* *'cot'*
1714 'completeopt' 'cot' string (default: "menu,preview")
1716 {not available when compiled without the
1717 |+insert_expand| feature}
1719 A comma separated list of options for Insert mode completion
1720 |ins-completion|. The supported values are:
1722 menu Use a popup menu to show the possible completions. The
1723 menu is only shown when there is more than one match and
1724 sufficient colors are available. |ins-completion-menu|
1726 menuone Use the popup menu also when there is only one match.
1727 Useful when there is additional information about the
1728 match, e.g., what file it comes from.
1730 longest Only insert the longest common text of the matches. If
1731 the menu is displayed you can use CTRL-L to add more
1732 characters. Whether case is ignored depends on the kind
1733 of completion. For buffer text the 'ignorecase' option is
1736 preview Show extra information about the currently selected
1737 completion in the preview window. Only works in
1738 combination with "menu" or "menuone".
1741 *'confirm'* *'cf'* *'noconfirm'* *'nocf'*
1742 'confirm' 'cf' boolean (default off)
1745 When 'confirm' is on, certain operations that would normally
1746 fail because of unsaved changes to a buffer, e.g. ":q" and ":e",
1747 instead raise a |dialog| asking if you wish to save the current
1748 file(s). You can still use a ! to unconditionally |abandon| a buffer.
1749 If 'confirm' is off you can still activate confirmation for one
1750 command only (this is most useful in mappings) with the |:confirm|
1752 Also see the |confirm()| function and the 'v' flag in 'guioptions'.
1754 *'conskey'* *'consk'* *'noconskey'* *'noconsk'*
1755 'conskey' 'consk' boolean (default off)
1757 {not in Vi} {only for MS-DOS}
1758 When on direct console I/O is used to obtain a keyboard character.
1759 This should work in most cases. Also see |'bioskey'|. Together,
1760 three methods of console input are available:
1761 'conskey' 'bioskey' action ~
1762 on on or off direct console input
1766 *'copyindent'* *'ci'* *'nocopyindent'* *'noci'*
1767 'copyindent' 'ci' boolean (default off)
1770 Copy the structure of the existing lines indent when autoindenting a
1771 new line. Normally the new indent is reconstructed by a series of
1772 tabs followed by spaces as required (unless |'expandtab'| is enabled,
1773 in which case only spaces are used). Enabling this option makes the
1774 new line copy whatever characters were used for indenting on the
1775 existing line. 'expandtab' has no effect on these characters, a Tab
1776 remains a Tab. If the new indent is greater than on the existing
1777 line, the remaining space is filled in the normal manner.
1778 NOTE: 'copyindent' is reset when 'compatible' is set.
1779 Also see 'preserveindent'.
1781 *'cpoptions'* *'cpo'*
1782 'cpoptions' 'cpo' string (Vim default: "aABceFs",
1783 Vi default: all flags)
1786 A sequence of single character flags. When a character is present
1787 this indicates vi-compatible behavior. This is used for things where
1788 not being vi-compatible is mostly or sometimes preferred.
1789 'cpoptions' stands for "compatible-options".
1790 Commas can be added for readability.
1791 To avoid problems with flags that are added in the future, use the
1792 "+=" and "-=" feature of ":set" |add-option-flags|.
1793 NOTE: This option is set to the Vi default value when 'compatible' is
1794 set and to the Vim default value when 'compatible' is reset.
1795 NOTE: This option is set to the POSIX default value at startup when
1796 the Vi default value would be used and the $VIM_POSIX environment
1797 variable exists |posix|. This means Vim tries to behave like the
1798 POSIX specification.
1802 a When included, a ":read" command with a file name
1803 argument will set the alternate file name for the
1806 A When included, a ":write" command with a file name
1807 argument will set the alternate file name for the
1810 b "\|" in a ":map" command is recognized as the end of
1811 the map command. The '\' is included in the mapping,
1812 the text after the '|' is interpreted as the next
1813 command. Use a CTRL-V instead of a backslash to
1814 include the '|' in the mapping. Applies to all
1815 mapping, abbreviation, menu and autocmd commands.
1818 B A backslash has no special meaning in mappings,
1819 abbreviations and the "to" part of the menu commands.
1820 Remove this flag to be able to use a backslash like a
1821 CTRL-V. For example, the command ":map X \<Esc>"
1822 results in X being mapped to:
1823 'B' included: "\^[" (^[ is a real <Esc>)
1824 'B' excluded: "<Esc>" (5 characters)
1825 ('<' excluded in both cases)
1827 c Searching continues at the end of any match at the
1828 cursor position, but not further than the start of the
1829 next line. When not present searching continues
1830 one character from the cursor position. With 'c'
1831 "abababababab" only gets three matches when repeating
1832 "/abab", without 'c' there are five matches.
1834 C Do not concatenate sourced lines that start with a
1835 backslash. See |line-continuation|.
1837 d Using "./" in the 'tags' option doesn't mean to use
1838 the tags file relative to the current file, but the
1839 tags file in the current directory.
1841 D Can't use CTRL-K to enter a digraph after Normal mode
1842 commands with a character argument, like |r|, |f| and
1845 e When executing a register with ":@r", always add a
1846 <CR> to the last line, also when the register is not
1847 linewise. If this flag is not present, the register
1848 is not linewise and the last line does not end in a
1849 <CR>, then the last line is put on the command-line
1850 and can be edited before hitting <CR>.
1852 E It is an error when using "y", "d", "c", "g~", "gu" or
1853 "gU" on an Empty region. The operators only work when
1854 at least one character is to be operate on. Example:
1855 This makes "y0" fail in the first column.
1857 f When included, a ":read" command with a file name
1858 argument will set the file name for the current buffer,
1859 if the current buffer doesn't have a file name yet.
1861 F When included, a ":write" command with a file name
1862 argument will set the file name for the current
1863 buffer, if the current buffer doesn't have a file name
1864 yet. Also see |cpo-P|.
1866 g Goto line 1 when using ":edit" without argument.
1868 H When using "I" on a line with only blanks, insert
1869 before the last blank. Without this flag insert after
1872 i When included, interrupting the reading of a file will
1875 I When moving the cursor up or down just after inserting
1876 indent for 'autoindent', do not delete the indent.
1878 j When joining lines, only add two spaces after a '.',
1879 not after '!' or '?'. Also see 'joinspaces'.
1881 J A |sentence| has to be followed by two spaces after
1882 the '.', '!' or '?'. A <Tab> is not recognized as
1885 k Disable the recognition of raw key codes in
1886 mappings, abbreviations, and the "to" part of menu
1887 commands. For example, if <Key> sends ^[OA (where ^[
1888 is <Esc>), the command ":map X ^[OA" results in X
1890 'k' included: "^[OA" (3 characters)
1891 'k' excluded: "<Key>" (one key code)
1892 Also see the '<' flag below.
1894 K Don't wait for a key code to complete when it is
1895 halfway a mapping. This breaks mapping <F1><F1> when
1896 only part of the second <F1> has been read. It
1897 enables cancelling the mapping by typing <F1><Esc>.
1899 l Backslash in a [] range in a search pattern is taken
1900 literally, only "\]", "\^", "\-" and "\\" are special.
1902 'l' included: "/[ \t]" finds <Space>, '\' and 't'
1903 'l' excluded: "/[ \t]" finds <Space> and <Tab>
1906 L When the 'list' option is set, 'wrapmargin',
1907 'textwidth', 'softtabstop' and Virtual Replace mode
1908 (see |gR|) count a <Tab> as two characters, instead of
1909 the normal behavior of a <Tab>.
1911 m When included, a showmatch will always wait half a
1912 second. When not included, a showmatch will wait half
1913 a second or until a character is typed. |'showmatch'|
1915 M When excluded, "%" matching will take backslashes into
1916 account. Thus in "( \( )" and "\( ( \)" the outer
1917 parenthesis match. When included "%" ignores
1918 backslashes, which is Vi compatible.
1920 n When included, the column used for 'number' and
1921 'relativenumber' will also be used for text of wrapped
1924 o Line offset to search command is not remembered for
1927 O Don't complain if a file is being overwritten, even
1928 when it didn't exist when editing it. This is a
1929 protection against a file unexpectedly created by
1930 someone else. Vi didn't complain about this.
1932 p Vi compatible Lisp indenting. When not present, a
1933 slightly better algorithm is used.
1935 P When included, a ":write" command that appends to a
1936 file will set the file name for the current buffer, if
1937 the current buffer doesn't have a file name yet and
1938 the 'F' flag is also included |cpo-F|.
1940 q When joining multiple lines leave the cursor at the
1941 position where it would be when joining two lines.
1943 r Redo ("." command) uses "/" to repeat a search
1944 command, instead of the actually used search string.
1946 R Remove marks from filtered lines. Without this flag
1947 marks are kept like |:keepmarks| was used.
1949 s Set buffer options when entering the buffer for the
1950 first time. This is like it is in Vim version 3.0.
1951 And it is the default. If not present the options are
1952 set when the buffer is created.
1954 S Set buffer options always when entering a buffer
1955 (except 'readonly', 'fileformat', 'filetype' and
1956 'syntax'). This is the (most) Vi compatible setting.
1957 The options are set to the values in the current
1958 buffer. When you change an option and go to another
1959 buffer, the value is copied. Effectively makes the
1960 buffer options global to all buffers.
1962 's' 'S' copy buffer options
1963 no no when buffer created
1964 yes no when buffer first entered (default)
1965 X yes each time when buffer entered (vi comp.)
1967 t Search pattern for the tag command is remembered for
1968 "n" command. Otherwise Vim only puts the pattern in
1969 the history for search pattern, but doesn't change the
1970 last used search pattern.
1972 u Undo is Vi compatible. See |undo-two-ways|.
1974 v Backspaced characters remain visible on the screen in
1975 Insert mode. Without this flag the characters are
1976 erased from the screen right away. With this flag the
1977 screen newly typed text overwrites backspaced
1980 w When using "cw" on a blank character, only change one
1981 character and not all blanks until the start of the
1984 W Don't overwrite a readonly file. When omitted, ":w!"
1985 overwrites a readonly file, if possible.
1987 x <Esc> on the command-line executes the command-line.
1988 The default in Vim is to abandon the command-line,
1989 because <Esc> normally aborts a command. |c_<Esc>|
1991 X When using a count with "R" the replaced text is
1992 deleted only once. Also when repeating "R" with "."
1995 y A yank command can be redone with ".".
1997 Z When using "w!" while the 'readonly' option is set,
1998 don't reset 'readonly'.
2000 ! When redoing a filter command, use the last used
2001 external command, whatever it was. Otherwise the last
2002 used -filter- command is used.
2004 $ When making a change to one line, don't redisplay the
2005 line, but put a '$' at the end of the changed text.
2006 The changed text will be overwritten when you type the
2007 new text. The line is redisplayed if you type any
2008 command that moves the cursor from the insertion
2011 % Vi-compatible matching is done for the "%" command.
2012 Does not recognize "#if", "#endif", etc.
2013 Does not recognize "/*" and "*/".
2014 Parens inside single and double quotes are also
2015 counted, causing a string that contains a paren to
2016 disturb the matching. For example, in a line like
2017 "if (strcmp("foo(", s))" the first paren does not
2018 match the last one. When this flag is not included,
2019 parens inside single and double quotes are treated
2020 specially. When matching a paren outside of quotes,
2021 everything inside quotes is ignored. When matching a
2022 paren inside quotes, it will find the matching one (if
2023 there is one). This works very well for C programs.
2024 This flag is also used for other features, such as
2027 - When included, a vertical movement command fails when
2028 it would go above the first line or below the last
2029 line. Without it the cursor moves to the first or
2030 last line, unless it already was in that line.
2031 Applies to the commands "-", "k", CTRL-P, "+", "j",
2032 CTRL-N, CTRL-J and ":1234".
2034 + When included, a ":write file" command will reset the
2035 'modified' flag of the buffer, even though the buffer
2036 itself may still be different from its file.
2038 * Use ":*" in the same way as ":@". When not included,
2039 ":*" is an alias for ":'<,'>", select the Visual area.
2041 < Disable the recognition of special key codes in |<>|
2042 form in mappings, abbreviations, and the "to" part of
2043 menu commands. For example, the command
2044 ":map X <Tab>" results in X being mapped to:
2045 '<' included: "<Tab>" (5 characters)
2046 '<' excluded: "^I" (^I is a real <Tab>)
2047 Also see the 'k' flag above.
2049 > When appending to a register, put a line break before
2052 POSIX flags. These are not included in the Vi default value, except
2053 when $VIM_POSIX was set on startup. |posix|
2057 # A count before "D", "o" and "O" has no effect.
2059 & When ":preserve" was used keep the swap file when
2060 exiting normally while this buffer is still loaded.
2061 This flag is tested when exiting.
2063 \ Backslash in a [] range in a search pattern is taken
2064 literally, only "\]" is special See |/[]|
2065 '\' included: "/[ \-]" finds <Space>, '\' and '-'
2066 '\' excluded: "/[ \-]" finds <Space> and '-'
2069 / When "%" is used as the replacement string in a |:s|
2070 command, use the previous replacement string. |:s%|
2072 { The |{| and |}| commands also stop at a "{" character
2073 at the start of a line.
2075 . The ":chdir" and ":cd" commands fail if the current
2076 buffer is modified, unless ! is used. Vim doesn't
2077 need this, since it remembers the full path of an
2080 | The value of the $LINES and $COLUMNS environment
2081 variables overrule the terminal size values obtained
2082 with system specific functions.
2085 *'cscopepathcomp'* *'cspc'*
2086 'cscopepathcomp' 'cspc' number (default 0)
2088 {not available when compiled without the |+cscope|
2091 Determines how many components of the path to show in a list of tags.
2092 See |cscopepathcomp|.
2094 *'cscopeprg'* *'csprg'*
2095 'cscopeprg' 'csprg' string (default "cscope")
2097 {not available when compiled without the |+cscope|
2100 Specifies the command to execute cscope. See |cscopeprg|.
2101 This option cannot be set from a |modeline| or in the |sandbox|, for
2104 *'cscopequickfix'* *'csqf'*
2105 'cscopequickfix' 'csqf' string (default "")
2107 {not available when compiled without the |+cscope|
2108 or |+quickfix| features}
2110 Specifies whether to use quickfix window to show cscope results.
2111 See |cscopequickfix|.
2113 *'cscopetag'* *'cst'* *'nocscopetag'* *'nocst'*
2114 'cscopetag' 'cst' boolean (default off)
2116 {not available when compiled without the |+cscope|
2119 Use cscope for tag commands. See |cscope-options|.
2120 NOTE: This option is reset when 'compatible' is set.
2122 *'cscopetagorder'* *'csto'*
2123 'cscopetagorder' 'csto' number (default 0)
2125 {not available when compiled without the |+cscope|
2128 Determines the order in which ":cstag" performs a search. See
2130 NOTE: This option is set to 0 when 'compatible' is set.
2132 *'cscopeverbose'* *'csverb'*
2133 *'nocscopeverbose'* *'nocsverb'*
2134 'cscopeverbose' 'csverb' boolean (default off)
2136 {not available when compiled without the |+cscope|
2139 Give messages when adding a cscope database. See |cscopeverbose|.
2140 NOTE: This option is reset when 'compatible' is set.
2143 *'cursorcolumn'* *'cuc'* *'nocursorcolumn'* *'nocuc'*
2144 'cursorcolumn' 'cuc' boolean (default off)
2147 {not available when compiled without the |+syntax|
2149 Highlight the screen column of the cursor with CursorColumn
2150 |hl-CursorColumn|. Useful to align text. Will make screen redrawing
2152 If you only want the highlighting in the current window you can use
2153 these autocommands: >
2154 au WinLeave * set nocursorline nocursorcolumn
2155 au WinEnter * set cursorline cursorcolumn
2158 *'cursorline'* *'cul'* *'nocursorline'* *'nocul'*
2159 'cursorline' 'cul' boolean (default off)
2162 {not available when compiled without the |+syntax|
2164 Highlight the screen line of the cursor with CursorLine
2165 |hl-CursorLine|. Useful to easily spot the cursor. Will make screen
2167 When Visual mode is active the highlighting isn't used to make it
2168 easier to see the selected text.
2172 'debug' string (default "")
2175 These values can be used:
2176 msg Error messages that would otherwise be omitted will be given
2178 throw Error messages that would otherwise be omitted will be given
2179 anyway and also throw an exception and set |v:errmsg|.
2180 beep A message will be given when otherwise only a beep would be
2182 The values can be combined, separated by a comma.
2183 "msg" and "throw" are useful for debugging 'foldexpr', 'formatexpr' or
2187 'define' 'def' string (default "^\s*#\s*define")
2188 global or local to buffer |global-local|
2190 Pattern to be used to find a macro definition. It is a search
2191 pattern, just like for the "/" command. This option is used for the
2192 commands like "[i" and "[d" |include-search|. The 'isident' option is
2193 used to recognize the defined name after the match:
2194 {match with 'define'}{non-ID chars}{defined name}{non-ID char}
2195 See |option-backslash| about inserting backslashes to include a space
2197 The default value is for C programs. For C++ this value would be
2198 useful, to include const type declarations: >
2199 ^\(#\s*define\|[a-z]*\s*const\s*[a-z]*\)
2200 < When using the ":set" command, you need to double the backslashes!
2202 *'delcombine'* *'deco'* *'nodelcombine'* *'nodeco'*
2203 'delcombine' 'deco' boolean (default off)
2206 {only available when compiled with the |+multi_byte|
2208 If editing Unicode and this option is set, backspace and Normal mode
2209 "x" delete each combining character on its own. When it is off (the
2210 default) the character along with its combining characters are
2212 Note: When 'delcombine' is set "xx" may work different from "2x"!
2214 This is useful for Arabic, Hebrew and many other languages where one
2215 may have combining characters overtop of base characters, and want
2216 to remove only the combining ones.
2218 *'dictionary'* *'dict'*
2219 'dictionary' 'dict' string (default "")
2220 global or local to buffer |global-local|
2222 List of file names, separated by commas, that are used to lookup words
2223 for keyword completion commands |i_CTRL-X_CTRL-K|. Each file should
2224 contain a list of words. This can be one word per line, or several
2225 words per line, separated by non-keyword characters (white space is
2226 preferred). Maximum line length is 510 bytes.
2227 When this option is empty, or an entry "spell" is present, spell
2228 checking is enabled the currently active spelling is used. |spell|
2229 To include a comma in a file name precede it with a backslash. Spaces
2230 after a comma are ignored, otherwise spaces are included in the file
2231 name. See |option-backslash| about using backslashes.
2232 This has nothing to do with the |Dictionary| variable type.
2233 Where to find a list of words?
2234 - On FreeBSD, there is the file "/usr/share/dict/words".
2235 - In the Simtel archive, look in the "msdos/linguist" directory.
2236 - In "miscfiles" of the GNU collection.
2237 The use of |:set+=| and |:set-=| is preferred when adding or removing
2238 directories from the list. This avoids problems when a future version
2239 uses another default.
2240 Backticks cannot be used in this option for security reasons.
2243 'diff' boolean (default off)
2246 {not available when compiled without the |+diff|
2248 Join the current window in the group of windows that shows differences
2249 between files. See |vimdiff|.
2251 *'dex'* *'diffexpr'*
2252 'diffexpr' 'dex' string (default "")
2255 {not available when compiled without the |+diff|
2257 Expression which is evaluated to obtain an ed-style diff file from two
2258 versions of a file. See |diff-diffexpr|.
2259 This option cannot be set from a |modeline| or in the |sandbox|, for
2263 'diffopt' 'dip' string (default "filler")
2266 {not available when compiled without the |+diff|
2268 Option settings for diff mode. It can consist of the following items.
2269 All are optional. Items must be separated by a comma.
2271 filler Show filler lines, to keep the text
2272 synchronized with a window that has inserted
2273 lines at the same position. Mostly useful
2274 when windows are side-by-side and 'scrollbind'
2277 context:{n} Use a context of {n} lines between a change
2278 and a fold that contains unchanged lines.
2279 When omitted a context of six lines is used.
2282 icase Ignore changes in case of text. "a" and "A"
2283 are considered the same. Adds the "-i" flag
2284 to the "diff" command if 'diffexpr' is empty.
2286 iwhite Ignore changes in amount of white space. Adds
2287 the "-b" flag to the "diff" command if
2288 'diffexpr' is empty. Check the documentation
2289 of the "diff" command for what this does
2290 exactly. It should ignore adding trailing
2291 white space, but not leading white space.
2293 horizontal Start diff mode with horizontal splits (unless
2294 explicitly specified otherwise).
2296 vertical Start diff mode with vertical splits (unless
2297 explicitly specified otherwise).
2299 foldcolumn:{n} Set the 'foldcolumn' option to {n} when
2300 starting diff mode. Without this 2 is used.
2304 :set diffopt=filler,context:4
2306 :set diffopt=filler,foldcolumn:3
2308 *'digraph'* *'dg'* *'nodigraph'* *'nodg'*
2309 'digraph' 'dg' boolean (default off)
2312 {not available when compiled without the |+digraphs|
2314 Enable the entering of digraphs in Insert mode with {char1} <BS>
2315 {char2}. See |digraphs|.
2316 NOTE: This option is reset when 'compatible' is set.
2318 *'directory'* *'dir'*
2319 'directory' 'dir' string (default for Amiga: ".,t:",
2320 for MS-DOS and Win32: ".,c:\tmp,c:\temp"
2321 for Unix: ".,~/tmp,/var/tmp,/tmp")
2323 List of directory names for the swap file, separated with commas.
2324 - The swap file will be created in the first directory where this is
2326 - Empty means that no swap file will be used (recovery is
2328 - A directory "." means to put the swap file in the same directory as
2329 the edited file. On Unix, a dot is prepended to the file name, so
2330 it doesn't show in a directory listing. On MS-Windows the "hidden"
2331 attribute is set and a dot prepended if possible.
2332 - A directory starting with "./" (or ".\" for MS-DOS et al.) means to
2333 put the swap file relative to where the edited file is. The leading
2334 "." is replaced with the path name of the edited file.
2335 - For Unix and Win32, if a directory ends in two path separators "//"
2336 or "\\", the swap file name will be built from the complete path to
2337 the file with all path separators substituted to percent '%' signs.
2338 This will ensure file name uniqueness in the preserve directory.
2339 On Win32, when a separating comma is following, you must use "//",
2340 since "\\" will include the comma in the file name.
2341 - Spaces after the comma are ignored, other spaces are considered part
2342 of the directory name. To have a space at the start of a directory
2343 name, precede it with a backslash.
2344 - To include a comma in a directory name precede it with a backslash.
2345 - A directory name may end in an ':' or '/'.
2346 - Environment variables are expanded |:set_env|.
2347 - Careful with '\' characters, type one before a space, type two to
2348 get one in the option (see |option-backslash|), for example: >
2349 :set dir=c:\\tmp,\ dir\\,with\\,commas,\\\ dir\ with\ spaces
2350 < - For backwards compatibility with Vim version 3.0 a '>' at the start
2351 of the option is removed.
2352 Using "." first in the list is recommended. This means that editing
2353 the same file twice will result in a warning. Using "/tmp" on Unix is
2354 discouraged: When the system crashes you lose the swap file.
2355 "/var/tmp" is often not cleared when rebooting, thus is a better
2356 choice than "/tmp". But it can contain a lot of files, your swap
2357 files get lost in the crowd. That is why a "tmp" directory in your
2358 home directory is tried first.
2359 The use of |:set+=| and |:set-=| is preferred when adding or removing
2360 directories from the list. This avoids problems when a future version
2361 uses another default.
2362 This option cannot be set from a |modeline| or in the |sandbox|, for
2364 {Vi: directory to put temp file in, defaults to "/tmp"}
2367 'display' 'dy' string (default "")
2370 Change the way text is displayed. This is comma separated list of
2372 lastline When included, as much as possible of the last line
2373 in a window will be displayed. When not included, a
2374 last line that doesn't fit is replaced with "@" lines.
2375 uhex Show unprintable characters hexadecimal as <xx>
2376 instead of using ^C and ~C.
2378 *'eadirection'* *'ead'*
2379 'eadirection' 'ead' string (default "both")
2382 {not available when compiled without the +vertsplit
2384 Tells when the 'equalalways' option applies:
2385 ver vertically, width of windows is not affected
2386 hor horizontally, height of windows is not affected
2387 both width and height of windows is affected
2389 *'ed'* *'edcompatible'* *'noed'* *'noedcompatible'*
2390 'edcompatible' 'ed' boolean (default off)
2392 Makes the 'g' and 'c' flags of the ":substitute" command to be
2393 toggled each time the flag is given. See |complex-change|. See
2394 also 'gdefault' option.
2395 Switching this option on is discouraged!
2397 *'encoding'* *'enc'* *E543*
2398 'encoding' 'enc' string (default: "latin1" or value from $LANG)
2400 {only available when compiled with the |+multi_byte|
2403 Sets the character encoding used inside Vim. It applies to text in
2404 the buffers, registers, Strings in expressions, text stored in the
2405 viminfo file, etc. It sets the kind of characters which Vim can work
2406 with. See |encoding-names| for the possible values.
2408 NOTE: Changing this option will not change the encoding of the
2409 existing text in Vim. It may cause non-ASCII text to become invalid.
2410 It should normally be kept at its default value, or set when Vim
2411 starts up. See |multibyte|. To reload the menus see |:menutrans|.
2413 NOTE: For GTK+ 2 it is highly recommended to set 'encoding' to
2414 "utf-8". Although care has been taken to allow different values of
2415 'encoding', "utf-8" is the natural choice for the environment and
2416 avoids unnecessary conversion overhead. "utf-8" has not been made
2417 the default to prevent different behavior of the GUI and terminal
2418 versions, and to avoid changing the encoding of newly created files
2419 without your knowledge (in case 'fileencodings' is empty).
2421 The character encoding of files can be different from 'encoding'.
2422 This is specified with 'fileencoding'. The conversion is done with
2423 iconv() or as specified with 'charconvert'.
2425 If you need to know whether 'encoding' is a multi-byte encoding, you
2427 if has("multi_byte_encoding")
2429 Normally 'encoding' will be equal to your current locale. This will
2430 be the default if Vim recognizes your environment settings. If
2431 'encoding' is not set to the current locale, 'termencoding' must be
2432 set to convert typed and displayed text. See |encoding-table|.
2434 When you set this option, it fires the |EncodingChanged| autocommand
2435 event so that you can set up fonts if necessary.
2437 When the option is set, the value is converted to lowercase. Thus
2438 you can set it with uppercase values too. Underscores are translated
2440 When the encoding is recognized, it is changed to the standard name.
2441 For example "Latin-1" becomes "latin1", "ISO_88592" becomes
2442 "iso-8859-2" and "utf8" becomes "utf-8".
2444 Note: "latin1" is also used when the encoding could not be detected.
2445 This only works when editing files in the same encoding! When the
2446 actual character set is not latin1, make sure 'fileencoding' and
2447 'fileencodings' are empty. When conversion is needed, switch to using
2450 When "unicode", "ucs-2" or "ucs-4" is used, Vim internally uses utf-8.
2451 You don't notice this while editing, but it does matter for the
2452 |viminfo-file|. And Vim expects the terminal to use utf-8 too. Thus
2453 setting 'encoding' to one of these values instead of utf-8 only has
2454 effect for encoding used for files when 'fileencoding' is empty.
2456 When 'encoding' is set to a Unicode encoding, and 'fileencodings' was
2457 not set yet, the default for 'fileencodings' is changed.
2459 *'endofline'* *'eol'* *'noendofline'* *'noeol'*
2460 'endofline' 'eol' boolean (default on)
2463 When writing a file and this option is off and the 'binary' option
2464 is on, no <EOL> will be written for the last line in the file. This
2465 option is automatically set when starting to edit a new file, unless
2466 the file does not have an <EOL> for the last line in the file, in
2467 which case it is reset. Normally you don't have to set or reset this
2468 option. When 'binary' is off the value is not used when writing the
2469 file. When 'binary' is on it is used to remember the presence of a
2470 <EOL> for the last line in the file, so that when you write the file
2471 the situation from the original file can be kept. But you can change
2474 *'equalalways'* *'ea'* *'noequalalways'* *'noea'*
2475 'equalalways' 'ea' boolean (default on)
2478 When on, all the windows are automatically made the same size after
2479 splitting or closing a window. This also happens the moment the
2480 option is switched on. When off, splitting a window will reduce the
2481 size of the current window and leave the other windows the same. When
2482 closing a window the extra lines are given to the window next to it
2483 (depending on 'splitbelow' and 'splitright').
2484 When mixing vertically and horizontally split windows, a minimal size
2485 is computed and some windows may be larger if there is room. The
2486 'eadirection' option tells in which direction the size is affected.
2487 Changing the height and width of a window can be avoided by setting
2488 'winfixheight' and 'winfixwidth', respectively.
2489 If a window size is specified when creating a new window sizes are
2490 currently not equalized (it's complicated, but may be implemented in
2494 'equalprg' 'ep' string (default "")
2495 global or local to buffer |global-local|
2497 External program to use for "=" command. When this option is empty
2498 the internal formatting functions are used; either 'lisp', 'cindent'
2499 or 'indentexpr'. When Vim was compiled without internal formatting,
2500 the "indent" program is used.
2501 Environment variables are expanded |:set_env|. See |option-backslash|
2502 about including spaces and backslashes.
2503 This option cannot be set from a |modeline| or in the |sandbox|, for
2506 *'errorbells'* *'eb'* *'noerrorbells'* *'noeb'*
2507 'errorbells' 'eb' boolean (default off)
2509 Ring the bell (beep or screen flash) for error messages. This only
2510 makes a difference for error messages, the bell will be used always
2511 for a lot of errors without a message (e.g., hitting <Esc> in Normal
2512 mode). See 'visualbell' on how to make the bell behave like a beep,
2513 screen flash or do nothing.
2515 *'errorfile'* *'ef'*
2516 'errorfile' 'ef' string (Amiga default: "AztecC.Err",
2517 others: "errors.err")
2520 {not available when compiled without the |+quickfix|
2522 Name of the errorfile for the QuickFix mode (see |:cf|).
2523 When the "-q" command-line argument is used, 'errorfile' is set to the
2524 following argument. See |-q|.
2525 NOT used for the ":make" command. See 'makeef' for that.
2526 Environment variables are expanded |:set_env|.
2527 See |option-backslash| about including spaces and backslashes.
2528 This option cannot be set from a |modeline| or in the |sandbox|, for
2531 *'errorformat'* *'efm'*
2532 'errorformat' 'efm' string (default is very long)
2533 global or local to buffer |global-local|
2535 {not available when compiled without the |+quickfix|
2537 Scanf-like description of the format for the lines in the error file
2538 (see |errorformat|).
2540 *'esckeys'* *'ek'* *'noesckeys'* *'noek'*
2541 'esckeys' 'ek' boolean (Vim default: on, Vi default: off)
2544 Function keys that start with an <Esc> are recognized in Insert
2545 mode. When this option is off, the cursor and function keys cannot be
2546 used in Insert mode if they start with an <Esc>. The advantage of
2547 this is that the single <Esc> is recognized immediately, instead of
2548 after one second. Instead of resetting this option, you might want to
2549 try changing the values for 'timeoutlen' and 'ttimeoutlen'. Note that
2550 when 'esckeys' is off, you can still map anything, but the cursor keys
2551 won't work by default.
2552 NOTE: This option is set to the Vi default value when 'compatible' is
2553 set and to the Vim default value when 'compatible' is reset.
2555 *'eventignore'* *'ei'*
2556 'eventignore' 'ei' string (default "")
2559 {not available when compiled without the |+autocmd|
2561 A list of autocommand event names, which are to be ignored.
2562 When set to "all" or when "all" is one of the items, all autocommand
2563 events are ignored, autocommands will not be executed.
2564 Otherwise this is a comma separated list of event names. Example: >
2565 :set ei=WinEnter,WinLeave
2567 *'expandtab'* *'et'* *'noexpandtab'* *'noet'*
2568 'expandtab' 'et' boolean (default off)
2571 In Insert mode: Use the appropriate number of spaces to insert a
2572 <Tab>. Spaces are used in indents with the '>' and '<' commands and
2573 when 'autoindent' is on. To insert a real tab when 'expandtab' is
2574 on, use CTRL-V<Tab>. See also |:retab| and |ins-expandtab|.
2575 NOTE: This option is reset when 'compatible' is set.
2577 *'exrc'* *'ex'* *'noexrc'* *'noex'*
2578 'exrc' 'ex' boolean (default off)
2581 Enables the reading of .vimrc, .exrc and .gvimrc in the current
2582 directory. If you switch this option on you should also consider
2583 setting the 'secure' option (see |initialization|). Using a local
2584 .exrc, .vimrc or .gvimrc is a potential security leak, use with care!
2585 also see |.vimrc| and |gui-init|.
2586 This option cannot be set from a |modeline| or in the |sandbox|, for
2589 *'fileencoding'* *'fenc'* *E213*
2590 'fileencoding' 'fenc' string (default: "")
2592 {only available when compiled with the |+multi_byte|
2595 Sets the character encoding for the file of this buffer.
2596 When 'fileencoding' is different from 'encoding', conversion will be
2597 done when writing the file. For reading see below.
2598 When 'fileencoding' is empty, the same value as 'encoding' will be
2599 used (no conversion when reading or writing a file).
2600 Conversion will also be done when 'encoding' and 'fileencoding' are
2601 both a Unicode encoding and 'fileencoding' is not utf-8. That's
2602 because internally Unicode is always stored as utf-8.
2603 WARNING: Conversion can cause loss of information! When
2604 'encoding' is "utf-8" or another Unicode encoding, conversion
2605 is most likely done in a way that the reverse conversion
2606 results in the same text. When 'encoding' is not "utf-8" some
2607 characters may be lost!
2608 See 'encoding' for the possible values. Additionally, values may be
2609 specified that can be handled by the converter, see
2611 When reading a file 'fileencoding' will be set from 'fileencodings'.
2612 To read a file in a certain encoding it won't work by setting
2613 'fileencoding', use the |++enc| argument. One exception: when
2614 'fileencodings' is empty the value of 'fileencoding' is used.
2615 For a new file the global value of 'fileencoding' is used.
2616 Prepending "8bit-" and "2byte-" has no meaning here, they are ignored.
2617 When the option is set, the value is converted to lowercase. Thus
2618 you can set it with uppercase values too. '_' characters are
2619 replaced with '-'. If a name is recognized from the list for
2620 'encoding', it is replaced by the standard name. For example
2621 "ISO8859-2" becomes "iso-8859-2".
2622 When this option is set, after starting to edit a file, the 'modified'
2623 option is set, because the file would be different when written.
2624 If you do this in a modeline, you might want to set 'nomodified' to
2626 This option can not be changed when 'modifiable' is off.
2629 NOTE: Before version 6.0 this option specified the encoding for the
2630 whole of Vim, this was a mistake. Now use 'encoding' instead. The
2631 old short name was 'fe', which is no longer used.
2633 *'fileencodings'* *'fencs'*
2634 'fileencodings' 'fencs' string (default: "ucs-bom",
2635 "ucs-bom,utf-8,default,latin1" when
2636 'encoding' is set to a Unicode value)
2638 {only available when compiled with the |+multi_byte|
2641 This is a list of character encodings considered when starting to edit
2642 an existing file. When a file is read, Vim tries to use the first
2643 mentioned character encoding. If an error is detected, the next one
2644 in the list is tried. When an encoding is found that works,
2645 'fileencoding' is set to it. If all fail, 'fileencoding' is set to
2646 an empty string, which means the value of 'encoding' is used.
2647 WARNING: Conversion can cause loss of information! When
2648 'encoding' is "utf-8" (or one of the other Unicode variants)
2649 conversion is most likely done in a way that the reverse
2650 conversion results in the same text. When 'encoding' is not
2651 "utf-8" some non-ASCII characters may be lost! You can use
2652 the |++bad| argument to specify what is done with characters
2653 that can't be converted.
2654 For an empty file or a file with only ASCII characters most encodings
2655 will work and the first entry of 'fileencodings' will be used (except
2656 "ucs-bom", which requires the BOM to be present). If you prefer
2657 another encoding use an BufReadPost autocommand event to test if your
2658 preferred encoding is to be used. Example: >
2659 au BufReadPost * if search('\S', 'w') == 0 |
2660 \ set fenc=iso-2022-jp | endif
2661 < This sets 'fileencoding' to "iso-2022-jp" if the file does not contain
2662 non-blank characters.
2663 When the |++enc| argument is used then the value of 'fileencodings' is
2665 Note that 'fileencodings' is not used for a new file, the global value
2666 of 'fileencoding' is used instead. You can set it with: >
2667 :setglobal fenc=iso-8859-2
2668 < This means that a non-existing file may get a different encoding than
2670 The special value "ucs-bom" can be used to check for a Unicode BOM
2671 (Byte Order Mark) at the start of the file. It must not be preceded
2672 by "utf-8" or another Unicode encoding for this to work properly.
2673 An entry for an 8-bit encoding (e.g., "latin1") should be the last,
2674 because Vim cannot detect an error, thus the encoding is always
2676 The special value "default" can be used for the encoding from the
2677 environment. This is the default value for 'encoding'. It is useful
2678 when 'encoding' is set to "utf-8" and your environment uses a
2679 non-latin1 encoding, such as Russian.
2680 When 'encoding' is "utf-8" and a file contains an illegal byte
2681 sequence it won't be recognized as UTF-8. You can use the |8g8|
2682 command to find the illegal byte sequence.
2683 WRONG VALUES: WHAT'S WRONG:
2684 latin1,utf-8 "latin1" will always be used
2685 utf-8,ucs-bom,latin1 BOM won't be recognized in an utf-8
2687 cp1250,latin1 "cp1250" will always be used
2688 If 'fileencodings' is empty, 'fileencoding' is not modified.
2689 See 'fileencoding' for the possible values.
2690 Setting this option does not have an effect until the next time a file
2693 *'fileformat'* *'ff'*
2694 'fileformat' 'ff' string (MS-DOS, MS-Windows, OS/2 default: "dos",
2695 Unix default: "unix",
2696 Macintosh default: "mac")
2699 This gives the <EOL> of the current buffer, which is used for
2700 reading/writing the buffer from/to a file:
2704 When "dos" is used, CTRL-Z at the end of a file is ignored.
2705 See |file-formats| and |file-read|.
2706 For the character encoding of the file see 'fileencoding'.
2707 When 'binary' is set, the value of 'fileformat' is ignored, file I/O
2708 works like it was set to "unix'.
2709 This option is set automatically when starting to edit a file and
2710 'fileformats' is not empty and 'binary' is off.
2711 When this option is set, after starting to edit a file, the 'modified'
2712 option is set, because the file would be different when written.
2713 This option can not be changed when 'modifiable' is off.
2714 For backwards compatibility: When this option is set to "dos",
2715 'textmode' is set, otherwise 'textmode' is reset.
2717 *'fileformats'* *'ffs'*
2718 'fileformats' 'ffs' string (default:
2719 Vim+Vi MS-DOS, MS-Windows OS/2: "dos,unix",
2720 Vim Unix: "unix,dos",
2721 Vim Mac: "mac,unix,dos",
2722 Vi Cygwin: "unix,dos",
2726 This gives the end-of-line (<EOL>) formats that will be tried when
2727 starting to edit a new buffer and when reading a file into an existing
2729 - When empty, the format defined with 'fileformat' will be used
2730 always. It is not set automatically.
2731 - When set to one name, that format will be used whenever a new buffer
2732 is opened. 'fileformat' is set accordingly for that buffer. The
2733 'fileformats' name will be used when a file is read into an existing
2734 buffer, no matter what 'fileformat' for that buffer is set to.
2735 - When more than one name is present, separated by commas, automatic
2736 <EOL> detection will be done when reading a file. When starting to
2737 edit a file, a check is done for the <EOL>:
2738 1. If all lines end in <CR><NL>, and 'fileformats' includes "dos",
2739 'fileformat' is set to "dos".
2740 2. If a <NL> is found and 'fileformats' includes "unix", 'fileformat'
2741 is set to "unix". Note that when a <NL> is found without a
2742 preceding <CR>, "unix" is preferred over "dos".
2743 3. If 'fileformats' includes "mac", 'fileformat' is set to "mac".
2744 This means that "mac" is only chosen when "unix" is not present,
2745 or when no <NL> is found in the file, and when "dos" is not
2746 present, or no <CR><NL> is present in the file.
2747 Also if "unix" was first chosen, but the first <CR> is before
2748 the first <NL> and there appears to be more <CR>'s than <NL>'s in
2749 the file, then 'fileformat' is set to "mac".
2750 4. If 'fileformat' is still not set, the first name from
2751 'fileformats' is used.
2752 When reading a file into an existing buffer, the same is done, but
2753 this happens like 'fileformat' has been set appropriately for that
2754 file only, the option is not changed.
2755 When 'binary' is set, the value of 'fileformats' is not used.
2757 For systems with a Dos-like <EOL> (<CR><NL>), when reading files that
2758 are ":source"ed and for vimrc files, automatic <EOL> detection may be
2760 - When 'fileformats' is empty, there is no automatic detection. Dos
2761 format will be used.
2762 - When 'fileformats' is set to one or more names, automatic detection
2763 is done. This is based on the first <NL> in the file: If there is a
2764 <CR> in front of it, Dos format is used, otherwise Unix format is
2766 Also see |file-formats|.
2767 For backwards compatibility: When this option is set to an empty
2768 string or one format (no comma is included), 'textauto' is reset,
2769 otherwise 'textauto' is set.
2770 NOTE: This option is set to the Vi default value when 'compatible' is
2771 set and to the Vim default value when 'compatible' is reset.
2774 'filetype' 'ft' string (default: "")
2777 {not available when compiled without the |+autocmd|
2779 When this option is set, the FileType autocommand event is triggered.
2780 All autocommands that match with the value of this option will be
2781 executed. Thus the value of 'filetype' is used in place of the file
2783 Otherwise this option does not always reflect the current file type.
2784 This option is normally set when the file type is detected. To enable
2785 this use the ":filetype on" command. |:filetype|
2786 Setting this option to a different value is most useful in a modeline,
2787 for a file for which the file type is not automatically recognized.
2788 Example, for in an IDL file:
2789 /* vim: set filetype=idl : */ ~
2790 |FileType| |filetypes|
2791 When a dot appears in the value then this separates two filetype
2793 /* vim: set filetype=c.doxygen : */ ~
2794 This will use the "c" filetype first, then the "doxygen" filetype.
2795 This works both for filetype plugins and for syntax files. More than
2797 Do not confuse this option with 'osfiletype', which is for the file
2798 type that is actually stored with the file.
2799 This option is not copied to another buffer, independent of the 's' or
2800 'S' flag in 'cpoptions'.
2801 Only normal file name characters can be used, "/\*?[|<>" are illegal.
2803 *'fillchars'* *'fcs'*
2804 'fillchars' 'fcs' string (default "vert:|,fold:-")
2807 {not available when compiled without the |+windows|
2808 and |+folding| features}
2809 Characters to fill the statuslines and vertical separators.
2810 It is a comma separated list of items:
2812 item default Used for ~
2813 stl:c ' ' or '^' statusline of the current window
2814 stlnc:c ' ' or '-' statusline of the non-current windows
2815 vert:c '|' vertical separators |:vsplit|
2816 fold:c '-' filling 'foldtext'
2817 diff:c '-' deleted lines of the 'diff' option
2819 Any one that is omitted will fall back to the default. For "stl" and
2820 "stlnc" the space will be used when there is highlighting, '^' or '-'
2824 :set fillchars=stl:^,stlnc:-,vert:\|,fold:-,diff:-
2825 < This is similar to the default, except that these characters will also
2826 be used when there is highlighting.
2828 for "stl" and "stlnc" only single-byte values are supported.
2830 The highlighting used for these items:
2831 item highlight group ~
2832 stl:c StatusLine |hl-StatusLine|
2833 stlnc:c StatusLineNC |hl-StatusLineNC|
2834 vert:c VertSplit |hl-VertSplit|
2835 fold:c Folded |hl-Folded|
2836 diff:c DiffDelete |hl-DiffDelete|
2838 *'fkmap'* *'fk'* *'nofkmap'* *'nofk'*
2839 'fkmap' 'fk' boolean (default off) *E198*
2842 {only available when compiled with the |+rightleft|
2844 When on, the keyboard is mapped for the Farsi character set.
2845 Normally you would set 'allowrevins' and use CTRL-_ in insert mode to
2846 toggle this option |i_CTRL-_|. See |farsi.txt|.
2848 *'foldclose'* *'fcl'*
2849 'foldclose' 'fcl' string (default "")
2852 {not available when compiled without the |+folding|
2854 When set to "all", a fold is closed when the cursor isn't in it and
2855 its level is higher than 'foldlevel'. Useful if you want folds to
2856 automatically close when moving out of them.
2858 *'foldcolumn'* *'fdc'*
2859 'foldcolumn' 'fdc' number (default 0)
2862 {not available when compiled without the |+folding|
2864 When non-zero, a column with the specified width is shown at the side
2865 of the window which indicates open and closed folds. The maximum
2869 *'foldenable'* *'fen'* *'nofoldenable'* *'nofen'*
2870 'foldenable' 'fen' boolean (default on)
2873 {not available when compiled without the |+folding|
2875 When off, all folds are open. This option can be used to quickly
2876 switch between showing all text unfolded and viewing the text with
2877 folds (including manually opened or closed folds). It can be toggled
2878 with the |zi| command. The 'foldcolumn' will remain blank when
2879 'foldenable' is off.
2880 This option is set by commands that create a new fold or close a fold.
2883 *'foldexpr'* *'fde'*
2884 'foldexpr' 'fde' string (default: "0")
2887 {not available when compiled without the |+folding|
2889 The expression used for when 'foldmethod' is "expr". It is evaluated
2890 for each line to obtain its fold level. See |fold-expr|.
2892 The expression may be evaluated in the |sandbox|, see
2894 This option can't be set from a |modeline| when the 'diff' option is
2897 It is not allowed to change text or jump to another window while
2898 evaluating 'foldexpr' |textlock|.
2900 *'foldignore'* *'fdi'*
2901 'foldignore' 'fdi' string (default: "#")
2904 {not available when compiled without the |+folding|
2906 Used only when 'foldmethod' is "indent". Lines starting with
2907 characters in 'foldignore' will get their fold level from surrounding
2908 lines. White space is skipped before checking for this character.
2909 The default "#" works well for C programs. See |fold-indent|.
2911 *'foldlevel'* *'fdl'*
2912 'foldlevel' 'fdl' number (default: 0)
2915 {not available when compiled without the |+folding|
2917 Sets the fold level: Folds with a higher level will be closed.
2918 Setting this option to zero will close all folds. Higher numbers will
2920 This option is set by commands like |zm|, |zM| and |zR|.
2921 See |fold-foldlevel|.
2923 *'foldlevelstart'* *'fdls'*
2924 'foldlevelstart' 'fdls' number (default: -1)
2927 {not available when compiled without the |+folding|
2929 Sets 'foldlevel' when starting to edit another buffer in a window.
2930 Useful to always start editing with all folds closed (value zero),
2931 some folds closed (one) or no folds closed (99).
2932 This is done before reading any modeline, thus a setting in a modeline
2933 overrules this option. Starting to edit a file for |diff-mode| also
2934 ignores this option and closes all folds.
2935 It is also done before BufReadPre autocommands, to allow an autocmd to
2936 overrule the 'foldlevel' value for specific files.
2937 When the value is negative, it is not used.
2939 *'foldmarker'* *'fmr'* *E536*
2940 'foldmarker' 'fmr' string (default: "{{{,}}}")
2943 {not available when compiled without the |+folding|
2945 The start and end marker used when 'foldmethod' is "marker". There
2946 must be one comma, which separates the start and end marker. The
2947 marker is a literal string (a regular expression would be too slow).
2950 *'foldmethod'* *'fdm'*
2951 'foldmethod' 'fdm' string (default: "manual")
2954 {not available when compiled without the |+folding|
2956 The kind of folding used for the current window. Possible values:
2957 |fold-manual| manual Folds are created manually.
2958 |fold-indent| indent Lines with equal indent form a fold.
2959 |fold-expr| expr 'foldexpr' gives the fold level of a line.
2960 |fold-marker| marker Markers are used to specify folds.
2961 |fold-syntax| syntax Syntax highlighting items specify folds.
2962 |fold-diff| diff Fold text that is not changed.
2964 *'foldminlines'* *'fml'*
2965 'foldminlines' 'fml' number (default: 1)
2968 {not available when compiled without the |+folding|
2970 Sets the minimum number of screen lines for a fold to be displayed
2971 closed. Also for manually closed folds.
2972 Note that this only has an effect of what is displayed. After using
2973 "zc" to close a fold, which is displayed open because it's smaller
2974 than 'foldminlines', a following "zc" may close a containing fold.
2976 *'foldnestmax'* *'fdn'*
2977 'foldnestmax' 'fdn' number (default: 20)
2980 {not available when compiled without the |+folding|
2982 Sets the maximum nesting of folds for the "indent" and "syntax"
2983 methods. This avoids that too many folds will be created. Using more
2984 than 20 doesn't work, because the internal limit is 20.
2986 *'foldopen'* *'fdo'*
2987 'foldopen' 'fdo' string (default: "block,hor,mark,percent,quickfix,
2991 {not available when compiled without the |+folding|
2993 Specifies for which type of commands folds will be opened, if the
2994 command moves the cursor into a closed fold. It is a comma separated
2998 block "(", "{", "[[", "[{", etc.
2999 hor horizontal movements: "l", "w", "fx", etc.
3000 insert any command in Insert mode
3001 jump far jumps: "G", "gg", etc.
3002 mark jumping to a mark: "'m", CTRL-O, etc.
3004 quickfix ":cn", ":crew", ":make", etc.
3005 search search for a pattern: "/", "n", "*", "gd", etc.
3006 (not for a search pattern in a ":" command)
3007 Also for |[s| and |]s|.
3008 tag jumping to a tag: ":ta", CTRL-T, etc.
3009 undo undo or redo: "u" and CTRL-R
3010 When the command is part of a mapping this option is not used. Add
3011 the |zv| command to the mapping to get the same effect.
3012 When a movement command is used for an operator (e.g., "dl" or "y%")
3013 this option is not used. This means the operator will include the
3015 Note that vertical movements are not here, because it would make it
3016 very difficult to move onto a closed fold.
3017 In insert mode the folds containing the cursor will always be open
3018 when text is inserted.
3019 To close folds you can re-apply 'foldlevel' with the |zx| command or
3020 set the 'foldclose' option to "all".
3022 *'foldtext'* *'fdt'*
3023 'foldtext' 'fdt' string (default: "foldtext()")
3026 {not available when compiled without the |+folding|
3028 An expression which is used to specify the text displayed for a closed
3029 fold. See |fold-foldtext|.
3031 The expression may be evaluated in the |sandbox|, see
3034 It is not allowed to change text or jump to another window while
3035 evaluating 'foldtext' |textlock|.
3037 *'formatoptions'* *'fo'*
3038 'formatoptions' 'fo' string (Vim default: "tcq", Vi default: "vt")
3041 This is a sequence of letters which describes how automatic
3042 formatting is to be done. See |fo-table|. When the 'paste' option is
3043 on, no formatting is done (like 'formatoptions' is empty). Commas can
3044 be inserted for readability.
3045 To avoid problems with flags that are added in the future, use the
3046 "+=" and "-=" feature of ":set" |add-option-flags|.
3047 NOTE: This option is set to the Vi default value when 'compatible' is
3048 set and to the Vim default value when 'compatible' is reset.
3050 *'formatlistpat'* *'flp'*
3051 'formatlistpat' 'flp' string (default: "^\s*\d\+[\]:.)}\t ]\s*")
3054 A pattern that is used to recognize a list header. This is used for
3055 the "n" flag in 'formatoptions'.
3056 The pattern must match exactly the text that will be the indent for
3057 the line below it. You can use |/\ze| to mark the end of the match
3058 while still checking more characters. There must be a character
3059 following the pattern, when it matches the whole line it is handled
3060 like there is no match.
3061 The default recognizes a number, followed by an optional punctuation
3062 character and white space.
3064 *'formatprg'* *'fp'*
3065 'formatprg' 'fp' string (default "")
3068 The name of an external program that will be used to format the lines
3069 selected with the |gq| operator. The program must take the input on
3070 stdin and produce the output on stdout. The Unix program "fmt" is
3072 If the 'formatexpr' option is not empty it will be used instead.
3073 Otherwise, if 'formatprg' option is an empty string, the internal
3074 format function will be used |C-indenting|.
3075 Environment variables are expanded |:set_env|. See |option-backslash|
3076 about including spaces and backslashes.
3077 The expression may be evaluated in the |sandbox|, see
3080 *'formatexpr'* *'fex'*
3081 'formatexpr' 'fex' string (default "")
3084 {not available when compiled without the |+eval|
3086 Expression which is evaluated to format a range of lines for the |gq|
3087 operator. When this option is empty 'formatprg' is used.
3089 The |v:lnum| variable holds the first line to be formatted.
3090 The |v:count| variable holds the number of lines to be formatted.
3091 The |v:char| variable holds the character that is going to be
3092 inserted. This can be empty. Don't insert it yet!
3095 :set formatexpr=mylang#Format()
3096 < This will invoke the mylang#Format() function in the
3097 autoload/mylang.vim file in 'runtimepath'. |autoload|
3099 The expression is also evaluated when 'textwidth' is set and adding
3100 text beyond that limit. This happens under the same conditions as
3101 when internal formatting is used. Make sure the cursor is kept in the
3102 same spot relative to the text then! The |mode()| function will
3103 return "i" or "R" in this situation. When the function returns
3104 non-zero Vim will fall back to using the internal format mechanism.
3106 The expression may be evaluated in the |sandbox|, see
3110 'fsync' 'fs' boolean (default on)
3113 When on, the library function fsync() will be called after writing a
3114 file. This will flush a file to disk, ensuring that it is safely
3115 written even on filesystems which do metadata-only journaling. This
3116 will force the harddrive to spin up on Linux systems running in laptop
3117 mode, so it may be undesirable in some situations. Be warned that
3118 turning this off increases the chances of data loss after a crash. On
3119 systems without an fsync() implementation, this variable is always
3121 Also see 'swapsync' for controlling fsync() on swap files.
3123 *'gdefault'* *'gd'* *'nogdefault'* *'nogd'*
3124 'gdefault' 'gd' boolean (default off)
3127 When on, the ":substitute" flag 'g' is default on. This means that
3128 all matches in a line are substituted instead of one. When a 'g' flag
3129 is given to a ":substitute" command, this will toggle the substitution
3130 of all or one match. See |complex-change|.
3132 command 'gdefault' on 'gdefault' off ~
3133 :s/// subst. all subst. one
3134 :s///g subst. one subst. all
3135 :s///gg subst. all subst. one
3137 NOTE: This option is reset when 'compatible' is set.
3139 *'grepformat'* *'gfm'*
3140 'grepformat' 'gfm' string (default "%f:%l%m,%f %l%m")
3143 Format to recognize for the ":grep" command output.
3144 This is a scanf-like string that uses the same format as the
3145 'errorformat' option: see |errorformat|.
3148 'grepprg' 'gp' string (default "grep -n ",
3149 Unix: "grep -n $* /dev/null",
3150 Win32: "findstr /n" or "grep -n",
3151 VMS: "SEARCH/NUMBERS ")
3152 global or local to buffer |global-local|
3154 Program to use for the |:grep| command. This option may contain '%'
3155 and '#' characters, which are expanded like when used in a command-
3156 line. The placeholder "$*" is allowed to specify where the arguments
3157 will be included. Environment variables are expanded |:set_env|. See
3158 |option-backslash| about including spaces and backslashes.
3159 When your "grep" accepts the "-H" argument, use this to make ":grep"
3160 also work well with a single file: >
3161 :set grepprg=grep\ -nH
3162 < Special value: When 'grepprg' is set to "internal" the |:grep| command
3163 works like |:vimgrep|, |:lgrep| like |:lvimgrep|, |:grepadd| like
3164 |:vimgrepadd| and |:lgrepadd| like |:lvimgrepadd|.
3165 See also the section |:make_makeprg|, since most of the comments there
3166 apply equally to 'grepprg'.
3167 For Win32, the default is "findstr /n" if "findstr.exe" can be found,
3168 otherwise it's "grep -n".
3169 This option cannot be set from a |modeline| or in the |sandbox|, for
3172 *'guicursor'* *'gcr'* *E545* *E546* *E548* *E549*
3173 'guicursor' 'gcr' string (default "n-v-c:block-Cursor/lCursor,
3176 i-ci:ver25-Cursor/lCursor,
3177 r-cr:hor20-Cursor/lCursor,
3179 -blinkwait175-blinkoff150-blinkon175",
3180 for MS-DOS and Win32 console:
3181 "n-v-c:block,o:hor50,i-ci:hor15,
3182 r-cr:hor30,sm:block")
3185 {only available when compiled with GUI enabled, and
3186 for MS-DOS and Win32 console}
3187 This option tells Vim what the cursor should look like in different
3188 modes. It fully works in the GUI. In an MSDOS or Win32 console, only
3189 the height of the cursor can be changed. This can be done by
3190 specifying a block cursor, or a percentage for a vertical or
3192 For a console the 't_SI' and 't_EI' escape sequences are used.
3194 The option is a comma separated list of parts. Each part consist of a
3195 mode-list and an argument-list:
3196 mode-list:argument-list,mode-list:argument-list,..
3197 The mode-list is a dash separated list of these modes:
3200 ve Visual mode with 'selection' "exclusive" (same as 'v',
3202 o Operator-pending mode
3205 c Command-line Normal (append) mode
3206 ci Command-line Insert mode
3207 cr Command-line Replace mode
3208 sm showmatch in Insert mode
3210 The argument-list is a dash separated list of these arguments:
3211 hor{N} horizontal bar, {N} percent of the character height
3212 ver{N} vertical bar, {N} percent of the character width
3213 block block cursor, fills the whole character
3214 [only one of the above three should be present]
3215 blinkwait{N} *cursor-blinking*
3218 blink times for cursor: blinkwait is the delay before
3219 the cursor starts blinking, blinkon is the time that
3220 the cursor is shown and blinkoff is the time that the
3221 cursor is not shown. The times are in msec. When one
3222 of the numbers is zero, there is no blinking. The
3223 default is: "blinkwait700-blinkon400-blinkoff250".
3224 These numbers are used for a missing entry. This
3225 means that blinking is enabled by default. To switch
3226 blinking off you can use "blinkon0". The cursor only
3227 blinks when Vim is waiting for input, not while
3228 executing a command.
3229 To make the cursor blink in an xterm, see
3232 a highlight group name, that sets the color and font
3234 {group-name}/{group-name}
3235 Two highlight group names, the first is used when
3236 no language mappings are used, the other when they
3237 are. |language-mapping|
3240 n-c-v:block-nCursor in Normal, Command-line and Visual mode, use a
3241 block cursor with colors from the "nCursor"
3243 i-ci:ver30-iCursor-blinkwait300-blinkon200-blinkoff150
3244 In Insert and Command-line Insert mode, use a
3245 30% vertical bar cursor with colors from the
3246 "iCursor" highlight group. Blink a bit
3249 The 'a' mode is different. It will set the given argument-list for
3250 all modes. It does not reset anything to defaults. This can be used
3251 to do a common setting for all modes. For example, to switch off
3252 blinking: "a:blinkon0"
3254 Examples of cursor highlighting: >
3255 :highlight Cursor gui=reverse guifg=NONE guibg=NONE
3256 :highlight Cursor gui=NONE guifg=bg guibg=fg
3259 *E235* *E596* *E610* *E611*
3260 'guifont' 'gfn' string (default "")
3263 {only available when compiled with GUI enabled}
3264 This is a list of fonts which will be used for the GUI version of Vim.
3265 In its simplest form the value is just one font name. When
3266 the font cannot be found you will get an error message. To try other
3267 font names a list can be specified, font names separated with commas.
3268 The first valid font is used.
3270 On systems where 'guifontset' is supported (X11) and 'guifontset' is
3271 not empty, then 'guifont' is not used.
3273 Spaces after a comma are ignored. To include a comma in a font name
3274 precede it with a backslash. Setting an option requires an extra
3275 backslash before a space and a backslash. See also
3276 |option-backslash|. For example: >
3277 :set guifont=Screen15,\ 7x13,font\\,with\\,commas
3278 < will make Vim try to use the font "Screen15" first, and if it fails it
3279 will try to use "7x13" and then "font,with,commas" instead.
3281 If none of the fonts can be loaded, Vim will keep the current setting.
3282 If an empty font list is given, Vim will try using other resource
3283 settings (for X, it will use the Vim.font resource), and finally it
3284 will try some builtin default which should always be there ("7x13" in
3285 the case of X). The font names given should be "normal" fonts. Vim
3286 will try to find the related bold and italic fonts.
3288 For Win32, GTK, Motif, Mac OS and Photon: >
3290 < will bring up a font requester, where you can pick the font you want.
3292 The font name depends on the GUI used. See |setting-guifont| for a
3293 way to set 'guifont' for various systems.
3295 For the GTK+ 2 GUI the font name looks like this: >
3296 :set guifont=Andale\ Mono\ 11
3297 < That's all. XLFDs are not used. For Chinese this is reported to work
3300 set guifont=Bitstream\ Vera\ Sans\ Mono\ 12,Fixed\ 12
3301 set guifontwide=Microsoft\ Yahei\ 12,WenQuanYi\ Zen\ Hei\ 12
3304 For Mac OSX you can use something like this: >
3305 :set guifont=Monaco:h10
3306 < Also see 'macatsui', it can help fix display problems.
3308 Note that the fonts must be mono-spaced (all characters have the same
3309 width). An exception is GTK 2: all fonts are accepted, but
3310 mono-spaced fonts look best.
3312 To preview a font on X11, you might be able to use the "xfontsel"
3313 program. The "xlsfonts" program gives a list of all available fonts.
3315 For the Win32 GUI *E244* *E245*
3316 - takes these options in the font name:
3317 hXX - height is XX (points, can be floating-point)
3318 wXX - width is XX (points, can be floating-point)
3323 cXX - character set XX. Valid charsets are: ANSI, ARABIC,
3324 BALTIC, CHINESEBIG5, DEFAULT, EASTEUROPE, GB2312, GREEK,
3325 HANGEUL, HEBREW, JOHAB, MAC, OEM, RUSSIAN, SHIFTJIS,
3326 SYMBOL, THAI, TURKISH, VIETNAMESE ANSI and BALTIC.
3327 Normally you would use "cDEFAULT".
3329 Use a ':' to separate the options.
3330 - A '_' can be used in the place of a space, so you don't need to use
3331 backslashes to escape the spaces.
3333 :set guifont=courier_new:h12:w5:b:cRUSSIAN
3334 :set guifont=Andale_Mono:h7.5:w4.5
3335 < See also |font-sizes|.
3337 *'guifontset'* *'gfs'*
3338 *E250* *E252* *E234* *E597* *E598*
3339 'guifontset' 'gfs' string (default "")
3342 {only available when compiled with GUI enabled and
3343 with the |+xfontset| feature}
3344 {not available in the GTK+ 2 GUI}
3345 When not empty, specifies two (or more) fonts to be used. The first
3346 one for normal English, the second one for your special language. See
3348 Setting this option also means that all font names will be handled as
3349 a fontset name. Also the ones used for the "font" argument of the
3350 |:highlight| command.
3351 The fonts must match with the current locale. If fonts for the
3352 character sets that the current locale uses are not included, setting
3353 'guifontset' will fail.
3354 Note the difference between 'guifont' and 'guifontset': In 'guifont'
3355 the comma-separated names are alternative names, one of which will be
3356 used. In 'guifontset' the whole string is one fontset name,
3357 including the commas. It is not possible to specify alternative
3359 This example works on many X11 systems: >
3360 :set guifontset=-*-*-medium-r-normal--16-*-*-*-c-*-*-*
3362 *'guifontwide'* *'gfw'* *E231* *E533* *E534*
3363 'guifontwide' 'gfw' string (default "")
3366 {only available when compiled with GUI enabled}
3367 When not empty, specifies a comma-separated list of fonts to be used
3368 for double-width characters. The first font that can be loaded is
3370 Note: The size of these fonts must be exactly twice as wide as the one
3371 specified with 'guifont' and the same height.
3373 All GUI versions but GTK+ 2:
3375 'guifontwide' is only used when 'encoding' is set to "utf-8" and
3376 'guifontset' is empty or invalid.
3377 When 'guifont' is set and a valid font is found in it and
3378 'guifontwide' is empty Vim will attempt to find a matching
3379 double-width font and set 'guifontwide' to it.
3381 GTK+ 2 GUI only: *guifontwide_gtk2*
3383 If set and valid, 'guifontwide' is always used for double width
3384 characters, even if 'encoding' is not set to "utf-8".
3385 Vim does not attempt to find an appropriate value for 'guifontwide'
3386 automatically. If 'guifontwide' is empty Pango/Xft will choose the
3387 font for characters not available in 'guifont'. Thus you do not need
3388 to set 'guifontwide' at all unless you want to override the choice
3391 *'guiheadroom'* *'ghr'*
3392 'guiheadroom' 'ghr' number (default 50)
3394 {not in Vi} {only for GTK and X11 GUI}
3395 The number of pixels subtracted from the screen height when fitting
3396 the GUI window on the screen. Set this before the GUI is started,
3397 e.g., in your |gvimrc| file. When zero, the whole screen height will
3398 be used by the window. When positive, the specified number of pixel
3399 lines will be left for window decorations and other items on the
3400 screen. Set it to a negative value to allow windows taller than the
3403 *'guioptions'* *'go'*
3404 'guioptions' 'go' string (default "gmrLtT" (MS-Windows),
3405 "agimrLtT" (GTK, Motif and Athena))
3408 {only available when compiled with GUI enabled}
3409 This option only has an effect in the GUI version of Vim. It is a
3410 sequence of letters which describes what components and options of the
3412 To avoid problems with flags that are added in the future, use the
3413 "+=" and "-=" feature of ":set" |add-option-flags|.
3415 Valid letters are as follows:
3416 *guioptions_a* *'go-a'*
3417 'a' Autoselect: If present, then whenever VISUAL mode is started,
3418 or the Visual area extended, Vim tries to become the owner of
3419 the windowing system's global selection. This means that the
3420 Visually highlighted text is available for pasting into other
3421 applications as well as into Vim itself. When the Visual mode
3422 ends, possibly due to an operation on the text, or when an
3423 application wants to paste the selection, the highlighted text
3424 is automatically yanked into the "* selection register.
3425 Thus the selection is still available for pasting into other
3426 applications after the VISUAL mode has ended.
3427 If not present, then Vim won't become the owner of the
3428 windowing system's global selection unless explicitly told to
3429 by a yank or delete operation for the "* register.
3430 The same applies to the modeless selection.
3432 'A' Autoselect for the modeless selection. Like 'a', but only
3433 applies to the modeless selection.
3435 'guioptions' autoselect Visual autoselect modeless ~
3442 'c' Use console dialogs instead of popup dialogs for simple
3445 'e' Add tab pages when indicated with 'showtabline'.
3446 'guitablabel' can be used to change the text in the labels.
3447 When 'e' is missing a non-GUI tab pages line may be used.
3448 The GUI tabs are only supported on some systems, currently
3449 GTK, Motif, Mac OS/X and MS-Windows.
3451 'f' Foreground: Don't use fork() to detach the GUI from the shell
3452 where it was started. Use this for programs that wait for the
3453 editor to finish (e.g., an e-mail program). Alternatively you
3454 can use "gvim -f" or ":gui -f" to start the GUI in the
3455 foreground. |gui-fork|
3456 Note: Set this option in the vimrc file. The forking may have
3457 happened already when the |gvimrc| file is read.
3459 'i' Use a Vim icon. For GTK with KDE it is used in the left-upper
3460 corner of the window. It's black&white on non-GTK, because of
3461 limitations of X11. For a color icon, see |X11-icon|.
3463 'm' Menu bar is present.
3465 'M' The system menu "$VIMRUNTIME/menu.vim" is not sourced. Note
3466 that this flag must be added in the .vimrc file, before
3467 switching on syntax or filetype recognition (when the |gvimrc|
3468 file is sourced the system menu has already been loaded; the
3469 ":syntax on" and ":filetype on" commands load the menu too).
3471 'g' Grey menu items: Make menu items that are not active grey. If
3472 'g' is not included inactive menu items are not shown at all.
3473 Exception: Athena will always use grey menu items.
3475 't' Include tearoff menu items. Currently only works for Win32,
3476 GTK+, and Motif 1.2 GUI.
3478 'T' Include Toolbar. Currently only in Win32, GTK+, Motif, Photon
3481 'r' Right-hand scrollbar is always present.
3483 'R' Right-hand scrollbar is present when there is a vertically
3486 'l' Left-hand scrollbar is always present.
3488 'L' Left-hand scrollbar is present when there is a vertically
3491 'b' Bottom (horizontal) scrollbar is present. Its size depends on
3492 the longest visible line, or on the cursor line if the 'h'
3493 flag is included. |gui-horiz-scroll|
3495 'h' Limit horizontal scrollbar size to the length of the cursor
3496 line. Reduces computations. |gui-horiz-scroll|
3498 And yes, you may even have scrollbars on the left AND the right if
3499 you really want to :-). See |gui-scrollbars| for more information.
3502 'v' Use a vertical button layout for dialogs. When not included,
3503 a horizontal layout is preferred, but when it doesn't fit a
3504 vertical layout is used anyway.
3506 'p' Use Pointer callbacks for X11 GUI. This is required for some
3507 window managers. If the cursor is not blinking or hollow at
3508 the right moment, try adding this flag. This must be done
3509 before starting the GUI. Set it in your |gvimrc|. Adding or
3510 removing it after the GUI has started has no effect.
3512 'F' Add a footer. Only for Motif. See |gui-footer|.
3515 *'guipty'* *'noguipty'*
3516 'guipty' boolean (default on)
3519 {only available when compiled with GUI enabled}
3520 Only in the GUI: If on, an attempt is made to open a pseudo-tty for
3521 I/O to/from shell commands. See |gui-pty|.
3523 *'guitablabel'* *'gtl'*
3524 'guitablabel' 'gtl' string (default empty)
3527 {only available when compiled with GUI enabled and
3528 with the +windows feature}
3529 When nonempty describes the text to use in a label of the GUI tab
3530 pages line. When empty and when the result is empty Vim will use a
3531 default label. See |setting-guitablabel| for more info.
3533 The format of this option is like that of 'statusline'.
3534 'guitabtooltip' is used for the tooltip, see below.
3536 Only used when the GUI tab pages line is displayed. 'e' must be
3537 present in 'guioptions'. For the non-GUI tab pages line 'tabline' is
3540 *'guitabtooltip'* *'gtt'*
3541 'guitabtooltip' 'gtt' string (default empty)
3544 {only available when compiled with GUI enabled and
3545 with the +windows feature}
3546 When nonempty describes the text to use in a tooltip for the GUI tab
3547 pages line. When empty Vim will use a default tooltip.
3548 This option is otherwise just like 'guitablabel' above.
3549 You can include a line break. Simplest method is to use |:let|: >
3550 :let &guitabtooltip = "line one\nline two"
3554 'helpfile' 'hf' string (default (MSDOS) "$VIMRUNTIME\doc\help.txt"
3555 (others) "$VIMRUNTIME/doc/help.txt")
3558 Name of the main help file. All distributed help files should be
3559 placed together in one directory. Additionally, all "doc" directories
3560 in 'runtimepath' will be used.
3561 Environment variables are expanded |:set_env|. For example:
3562 "$VIMRUNTIME/doc/help.txt". If $VIMRUNTIME is not set, $VIM is also
3563 tried. Also see |$VIMRUNTIME| and |option-backslash| about including
3564 spaces and backslashes.
3565 This option cannot be set from a |modeline| or in the |sandbox|, for
3568 *'helpheight'* *'hh'*
3569 'helpheight' 'hh' number (default 20)
3572 {not available when compiled without the +windows
3574 Minimal initial height of the help window when it is opened with the
3575 ":help" command. The initial height of the help window is half of the
3576 current window, or (when the 'ea' option is on) the same as other
3577 windows. When the height is less than 'helpheight', the height is
3578 set to 'helpheight'. Set to zero to disable.
3580 *'helplang'* *'hlg'*
3581 'helplang' 'hlg' string (default: messages language or empty)
3583 {only available when compiled with the |+multi_lang|
3586 Comma separated list of languages. Vim will use the first language
3587 for which the desired help can be found. The English help will always
3588 be used as a last resort. You can add "en" to prefer English over
3589 another language, but that will only find tags that exist in that
3590 language and not in the English help.
3593 < This will first search German, then Italian and finally English help
3595 When using |CTRL-]| and ":help!" in a non-English help file Vim will
3596 try to find the tag in the current language before using this option.
3597 See |help-translated|.
3599 *'hidden'* *'hid'* *'nohidden'* *'nohid'*
3600 'hidden' 'hid' boolean (default off)
3603 When off a buffer is unloaded when it is |abandon|ed. When on a
3604 buffer becomes hidden when it is |abandon|ed. If the buffer is still
3605 displayed in another window, it does not become hidden, of course.
3606 The commands that move through the buffer list sometimes make a buffer
3607 hidden although the 'hidden' option is off: When the buffer is
3608 modified, 'autowrite' is off or writing is not possible, and the '!'
3609 flag was used. See also |windows.txt|.
3610 To only make one buffer hidden use the 'bufhidden' option.
3611 This option is set for one command with ":hide {command}" |:hide|.
3612 WARNING: It's easy to forget that you have changes in hidden buffers.
3613 Think twice when using ":q!" or ":qa!".
3615 *'highlight'* *'hl'*
3616 'highlight' 'hl' string (default (as a single string):
3617 "8:SpecialKey,@:NonText,d:Directory,
3618 e:ErrorMsg,i:IncSearch,l:Search,m:MoreMsg,
3619 M:ModeMsg,n:LineNr,r:Question,
3620 s:StatusLine,S:StatusLineNC,c:VertSplit,
3621 t:Title,v:Visual,w:WarningMsg,W:WildMenu,
3622 f:Folded,F:FoldColumn,A:DiffAdd,
3623 C:DiffChange,D:DiffDelete,T:DiffText,
3624 >:SignColumn,B:SpellBad,P:SpellCap,
3625 R:SpellRare,L:SpellLocal,
3627 x:PmenuSbar,X:PmenuThumb")
3630 This option can be used to set highlighting mode for various
3631 occasions. It is a comma separated list of character pairs. The
3632 first character in a pair gives the occasion, the second the mode to
3633 use for that occasion. The occasions are:
3634 |hl-SpecialKey| 8 Meta and special keys listed with ":map"
3635 |hl-NonText| @ '~' and '@' at the end of the window and
3636 characters from 'showbreak'
3637 |hl-Directory| d directories in CTRL-D listing and other special
3639 |hl-ErrorMsg| e error messages
3640 h (obsolete, ignored)
3641 |hl-IncSearch| i 'incsearch' highlighting
3642 |hl-Search| l last search pattern highlighting (see 'hlsearch')
3643 |hl-MoreMsg| m |more-prompt|
3644 |hl-ModeMsg| M Mode (e.g., "-- INSERT --")
3645 |hl-LineNr| n line number for ":number" and ":#" commands, and
3646 when 'number' or 'relativenumber' option is set.
3647 |hl-Question| r |hit-enter| prompt and yes/no questions
3648 |hl-StatusLine| s status line of current window |status-line|
3649 |hl-StatusLineNC| S status lines of not-current windows
3650 |hl-Title| t Titles for output from ":set all", ":autocmd" etc.
3651 |hl-VertSplit| c column used to separate vertically split windows
3652 |hl-Visual| v Visual mode
3653 |hl-VisualNOS| V Visual mode when Vim does is "Not Owning the
3654 Selection" Only X11 Gui's |gui-x11| and
3656 |hl-WarningMsg| w warning messages
3657 |hl-WildMenu| W wildcard matches displayed for 'wildmenu'
3658 |hl-Folded| f line used for closed folds
3659 |hl-FoldColumn| F 'foldcolumn'
3660 |hl-DiffAdd| A added line in diff mode
3661 |hl-DiffChange| C changed line in diff mode
3662 |hl-DiffDelete| D deleted line in diff mode
3663 |hl-DiffText| T inserted text in diff mode
3664 |hl-SignColumn| > column used for |signs|
3665 |hl-SpellBad| B misspelled word |spell|
3666 |hl-SpellCap| P word that should start with capital|spell|
3667 |hl-SpellRare| R rare word |spell|
3668 |hl-SpellLocal| L word from other region |spell|
3669 |hl-Pmenu| + popup menu normal line
3670 |hl-PmenuSel| = popup menu normal line
3671 |hl-PmenuSbar| x popup menu scrollbar
3672 |hl-PmenuThumb| X popup menu scrollbar thumb
3674 The display modes are:
3675 r reverse (termcap entry "mr" and "me")
3676 i italic (termcap entry "ZH" and "ZR")
3677 b bold (termcap entry "md" and "me")
3678 s standout (termcap entry "so" and "se")
3679 u underline (termcap entry "us" and "ue")
3680 c undercurl (termcap entry "Cs" and "Ce")
3683 : use a highlight group
3684 The default is used for occasions that are not included.
3685 If you want to change what the display modes do, see |dos-colors|
3687 When using the ':' display mode, this must be followed by the name of
3688 a highlight group. A highlight group can be used to define any type
3689 of highlighting, including using color. See |:highlight| on how to
3690 define one. The default uses a different group for each occasion.
3691 See |highlight-default| for the default highlight groups.
3693 *'hlsearch'* *'hls'* *'nohlsearch'* *'nohls'*
3694 'hlsearch' 'hls' boolean (default off)
3697 {not available when compiled without the
3698 |+extra_search| feature}
3699 When there is a previous search pattern, highlight all its matches.
3700 The type of highlighting used can be set with the 'l' occasion in the
3701 'highlight' option. This uses the "Search" highlight group by
3702 default. Note that only the matching text is highlighted, any offsets
3704 See also: 'incsearch' and |:match|.
3705 When you get bored looking at the highlighted matches, you can turn it
3706 off with |:nohlsearch|. As soon as you use a search command, the
3707 highlighting comes back.
3708 'redrawtime' specifies the maximum time spent on finding matches.
3709 When the search pattern can match an end-of-line, Vim will try to
3710 highlight all of the matched text. However, this depends on where the
3711 search starts. This will be the first line in the window or the first
3712 line below a closed fold. A match in a previous line which is not
3713 drawn may not continue in a newly drawn line.
3714 NOTE: This option is reset when 'compatible' is set.
3717 'history' 'hi' number (Vim default: 20, Vi default: 0)
3720 A history of ":" commands, and a history of previous search patterns
3721 are remembered. This option decides how many entries may be stored in
3722 each of these histories (see |cmdline-editing|).
3723 NOTE: This option is set to the Vi default value when 'compatible' is
3724 set and to the Vim default value when 'compatible' is reset.
3726 *'hkmap'* *'hk'* *'nohkmap'* *'nohk'*
3727 'hkmap' 'hk' boolean (default off)
3730 {only available when compiled with the |+rightleft|
3732 When on, the keyboard is mapped for the Hebrew character set.
3733 Normally you would set 'allowrevins' and use CTRL-_ in insert mode to
3734 toggle this option. See |rileft.txt|.
3735 NOTE: This option is reset when 'compatible' is set.
3737 *'hkmapp'* *'hkp'* *'nohkmapp'* *'nohkp'*
3738 'hkmapp' 'hkp' boolean (default off)
3741 {only available when compiled with the |+rightleft|
3743 When on, phonetic keyboard mapping is used. 'hkmap' must also be on.
3744 This is useful if you have a non-Hebrew keyboard.
3746 NOTE: This option is reset when 'compatible' is set.
3749 'icon' boolean (default off, on when title can be restored)
3752 {not available when compiled without the |+title|
3754 When on, the icon text of the window will be set to the value of
3755 'iconstring' (if it is not empty), or to the name of the file
3756 currently being edited. Only the last part of the name is used.
3757 Overridden by the 'iconstring' option.
3758 Only works if the terminal supports setting window icons (currently
3759 only X11 GUI and terminals with a non-empty 't_IS' option - these are
3760 Unix xterm and iris-ansi by default, where 't_IS' is taken from the
3762 When Vim was compiled with HAVE_X11 defined, the original icon will be
3763 restored if possible |X11|. See |X11-icon| for changing the icon on
3767 'iconstring' string (default "")
3770 {not available when compiled without the |+title|
3772 When this option is not empty, it will be used for the icon text of
3773 the window. This happens only when the 'icon' option is on.
3774 Only works if the terminal supports setting window icon text
3775 (currently only X11 GUI and terminals with a non-empty 't_IS' option).
3776 Does not work for MS Windows.
3777 When Vim was compiled with HAVE_X11 defined, the original icon will be
3778 restored if possible |X11|.
3779 When this option contains printf-style '%' items, they will be
3780 expanded according to the rules used for 'statusline'. See
3781 'titlestring' for example settings.
3782 {not available when compiled without the |+statusline| feature}
3784 *'ignorecase'* *'ic'* *'noignorecase'* *'noic'*
3785 'ignorecase' 'ic' boolean (default off)
3787 Ignore case in search patterns. Also used when searching in the tags
3789 Also see 'smartcase'.
3790 Can be overruled by using "\c" or "\C" in the pattern, see
3793 *'imactivatekey'* *'imak'*
3794 'imactivatekey' 'imak' string (default "")
3797 {only available when compiled with |+xim| and
3799 Specifies the key that your Input Method in X-Windows uses for
3800 activation. When this is specified correctly, vim can fully control
3801 IM with 'imcmdline', 'iminsert' and 'imsearch'.
3802 You can't use this option to change the activation key, the option
3803 tells Vim what the key is.
3805 [MODIFIER_FLAG-]KEY_STRING
3807 These characters can be used for MODIFIER_FLAG (case is ignored):
3816 Combinations are allowed, for example "S-C-space" or "SC-space" are
3817 both shift+ctrl+space.
3818 See <X11/keysymdef.h> and XStringToKeysym for KEY_STRING.
3821 :set imactivatekey=S-space
3822 < "S-space" means shift+space. This is the activation key for kinput2 +
3823 canna (Japanese), and ami (Korean).
3825 *'imcmdline'* *'imc'* *'noimcmdline'* *'noimc'*
3826 'imcmdline' 'imc' boolean (default off)
3829 {only available when compiled with the |+xim|
3830 |+multi_byte_ime| or |global-ime| feature}
3831 When set the Input Method is always on when starting to edit a command
3832 line, unless entering a search pattern (see 'imsearch' for that).
3833 Setting this option is useful when your input method allows entering
3834 English characters directly, e.g., when it's used to type accented
3835 characters with dead keys.
3837 *'imdisable'* *'imd'* *'noimdisable'* *'noimd'*
3838 'imdisable' 'imd' boolean (default off, on for some systems (SGI))
3841 {only available when compiled with the |+xim|
3842 |+multi_byte_ime| or |global-ime| feature}
3843 When set the Input Method is never used. This is useful to disable
3844 the IM when it doesn't work properly.
3845 Currently this option is on by default for SGI/IRIX machines. This
3846 may change in later releases.
3848 *'iminsert'* *'imi'*
3849 'iminsert' 'imi' number (default 0, 2 when an input method is supported)
3852 Specifies whether :lmap or an Input Method (IM) is to be used in
3853 Insert mode. Valid values:
3854 0 :lmap is off and IM is off
3855 1 :lmap is ON and IM is off
3856 2 :lmap is off and IM is ON
3857 2 is available only when compiled with the |+multi_byte_ime|, |+xim|
3859 To always reset the option to zero when leaving Insert mode with <Esc>
3861 :inoremap <ESC> <ESC>:set iminsert=0<CR>
3862 < This makes :lmap and IM turn off automatically when leaving Insert
3864 Note that this option changes when using CTRL-^ in Insert mode
3866 The value is set to 1 when setting 'keymap' to a valid keymap name.
3867 It is also used for the argument of commands like "r" and "f".
3868 The value 0 may not work correctly with Athena and Motif with some XIM
3869 methods. Use 'imdisable' to disable XIM then.
3871 *'imsearch'* *'ims'*
3872 'imsearch' 'ims' number (default 0, 2 when an input method is supported)
3875 Specifies whether :lmap or an Input Method (IM) is to be used when
3876 entering a search pattern. Valid values:
3877 -1 the value of 'iminsert' is used, makes it look like
3878 'iminsert' is also used when typing a search pattern
3879 0 :lmap is off and IM is off
3880 1 :lmap is ON and IM is off
3881 2 :lmap is off and IM is ON
3882 Note that this option changes when using CTRL-^ in Command-line mode
3884 The value is set to 1 when it is not -1 and setting the 'keymap'
3885 option to a valid keymap name.
3886 The value 0 may not work correctly with Athena and Motif with some XIM
3887 methods. Use 'imdisable' to disable XIM then.
3890 'include' 'inc' string (default "^\s*#\s*include")
3891 global or local to buffer |global-local|
3893 {not available when compiled without the
3894 |+find_in_path| feature}
3895 Pattern to be used to find an include command. It is a search
3896 pattern, just like for the "/" command (See |pattern|). The default
3897 value is for C programs. This option is used for the commands "[i",
3899 Normally the 'isfname' option is used to recognize the file name that
3900 comes after the matched pattern. But if "\zs" appears in the pattern
3901 then the text matched from "\zs" to the end, or until "\ze" if it
3902 appears, is used as the file name. Use this to include characters
3903 that are not in 'isfname', such as a space. You can then use
3904 'includeexpr' to process the matched text.
3905 See |option-backslash| about including spaces and backslashes.
3907 *'includeexpr'* *'inex'*
3908 'includeexpr' 'inex' string (default "")
3911 {not available when compiled without the
3912 |+find_in_path| or |+eval| feature}
3913 Expression to be used to transform the string found with the 'include'
3914 option to a file name. Mostly useful to change "." to "/" for Java: >
3915 :set includeexpr=substitute(v:fname,'\\.','/','g')
3916 < The "v:fname" variable will be set to the file name that was detected.
3918 Also used for the |gf| command if an unmodified file name can't be
3919 found. Allows doing "gf" on the name after an 'include' statement.
3920 Also used for |<cfile>|.
3922 The expression may be evaluated in the |sandbox|, see
3925 It is not allowed to change text or jump to another window while
3926 evaluating 'includeexpr' |textlock|.
3928 *'incsearch'* *'is'* *'noincsearch'* *'nois'*
3929 'incsearch' 'is' boolean (default off)
3932 {not available when compiled without the
3933 |+extra_search| feature}
3934 While typing a search command, show where the pattern, as it was typed
3935 so far, matches. The matched string is highlighted. If the pattern
3936 is invalid or not found, nothing is shown. The screen will be updated
3937 often, this is only useful on fast terminals.
3938 Note that the match will be shown, but the cursor will return to its
3939 original position when no match is found and when pressing <Esc>. You
3940 still need to finish the search command with <Enter> to move the
3941 cursor to the match.
3942 When compiled with the |+reltime| feature Vim only searches for about
3943 half a second. With a complicated pattern and/or a lot of text the
3944 match may not be found. This is to avoid that Vim hangs while you
3945 are typing the pattern.
3946 The highlighting can be set with the 'i' flag in 'highlight'.
3947 See also: 'hlsearch'.
3948 CTRL-L can be used to add one character from after the current match
3949 to the command line.
3950 CTRL-R CTRL-W can be used to add the word at the end of the current
3951 match, excluding the characters that were already typed.
3952 NOTE: This option is reset when 'compatible' is set.
3954 *'indentexpr'* *'inde'*
3955 'indentexpr' 'inde' string (default "")
3958 {not available when compiled without the |+cindent|
3959 or |+eval| features}
3960 Expression which is evaluated to obtain the proper indent for a line.
3961 It is used when a new line is created, for the |=| operator and
3962 in Insert mode as specified with the 'indentkeys' option.
3963 When this option is not empty, it overrules the 'cindent' and
3964 'smartindent' indenting.
3965 When 'paste' is set this option is not used for indenting.
3966 The expression is evaluated with |v:lnum| set to the line number for
3967 which the indent is to be computed. The cursor is also in this line
3968 when the expression is evaluated (but it may be moved around).
3969 The expression must return the number of spaces worth of indent. It
3970 can return "-1" to keep the current indent (this means 'autoindent' is
3971 used for the indent).
3972 Functions useful for computing the indent are |indent()|, |cindent()|
3974 The evaluation of the expression must not have side effects! It must
3975 not change the text, jump to another window, etc. Afterwards the
3976 cursor position is always restored, thus the cursor may be moved.
3977 Normally this option would be set to call a function: >
3978 :set indentexpr=GetMyIndent()
3979 < Error messages will be suppressed, unless the 'debug' option contains
3981 See |indent-expression|.
3982 NOTE: This option is made empty when 'compatible' is set.
3984 The expression may be evaluated in the |sandbox|, see
3987 It is not allowed to change text or jump to another window while
3988 evaluating 'indentexpr' |textlock|.
3991 *'indentkeys'* *'indk'*
3992 'indentkeys' 'indk' string (default "0{,0},:,0#,!^F,o,O,e")
3995 {not available when compiled without the |+cindent|
3997 A list of keys that, when typed in Insert mode, cause reindenting of
3998 the current line. Only happens if 'indentexpr' isn't empty.
3999 The format is identical to 'cinkeys', see |indentkeys-format|.
4000 See |C-indenting| and |indent-expression|.
4002 *'infercase'* *'inf'* *'noinfercase'* *'noinf'*
4003 'infercase' 'inf' boolean (default off)
4006 When doing keyword completion in insert mode |ins-completion|, and
4007 'ignorecase' is also on, the case of the match is adjusted depending
4008 on the typed text. If the typed text contains a lowercase letter
4009 where the match has an upper case letter, the completed part is made
4010 lowercase. If the typed text has no lowercase letters and the match
4011 has a lowercase letter where the typed text has an uppercase letter,
4012 and there is a letter before it, the completed part is made uppercase.
4013 With 'noinfercase' the match is used as-is.
4015 *'insertmode'* *'im'* *'noinsertmode'* *'noim'*
4016 'insertmode' 'im' boolean (default off)
4019 Makes Vim work in a way that Insert mode is the default mode. Useful
4020 if you want to use Vim as a modeless editor. Used for |evim|.
4021 These Insert mode commands will be useful:
4022 - Use the cursor keys to move around.
4023 - Use CTRL-O to execute one Normal mode command |i_CTRL-O|). When
4024 this is a mapping, it is executed as if 'insertmode' was off.
4025 Normal mode remains active until the mapping is finished.
4026 - Use CTRL-L to execute a number of Normal mode commands, then use
4027 <Esc> to get back to Insert mode. Note that CTRL-L moves the cursor
4028 left, like <Esc> does when 'insertmode' isn't set. |i_CTRL-L|
4030 These items change when 'insertmode' is set:
4031 - when starting to edit of a file, Vim goes to Insert mode.
4032 - <Esc> in Insert mode is a no-op and beeps.
4033 - <Esc> in Normal mode makes Vim go to Insert mode.
4034 - CTRL-L in Insert mode is a command, it is not inserted.
4035 - CTRL-Z in Insert mode suspends Vim, see |CTRL-Z|. *i_CTRL-Z*
4036 However, when <Esc> is used inside a mapping, it behaves like
4037 'insertmode' was not set. This was done to be able to use the same
4038 mappings with 'insertmode' set or not set.
4039 When executing commands with |:normal| 'insertmode' is not used.
4041 NOTE: This option is reset when 'compatible' is set.
4044 'isfname' 'isf' string (default for MS-DOS, Win32 and OS/2:
4045 "@,48-57,/,\,.,-,_,+,,,#,$,%,{,},[,],:,@-@,!,~,="
4046 for AMIGA: "@,48-57,/,.,-,_,+,,,$,:"
4047 for VMS: "@,48-57,/,.,-,_,+,,,#,$,%,<,>,[,],:,;,~"
4048 for OS/390: "@,240-249,/,.,-,_,+,,,#,$,%,~,="
4049 otherwise: "@,48-57,/,.,-,_,+,,,#,$,%,~,=")
4052 The characters specified by this option are included in file names and
4053 path names. Filenames are used for commands like "gf", "[i" and in
4054 the tags file. It is also used for "\f" in a |pattern|.
4055 Multi-byte characters 256 and above are always included, only the
4056 characters up to 255 are specified with this option.
4057 For UTF-8 the characters 0xa0 to 0xff are included as well.
4058 Think twice before adding white space to this option. Although a
4059 space may appear inside a file name, the effect will be that Vim
4060 doesn't know where a file name starts or ends when doing completion.
4061 It most likely works better without a space in 'isfname'.
4063 Note that on systems using a backslash as path separator, Vim tries to
4064 do its best to make it work as you would expect. That is a bit
4065 tricky, since Vi originally used the backslash to escape special
4066 characters. Vim will not remove a backslash in front of a normal file
4067 name character on these systems, but it will on Unix and alikes. The
4068 '&' and '^' are not included by default, because these are special for
4071 The format of this option is a list of parts, separated with commas.
4072 Each part can be a single character number or a range. A range is two
4073 character numbers with '-' in between. A character number can be a
4074 decimal number between 0 and 255 or the ASCII character itself (does
4075 not work for digits). Example:
4076 "_,-,128-140,#-43" (include '_' and '-' and the range
4077 128 to 140 and '#' to 43)
4078 If a part starts with '^', the following character number or range
4079 will be excluded from the option. The option is interpreted from left
4080 to right. Put the excluded character after the range where it is
4081 included. To include '^' itself use it as the last character of the
4082 option or the end of a range. Example:
4083 "^a-z,#,^" (exclude 'a' to 'z', include '#' and '^')
4084 If the character is '@', all characters where isalpha() returns TRUE
4085 are included. Normally these are the characters a to z and A to Z,
4086 plus accented characters. To include '@' itself use "@-@". Examples:
4087 "@,^a-z" All alphabetic characters, excluding lower
4089 "a-z,A-Z,@-@" All letters plus the '@' character.
4090 A comma can be included by using it where a character number is
4092 "48-57,,,_" Digits, comma and underscore.
4093 A comma can be excluded by prepending a '^'. Example:
4094 " -~,^,,9" All characters from space to '~', excluding
4096 See |option-backslash| about including spaces and backslashes.
4099 'isident' 'isi' string (default for MS-DOS, Win32 and OS/2:
4100 "@,48-57,_,128-167,224-235"
4101 otherwise: "@,48-57,_,192-255")
4104 The characters given by this option are included in identifiers.
4105 Identifiers are used in recognizing environment variables and after a
4106 match of the 'define' option. It is also used for "\i" in a
4107 |pattern|. See 'isfname' for a description of the format of this
4109 Careful: If you change this option, it might break expanding
4110 environment variables. E.g., when '/' is included and Vim tries to
4111 expand "$HOME/.viminfo". Maybe you should change 'iskeyword' instead.
4113 *'iskeyword'* *'isk'*
4114 'iskeyword' 'isk' string (Vim default for MS-DOS and Win32:
4115 "@,48-57,_,128-167,224-235"
4116 otherwise: "@,48-57,_,192-255"
4117 Vi default: "@,48-57,_")
4120 Keywords are used in searching and recognizing with many commands:
4121 "w", "*", "[i", etc. It is also used for "\k" in a |pattern|. See
4122 'isfname' for a description of the format of this option. For C
4123 programs you could use "a-z,A-Z,48-57,_,.,-,>".
4124 For a help file it is set to all non-blank printable characters except
4125 '*', '"' and '|' (so that CTRL-] on a command finds the help for that
4127 When the 'lisp' option is on the '-' character is always included.
4128 NOTE: This option is set to the Vi default value when 'compatible' is
4129 set and to the Vim default value when 'compatible' is reset.
4132 'isprint' 'isp' string (default for MS-DOS, Win32, OS/2 and Macintosh:
4133 "@,~-255"; otherwise: "@,161-255")
4136 The characters given by this option are displayed directly on the
4137 screen. It is also used for "\p" in a |pattern|. The characters from
4138 space (ASCII 32) to '~' (ASCII 126) are always displayed directly,
4139 even when they are not included in 'isprint' or excluded. See
4140 'isfname' for a description of the format of this option.
4142 Non-printable characters are displayed with two characters:
4144 32 - 126 always single characters
4146 128 - 159 "~@" - "~_"
4147 160 - 254 "| " - "|~"
4149 When 'encoding' is a Unicode one, illegal bytes from 128 to 255 are
4150 displayed as <xx>, with the hexadecimal value of the byte.
4151 When 'display' contains "uhex" all unprintable characters are
4153 The SpecialKey highlighting will be used for unprintable characters.
4156 Multi-byte characters 256 and above are always included, only the
4157 characters up to 255 are specified with this option. When a character
4158 is printable but it is not available in the current font, a
4159 replacement character will be shown.
4160 Unprintable and zero-width Unicode characters are displayed as <xxxx>.
4161 There is no option to specify these characters.
4163 *'joinspaces'* *'js'* *'nojoinspaces'* *'nojs'*
4164 'joinspaces' 'js' boolean (default on)
4167 Insert two spaces after a '.', '?' and '!' with a join command.
4168 When 'cpoptions' includes the 'j' flag, only do this after a '.'.
4169 Otherwise only one space is inserted.
4170 NOTE: This option is set when 'compatible' is set.
4173 'key' string (default "")
4176 The key that is used for encrypting and decrypting the current buffer.
4178 Careful: Do not set the key value by hand, someone might see the typed
4179 key. Use the |:X| command. But you can make 'key' empty: >
4181 < It is not possible to get the value of this option with ":set key" or
4182 "echo &key". This is to avoid showing it to someone who shouldn't
4183 know. It also means you cannot see it yourself once you have set it,
4184 be careful not to make a typing error!
4186 *'keymap'* *'kmp'* *E544*
4187 'keymap' 'kmp' string (default "")
4190 {only available when compiled with the |+keymap|
4192 Name of a keyboard mapping. See |mbyte-keymap|.
4193 Setting this option to a valid keymap name has the side effect of
4194 setting 'iminsert' to one, so that the keymap becomes effective.
4195 'imsearch' is also set to one, unless it was -1
4196 Only normal file name characters can be used, "/\*?[|<>" are illegal.
4199 'keymodel' 'km' string (default "")
4202 List of comma separated words, which enable special things that keys
4203 can do. These values can be used:
4204 startsel Using a shifted special key starts selection (either
4205 Select mode or Visual mode, depending on "key" being
4206 present in 'selectmode').
4207 stopsel Using a not-shifted special key stops selection.
4208 Special keys in this context are the cursor keys, <End>, <Home>,
4209 <PageUp> and <PageDown>.
4210 The 'keymodel' option is set by the |:behave| command.
4212 *'keywordprg'* *'kp'*
4213 'keywordprg' 'kp' string (default "man" or "man -s", DOS: ":help",
4214 OS/2: "view /", VMS: "help")
4215 global or local to buffer |global-local|
4217 Program to use for the |K| command. Environment variables are
4218 expanded |:set_env|. ":help" may be used to access the Vim internal
4219 help. (Note that previously setting the global option to the empty
4220 value did this, which is now deprecated.)
4221 When "man" is used, Vim will automatically translate a count for the
4222 "K" command to a section number. Also for "man -s", in which case the
4223 "-s" is removed when there is no count.
4224 See |option-backslash| about including spaces and backslashes.
4226 :set keywordprg=man\ -s
4227 < This option cannot be set from a |modeline| or in the |sandbox|, for
4230 *'langmap'* *'lmap'* *E357* *E358*
4231 'langmap' 'lmap' string (default "")
4234 {only available when compiled with the |+langmap|
4236 This option allows switching your keyboard into a special language
4237 mode. When you are typing text in Insert mode the characters are
4238 inserted directly. When in command mode the 'langmap' option takes
4239 care of translating these special characters to the original meaning
4240 of the key. This means you don't have to change the keyboard mode to
4241 be able to execute Normal mode commands.
4242 This is the opposite of the 'keymap' option, where characters are
4243 mapped in Insert mode.
4245 Example (for Greek, in UTF-8): *greek* >
4246 :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
4247 < Example (exchanges meaning of z and y for commands): >
4248 :set langmap=zy,yz,ZY,YZ
4250 The 'langmap' option is a list of parts, separated with commas. Each
4251 part can be in one of two forms:
4252 1. A list of pairs. Each pair is a "from" character immediately
4253 followed by the "to" character. Examples: "aA", "aAbBcC".
4254 2. A list of "from" characters, a semi-colon and a list of "to"
4255 characters. Example: "abc;ABC"
4256 Example: "aA,fgh;FGH,cCdDeE"
4257 Special characters need to be preceded with a backslash. These are
4258 ";", ',' and backslash itself.
4260 This will allow you to activate vim actions without having to switch
4261 back and forth between the languages. Your language characters will
4262 be understood as normal vim English characters (according to the
4263 langmap mappings) in the following cases:
4264 o Normal/Visual mode (commands, buffer/register names, user mappings)
4265 o Insert/Replace Mode: Register names after CTRL-R
4266 o Insert/Replace Mode: Mappings
4267 Characters entered in Command-line mode will NOT be affected by
4268 this option. Note that this option can be changed at any time
4269 allowing to switch between mappings for different languages/encodings.
4270 Use a mapping to avoid having to type it each time!
4273 'langmenu' 'lm' string (default "")
4276 {only available when compiled with the |+menu| and
4277 |+multi_lang| features}
4278 Language to use for menu translation. Tells which file is loaded
4279 from the "lang" directory in 'runtimepath': >
4280 "lang/menu_" . &langmenu . ".vim"
4281 < (without the spaces). For example, to always use the Dutch menus, no
4282 matter what $LANG is set to: >
4283 :set langmenu=nl_NL.ISO_8859-1
4284 < When 'langmenu' is empty, |v:lang| is used.
4285 Only normal file name characters can be used, "/\*?[|<>" are illegal.
4286 If your $LANG is set to a non-English language but you do want to use
4287 the English menus: >
4289 < This option must be set before loading menus, switching on filetype
4290 detection or syntax highlighting. Once the menus are defined setting
4291 this option has no effect. But you could do this: >
4292 :source $VIMRUNTIME/delmenu.vim
4293 :set langmenu=de_DE.ISO_8859-1
4294 :source $VIMRUNTIME/menu.vim
4295 < Warning: This deletes all menus that you defined yourself!
4297 *'laststatus'* *'ls'*
4298 'laststatus' 'ls' number (default 1)
4301 The value of this option influences when the last window will have a
4304 1: only if there are at least two windows
4306 The screen looks nicer with a status line if you have several
4307 windows, but it takes another screen line. |status-line|
4309 *'lazyredraw'* *'lz'* *'nolazyredraw'* *'nolz'*
4310 'lazyredraw' 'lz' boolean (default off)
4313 When this option is set, the screen will not be redrawn while
4314 executing macros, registers and other commands that have not been
4315 typed. Also, updating the window title is postponed. To force an
4316 update use |:redraw|.
4318 *'linebreak'* *'lbr'* *'nolinebreak'* *'nolbr'*
4319 'linebreak' 'lbr' boolean (default off)
4322 {not available when compiled without the |+linebreak|
4324 If on, Vim will wrap long lines at a character in 'breakat' rather
4325 than at the last character that fits on the screen. Unlike
4326 'wrapmargin' and 'textwidth', this does not insert <EOL>s in the file,
4327 it only affects the way the file is displayed, not its contents.
4328 If 'breakindent' is set, line is visually indented. Then, the value
4329 of 'showbreak' is used to put in front of wrapped lines. This option
4330 is not used when the 'wrap' option is off or 'list' is on.
4331 Note that <Tab> characters after an <EOL> are mostly not displayed
4332 with the right amount of white space.
4335 'lines' number (default 24 or terminal height)
4337 Number of lines of the Vim window.
4338 Normally you don't need to set this. It is done automatically by the
4339 terminal initialization code. Also see |posix-screen-size|.
4340 When Vim is running in the GUI or in a resizable window, setting this
4341 option will cause the window size to be changed. When you only want
4342 to use the size for the GUI, put the command in your |gvimrc| file.
4343 Vim limits the number of lines to what fits on the screen. You can
4344 use this command to get the tallest window possible: >
4346 < Minimum value is 2, maximum value is 1000.
4347 If you get less lines than expected, check the 'guiheadroom' option.
4348 When you set this option and Vim is unable to change the physical
4349 number of lines of the display, the display may be messed up.
4351 *'linespace'* *'lsp'*
4352 'linespace' 'lsp' number (default 0, 1 for Win32 GUI)
4356 Number of pixel lines inserted between characters. Useful if the font
4357 uses the full character cell height, making lines touch each other.
4358 When non-zero there is room for underlining.
4359 With some fonts there can be too much room between lines (to have
4360 space for ascents and descents). Then it makes sense to set
4361 'linespace' to a negative value. This may cause display problems
4365 'lisp' boolean (default off)
4367 {not available when compiled without the |+lispindent|
4369 Lisp mode: When <Enter> is typed in insert mode set the indent for
4370 the next line to Lisp standards (well, sort of). Also happens with
4371 "cc" or "S". 'autoindent' must also be on for this to work. The 'p'
4372 flag in 'cpoptions' changes the method of indenting: Vi compatible or
4373 better. Also see 'lispwords'.
4374 The '-' character is included in keyword characters. Redefines the
4375 "=" operator to use this same indentation algorithm rather than
4376 calling an external program if 'equalprg' is empty.
4377 This option is not used when 'paste' is set.
4378 {Vi: Does it a little bit differently}
4380 *'lispwords'* *'lw'*
4381 'lispwords' 'lw' string (default is very long)
4384 {not available when compiled without the |+lispindent|
4386 Comma separated list of words that influence the Lisp indenting.
4390 'list' boolean (default off)
4392 List mode: Show tabs as CTRL-I is displayed, display $ after end of
4393 line. Useful to see the difference between tabs and spaces and for
4394 trailing blanks. Further changed by the 'listchars' option.
4396 The cursor is displayed at the start of the space a Tab character
4397 occupies, not at the end as usual in Normal mode. To get this cursor
4398 position while displaying Tabs with spaces, use: >
4399 :set list lcs=tab\ \
4401 Note that list mode will also affect formatting (set with 'textwidth'
4402 or 'wrapmargin') when 'cpoptions' includes 'L'. See 'listchars' for
4403 changing the way tabs are displayed.
4405 *'listchars'* *'lcs'*
4406 'listchars' 'lcs' string (default "eol:$")
4409 Strings to use in 'list' mode. It is a comma separated list of string
4411 eol:c Character to show at the end of each line. When
4412 omitted, there is no extra character at the end of the
4414 tab:xy Two characters to be used to show a tab. The first
4415 char is used once. The second char is repeated to
4416 fill the space that the tab normally occupies.
4417 "tab:>-" will show a tab that takes four spaces as
4418 ">---". When omitted, a tab is show as ^I.
4419 trail:c Character to show for trailing spaces. When omitted,
4420 trailing spaces are blank.
4421 extends:c Character to show in the last column, when 'wrap' is
4422 off and the line continues beyond the right of the
4424 precedes:c Character to show in the first column, when 'wrap'
4425 is off and there is text preceding the character
4426 visible in the first column.
4427 nbsp:c Character to show for a non-breakable space (character
4428 0xA0, 160). Left blank when omitted.
4430 The characters ':' and ',' should not be used. UTF-8 characters can
4431 be used when 'encoding' is "utf-8", otherwise only printable
4432 characters are allowed. All characters must be single width.
4435 :set lcs=tab:>-,trail:-
4436 :set lcs=tab:>-,eol:<,nbsp:%
4437 :set lcs=extends:>,precedes:<
4438 < The "NonText" highlighting will be used for "eol", "extends" and
4439 "precedes". "SpecialKey" for "nbsp", "tab" and "trail".
4440 |hl-NonText| |hl-SpecialKey|
4442 *'lpl'* *'nolpl'* *'loadplugins'* *'noloadplugins'*
4443 'loadplugins' 'lpl' boolean (default on)
4446 When on the plugin scripts are loaded when starting up |load-plugins|.
4447 This option can be reset in your |vimrc| file to disable the loading
4449 Note that using the "-u NONE" and "--noplugin" command line arguments
4450 reset this option. |-u| |--noplugin|
4452 *'macatsui'* *'nomacatsui'*
4453 'macatsui' boolean (default on)
4455 {only available in Mac GUI version}
4456 This is a workaround for when drawing doesn't work properly. When set
4457 and compiled with multi-byte support ATSUI text drawing is used. When
4458 not set ATSUI text drawing is not used. Switch this option off when
4459 you experience drawing problems. In a future version the problems may
4460 be solved and this option becomes obsolete. Therefore use this method
4462 if exists('&macatsui')
4465 < Another option to check if you have drawing problems is
4468 *'magic'* *'nomagic'*
4469 'magic' boolean (default on)
4471 Changes the special characters that can be used in search patterns.
4473 NOTE: To avoid portability problems with using patterns, always keep
4474 this option at the default "on". Only switch it off when working with
4475 old Vi scripts. In any other situation write patterns that work when
4476 'magic' is on. Include "\M" when you want to |/\M|.
4479 'makeef' 'mef' string (default: "")
4482 {not available when compiled without the |+quickfix|
4484 Name of the errorfile for the |:make| command (see |:make_makeprg|)
4485 and the |:grep| command.
4486 When it is empty, an internally generated temp file will be used.
4487 When "##" is included, it is replaced by a number to make the name
4488 unique. This makes sure that the ":make" command doesn't overwrite an
4490 NOT used for the ":cf" command. See 'errorfile' for that.
4491 Environment variables are expanded |:set_env|.
4492 See |option-backslash| about including spaces and backslashes.
4493 This option cannot be set from a |modeline| or in the |sandbox|, for
4497 'makeprg' 'mp' string (default "make", VMS: "MMS")
4498 global or local to buffer |global-local|
4500 Program to use for the ":make" command. See |:make_makeprg|.
4501 This option may contain '%' and '#' characters, which are expanded to
4502 the current and alternate file name. |:_%| |:_#|
4503 Environment variables are expanded |:set_env|. See |option-backslash|
4504 about including spaces and backslashes.
4505 Note that a '|' must be escaped twice: once for ":set" and once for
4506 the interpretation of a command. When you use a filter called
4507 "myfilter" do it like this: >
4508 :set makeprg=gmake\ \\\|\ myfilter
4509 < The placeholder "$*" can be given (even multiple times) to specify
4510 where the arguments will be included, for example: >
4511 :set makeprg=latex\ \\\\nonstopmode\ \\\\input\\{$*}
4512 < This option cannot be set from a |modeline| or in the |sandbox|, for
4515 *'matchpairs'* *'mps'*
4516 'matchpairs' 'mps' string (default "(:),{:},[:]")
4519 Characters that form pairs. The |%| command jumps from one to the
4520 other. Currently only single byte character pairs are allowed, and
4521 they must be different. The characters must be separated by a colon.
4522 The pairs must be separated by a comma. Example for including '<' and
4526 < A more exotic example, to jump between the '=' and ';' in an
4527 assignment, useful for languages like C and Java: >
4528 :au FileType c,cpp,java set mps+==:;
4530 < For a more advanced way of using "%", see the matchit.vim plugin in
4531 the $VIMRUNTIME/macros directory. |add-local-help|
4533 *'matchtime'* *'mat'*
4534 'matchtime' 'mat' number (default 5)
4537 Tenths of a second to show the matching paren, when 'showmatch' is
4538 set. Note that this is not in milliseconds, like other options that
4539 set a time. This is to be compatible with Nvi.
4541 *'maxcombine'* *'mco'*
4542 'maxcombine' 'mco' number (default 2)
4545 {only available when compiled with the |+multi_byte|
4547 The maximum number of combining characters supported for displaying.
4548 Only used when 'encoding' is "utf-8".
4549 The default is OK for most languages. Hebrew may require 4.
4551 Even when this option is set to 2 you can still edit text with more
4552 combining characters, you just can't see them. Use |g8| or |ga|.
4553 See |mbyte-combining|.
4555 *'maxfuncdepth'* *'mfd'*
4556 'maxfuncdepth' 'mfd' number (default 100)
4559 {not available when compiled without the +eval
4561 Maximum depth of function calls for user functions. This normally
4562 catches endless recursion. When using a recursive function with
4563 more depth, set 'maxfuncdepth' to a bigger number. But this will use
4564 more memory, there is the danger of failing when memory is exhausted.
4565 See also |:function|.
4567 *'maxmapdepth'* *'mmd'* *E223*
4568 'maxmapdepth' 'mmd' number (default 1000)
4571 Maximum number of times a mapping is done without resulting in a
4572 character to be used. This normally catches endless mappings, like
4573 ":map x y" with ":map y x". It still does not catch ":map g wg",
4574 because the 'w' is used before the next mapping is done. See also
4578 'maxmem' 'mm' number (default between 256 to 5120 (system
4579 dependent) or half the amount of memory
4583 Maximum amount of memory (in Kbyte) to use for one buffer. When this
4584 limit is reached allocating extra memory for a buffer will cause
4585 other memory to be freed. The maximum usable value is about 2000000.
4586 Use this to work without a limit. Also see 'maxmemtot'.
4588 *'maxmempattern'* *'mmp'*
4589 'maxmempattern' 'mmp' number (default 1000)
4592 Maximum amount of memory (in Kbyte) to use for pattern matching.
4593 The maximum value is about 2000000. Use this to work without a limit.
4595 When Vim runs into the limit it gives an error message and mostly
4596 behaves like CTRL-C was typed.
4597 Running into the limit often means that the pattern is very
4598 inefficient or too complex. This may already happen with the pattern
4599 "\(.\)*" on a very long line. ".*" works much better.
4600 Vim may run out of memory before hitting the 'maxmempattern' limit.
4602 *'maxmemtot'* *'mmt'*
4603 'maxmemtot' 'mmt' number (default between 2048 and 10240 (system
4604 dependent) or half the amount of memory
4608 Maximum amount of memory in Kbyte to use for all buffers together.
4609 The maximum usable value is about 2000000 (2 Gbyte). Use this to work
4610 without a limit. On 64 bit machines higher values might work. But
4611 hey, do you really need more than 2 Gbyte for text editing?
4614 *'menuitems'* *'mis'*
4615 'menuitems' 'mis' number (default 25)
4618 {not available when compiled without the |+menu|
4620 Maximum number of items to use in a menu. Used for menus that are
4621 generated from a list of items, e.g., the Buffers menu. Changing this
4622 option has no direct effect, the menu must be refreshed first.
4624 *'mkspellmem'* *'msm'*
4625 'mkspellmem' 'msm' string (default "460000,2000,500")
4628 {not available when compiled without the |+syntax|
4630 Parameters for |:mkspell|. This tunes when to start compressing the
4631 word tree. Compression can be slow when there are many words, but
4632 it's needed to avoid running out of memory. The amount of memory used
4633 per word depends very much on how similar the words are, that's why
4634 this tuning is complicated.
4636 There are three numbers, separated by commas:
4637 {start},{inc},{added}
4639 For most languages the uncompressed word tree fits in memory. {start}
4640 gives the amount of memory in Kbyte that can be used before any
4641 compression is done. It should be a bit smaller than the amount of
4642 memory that is available to Vim.
4644 When going over the {start} limit the {inc} number specifies the
4645 amount of memory in Kbyte that can be allocated before another
4646 compression is done. A low number means compression is done after
4647 less words are added, which is slow. A high number means more memory
4650 After doing compression, {added} times 1024 words can be added before
4651 the {inc} limit is ignored and compression is done when any extra
4652 amount of memory is needed. A low number means there is a smaller
4653 chance of hitting the {inc} limit, less memory is used but it's
4656 The languages for which these numbers are important are Italian and
4657 Hungarian. The default works for when you have about 512 Mbyte. If
4658 you have 1 Gbyte you could use: >
4659 :set mkspellmem=900000,3000,800
4660 < If you have less than 512 Mbyte |:mkspell| may fail for some
4661 languages, no matter what you set 'mkspellmem' to.
4663 *'modeline'* *'ml'* *'nomodeline'* *'noml'*
4664 'modeline' 'ml' boolean (Vim default: on (off for root),
4667 *'modelines'* *'mls'*
4668 'modelines' 'mls' number (default 5)
4671 If 'modeline' is on 'modelines' gives the number of lines that is
4672 checked for set commands. If 'modeline' is off or 'modelines' is zero
4673 no lines are checked. See |modeline|.
4674 NOTE: 'modeline' is set to the Vi default value when 'compatible' is
4675 set and to the Vim default value when 'compatible' is reset.
4677 *'modifiable'* *'ma'* *'nomodifiable'* *'noma'*
4678 'modifiable' 'ma' boolean (default on)
4681 When off the buffer contents cannot be changed. The 'fileformat' and
4682 'fileencoding' options also can't be changed.
4683 Can be reset with the |-M| command line argument.
4685 *'modified'* *'mod'* *'nomodified'* *'nomod'*
4686 'modified' 'mod' boolean (default off)
4689 When on, the buffer is considered to be modified. This option is set
4691 1. A change was made to the text since it was last written. Using the
4692 |undo| command to go back to the original text will reset the
4693 option. But undoing changes that were made before writing the
4694 buffer will set the option again, since the text is different from
4695 when it was written.
4696 2. 'fileformat' or 'fileencoding' is different from its original
4697 value. The original value is set when the buffer is read or
4698 written. A ":set nomodified" command also resets the original
4699 values to the current values and the 'modified' option will be
4701 When 'buftype' is "nowrite" or "nofile" this option may be set, but
4705 'more' boolean (Vim default: on, Vi default: off)
4708 When on, listings pause when the whole screen is filled. You will get
4709 the |more-prompt|. When this option is off there are no pauses, the
4710 listing continues until finished.
4711 NOTE: This option is set to the Vi default value when 'compatible' is
4712 set and to the Vim default value when 'compatible' is reset.
4715 'mouse' string (default "", "a" for GUI, MS-DOS and Win32)
4718 Enable the use of the mouse. Only works for certain terminals
4719 (xterm, MS-DOS, Win32 |win32-mouse|, QNX pterm, *BSD console with
4720 sysmouse and Linux console with gpm). For using the mouse in the
4721 GUI, see |gui-mouse|.
4722 The mouse can be enabled for different modes:
4727 h all previous modes when editing a help file
4728 a all previous modes
4729 r for |hit-enter| and |more-prompt| prompt
4730 Normally you would enable the mouse in all four modes with: >
4732 < When the mouse is not enabled, the GUI will still use the mouse for
4733 modeless selection. This doesn't move the text cursor.
4735 See |mouse-using|. Also see |'clipboard'|.
4737 Note: When enabling the mouse in a terminal, copy/paste will use the
4738 "* register if there is access to an X-server. The xterm handling of
4739 the mouse buttons can still be used by keeping the shift key pressed.
4740 Also see the 'clipboard' option.
4742 *'mousefocus'* *'mousef'* *'nomousefocus'* *'nomousef'*
4743 'mousefocus' 'mousef' boolean (default off)
4746 {only works in the GUI}
4747 The window that the mouse pointer is on is automatically activated.
4748 When changing the window layout or window focus in another way, the
4749 mouse pointer is moved to the window with keyboard focus. Off is the
4750 default because it makes using the pull down menus a little goofy, as
4751 a pointer transit may activate a window unintentionally.
4753 *'mousehide'* *'mh'* *'nomousehide'* *'nomh'*
4754 'mousehide' 'mh' boolean (default on)
4757 {only works in the GUI}
4758 When on, the mouse pointer is hidden when characters are typed.
4759 The mouse pointer is restored when the mouse is moved.
4761 *'mousemodel'* *'mousem'*
4762 'mousemodel' 'mousem' string (default "extend", "popup" for MS-DOS and Win32)
4765 Sets the model to use for the mouse. The name mostly specifies what
4766 the right mouse button is used for:
4767 extend Right mouse button extends a selection. This works
4769 popup Right mouse button pops up a menu. The shifted left
4770 mouse button extends a selection. This works like
4771 with Microsoft Windows.
4772 popup_setpos Like "popup", but the cursor will be moved to the
4773 position where the mouse was clicked, and thus the
4774 selected operation will act upon the clicked object.
4775 If clicking inside a selection, that selection will
4776 be acted upon, i.e. no cursor move. This implies of
4777 course, that right clicking outside a selection will
4779 Overview of what button does what for each model:
4780 mouse extend popup(_setpos) ~
4781 left click place cursor place cursor
4782 left drag start selection start selection
4783 shift-left search word extend selection
4784 right click extend selection popup menu (place cursor)
4785 right drag extend selection -
4786 middle click paste paste
4788 In the "popup" model the right mouse button produces a pop-up menu.
4789 You need to define this first, see |popup-menu|.
4791 Note that you can further refine the meaning of buttons with mappings.
4792 See |gui-mouse-mapping|. But mappings are NOT used for modeless
4793 selection (because that's handled in the GUI code directly).
4795 The 'mousemodel' option is set by the |:behave| command.
4797 *'mouseshape'* *'mouses'* *E547*
4798 'mouseshape' 'mouses' string (default "i:beam,r:beam,s:updown,sd:cross,
4799 m:no,ml:up-arrow,v:rightup-arrow")
4802 {only available when compiled with the |+mouseshape|
4804 This option tells Vim what the mouse pointer should look like in
4805 different modes. The option is a comma separated list of parts, much
4806 like used for 'guicursor'. Each part consist of a mode/location-list
4807 and an argument-list:
4808 mode-list:shape,mode-list:shape,..
4809 The mode-list is a dash separated list of these modes/locations:
4810 In a normal window: ~
4813 ve Visual mode with 'selection' "exclusive" (same as 'v',
4815 o Operator-pending mode
4820 c appending to the command-line
4821 ci inserting in the command-line
4822 cr replacing in the command-line
4823 m at the 'Hit ENTER' or 'More' prompts
4824 ml idem, but cursor in the last line
4825 e any mode, pointer below last window
4826 s any mode, pointer on a status line
4827 sd any mode, while dragging a status line
4828 vs any mode, pointer on a vertical separator line
4829 vd any mode, while dragging a vertical separator line
4832 The shape is one of the following:
4833 avail name looks like ~
4834 w x arrow Normal mouse pointer
4835 w x blank no pointer at all (use with care!)
4837 w x updown up-down sizing arrows
4838 w x leftright left-right sizing arrows
4839 w x busy The system's usual busy pointer
4840 w x no The system's usual 'no input' pointer
4841 x udsizing indicates up-down resizing
4842 x lrsizing indicates left-right resizing
4843 x crosshair like a big thin +
4846 x pencil what you write with
4848 x rightup-arrow arrow pointing right-up
4849 w x up-arrow arrow pointing up
4850 x <number> any X11 pointer number (see X11/cursorfont.h)
4852 The "avail" column contains a 'w' if the shape is available for Win32,
4854 Any modes not specified or shapes not available use the normal mouse
4858 :set mouseshape=s:udsizing,m:no
4859 < will make the mouse turn to a sizing arrow over the status lines and
4860 indicate no input when the hit-enter prompt is displayed (since
4861 clicking the mouse has no effect in this state.)
4863 *'mousetime'* *'mouset'*
4864 'mousetime' 'mouset' number (default 500)
4867 Only for GUI, MS-DOS, Win32 and Unix with xterm. Defines the maximum
4868 time in msec between two mouse clicks for the second click to be
4869 recognized as a multi click.
4871 *'mzquantum'* *'mzq'*
4872 'mzquantum' 'mzq' number (default 100)
4875 {not available when compiled without the |+mzscheme|
4877 The number of milliseconds between polls for MzScheme threads.
4878 Negative or zero value means no thread scheduling.
4880 *'nrformats'* *'nf'*
4881 'nrformats' 'nf' string (default "octal,hex")
4884 This defines what bases Vim will consider for numbers when using the
4885 CTRL-A and CTRL-X commands for adding to and subtracting from a number
4886 respectively; see |CTRL-A| for more info on these commands.
4887 alpha If included, single alphabetical characters will be
4888 incremented or decremented. This is useful for a list with a
4889 letter index a), b), etc.
4890 octal If included, numbers that start with a zero will be considered
4891 to be octal. Example: Using CTRL-A on "007" results in "010".
4892 hex If included, numbers starting with "0x" or "0X" will be
4893 considered to be hexadecimal. Example: Using CTRL-X on
4894 "0x100" results in "0x0ff".
4895 Numbers which simply begin with a digit in the range 1-9 are always
4896 considered decimal. This also happens for numbers that are not
4897 recognized as octal or hex.
4899 *'number'* *'nu'* *'nonumber'* *'nonu'*
4900 'number' 'nu' boolean (default off)
4902 Print the line number in front of each line. When the 'n' option is
4903 excluded from 'cpoptions' a wrapped line will not use the column of
4904 line numbers (this is the default when 'compatible' isn't set).
4905 The 'numberwidth' option can be used to set the room used for the line
4907 When a long, wrapped line doesn't start with the first character, '-'
4908 characters are put before the number.
4909 See |hl-LineNr| for the highlighting used for the number.
4910 When setting this option, 'relativenumber' is being reset.
4912 *'numberwidth'* *'nuw'*
4913 'numberwidth' 'nuw' number (Vim default: 4 Vi default: 8)
4916 {only available when compiled with the |+linebreak|
4918 Minimal number of columns to use for the line number. Only relevant
4919 when the 'number' or 'relativenumber' option is set or printing lines
4920 with a line number. Since one space is always between the number and
4921 the text, there is one less character for the number itself.
4922 The value is the minimum width. A bigger width is used when needed to
4923 fit the highest line number in the buffer respectively the number of
4924 rows in the window, depending on whether 'number' or 'relativenumber'
4925 is set. Thus with the Vim default of 4 there is room for a line number
4926 up to 999. When the buffer has 1000 lines five columns will be used.
4927 The minimum value is 1, the maximum value is 10.
4928 NOTE: 'numberwidth' is reset to 8 when 'compatible' is set.
4930 *'omnifunc'* *'ofu'*
4931 'omnifunc' 'ofu' string (default: empty)
4934 {not available when compiled without the +eval
4935 or +insert_expand feature}
4936 This option specifies a function to be used for Insert mode omni
4937 completion with CTRL-X CTRL-O. |i_CTRL-X_CTRL-O|
4938 See |complete-functions| for an explanation of how the function is
4939 invoked and what it should return.
4940 This option is usually set by a filetype plugin:
4941 |:filetype-plugin-on|
4944 *'opendevice'* *'odev'* *'noopendevice'* *'noodev'*
4945 'opendevice' 'odev' boolean (default off)
4948 {only for MS-DOS, MS-Windows and OS/2}
4949 Enable reading and writing from devices. This may get Vim stuck on a
4950 device that can be opened but doesn't actually do the I/O. Therefore
4951 it is off by default.
4952 Note that on MS-Windows editing "aux.h", "lpt1.txt" and the like also
4953 result in editing a device.
4956 *'operatorfunc'* *'opfunc'*
4957 'operatorfunc' 'opfunc' string (default: empty)
4960 This option specifies a function to be called by the |g@| operator.
4961 See |:map-operator| for more info and an example.
4963 This option cannot be set from a |modeline| or in the |sandbox|, for
4967 *'osfiletype'* *'oft'* *E366*
4968 'osfiletype' 'oft' string (RISC-OS default: "Text",
4972 {only available when compiled with the |+osfiletype|
4974 Some operating systems store extra information about files besides
4975 name, datestamp and permissions. This option contains the extra
4976 information, the nature of which will vary between systems.
4977 The value of this option is usually set when the file is loaded, and
4978 is used to set the operating system file type when file is written.
4979 It can affect the pattern matching of the automatic commands.
4980 |autocmd-osfiletypes|
4982 *'paragraphs'* *'para'*
4983 'paragraphs' 'para' string (default "IPLPPPQPP TPHPLIPpLpItpplpipbp")
4985 Specifies the nroff macros that separate paragraphs. These are pairs
4986 of two letters (see |object-motions|).
4988 *'paste'* *'nopaste'*
4989 'paste' boolean (default off)
4992 Put Vim in Paste mode. This is useful if you want to cut or copy
4993 some text from one window and paste it in Vim. This will avoid
4995 Setting this option is useful when using Vim in a terminal, where Vim
4996 cannot distinguish between typed text and pasted text. In the GUI, Vim
4997 knows about pasting and will mostly do the right thing without 'paste'
4998 being set. The same is true for a terminal where Vim handles the
4999 mouse clicks itself.
5000 This option is reset when starting the GUI. Thus if you set it in
5001 your .vimrc it will work in a terminal, but not in the GUI. Setting
5002 'paste' in the GUI has side effects: e.g., the Paste toolbar button
5003 will no longer work in Insert mode, because it uses a mapping.
5004 When the 'paste' option is switched on (also when it was already on):
5005 - mapping in Insert mode and Command-line mode is disabled
5006 - abbreviations are disabled
5007 - 'textwidth' is set to 0
5008 - 'wrapmargin' is set to 0
5009 - 'autoindent' is reset
5010 - 'smartindent' is reset
5011 - 'softtabstop' is set to 0
5014 - 'showmatch' is reset
5015 - 'formatoptions' is used like it is empty
5016 These options keep their value, but their effect is disabled:
5020 NOTE: When you start editing another file while the 'paste' option is
5021 on, settings from the modelines or autocommands may change the
5022 settings again, causing trouble when pasting text. You might want to
5023 set the 'paste' option again.
5024 When the 'paste' option is reset the mentioned options are restored to
5025 the value before the moment 'paste' was switched from off to on.
5026 Resetting 'paste' before ever setting it does not have any effect.
5027 Since mapping doesn't work while 'paste' is active, you need to use
5028 the 'pastetoggle' option to toggle the 'paste' option with some key.
5030 *'pastetoggle'* *'pt'*
5031 'pastetoggle' 'pt' string (default "")
5034 When non-empty, specifies the key sequence that toggles the 'paste'
5035 option. This is like specifying a mapping: >
5036 :map {keys} :set invpaste<CR>
5037 < Where {keys} is the value of 'pastetoggle'.
5038 The difference is that it will work even when 'paste' is set.
5039 'pastetoggle' works in Insert mode and Normal mode, but not in
5041 Mappings are checked first, thus overrule 'pastetoggle'. However,
5042 when 'paste' is on mappings are ignored in Insert mode, thus you can do
5044 :map <F10> :set paste<CR>
5045 :map <F11> :set nopaste<CR>
5046 :imap <F10> <C-O>:set paste<CR>
5048 :set pastetoggle=<F11>
5049 < This will make <F10> start paste mode and <F11> stop paste mode.
5050 Note that typing <F10> in paste mode inserts "<F10>", since in paste
5051 mode everything is inserted literally, except the 'pastetoggle' key
5053 When the value has several bytes 'ttimeoutlen' applies.
5055 *'pex'* *'patchexpr'*
5056 'patchexpr' 'pex' string (default "")
5059 {not available when compiled without the |+diff|
5061 Expression which is evaluated to apply a patch to a file and generate
5062 the resulting new version of the file. See |diff-patchexpr|.
5064 *'patchmode'* *'pm'* *E206*
5065 'patchmode' 'pm' string (default "")
5068 When non-empty the oldest version of a file is kept. This can be used
5069 to keep the original version of a file if you are changing files in a
5070 source distribution. Only the first time that a file is written a
5071 copy of the original file will be kept. The name of the copy is the
5072 name of the original file with the string in the 'patchmode' option
5073 appended. This option should start with a dot. Use a string like
5074 ".org". 'backupdir' must not be empty for this to work (Detail: The
5075 backup file is renamed to the patchmode file after the new file has
5076 been successfully written, that's why it must be possible to write a
5077 backup file). If there was no file to be backed up, an empty file is
5079 When the 'backupskip' pattern matches, a patchmode file is not made.
5080 Using 'patchmode' for compressed files appends the extension at the
5081 end (e.g., "file.gz.orig"), thus the resulting name isn't always
5082 recognized as a compressed file.
5083 Only normal file name characters can be used, "/\*?[|<>" are illegal.
5085 *'path'* *'pa'* *E343* *E345* *E347*
5086 'path' 'pa' string (default on Unix: ".,/usr/include,,"
5087 on OS/2: ".,/emx/include,,"
5088 other systems: ".,,")
5089 global or local to buffer |global-local|
5091 This is a list of directories which will be searched when using the
5092 |gf|, [f, ]f, ^Wf, |:find|, |:sfind|, |:tabfind| and other commands,
5093 provided that the file being searched for has a relative path (not
5094 starting with "/", "./" or "../"). The directories in the 'path'
5095 option may be relative or absolute.
5096 - Use commas to separate directory names: >
5097 :set path=.,/usr/local/include,/usr/include
5098 < - Spaces can also be used to separate directory names (for backwards
5099 compatibility with version 3.0). To have a space in a directory
5100 name, precede it with an extra backslash, and escape the space: >
5101 :set path=.,/dir/with\\\ space
5102 < - To include a comma in a directory name precede it with an extra
5104 :set path=.,/dir/with\\,comma
5105 < - To search relative to the directory of the current file, use: >
5107 < - To search in the current directory use an empty string between two
5110 < - A directory name may end in a ':' or '/'.
5111 - Environment variables are expanded |:set_env|.
5112 - When using |netrw.vim| URLs can be used. For example, adding
5113 "http://www.vim.org" will make ":find index.html" work.
5114 - Search upwards and downwards in a directory tree using "*", "**" and
5115 ";". See |file-searching| for info and syntax.
5116 {not available when compiled without the |+path_extra| feature}
5117 - Careful with '\' characters, type two to get one in the option: >
5118 :set path=.,c:\\include
5119 < Or just use '/' instead: >
5120 :set path=.,c:/include
5121 < Don't forget "." or files won't even be found in the same directory as
5123 The maximum length is limited. How much depends on the system, mostly
5124 it is something like 256 or 1024 characters.
5125 You can check if all the include files are found, using the value of
5126 'path', see |:checkpath|.
5127 The use of |:set+=| and |:set-=| is preferred when adding or removing
5128 directories from the list. This avoids problems when a future version
5129 uses another default. To remove the current directory use: >
5131 < To add the current directory use: >
5133 < To use an environment variable, you probably need to replace the
5134 separator. Here is an example to append $INCL, in which directory
5135 names are separated with a semi-colon: >
5136 :let &path = &path . "," . substitute($INCL, ';', ',', 'g')
5137 < Replace the ';' with a ':' or whatever separator is used. Note that
5138 this doesn't work when $INCL contains a comma or white space.
5140 *'preserveindent'* *'pi'* *'nopreserveindent'* *'nopi'*
5141 'preserveindent' 'pi' boolean (default off)
5144 When changing the indent of the current line, preserve as much of the
5145 indent structure as possible. Normally the indent is replaced by a
5146 series of tabs followed by spaces as required (unless |'expandtab'| is
5147 enabled, in which case only spaces are used). Enabling this option
5148 means the indent will preserve as many existing characters as possible
5149 for indenting, and only add additional tabs or spaces as required.
5150 'expandtab' does not apply to the preserved white space, a Tab remains
5152 NOTE: When using ">>" multiple times the resulting indent is a mix of
5153 tabs and spaces. You might not like this.
5154 NOTE: 'preserveindent' is reset when 'compatible' is set.
5155 Also see 'copyindent'.
5156 Use |:retab| to clean up white space.
5158 *'previewheight'* *'pvh'*
5159 'previewheight' 'pvh' number (default 12)
5162 {not available when compiled without the |+windows| or
5163 |+quickfix| feature}
5164 Default height for a preview window. Used for |:ptag| and associated
5165 commands. Used for |CTRL-W_}| when no count is given.
5167 *'previewwindow'* *'nopreviewwindow'*
5168 *'pvw'* *'nopvw'* *E590*
5169 'previewwindow' 'pvw' boolean (default off)
5172 {not available when compiled without the |+windows| or
5173 |+quickfix| feature}
5174 Identifies the preview window. Only one window can have this option
5175 set. It's normally not set directly, but by using one of the commands
5176 |:ptag|, |:pedit|, etc.
5178 *'printdevice'* *'pdev'*
5179 'printdevice' 'pdev' string (default empty)
5182 {only available when compiled with the |+printer|
5184 The name of the printer to be used for |:hardcopy|.
5186 This option cannot be set from a |modeline| or in the |sandbox|, for
5189 *'printencoding'* *'penc'*
5190 'printencoding' 'penc' String (default empty, except for some systems)
5193 {only available when compiled with the |+printer|
5194 and |+postscript| features}
5195 Sets the character encoding used when printing.
5198 *'printexpr'* *'pexpr'*
5199 'printexpr' 'pexpr' String (default: see below)
5202 {only available when compiled with the |+printer|
5203 and |+postscript| features}
5204 Expression used to print the PostScript produced with |:hardcopy|.
5207 *'printfont'* *'pfn'*
5208 'printfont' 'pfn' string (default "courier")
5211 {only available when compiled with the |+printer|
5213 The name of the font that will be used for |:hardcopy|.
5216 *'printheader'* *'pheader'*
5217 'printheader' 'pheader' string (default "%<%f%h%m%=Page %N")
5220 {only available when compiled with the |+printer|
5222 The format of the header produced in |:hardcopy| output.
5223 See |pheader-option|.
5225 *'printmbcharset'* *'pmbcs'*
5226 'printmbcharset' 'pmbcs' string (default "")
5229 {only available when compiled with the |+printer|,
5230 |+postscript| and |+multi_byte| features}
5231 The CJK character set to be used for CJK output from |:hardcopy|.
5234 *'printmbfont'* *'pmbfn'*
5235 'printmbfont' 'pmbfn' string (default "")
5238 {only available when compiled with the |+printer|,
5239 |+postscript| and |+multi_byte| features}
5240 List of font names to be used for CJK output from |:hardcopy|.
5243 *'printoptions'* *'popt'*
5244 'printoptions' 'popt' string (default "")
5247 {only available when compiled with |+printer| feature}
5248 List of items that control the format of the output of |:hardcopy|.
5251 *'prompt'* *'noprompt'*
5252 'prompt' boolean (default on)
5254 When on a ":" prompt is used in Ex mode.
5256 *'pumheight'* *'ph'*
5257 'pumheight' 'ph' number (default 0)
5259 {not available when compiled without the
5260 |+insert_expand| feature}
5262 Determines the maximum number of items to show in the popup menu for
5263 Insert mode completion. When zero as much space as available is used.
5264 |ins-completion-menu|.
5267 *'quoteescape'* *'qe'*
5268 'quoteescape' 'qe' string (default "\")
5271 The characters that are used to escape quotes in a string. Used for
5272 objects like a', a" and a` |a'|.
5273 When one of the characters in this option is found inside a string,
5274 the following character will be skipped. The default value makes the
5275 text "foo\"bar\\" considered to be one string.
5277 *'readonly'* *'ro'* *'noreadonly'* *'noro'*
5278 'readonly' 'ro' boolean (default off)
5280 If on, writes fail unless you use a '!'. Protects you from
5281 accidentally overwriting a file. Default on when Vim is started
5282 in read-only mode ("vim -R") or when the executable is called "view".
5283 When using ":w!" the 'readonly' option is reset for the current
5284 buffer, unless the 'Z' flag is in 'cpoptions'.
5285 {not in Vi:} When using the ":view" command the 'readonly' option is
5286 set for the newly edited buffer.
5288 *'redrawtime'* *'rdt'*
5289 'redrawtime' 'rdt' number (default 2000)
5292 {only available when compiled with the |+reltime|
5294 The time in milliseconds for redrawing the display. This applies to
5295 searching for patterns for 'hlsearch' and |:match| highlighting.
5296 When redrawing takes more than this many milliseconds no further
5297 matches will be highlighted. This is used to avoid that Vim hangs
5298 when using a very complicated pattern.
5300 *'relativenumber'* *'rnu'* *'norelativenumber'* *'nornu'*
5301 'relativenumber' 'rnu' boolean (default off)
5304 Print the line number relative to the line with the cursor in front of
5305 each line. Relative line numbers help you using the |count| you can
5306 precede some vertical motion commands (e.g. j k + -) with, without
5307 having to calculate it yourself. Especially useful in combination with
5308 other commands (e.g. y d c < > gq gw =).
5309 When the 'n' option is excluded from 'cpoptions' a wrapped
5310 line will not use the column of line numbers (this is the default when
5311 'compatible' isn't set).
5312 The 'numberwidth' option can be used to set the room used for the line
5314 When a long, wrapped line doesn't start with the first character, '-'
5315 characters are put before the number.
5316 See |hl-LineNr| for the highlighting used for the number.
5317 When setting this option, 'number' is being reset.
5319 *'remap'* *'noremap'*
5320 'remap' boolean (default on)
5322 Allows for mappings to work recursively. If you do not want this for
5323 a single entry, use the :noremap[!] command.
5324 NOTE: To avoid portability problems with Vim scripts, always keep
5325 this option at the default "on". Only switch it off when working with
5329 'report' number (default 2)
5331 Threshold for reporting number of lines changed. When the number of
5332 changed lines is more than 'report' a message will be given for most
5333 ":" commands. If you want it always, set 'report' to 0.
5334 For the ":substitute" command the number of substitutions is used
5335 instead of the number of lines.
5337 *'restorescreen'* *'rs'* *'norestorescreen'* *'nors'*
5338 'restorescreen' 'rs' boolean (default on)
5340 {not in Vi} {only in Windows 95/NT console version}
5341 When set, the screen contents is restored when exiting Vim. This also
5342 happens when executing external commands.
5344 For non-Windows Vim: You can set or reset the 't_ti' and 't_te'
5345 options in your .vimrc. To disable restoring:
5347 To enable restoring (for an xterm):
5348 set t_ti=^[7^[[r^[[?47h t_te=^[[?47l^[8
5349 (Where ^[ is an <Esc>, type CTRL-V <Esc> to insert it)
5351 *'revins'* *'ri'* *'norevins'* *'nori'*
5352 'revins' 'ri' boolean (default off)
5355 {only available when compiled with the |+rightleft|
5357 Inserting characters in Insert mode will work backwards. See "typing
5358 backwards" |ins-reverse|. This option can be toggled with the CTRL-_
5359 command in Insert mode, when 'allowrevins' is set.
5360 NOTE: This option is reset when 'compatible' or 'paste' is set.
5362 *'rightleft'* *'rl'* *'norightleft'* *'norl'*
5363 'rightleft' 'rl' boolean (default off)
5366 {only available when compiled with the |+rightleft|
5368 When on, display orientation becomes right-to-left, i.e., characters
5369 that are stored in the file appear from the right to the left.
5370 Using this option, it is possible to edit files for languages that
5371 are written from the right to the left such as Hebrew and Arabic.
5372 This option is per window, so it is possible to edit mixed files
5373 simultaneously, or to view the same file in both ways (this is
5374 useful whenever you have a mixed text file with both right-to-left
5375 and left-to-right strings so that both sets are displayed properly
5376 in different windows). Also see |rileft.txt|.
5378 *'rightleftcmd'* *'rlc'* *'norightleftcmd'* *'norlc'*
5379 'rightleftcmd' 'rlc' string (default "search")
5382 {only available when compiled with the |+rightleft|
5384 Each word in this option enables the command line editing to work in
5385 right-to-left mode for a group of commands:
5387 search "/" and "?" commands
5389 This is useful for languages such as Hebrew, Arabic and Farsi.
5390 The 'rightleft' option must be set for 'rightleftcmd' to take effect.
5392 *'ruler'* *'ru'* *'noruler'* *'noru'*
5393 'ruler' 'ru' boolean (default off)
5396 {not available when compiled without the
5397 |+cmdline_info| feature}
5398 Show the line and column number of the cursor position, separated by a
5399 comma. When there is room, the relative position of the displayed
5400 text in the file is shown on the far right:
5401 Top first line is visible
5402 Bot last line is visible
5403 All first and last line are visible
5404 45% relative position in the file
5405 If 'rulerformat' is set, it will determine the contents of the ruler.
5406 Each window has its own ruler. If a window has a status line, the
5407 ruler is shown there. Otherwise it is shown in the last line of the
5408 screen. If the statusline is given by 'statusline' (i.e. not empty),
5409 this option takes precedence over 'ruler' and 'rulerformat'
5410 If the number of characters displayed is different from the number of
5411 bytes in the text (e.g., for a TAB or a multi-byte character), both
5412 the text column (byte number) and the screen column are shown,
5413 separated with a dash.
5414 For an empty line "0-1" is shown.
5415 For an empty buffer the line number will also be zero: "0,0-1".
5416 This option is reset when the 'paste' option is set.
5417 If you don't want to see the ruler all the time but want to know where
5418 you are, use "g CTRL-G" |g_CTRL-G|.
5419 NOTE: This option is reset when 'compatible' is set.
5421 *'rulerformat'* *'ruf'*
5422 'rulerformat' 'ruf' string (default empty)
5425 {not available when compiled without the |+statusline|
5427 When this option is not empty, it determines the content of the ruler
5428 string, as displayed for the 'ruler' option.
5429 The format of this option is like that of 'statusline'.
5430 The default ruler width is 17 characters. To make the ruler 15
5431 characters wide, put "%15(" at the start and "%)" at the end.
5433 :set rulerformat=%15(%c%V\ %p%%%)
5435 *'runtimepath'* *'rtp'* *vimfiles*
5436 'runtimepath' 'rtp' string (default:
5440 $VIM/vimfiles/after,
5442 Amiga: "home:vimfiles,
5445 $VIM/vimfiles/after,
5446 home:vimfiles/after"
5447 PC, OS/2: "$HOME/vimfiles,
5450 $VIM/vimfiles/after,
5451 $HOME/vimfiles/after"
5452 Macintosh: "$VIM:vimfiles,
5454 $VIM:vimfiles:after"
5455 RISC-OS: "Choices:vimfiles,
5457 Choices:vimfiles/after"
5458 VMS: "sys$login:vimfiles,
5461 $VIM/vimfiles/after,
5462 sys$login:vimfiles/after")
5465 This is a list of directories which will be searched for runtime
5467 filetype.vim filetypes by file name |new-filetype|
5468 scripts.vim filetypes by file contents |new-filetype-scripts|
5469 autoload/ automatically loaded scripts |autoload-functions|
5470 colors/ color scheme files |:colorscheme|
5471 compiler/ compiler files |:compiler|
5472 doc/ documentation |write-local-help|
5473 ftplugin/ filetype plugins |write-filetype-plugin|
5474 indent/ indent scripts |indent-expression|
5475 keymap/ key mapping files |mbyte-keymap|
5476 lang/ menu translations |:menutrans|
5477 menu.vim GUI menus |menu.vim|
5478 plugin/ plugin scripts |write-plugin|
5479 print/ files for printing |postscript-print-encoding|
5480 spell/ spell checking files |spell|
5481 syntax/ syntax files |mysyntaxfile|
5482 tutor/ files for vimtutor |tutor|
5484 And any other file searched for with the |:runtime| command.
5486 The defaults for most systems are setup to search five locations:
5487 1. In your home directory, for your personal preferences.
5488 2. In a system-wide Vim directory, for preferences from the system
5490 3. In $VIMRUNTIME, for files distributed with Vim.
5492 4. In the "after" directory in the system-wide Vim directory. This is
5493 for the system administrator to overrule or add to the distributed
5494 defaults (rarely needed)
5495 5. In the "after" directory in your home directory. This is for
5496 personal preferences to overrule or add to the distributed defaults
5497 or system-wide settings (rarely needed).
5499 Note that, unlike 'path', no wildcards like "**" are allowed. Normal
5500 wildcards are allowed, but can significantly slow down searching for
5501 runtime files. For speed, use as few items as possible and avoid
5505 :set runtimepath=~/vimruntime,/mygroup/vim,$VIMRUNTIME
5506 < This will use the directory "~/vimruntime" first (containing your
5507 personal Vim runtime files), then "/mygroup/vim" (shared between a
5508 group of people) and finally "$VIMRUNTIME" (the distributed runtime
5510 You probably should always include $VIMRUNTIME somewhere, to use the
5511 distributed runtime files. You can put a directory before $VIMRUNTIME
5512 to find files which replace a distributed runtime files. You can put
5513 a directory after $VIMRUNTIME to find files which add to distributed
5515 This option cannot be set from a |modeline| or in the |sandbox|, for
5519 'scroll' 'scr' number (default: half the window height)
5521 Number of lines to scroll with CTRL-U and CTRL-D commands. Will be
5522 set to half the number of lines in the window when the window size
5523 changes. If you give a count to the CTRL-U or CTRL-D command it will
5524 be used as the new value for 'scroll'. Reset to half the window
5525 height with ":set scroll=0". {Vi is a bit different: 'scroll' gives
5526 the number of screen lines instead of file lines, makes a difference
5529 *'scrollbind'* *'scb'* *'noscrollbind'* *'noscb'*
5530 'scrollbind' 'scb' boolean (default off)
5533 {not available when compiled without the |+scrollbind|
5535 See also |scroll-binding|. When this option is set, the current
5536 window scrolls as other scrollbind windows (windows that also have
5537 this option set) scroll. This option is useful for viewing the
5538 differences between two versions of a file, see 'diff'.
5539 See |'scrollopt'| for options that determine how this option should be
5541 This option is mostly reset when splitting a window to edit another
5542 file. This means that ":split | edit file" results in two windows
5543 with scroll-binding, but ":split file" does not.
5545 *'scrolljump'* *'sj'*
5546 'scrolljump' 'sj' number (default 1)
5549 Minimal number of lines to scroll when the cursor gets off the
5550 screen (e.g., with "j"). Not used for scroll commands (e.g., CTRL-E,
5551 CTRL-D). Useful if your terminal scrolls very slowly.
5552 When set to a negative number from -1 to -100 this is used as the
5553 percentage of the window height. Thus -50 scrolls half the window
5555 NOTE: This option is set to 1 when 'compatible' is set.
5557 *'scrolloff'* *'so'*
5558 'scrolloff' 'so' number (default 0)
5561 Minimal number of screen lines to keep above and below the cursor.
5562 This will make some context visible around where you are working. If
5563 you set it to a very large value (999) the cursor line will always be
5564 in the middle of the window (except at the start or end of the file or
5565 when long lines wrap).
5566 For scrolling horizontally see 'sidescrolloff'.
5567 NOTE: This option is set to 0 when 'compatible' is set.
5569 *'scrollopt'* *'sbo'*
5570 'scrollopt' 'sbo' string (default "ver,jump")
5572 {not available when compiled without the |+scrollbind|
5575 This is a comma-separated list of words that specifies how
5576 'scrollbind' windows should behave. 'sbo' stands for ScrollBind
5578 The following words are available:
5579 ver Bind vertical scrolling for 'scrollbind' windows
5580 hor Bind horizontal scrolling for 'scrollbind' windows
5581 jump Applies to the offset between two windows for vertical
5582 scrolling. This offset is the difference in the first
5583 displayed line of the bound windows. When moving
5584 around in a window, another 'scrollbind' window may
5585 reach a position before the start or after the end of
5586 the buffer. The offset is not changed though, when
5587 moving back the 'scrollbind' window will try to scroll
5588 to the desired position when possible.
5589 When now making that window the current one, two
5590 things can be done with the relative offset:
5591 1. When "jump" is not included, the relative offset is
5592 adjusted for the scroll position in the new current
5593 window. When going back to the other window, the
5594 new relative offset will be used.
5595 2. When "jump" is included, the other windows are
5596 scrolled to keep the same relative offset. When
5597 going back to the other window, it still uses the
5598 same relative offset.
5599 Also see |scroll-binding|.
5600 When 'diff' mode is active there always is vertical scroll binding,
5601 even when "ver" isn't there.
5603 *'sections'* *'sect'*
5604 'sections' 'sect' string (default "SHNHH HUnhsh")
5606 Specifies the nroff macros that separate sections. These are pairs of
5607 two letters (See |object-motions|). The default makes a section start
5608 at the nroff macros ".SH", ".NH", ".H", ".HU", ".nh" and ".sh".
5610 *'secure'* *'nosecure'* *E523*
5611 'secure' boolean (default off)
5614 When on, ":autocmd", shell and write commands are not allowed in
5615 ".vimrc" and ".exrc" in the current directory and map commands are
5616 displayed. Switch it off only if you know that you will not run into
5617 problems, or when the 'exrc' option is off. On Unix this option is
5618 only used if the ".vimrc" or ".exrc" is not owned by you. This can be
5619 dangerous if the systems allows users to do a "chown". You better set
5620 'secure' at the end of your ~/.vimrc then.
5621 This option cannot be set from a |modeline| or in the |sandbox|, for
5624 *'selection'* *'sel'*
5625 'selection' 'sel' string (default "inclusive")
5628 This option defines the behavior of the selection. It is only used
5629 in Visual and Select mode.
5631 value past line inclusive ~
5635 "past line" means that the cursor is allowed to be positioned one
5636 character past the line.
5637 "inclusive" means that the last character of the selection is included
5638 in an operation. For example, when "x" is used to delete the
5640 Note that when "exclusive" is used and selecting from the end
5641 backwards, you cannot include the last character of a line, when
5642 starting in Normal mode and 'virtualedit' empty.
5644 The 'selection' option is set by the |:behave| command.
5646 *'selectmode'* *'slm'*
5647 'selectmode' 'slm' string (default "")
5650 This is a comma separated list of words, which specifies when to start
5651 Select mode instead of Visual mode, when a selection is started.
5653 mouse when using the mouse
5654 key when using shifted special keys
5655 cmd when using "v", "V" or CTRL-V
5657 The 'selectmode' option is set by the |:behave| command.
5659 *'sessionoptions'* *'ssop'*
5660 'sessionoptions' 'ssop' string (default: "blank,buffers,curdir,folds,
5661 help,options,tabpages,winsize")
5664 {not available when compiled without the +mksession
5666 Changes the effect of the |:mksession| command. It is a comma
5667 separated list of words. Each word enables saving and restoring
5669 word save and restore ~
5671 buffers hidden and unloaded buffers, not just those in windows
5672 curdir the current directory
5673 folds manually created folds, opened/closed folds and local
5675 globals global variables that start with an uppercase letter
5676 and contain at least one lowercase letter. Only
5677 String and Number types are stored.
5678 help the help window
5679 localoptions options and mappings local to a window or buffer (not
5680 global values for local options)
5681 options all options and mappings (also global values for local
5683 resize size of the Vim window: 'lines' and 'columns'
5684 sesdir the directory in which the session file is located
5685 will become the current directory (useful with
5686 projects accessed over a network from different
5688 slash backslashes in file names replaced with forward
5690 tabpages all tab pages; without this only the current tab page
5691 is restored, so that you can make a session for each
5693 unix with Unix end-of-line format (single <NL>), even when
5695 winpos position of the whole Vim window
5696 winsize window sizes
5698 Don't include both "curdir" and "sesdir".
5699 When neither "curdir" nor "sesdir" is included, file names are stored
5700 with absolute paths.
5701 "slash" and "unix" are useful on Windows when sharing session files
5702 with Unix. The Unix version of Vim cannot source dos format scripts,
5703 but the Windows version of Vim can source unix format scripts.
5705 *'shell'* *'sh'* *E91*
5706 'shell' 'sh' string (default $SHELL or "sh",
5707 MS-DOS and Win32: "command.com" or
5708 "cmd.exe", OS/2: "cmd")
5710 Name of the shell to use for ! and :! commands. When changing the
5711 value also check these options: 'shelltype', 'shellpipe', 'shellslash'
5712 'shellredir', 'shellquote', 'shellxquote' and 'shellcmdflag'.
5713 It is allowed to give an argument to the command, e.g. "csh -f".
5714 See |option-backslash| about including spaces and backslashes.
5715 Environment variables are expanded |:set_env|.
5716 If the name of the shell contains a space, you might need to enclose
5717 it in quotes. Example: >
5718 :set shell=\"c:\program\ files\unix\sh.exe\"\ -f
5719 < Note the backslash before each quote (to avoid starting a comment) and
5720 each space (to avoid ending the option value). Also note that the
5721 "-f" is not inside the quotes, because it is not part of the command
5722 name. And Vim automagically recognizes the backslashes that are path
5724 For Dos 32 bits (DJGPP), you can set the $DJSYSFLAGS environment
5725 variable to change the way external commands are executed. See the
5726 libc.inf file of DJGPP.
5727 Under MS-Windows, when the executable ends in ".com" it must be
5728 included. Thus setting the shell to "command.com" or "4dos.com"
5729 works, but "command" and "4dos" do not work for all commands (e.g.,
5731 For unknown reasons, when using "4dos.com" the current directory is
5732 changed to "C:\". To avoid this set 'shell' like this: >
5733 :set shell=command.com\ /c\ 4dos
5734 < This option cannot be set from a |modeline| or in the |sandbox|, for
5737 *'shellcmdflag'* *'shcf'*
5738 'shellcmdflag' 'shcf' string (default: "-c", MS-DOS and Win32, when 'shell'
5739 does not contain "sh" somewhere: "/c")
5742 Flag passed to the shell to execute "!" and ":!" commands; e.g.,
5743 "bash.exe -c ls" or "command.com /c dir". For the MS-DOS-like
5744 systems, the default is set according to the value of 'shell', to
5745 reduce the need to set this option by the user. It's not used for
5746 OS/2 (EMX figures this out itself). See |option-backslash| about
5747 including spaces and backslashes. See |dos-shell|.
5748 This option cannot be set from a |modeline| or in the |sandbox|, for
5751 *'shellpipe'* *'sp'*
5752 'shellpipe' 'sp' string (default ">", "| tee", "|& tee" or "2>&1| tee")
5755 {not available when compiled without the |+quickfix|
5757 String to be used to put the output of the ":make" command in the
5758 error file. See also |:make_makeprg|. See |option-backslash| about
5759 including spaces and backslashes.
5760 The name of the temporary file can be represented by "%s" if necessary
5761 (the file name is appended automatically if no %s appears in the value
5763 For the Amiga and MS-DOS the default is ">". The output is directly
5764 saved in a file and not echoed to the screen.
5765 For Unix the default it "| tee". The stdout of the compiler is saved
5766 in a file and echoed to the screen. If the 'shell' option is "csh" or
5767 "tcsh" after initializations, the default becomes "|& tee". If the
5768 'shell' option is "sh", "ksh", "zsh" or "bash" the default becomes
5769 "2>&1| tee". This means that stderr is also included. Before using
5770 the 'shell' option a path is removed, thus "/bin/sh" uses "sh".
5771 The initialization of this option is done after reading the ".vimrc"
5772 and the other initializations, so that when the 'shell' option is set
5773 there, the 'shellpipe' option changes automatically, unless it was
5774 explicitly set before.
5775 When 'shellpipe' is set to an empty string, no redirection of the
5776 ":make" output will be done. This is useful if you use a 'makeprg'
5777 that writes to 'makeef' by itself. If you want no piping, but do
5778 want to include the 'makeef', set 'shellpipe' to a single space.
5779 Don't forget to precede the space with a backslash: ":set sp=\ ".
5780 In the future pipes may be used for filtering and this option will
5781 become obsolete (at least for Unix).
5782 This option cannot be set from a |modeline| or in the |sandbox|, for
5785 *'shellquote'* *'shq'*
5786 'shellquote' 'shq' string (default: ""; MS-DOS and Win32, when 'shell'
5787 contains "sh" somewhere: "\"")
5790 Quoting character(s), put around the command passed to the shell, for
5791 the "!" and ":!" commands. The redirection is kept outside of the
5792 quoting. See 'shellxquote' to include the redirection. It's
5793 probably not useful to set both options.
5794 This is an empty string by default. Only known to be useful for
5795 third-party shells on MS-DOS-like systems, such as the MKS Korn Shell
5796 or bash, where it should be "\"". The default is adjusted according
5797 the value of 'shell', to reduce the need to set this option by the
5798 user. See |dos-shell|.
5799 This option cannot be set from a |modeline| or in the |sandbox|, for
5802 *'shellredir'* *'srr'*
5803 'shellredir' 'srr' string (default ">", ">&" or ">%s 2>&1")
5806 String to be used to put the output of a filter command in a temporary
5807 file. See also |:!|. See |option-backslash| about including spaces
5809 The name of the temporary file can be represented by "%s" if necessary
5810 (the file name is appended automatically if no %s appears in the value
5812 The default is ">". For Unix, if the 'shell' option is "csh", "tcsh"
5813 or "zsh" during initializations, the default becomes ">&". If the
5814 'shell' option is "sh", "ksh" or "bash" the default becomes
5815 ">%s 2>&1". This means that stderr is also included.
5816 For Win32, the Unix checks are done and additionally "cmd" is checked
5817 for, which makes the default ">%s 2>&1". Also, the same names with
5818 ".exe" appended are checked for.
5819 The initialization of this option is done after reading the ".vimrc"
5820 and the other initializations, so that when the 'shell' option is set
5821 there, the 'shellredir' option changes automatically unless it was
5822 explicitly set before.
5823 In the future pipes may be used for filtering and this option will
5824 become obsolete (at least for Unix).
5825 This option cannot be set from a |modeline| or in the |sandbox|, for
5828 *'shellslash'* *'ssl'* *'noshellslash'* *'nossl'*
5829 'shellslash' 'ssl' boolean (default off)
5831 {not in Vi} {only for MSDOS, MS-Windows and OS/2}
5832 When set, a forward slash is used when expanding file names. This is
5833 useful when a Unix-like shell is used instead of command.com or
5834 cmd.exe. Backward slashes can still be typed, but they are changed to
5835 forward slashes by Vim.
5836 Note that setting or resetting this option has no effect for some
5837 existing file names, thus this option needs to be set before opening
5838 any file for best results. This might change in the future.
5839 'shellslash' only works when a backslash can be used as a path
5840 separator. To test if this is so use: >
5841 if exists('+shellslash')
5843 *'shelltemp'* *'stmp'* *'noshelltemp'* *'nostmp'*
5844 'shelltemp' 'stmp' boolean (Vi default off, Vim default on)
5847 When on, use temp files for shell commands. When off use a pipe.
5848 When using a pipe is not possible temp files are used anyway.
5849 Currently a pipe is only supported on Unix. You can check it with: >
5850 :if has("filterpipe")
5851 < The advantage of using a pipe is that nobody can read the temp file
5852 and the 'shell' command does not need to support redirection.
5853 The advantage of using a temp file is that the file type and encoding
5855 The |FilterReadPre|, |FilterReadPost| and |FilterWritePre|,
5856 |FilterWritePost| autocommands event are not triggered when
5859 *'shelltype'* *'st'*
5860 'shelltype' 'st' number (default 0)
5862 {not in Vi} {only for the Amiga}
5863 On the Amiga this option influences the way how the commands work
5865 0 and 1: always use the shell
5866 2 and 3: use the shell only to filter lines
5867 4 and 5: use shell only for ':sh' command
5868 When not using the shell, the command is executed directly.
5870 0 and 2: use "shell 'shellcmdflag' cmd" to start external commands
5871 1 and 3: use "shell cmd" to start external commands
5873 *'shellxquote'* *'sxq'*
5874 'shellxquote' 'sxq' string (default: "";
5875 for Win32, when 'shell' contains "sh"
5877 for Unix, when using system(): "\"")
5880 Quoting character(s), put around the command passed to the shell, for
5881 the "!" and ":!" commands. Includes the redirection. See
5882 'shellquote' to exclude the redirection. It's probably not useful
5883 to set both options.
5884 This is an empty string by default. Known to be useful for
5885 third-party shells when using the Win32 version, such as the MKS Korn
5886 Shell or bash, where it should be "\"". The default is adjusted
5887 according the value of 'shell', to reduce the need to set this option
5888 by the user. See |dos-shell|.
5889 This option cannot be set from a |modeline| or in the |sandbox|, for
5892 *'shiftround'* *'sr'* *'noshiftround'* *'nosr'*
5893 'shiftround' 'sr' boolean (default off)
5896 Round indent to multiple of 'shiftwidth'. Applies to > and <
5897 commands. CTRL-T and CTRL-D in Insert mode always round the indent to
5898 a multiple of 'shiftwidth' (this is Vi compatible).
5899 NOTE: This option is reset when 'compatible' is set.
5901 *'shiftwidth'* *'sw'*
5902 'shiftwidth' 'sw' number (default 8)
5904 Number of spaces to use for each step of (auto)indent. Used for
5905 |'cindent'|, |>>|, |<<|, etc.
5907 *'shortmess'* *'shm'*
5908 'shortmess' 'shm' string (Vim default "filnxtToO", Vi default: "",
5912 This option helps to avoid all the |hit-enter| prompts caused by file
5913 messages, for example with CTRL-G, and to avoid some other messages.
5914 It is a list of flags:
5915 flag meaning when present ~
5916 f use "(3 of 5)" instead of "(file 3 of 5)"
5917 i use "[noeol]" instead of "[Incomplete last line]"
5918 l use "999L, 888C" instead of "999 lines, 888 characters"
5919 m use "[+]" instead of "[Modified]"
5920 n use "[New]" instead of "[New File]"
5921 r use "[RO]" instead of "[readonly]"
5922 w use "[w]" instead of "written" for file write message
5923 and "[a]" instead of "appended" for ':w >> file' command
5924 x use "[dos]" instead of "[dos format]", "[unix]" instead of
5925 "[unix format]" and "[mac]" instead of "[mac format]".
5926 a all of the above abbreviations
5928 o overwrite message for writing a file with subsequent message
5929 for reading a file (useful for ":wn" or when 'autowrite' on)
5930 O message for reading a file overwrites any previous message.
5931 Also for quickfix message (e.g., ":cn").
5932 s don't give "search hit BOTTOM, continuing at TOP" or "search
5933 hit TOP, continuing at BOTTOM" messages
5934 t truncate file message at the start if it is too long to fit
5935 on the command-line, "<" will appear in the left most column.
5937 T truncate other messages in the middle if they are too long to
5938 fit on the command line. "..." will appear in the middle.
5940 W don't give "written" or "[w]" when writing a file
5941 A don't give the "ATTENTION" message when an existing swap file
5943 I don't give the intro message when starting Vim |:intro|.
5945 This gives you the opportunity to avoid that a change between buffers
5946 requires you to hit <Enter>, but still gives as useful a message as
5947 possible for the space available. To get the whole message that you
5948 would have got with 'shm' empty, use ":file!"
5950 shm= No abbreviation of message.
5951 shm=a Abbreviation, but no loss of information.
5952 shm=at Abbreviation, and truncate message when necessary.
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 *'shortname'* *'sn'* *'noshortname'* *'nosn'*
5958 'shortname' 'sn' boolean (default off)
5960 {not in Vi, not in MS-DOS versions}
5961 Filenames are assumed to be 8 characters plus one extension of 3
5962 characters. Multiple dots in file names are not allowed. When this
5963 option is on, dots in file names are replaced with underscores when
5964 adding an extension (".~" or ".swp"). This option is not available
5965 for MS-DOS, because then it would always be on. This option is useful
5966 when editing files on an MS-DOS compatible filesystem, e.g., messydos
5967 or crossdos. When running the Win32 GUI version under Win32s, this
5968 option is always on by default.
5970 *'showbreak'* *'sbr'* *E595*
5971 'showbreak' 'sbr' string (default "")
5974 {not available when compiled without the |+linebreak|
5976 String to put at the start of lines that have been wrapped. Useful
5977 values are "> " or "+++ ": >
5979 < Note the backslash to escape the trailing space. It's easier like
5981 :let &showbreak = '+++ '
5982 < Only printable single-cell characters are allowed, excluding <Tab> and
5983 comma (in a future version the comma might be used to separate the
5984 part that is shown at the end and at the start of a line).
5985 The characters are highlighted according to the '@' flag in
5987 Note that tabs after the showbreak will be displayed differently.
5988 If you want the 'showbreak' to appear in between line numbers, add the
5989 "n" flag to 'cpoptions'.
5991 *'showcmd'* *'sc'* *'noshowcmd'* *'nosc'*
5992 'showcmd' 'sc' boolean (Vim default: on, off for Unix, Vi default:
5996 {not available when compiled without the
5997 |+cmdline_info| feature}
5998 Show (partial) command in the last line of the screen. Set this
5999 option off if your terminal is slow.
6000 In Visual mode the size of the selected area is shown:
6001 - When selecting characters within a line, the number of characters.
6002 - When selecting more than one line, the number of lines.
6003 - When selecting a block, the size in screen characters:
6005 NOTE: This option is set to the Vi default value when 'compatible' is
6006 set and to the Vim default value when 'compatible' is reset.
6008 *'showfulltag'* *'sft'* *'noshowfulltag'* *'nosft'*
6009 'showfulltag' 'sft' boolean (default off)
6012 When completing a word in insert mode (see |ins-completion|) from the
6013 tags file, show both the tag name and a tidied-up form of the search
6014 pattern (if there is one) as possible matches. Thus, if you have
6015 matched a C function, you can see a template for what arguments are
6016 required (coding style permitting).
6017 Note that this doesn't work well together with having "longest" in
6018 'completeopt', because the completion from the search pattern may not
6019 match the typed text.
6021 *'showmatch'* *'sm'* *'noshowmatch'* *'nosm'*
6022 'showmatch' 'sm' boolean (default off)
6024 When a bracket is inserted, briefly jump to the matching one. The
6025 jump is only done if the match can be seen on the screen. The time to
6026 show the match can be set with 'matchtime'.
6027 A Beep is given if there is no match (no matter if the match can be
6028 seen or not). This option is reset when the 'paste' option is set.
6029 When the 'm' flag is not included in 'cpoptions', typing a character
6030 will immediately move the cursor back to where it belongs.
6031 See the "sm" field in 'guicursor' for setting the cursor shape and
6032 blinking when showing the match.
6033 The 'matchpairs' option can be used to specify the characters to show
6034 matches for. 'rightleft' and 'revins' are used to look for opposite
6036 Also see the matchparen plugin for highlighting the match when moving
6037 around |pi_paren.txt|.
6038 Note: Use of the short form is rated PG.
6040 *'showmode'* *'smd'* *'noshowmode'* *'nosmd'*
6041 'showmode' 'smd' boolean (Vim default: on, Vi default: off)
6043 If in Insert, Replace or Visual mode put a message on the last line.
6044 Use the 'M' flag in 'highlight' to set the type of highlighting for
6046 When |XIM| may be used the message will include "XIM". But this
6047 doesn't mean XIM is really active, especially when 'imactivatekey' is
6049 NOTE: This option is set to the Vi default value when 'compatible' is
6050 set and to the Vim default value when 'compatible' is reset.
6052 *'showtabline'* *'stal'*
6053 'showtabline' 'stal' number (default 1)
6056 {not available when compiled without the +windows
6058 The value of this option specifies when the line with tab page labels
6061 1: only if there are at least two tab pages
6063 This is both for the GUI and non-GUI implementation of the tab pages
6065 See |tab-page| for more information about tab pages.
6067 *'sidescroll'* *'ss'*
6068 'sidescroll' 'ss' number (default 0)
6071 The minimal number of columns to scroll horizontally. Used only when
6072 the 'wrap' option is off and the cursor is moved off of the screen.
6073 When it is zero the cursor will be put in the middle of the screen.
6074 When using a slow terminal set it to a large number or 0. When using
6075 a fast terminal use a small number or 1. Not used for "zh" and "zl"
6078 *'sidescrolloff'* *'siso'*
6079 'sidescrolloff' 'siso' number (default 0)
6082 The minimal number of screen columns to keep to the left and to the
6083 right of the cursor if 'nowrap' is set. Setting this option to a
6084 value greater than 0 while having |'sidescroll'| also at a non-zero
6085 value makes some context visible in the line you are scrolling in
6086 horizontally (except at beginning of the line). Setting this option
6087 to a large value (like 999) has the effect of keeping the cursor
6088 horizontally centered in the window, as long as one does not come too
6089 close to the beginning of the line.
6090 NOTE: This option is set to 0 when 'compatible' is set.
6092 Example: Try this together with 'sidescroll' and 'listchars' as
6093 in the following example to never allow the cursor to move
6094 onto the "extends" character:
6096 :set nowrap sidescroll=1 listchars=extends:>,precedes:<
6097 :set sidescrolloff=1
6100 *'smartcase'* *'scs'* *'nosmartcase'* *'noscs'*
6101 'smartcase' 'scs' boolean (default off)
6104 Override the 'ignorecase' option if the search pattern contains upper
6105 case characters. Only used when the search pattern is typed and
6106 'ignorecase' option is on. Used for the commands "/", "?", "n", "N",
6107 ":g" and ":s". Not used for "*", "#", "gd", tag search, etc.. After
6108 "*" and "#" you can make 'smartcase' used by doing a "/" command,
6109 recalling the search pattern from history and hitting <Enter>.
6110 NOTE: This option is reset when 'compatible' is set.
6112 *'smartindent'* *'si'* *'nosmartindent'* *'nosi'*
6113 'smartindent' 'si' boolean (default off)
6116 {not available when compiled without the
6117 |+smartindent| feature}
6118 Do smart autoindenting when starting a new line. Works for C-like
6119 programs, but can also be used for other languages. 'cindent' does
6120 something like this, works better in most cases, but is more strict,
6121 see |C-indenting|. When 'cindent' is on, setting 'si' has no effect.
6122 'indentexpr' is a more advanced alternative.
6123 Normally 'autoindent' should also be on when using 'smartindent'.
6124 An indent is automatically inserted:
6125 - After a line ending in '{'.
6126 - After a line starting with a keyword from 'cinwords'.
6127 - Before a line starting with '}' (only with the "O" command).
6128 When typing '}' as the first character in a new line, that line is
6129 given the same indent as the matching '{'.
6130 When typing '#' as the first character in a new line, the indent for
6131 that line is removed, the '#' is put in the first column. The indent
6132 is restored for the next line. If you don't want this, use this
6133 mapping: ":inoremap # X^H#", where ^H is entered with CTRL-V CTRL-H.
6134 When using the ">>" command, lines starting with '#' are not shifted
6136 NOTE: 'smartindent' is reset when 'compatible' is set. When 'paste'
6137 is set smart indenting is disabled.
6139 *'smarttab'* *'sta'* *'nosmarttab'* *'nosta'*
6140 'smarttab' 'sta' boolean (default off)
6143 When on, a <Tab> in front of a line inserts blanks according to
6144 'shiftwidth'. 'tabstop' or 'softtabstop' is used in other places. A
6145 <BS> will delete a 'shiftwidth' worth of space at the start of the
6147 When off, a <Tab> always inserts blanks according to 'tabstop' or
6148 'softtabstop'. 'shiftwidth' is only used for shifting text left or
6149 right |shift-left-right|.
6150 What gets inserted (a <Tab> or spaces) depends on the 'expandtab'
6151 option. Also see |ins-expandtab|. When 'expandtab' is not set, the
6152 number of spaces is minimized by using <Tab>s.
6153 NOTE: This option is reset when 'compatible' is set.
6155 *'softtabstop'* *'sts'*
6156 'softtabstop' 'sts' number (default 0)
6159 Number of spaces that a <Tab> counts for while performing editing
6160 operations, like inserting a <Tab> or using <BS>. It "feels" like
6161 <Tab>s are being inserted, while in fact a mix of spaces and <Tab>s is
6162 used. This is useful to keep the 'ts' setting at its standard value
6163 of 8, while being able to edit like it is set to 'sts'. However,
6164 commands like "x" still work on the actual characters.
6165 When 'sts' is zero, this feature is off.
6166 'softtabstop' is set to 0 when the 'paste' option is set.
6167 See also |ins-expandtab|. When 'expandtab' is not set, the number of
6168 spaces is minimized by using <Tab>s.
6169 The 'L' flag in 'cpoptions' changes how tabs are used when 'list' is
6171 NOTE: This option is set to 0 when 'compatible' is set.
6173 If Vim is compiled with the |+vartabs| feature then the value of
6174 'softtabstop' will be ignored if |'varsofttabstop'| is set to
6175 anything other than an empty string.
6177 *'spell'* *'nospell'*
6178 'spell' boolean (default off)
6181 {not available when compiled without the |+syntax|
6183 When on spell checking will be done. See |spell|.
6184 The languages are specified with 'spelllang'.
6186 *'spellcapcheck'* *'spc'*
6187 'spellcapcheck' 'spc' string (default "[.?!]\_[\])'" \t]\+")
6190 {not available when compiled without the |+syntax|
6192 Pattern to locate the end of a sentence. The following word will be
6193 checked to start with a capital letter. If not then it is highlighted
6194 with SpellCap |hl-SpellCap| (unless the word is also badly spelled).
6195 When this check is not wanted make this option empty.
6196 Only used when 'spell' is set.
6197 Be careful with special characters, see |option-backslash| about
6198 including spaces and backslashes.
6199 To set this option automatically depending on the language, see
6202 *'spellfile'* *'spf'*
6203 'spellfile' 'spf' string (default empty)
6206 {not available when compiled without the |+syntax|
6208 Name of the word list file where words are added for the |zg| and |zw|
6209 commands. It must end in ".{encoding}.add". You need to include the
6210 path, otherwise the file is placed in the current directory.
6212 It may also be a comma separated list of names. A count before the
6213 |zg| and |zw| commands can be used to access each. This allows using
6214 a personal word list file and a project word list file.
6215 When a word is added while this option is empty Vim will set it for
6216 you: Using the first directory in 'runtimepath' that is writable. If
6217 there is no "spell" directory yet it will be created. For the file
6218 name the first language name that appears in 'spelllang' is used,
6219 ignoring the region.
6220 The resulting ".spl" file will be used for spell checking, it does not
6221 have to appear in 'spelllang'.
6222 Normally one file is used for all regions, but you can add the region
6223 name if you want to. However, it will then only be used when
6224 'spellfile' is set to it, for entries in 'spelllang' only files
6225 without region name will be found.
6226 This option cannot be set from a |modeline| or in the |sandbox|, for
6229 *'spelllang'* *'spl'*
6230 'spelllang' 'spl' string (default "en")
6233 {not available when compiled without the |+syntax|
6235 A comma separated list of word list names. When the 'spell' option is
6236 on spellchecking will be done for these languages. Example: >
6237 set spelllang=en_us,nl,medical
6238 < This means US English, Dutch and medical words are recognized. Words
6239 that are not recognized will be highlighted.
6240 The word list name must not include a comma or dot. Using a dash is
6241 recommended to separate the two letter language name from a
6242 specification. Thus "en-rare" is used for rare English words.
6243 A region name must come last and have the form "_xx", where "xx" is
6244 the two-letter, lower case region name. You can use more than one
6245 region by listing them: "en_us,en_ca" supports both US and Canadian
6246 English, but not words specific for Australia, New Zealand or Great
6249 As a special case the name of a .spl file can be given as-is. The
6250 first "_xx" in the name is removed and used as the region name
6251 (_xx is an underscore, two letters and followed by a non-letter).
6252 This is mainly for testing purposes. You must make sure the correct
6253 encoding is used, Vim doesn't check it.
6254 When 'encoding' is set the word lists are reloaded. Thus it's a good
6255 idea to set 'spelllang' after setting 'encoding' to avoid loading the
6257 How the related spell files are found is explained here: |spell-load|.
6259 If the |spellfile.vim| plugin is active and you use a language name
6260 for which Vim cannot find the .spl file in 'runtimepath' the plugin
6261 will ask you if you want to download the file.
6263 After this option has been set successfully, Vim will source the files
6264 "spell/LANG.vim" in 'runtimepath'. "LANG" is the value of 'spelllang'
6265 up to the first comma, dot or underscore.
6266 Also see |set-spc-auto|.
6269 *'spellsuggest'* *'sps'*
6270 'spellsuggest' 'sps' string (default "best")
6273 {not available when compiled without the |+syntax|
6275 Methods used for spelling suggestions. Both for the |z=| command and
6276 the |spellsuggest()| function. This is a comma-separated list of
6279 best Internal method that works best for English. Finds
6280 changes like "fast" and uses a bit of sound-a-like
6281 scoring to improve the ordering.
6283 double Internal method that uses two methods and mixes the
6284 results. The first method is "fast", the other method
6285 computes how much the suggestion sounds like the bad
6286 word. That only works when the language specifies
6287 sound folding. Can be slow and doesn't always give
6290 fast Internal method that only checks for simple changes:
6291 character inserts/deletes/swaps. Works well for
6292 simple typing mistakes.
6294 {number} The maximum number of suggestions listed for |z=|.
6295 Not used for |spellsuggest()|. The number of
6296 suggestions is never more than the value of 'lines'
6299 file:{filename} Read file {filename}, which must have two columns,
6300 separated by a slash. The first column contains the
6301 bad word, the second column the suggested good word.
6304 Use this for common mistakes that do not appear at the
6305 top of the suggestion list with the internal methods.
6306 Lines without a slash are ignored, use this for
6308 The file is used for all languages.
6310 expr:{expr} Evaluate expression {expr}. Use a function to avoid
6311 trouble with spaces. |v:val| holds the badly spelled
6312 word. The expression must evaluate to a List of
6313 Lists, each with a suggestion and a score.
6315 [['the', 33], ['that', 44]]
6316 Set 'verbose' and use |z=| to see the scores that the
6317 internal methods use. A lower score is better.
6318 This may invoke |spellsuggest()| if you temporarily
6319 set 'spellsuggest' to exclude the "expr:" part.
6320 Errors are silently ignored, unless you set the
6321 'verbose' option to a non-zero value.
6323 Only one of "best", "double" or "fast" may be used. The others may
6324 appear several times in any order. Example: >
6325 :set sps=file:~/.vim/sugg,best,expr:MySuggest()
6327 This option cannot be set from a |modeline| or in the |sandbox|, for
6331 *'splitbelow'* *'sb'* *'nosplitbelow'* *'nosb'*
6332 'splitbelow' 'sb' boolean (default off)
6335 {not available when compiled without the +windows
6337 When on, splitting a window will put the new window below the current
6340 *'splitright'* *'spr'* *'nosplitright'* *'nospr'*
6341 'splitright' 'spr' boolean (default off)
6344 {not available when compiled without the +vertsplit
6346 When on, splitting a window will put the new window right of the
6347 current one. |:vsplit|
6349 *'startofline'* *'sol'* *'nostartofline'* *'nosol'*
6350 'startofline' 'sol' boolean (default on)
6353 When "on" the commands listed below move the cursor to the first
6354 non-blank of the line. When off the cursor is kept in the same column
6355 (if possible). This applies to the commands: CTRL-D, CTRL-U, CTRL-B,
6356 CTRL-F, "G", "H", "M", "L", gg, and to the commands "d", "<<" and ">>"
6357 with a linewise operator, with "%" with a count and to buffer changing
6358 commands (CTRL-^, :bnext, :bNext, etc.). Also for an Ex command that
6359 only has a line number, e.g., ":25" or ":+".
6360 In case of buffer changing commands the cursor is placed at the column
6361 where it was the last time the buffer was edited.
6362 NOTE: This option is set when 'compatible' is set.
6364 *'statusline'* *'stl'* *E540* *E541* *E542*
6365 'statusline' 'stl' string (default empty)
6366 global or local to window |global-local|
6368 {not available when compiled without the |+statusline|
6370 When nonempty, this option determines the content of the status line.
6371 Also see |status-line|.
6373 The option consists of printf style '%' items interspersed with
6374 normal text. Each status line item is of the form:
6375 %-0{minwid}.{maxwid}{item}
6376 All fields except the {item} is optional. A single percent sign can
6377 be given as "%%". Up to 80 items can be specified.
6379 When the option starts with "%!" then it is used as an expression,
6380 evaluated and the result is used as the option value. Example: >
6381 :set statusline=%!MyStatusLine()
6382 < The result can contain %{} items that will be evaluated too.
6384 When there is error while evaluating the option then it will be made
6385 empty to avoid further errors. Otherwise screen updating would loop.
6387 Note that the only effect of 'ruler' when this option is set (and
6388 'laststatus' is 2) is controlling the output of |CTRL-G|.
6391 - Left justify the item. The default is right justified
6392 when minwid is larger than the length of the item.
6393 0 Leading zeroes in numeric items. Overridden by '-'.
6394 minwid Minimum width of the item, padding as set by '-' & '0'.
6395 Value must be 50 or less.
6396 maxwid Maximum width of the item. Truncation occurs with a '<'
6397 on the left for text items. Numeric items will be
6398 shifted down to maxwid-2 digits followed by '>'number
6399 where number is the amount of missing digits, much like
6400 an exponential notation.
6401 item A one letter code as described below.
6403 Following is a description of the possible statusline items. The
6404 second character in "item" is the type:
6407 F for flags as described below
6411 f S Path to the file in the buffer, as typed or relative to current
6413 F S Full path to the file in the buffer.
6414 t S File name (tail) of file in the buffer.
6415 m F Modified flag, text is "[+]"; "[-]" if 'modifiable' is off.
6416 M F Modified flag, text is ",+" or ",-".
6417 r F Readonly flag, text is "[RO]".
6418 R F Readonly flag, text is ",RO".
6419 h F Help buffer flag, text is "[help]".
6420 H F Help buffer flag, text is ",HLP".
6421 w F Preview window flag, text is "[Preview]".
6422 W F Preview window flag, text is ",PRV".
6423 y F Type of file in the buffer, e.g., "[vim]". See 'filetype'.
6424 Y F Type of file in the buffer, e.g., ",VIM". See 'filetype'.
6425 {not available when compiled without |+autocmd| feature}
6426 k S Value of "b:keymap_name" or 'keymap' when |:lmap| mappings are
6427 being used: "<keymap>"
6429 b N Value of byte under cursor.
6430 B N As above, in hexadecimal.
6431 o N Byte number in file of byte under cursor, first byte is 1.
6432 Mnemonic: Offset from start of file (with one added)
6433 {not available when compiled without |+byte_offset| feature}
6434 O N As above, in hexadecimal.
6435 N N Printer page number. (Only works in the 'printheader' option.)
6437 L N Number of lines in buffer.
6439 v N Virtual column number.
6440 V N Virtual column number as -{num}. Not displayed if equal to 'c'.
6441 p N Percentage through file in lines as in |CTRL-G|.
6442 P S Percentage through file of displayed window. This is like the
6443 percentage described for 'ruler'. Always 3 in length.
6444 a S Argument list status as in default title. ({current} of {max})
6445 Empty if the argument file count is zero or one.
6446 { NF Evaluate expression between '%{' and '}' and substitute result.
6447 Note that there is no '%' before the closing '}'.
6448 ( - Start of item group. Can be used for setting the width and
6449 alignment of a section. Must be followed by %) somewhere.
6450 ) - End of item group. No width fields allowed.
6451 T N For 'tabline': start of tab page N label. Use %T after the last
6452 label. This information is used for mouse clicks.
6453 X N For 'tabline': start of close tab N label. Use %X after the
6454 label, e.g.: %3Xclose%X. Use %999X for a "close current tab"
6455 mark. This information is used for mouse clicks.
6456 < - Where to truncate line if too long. Default is at the start.
6457 No width fields allowed.
6458 = - Separation point between left and right aligned items.
6459 No width fields allowed.
6460 # - Set highlight group. The name must follow and then a # again.
6461 Thus use %#HLname# for highlight group HLname. The same
6462 highlighting is used, also for the statusline of non-current
6464 * - Set highlight group to User{N}, where {N} is taken from the
6465 minwid field, e.g. %1*. Restore normal highlight with %* or %0*.
6466 The difference between User{N} and StatusLine will be applied
6467 to StatusLineNC for the statusline of non-current windows.
6468 The number N must be between 1 and 9. See |hl-User1..9|
6470 When displaying a flag, Vim removes the leading comma, if any, when
6471 that flag comes right after plaintext. This will make a nice display
6472 when flags are used like in the examples below.
6474 When all items in a group becomes an empty string (i.e. flags that are
6475 not set) and a minwid is not set for the group, the whole group will
6476 become empty. This will make a group like the following disappear
6477 completely from the statusline when none of the flags are set. >
6478 :set statusline=...%(\ [%M%R%H]%)...
6480 Beware that an expression is evaluated each and every time the status
6481 line is displayed. The current buffer and current window will be set
6482 temporarily to that of the window (and buffer) whose statusline is
6483 currently being drawn. The expression will evaluate in this context.
6484 The variable "actual_curbuf" is set to the 'bufnr()' number of the
6485 real current buffer.
6487 The 'statusline' option may be evaluated in the |sandbox|, see
6490 It is not allowed to change text or jump to another window while
6491 evaluating 'statusline' |textlock|.
6493 If the statusline is not updated when you want it (e.g., after setting
6494 a variable that's used in an expression), you can force an update by
6495 setting an option without changing its value. Example: >
6498 < A result of all digits is regarded a number for display purposes.
6499 Otherwise the result is taken as flag text and applied to the rules
6502 Watch out for errors in expressions. They may render Vim unusable!
6503 If you are stuck, hold down ':' or 'Q' to get a prompt, then quit and
6504 edit your .vimrc or whatever with "vim -u NONE" to get it right.
6507 Emulate standard status line with 'ruler' set >
6508 :set statusline=%<%f\ %h%m%r%=%-14.(%l,%c%V%)\ %P
6509 < Similar, but add ASCII value of char under the cursor (like "ga") >
6510 :set statusline=%<%f%h%m%r%=%b\ 0x%B\ \ %l,%c%V\ %P
6511 < Display byte count and byte value, modified flag in red. >
6512 :set statusline=%<%f%=\ [%1*%M%*%n%R%H]\ %-19(%3l,%02c%03V%)%O'%02b'
6513 :hi User1 term=inverse,bold cterm=inverse,bold ctermfg=red
6514 < Display a ,GZ flag if a compressed file is loaded >
6515 :set statusline=...%r%{VarExists('b:gzflag','\ [GZ]')}%h...
6516 < In the |:autocmd|'s: >
6520 < And define this function: >
6521 :function VarExists(var, val)
6522 : if exists(a:var) | return a:val | else | return '' | endif
6526 'suffixes' 'su' string (default ".bak,~,.o,.h,.info,.swp,.obj")
6529 Files with these suffixes get a lower priority when multiple files
6530 match a wildcard. See |suffixes|. Commas can be used to separate the
6531 suffixes. Spaces after the comma are ignored. A dot is also seen as
6532 the start of a suffix. To avoid a dot or comma being recognized as a
6533 separator, precede it with a backslash (see |option-backslash| about
6534 including spaces and backslashes).
6535 See 'wildignore' for completely ignoring files.
6536 The use of |:set+=| and |:set-=| is preferred when adding or removing
6537 suffixes from the list. This avoids problems when a future version
6538 uses another default.
6540 *'suffixesadd'* *'sua'*
6541 'suffixesadd' 'sua' string (default "")
6544 {not available when compiled without the
6545 |+file_in_path| feature}
6546 Comma separated list of suffixes, which are used when searching for a
6547 file for the "gf", "[I", etc. commands. Example: >
6548 :set suffixesadd=.java
6550 *'swapfile'* *'swf'* *'noswapfile'* *'noswf'*
6551 'swapfile' 'swf' boolean (default on)
6554 Use a swapfile for the buffer. This option can be reset when a
6555 swapfile is not wanted for a specific buffer. For example, with
6556 confidential information that even root must not be able to access.
6557 Careful: All text will be in memory:
6558 - Don't use this for big files.
6559 - Recovery will be impossible!
6560 A swapfile will only be present when |'updatecount'| is non-zero and
6562 When 'swapfile' is reset, the swap file for the current buffer is
6563 immediately deleted. When 'swapfile' is set, and 'updatecount' is
6564 non-zero, a swap file is immediately created.
6565 Also see |swap-file| and |'swapsync'|.
6567 This option is used together with 'bufhidden' and 'buftype' to
6568 specify special kinds of buffers. See |special-buffers|.
6570 *'swapsync'* *'sws'*
6571 'swapsync' 'sws' string (default "fsync")
6574 When this option is not empty a swap file is synced to disk after
6575 writing to it. This takes some time, especially on busy unix systems.
6576 When this option is empty parts of the swap file may be in memory and
6577 not written to disk. When the system crashes you may lose more work.
6578 On Unix the system does a sync now and then without Vim asking for it,
6579 so the disadvantage of setting this option off is small. On some
6580 systems the swap file will not be written at all. For a unix system
6581 setting it to "sync" will use the sync() call instead of the default
6582 fsync(), which may work better on some systems.
6583 The 'fsync' option is used for the actual file.
6585 *'switchbuf'* *'swb'*
6586 'switchbuf' 'swb' string (default "")
6589 This option controls the behavior when switching between buffers.
6590 Possible values (comma separated list):
6591 useopen If included, jump to the first open window that
6592 contains the specified buffer (if there is one).
6593 Otherwise: Do not examine other windows.
6594 This setting is checked with |quickfix| commands, when
6595 jumping to errors (":cc", ":cn", "cp", etc.). It is
6596 also used in all buffer related split commands, for
6597 example ":sbuffer", ":sbnext", or ":sbrewind".
6598 usetab Like "useopen", but also consider windows in other tab
6600 split If included, split the current window before loading
6601 a buffer. Otherwise: do not split, use current window.
6602 Supported in |quickfix| commands that display errors.
6603 newtab Like "split", but open a new tab page. Overrules
6604 "split" when both are present.
6606 *'synmaxcol'* *'smc'*
6607 'synmaxcol' 'smc' number (default 3000)
6610 {not available when compiled without the |+syntax|
6612 Maximum column in which to search for syntax items. In long lines the
6613 text after this column is not highlighted and following lines may not
6614 be highlighted correctly, because the syntax state is cleared.
6615 This helps to avoid very slow redrawing for an XML file that is one
6617 Set to zero to remove the limit.
6620 'syntax' 'syn' string (default empty)
6623 {not available when compiled without the |+syntax|
6625 When this option is set, the syntax with this name is loaded, unless
6626 syntax highlighting has been switched off with ":syntax off".
6627 Otherwise this option does not always reflect the current syntax (the
6628 b:current_syntax variable does).
6629 This option is most useful in a modeline, for a file which syntax is
6630 not automatically recognized. Example, in an IDL file:
6631 /* vim: set syntax=idl : */ ~
6632 When a dot appears in the value then this separates two filetype
6634 /* vim: set syntax=c.doxygen : */ ~
6635 This will use the "c" syntax first, then the "doxygen" syntax.
6636 Note that the second one must be prepared to be loaded as an addition,
6637 otherwise it will be skipped. More than one dot may appear.
6638 To switch off syntax highlighting for the current file, use: >
6640 < To switch syntax highlighting on according to the current value of the
6641 'filetype' option: >
6643 < What actually happens when setting the 'syntax' option is that the
6644 Syntax autocommand event is triggered with the value as argument.
6645 This option is not copied to another buffer, independent of the 's' or
6646 'S' flag in 'cpoptions'.
6647 Only normal file name characters can be used, "/\*?[|<>" are illegal.
6650 'tabline' 'tal' string (default empty)
6653 {not available when compiled without the +windows
6655 When nonempty, this option determines the content of the tab pages
6656 line at the top of the Vim window. When empty Vim will use a default
6657 tab pages line. See |setting-tabline| for more info.
6659 The tab pages line only appears as specified with the 'showtabline'
6660 option and only when there is no GUI tab line. When 'e' is in
6661 'guioptions' and the GUI supports a tab line 'guitablabel' is used
6664 The value is evaluated like with 'statusline'. You can use
6665 |tabpagenr()|, |tabpagewinnr()| and |tabpagebuflist()| to figure out
6666 the text to be displayed. Use "%1T" for the first label, "%2T" for
6667 the second one, etc. Use "%X" items for closing labels.
6669 Keep in mind that only one of the tab pages is the current one, others
6670 are invisible and you can't jump to their windows.
6673 *'tabpagemax'* *'tpm'*
6674 'tabpagemax' 'tpm' number (default 10)
6677 {not available when compiled without the +windows
6679 Maximum number of tab pages to be opened by the |-p| command line
6680 argument or the ":tab all" command. |tabpage|
6684 'tabstop' 'ts' number (default 8)
6686 Number of spaces that a <Tab> in the file counts for. Also see
6687 |:retab| command, and 'softtabstop' option.
6689 Note: Setting 'tabstop' to any other value than 8 can make your file
6690 appear wrong in many places (e.g., when printing it).
6692 There are four main ways to use tabs in Vim:
6693 1. Always keep 'tabstop' at 8, set 'softtabstop' and 'shiftwidth' to 4
6694 (or 3 or whatever you prefer) and use 'noexpandtab'. Then Vim
6695 will use a mix of tabs and spaces, but typing <Tab> and <BS> will
6696 behave like a tab appears every 4 (or 3) characters.
6697 2. Set 'tabstop' and 'shiftwidth' to whatever you prefer and use
6698 'expandtab'. This way you will always insert spaces. The
6699 formatting will never be messed up when 'tabstop' is changed.
6700 3. Set 'tabstop' and 'shiftwidth' to whatever you prefer and use a
6701 |modeline| to set these values when editing the file again. Only
6702 works when using Vim to edit the file.
6703 4. Always set 'tabstop' and 'shiftwidth' to the same value, and
6704 'noexpandtab'. This should then work (for initial indents only)
6705 for any tabstop setting that people use. It might be nice to have
6706 tabs after the first non-blank inserted as spaces if you do this
6707 though. Otherwise aligned comments will be wrong when 'tabstop' is
6710 If Vim is compiled with the |+vartabs| feature then the value of
6711 'tabstop' will be ignored if |'vartabstop'| is set to anything other
6712 than an empty string.
6714 *'tagbsearch'* *'tbs'* *'notagbsearch'* *'notbs'*
6715 'tagbsearch' 'tbs' boolean (default on)
6718 When searching for a tag (e.g., for the |:ta| command), Vim can either
6719 use a binary search or a linear search in a tags file. Binary
6720 searching makes searching for a tag a LOT faster, but a linear search
6721 will find more tags if the tags file wasn't properly sorted.
6722 Vim normally assumes that your tags files are sorted, or indicate that
6723 they are not sorted. Only when this is not the case does the
6724 'tagbsearch' option need to be switched off.
6726 When 'tagbsearch' is on, binary searching is first used in the tags
6727 files. In certain situations, Vim will do a linear search instead for
6728 certain files, or retry all files with a linear search. When
6729 'tagbsearch' is off, only a linear search is done.
6731 Linear searching is done anyway, for one file, when Vim finds a line
6732 at the start of the file indicating that it's not sorted: >
6733 !_TAG_FILE_SORTED 0 /some comment/
6734 < [The whitespace before and after the '0' must be a single <Tab>]
6736 When a binary search was done and no match was found in any of the
6737 files listed in 'tags', and 'ignorecase' is set or a pattern is used
6738 instead of a normal tag name, a retry is done with a linear search.
6739 Tags in unsorted tags files, and matches with different case will only
6740 be found in the retry.
6742 If a tag file indicates that it is case-fold sorted, the second,
6743 linear search can be avoided for the 'ignorecase' case. Use a value
6744 of '2' in the "!_TAG_FILE_SORTED" line for this. A tag file can be
6745 case-fold sorted with the -f switch to "sort" in most unices, as in
6746 the command: "sort -f -o tags tags". For "Exuberant ctags" version
6747 5.x or higher (at least 5.5) the --sort=foldcase switch can be used
6748 for this as well. Note that case must be folded to uppercase for this
6751 When 'tagbsearch' is off, tags searching is slower when a full match
6752 exists, but faster when no full match exists. Tags in unsorted tags
6753 files may only be found with 'tagbsearch' off.
6754 When the tags file is not sorted, or sorted in a wrong way (not on
6755 ASCII byte value), 'tagbsearch' should be off, or the line given above
6756 must be included in the tags file.
6757 This option doesn't affect commands that find all matching tags (e.g.,
6758 command-line completion and ":help").
6759 {Vi: always uses binary search in some versions}
6762 'tagfunc' 'tfu' string (default: empty)
6765 {not available when compiled without the +eval
6766 or +insert_expand feature}
6767 This option specifies a function to be used to perform tag searches.
6768 The function should take two parameters, the first of which is the
6769 pattern to be searched, while the second is a set of flags which may
6770 be used by the function to decide on its behaviour. Currently the
6771 following flags may appear:
6772 'c' - indicates that the context around the cursor position
6773 can be used to generate more accurate results,
6774 'i' - the function is being called during insert-mode
6776 See |tag-function| for an explanation of what the function should
6777 return and an example of such a function.
6779 *'taglength'* *'tl'*
6780 'taglength' 'tl' number (default 0)
6782 If non-zero, tags are significant up to this number of characters.
6784 *'tagrelative'* *'tr'* *'notagrelative'* *'notr'*
6785 'tagrelative' 'tr' boolean (Vim default: on, Vi default: off)
6788 If on and using a tags file in another directory, file names in that
6789 tags file are relative to the directory where the tags file is.
6790 NOTE: This option is set to the Vi default value when 'compatible' is
6791 set and to the Vim default value when 'compatible' is reset.
6793 *'tags'* *'tag'* *E433*
6794 'tags' 'tag' string (default "./tags,tags", when compiled with
6795 |+emacs_tags|: "./tags,./TAGS,tags,TAGS")
6796 global or local to buffer |global-local|
6797 Filenames for the tag command, separated by spaces or commas. To
6798 include a space or comma in a file name, precede it with a backslash
6799 (see |option-backslash| about including spaces and backslashes).
6800 When a file name starts with "./", the '.' is replaced with the path
6801 of the current file. But only when the 'd' flag is not included in
6802 'cpoptions'. Environment variables are expanded |:set_env|. Also see
6804 "*", "**" and other wildcards can be used to search for tags files in
6805 a directory tree. See |file-searching|. {not available when compiled
6806 without the |+path_extra| feature}
6807 The |tagfiles()| function can be used to get a list of the file names
6809 If Vim was compiled with the |+emacs_tags| feature, Emacs-style tag
6810 files are also supported. They are automatically recognized. The
6811 default value becomes "./tags,./TAGS,tags,TAGS", unless case
6812 differences are ignored (MS-Windows). |emacs-tags|
6813 The use of |:set+=| and |:set-=| is preferred when adding or removing
6814 file names from the list. This avoids problems when a future version
6815 uses another default.
6816 {Vi: default is "tags /usr/lib/tags"}
6818 *'tagstack'* *'tgst'* *'notagstack'* *'notgst'*
6819 'tagstack' 'tgst' boolean (default on)
6821 {not in all versions of Vi}
6822 When on, the |tagstack| is used normally. When off, a ":tag" or
6823 ":tselect" command with an argument will not push the tag onto the
6824 tagstack. A following ":tag" without an argument, a ":pop" command or
6825 any other command that uses the tagstack will use the unmodified
6826 tagstack, but does change the pointer to the active entry.
6827 Resetting this option is useful when using a ":tag" command in a
6828 mapping which should not change the tagstack.
6830 *'term'* *E529* *E530* *E531*
6831 'term' string (default is $TERM, if that fails:
6832 in the GUI: "builtin_gui"
6834 on BeOS: "beos-ansi"
6843 Name of the terminal. Used for choosing the terminal control
6844 characters. Environment variables are expanded |:set_env|.
6849 *'termbidi'* *'tbidi'*
6850 *'notermbidi'* *'notbidi'*
6851 'termbidi' 'tbidi' boolean (default off, on for "mlterm")
6854 {only available when compiled with the |+arabic|
6856 The terminal is in charge of Bi-directionality of text (as specified
6857 by Unicode). The terminal is also expected to do the required shaping
6858 that some languages (such as Arabic) require.
6859 Setting this option implies that 'rightleft' will not be set when
6860 'arabic' is set and the value of 'arabicshape' will be ignored.
6861 Note that setting 'termbidi' has the immediate effect that
6862 'arabicshape' is ignored, but 'rightleft' isn't changed automatically.
6863 This option is reset when the GUI is started.
6864 For further details see |arabic.txt|.
6866 *'termencoding'* *'tenc'*
6867 'termencoding' 'tenc' string (default ""; with GTK+ 2 GUI: "utf-8"; with
6868 Macintosh GUI: "macroman")
6870 {only available when compiled with the |+multi_byte|
6873 Encoding used for the terminal. This specifies what character
6874 encoding the keyboard produces and the display will understand. For
6875 the GUI it only applies to the keyboard ('encoding' is used for the
6876 display). Except for the Mac when 'macatsui' is off, then
6877 'termencoding' should be "macroman".
6878 In the Win32 console version the default value is the console codepage
6879 when it differs from the ANSI codepage.
6881 Note: This does not apply to the GTK+ 2 GUI. After the GUI has been
6882 successfully initialized, 'termencoding' is forcibly set to "utf-8".
6883 Any attempts to set a different value will be rejected, and an error
6885 For the Win32 GUI 'termencoding' is not used for typed characters,
6886 because the Win32 system always passes Unicode characters.
6887 When empty, the same encoding is used as for the 'encoding' option.
6888 This is the normal value.
6889 Not all combinations for 'termencoding' and 'encoding' are valid. See
6891 The value for this option must be supported by internal conversions or
6892 iconv(). When this is not possible no conversion will be done and you
6893 will probably experience problems with non-ASCII characters.
6894 Example: You are working with the locale set to euc-jp (Japanese) and
6895 want to edit a UTF-8 file: >
6896 :let &termencoding = &encoding
6898 < You need to do this when your system has no locale support for UTF-8.
6900 *'terse'* *'noterse'*
6901 'terse' boolean (default off)
6903 When set: Add 's' flag to 'shortmess' option (this makes the message
6904 for a search that hits the start or end of the file not being
6905 displayed). When reset: Remove 's' flag from 'shortmess' option. {Vi
6906 shortens a lot of messages}
6908 *'textauto'* *'ta'* *'notextauto'* *'nota'*
6909 'textauto' 'ta' boolean (Vim default: on, Vi default: off)
6912 This option is obsolete. Use 'fileformats'.
6913 For backwards compatibility, when 'textauto' is set, 'fileformats' is
6914 set to the default value for the current system. When 'textauto' is
6915 reset, 'fileformats' is made empty.
6916 NOTE: This option is set to the Vi default value when 'compatible' is
6917 set and to the Vim default value when 'compatible' is reset.
6919 *'textmode'* *'tx'* *'notextmode'* *'notx'*
6920 'textmode' 'tx' boolean (MS-DOS, Win32 and OS/2: default on,
6921 others: default off)
6924 This option is obsolete. Use 'fileformat'.
6925 For backwards compatibility, when 'textmode' is set, 'fileformat' is
6926 set to "dos". When 'textmode' is reset, 'fileformat' is set to
6929 *'textwidth'* *'tw'*
6930 'textwidth' 'tw' number (default 0)
6933 Maximum width of text that is being inserted. A longer line will be
6934 broken after white space to get this width. A zero value disables
6935 this. 'textwidth' is set to 0 when the 'paste' option is set. When
6936 'textwidth' is zero, 'wrapmargin' may be used. See also
6937 'formatoptions' and |ins-textwidth|.
6938 When 'formatexpr' is set it will be used to break the line.
6939 NOTE: This option is set to 0 when 'compatible' is set.
6941 *'thesaurus'* *'tsr'*
6942 'thesaurus' 'tsr' string (default "")
6943 global or local to buffer |global-local|
6945 List of file names, separated by commas, that are used to lookup words
6946 for thesaurus completion commands |i_CTRL-X_CTRL-T|. Each line in
6947 the file should contain words with similar meaning, separated by
6948 non-keyword characters (white space is preferred). Maximum line
6949 length is 510 bytes.
6950 To obtain a file to be used here, check out the wordlist FAQ at
6951 http://www.hyphenologist.co.uk .
6952 To include a comma in a file name precede it with a backslash. Spaces
6953 after a comma are ignored, otherwise spaces are included in the file
6954 name. See |option-backslash| about using backslashes.
6955 The use of |:set+=| and |:set-=| is preferred when adding or removing
6956 directories from the list. This avoids problems when a future version
6957 uses another default.
6958 Backticks cannot be used in this option for security reasons.
6960 *'tildeop'* *'top'* *'notildeop'* *'notop'*
6961 'tildeop' 'top' boolean (default off)
6964 When on: The tilde command "~" behaves like an operator.
6965 NOTE: This option is reset when 'compatible' is set.
6967 *'timeout'* *'to'* *'notimeout'* *'noto'*
6968 'timeout' 'to' boolean (default on)
6970 *'ttimeout'* *'nottimeout'*
6971 'ttimeout' boolean (default off)
6974 These two options together determine the behavior when part of a
6975 mapped key sequence or keyboard code has been received:
6977 'timeout' 'ttimeout' action ~
6978 off off do not time out
6979 on on or off time out on :mappings and key codes
6980 off on time out on key codes
6982 If both options are off, Vim will wait until either the complete
6983 mapping or key sequence has been received, or it is clear that there
6984 is no mapping or key sequence for the received characters. For
6985 example: if you have mapped "vl" and Vim has received 'v', the next
6986 character is needed to see if the 'v' is followed by an 'l'.
6987 When one of the options is on, Vim will wait for about 1 second for
6988 the next character to arrive. After that the already received
6989 characters are interpreted as single characters. The waiting time can
6990 be changed with the 'timeoutlen' option.
6991 On slow terminals or very busy systems timing out may cause
6992 malfunctioning cursor keys. If both options are off, Vim waits
6993 forever after an entered <Esc> if there are key codes that start
6994 with <Esc>. You will have to type <Esc> twice. If you do not have
6995 problems with key codes, but would like to have :mapped key
6996 sequences not timing out in 1 second, set the 'ttimeout' option and
6997 reset the 'timeout' option.
6999 NOTE: 'ttimeout' is reset when 'compatible' is set.
7001 *'timeoutlen'* *'tm'*
7002 'timeoutlen' 'tm' number (default 1000)
7004 {not in all versions of Vi}
7005 *'ttimeoutlen'* *'ttm'*
7006 'ttimeoutlen' 'ttm' number (default -1)
7009 The time in milliseconds that is waited for a key code or mapped key
7010 sequence to complete. Also used for CTRL-\ CTRL-N and CTRL-\ CTRL-G
7011 when part of a command has been typed.
7012 Normally only 'timeoutlen' is used and 'ttimeoutlen' is -1. When a
7013 different timeout value for key codes is desired set 'ttimeoutlen' to
7014 a non-negative number.
7016 ttimeoutlen mapping delay key code delay ~
7017 < 0 'timeoutlen' 'timeoutlen'
7018 >= 0 'timeoutlen' 'ttimeoutlen'
7020 The timeout only happens when the 'timeout' and 'ttimeout' options
7021 tell so. A useful setting would be >
7022 :set timeout timeoutlen=3000 ttimeoutlen=100
7023 < (time out on mapping after three seconds, time out on key codes after
7024 a tenth of a second).
7026 *'title'* *'notitle'*
7027 'title' boolean (default off, on when title can be restored)
7030 {not available when compiled without the |+title|
7032 When on, the title of the window will be set to the value of
7033 'titlestring' (if it is not empty), or to:
7034 filename [+=-] (path) - VIM
7036 filename the name of the file being edited
7037 - indicates the file cannot be modified, 'ma' off
7038 + indicates the file was modified
7039 = indicates the file is read-only
7040 =+ indicates the file is read-only and modified
7041 (path) is the path of the file being edited
7042 - VIM the server name |v:servername| or "VIM"
7043 Only works if the terminal supports setting window titles
7044 (currently Amiga console, Win32 console, all GUI versions and
7045 terminals with a non- empty 't_ts' option - these are Unix xterm and
7046 iris-ansi by default, where 't_ts' is taken from the builtin termcap).
7048 When Vim was compiled with HAVE_X11 defined, the original title will
7049 be restored if possible. The output of ":version" will include "+X11"
7050 when HAVE_X11 was defined, otherwise it will be "-X11". This also
7051 works for the icon name |'icon'|.
7052 But: When Vim was started with the |-X| argument, restoring the title
7053 will not work (except in the GUI).
7054 If the title cannot be restored, it is set to the value of 'titleold'.
7055 You might want to restore the title outside of Vim then.
7056 When using an xterm from a remote machine you can use this command:
7057 rsh machine_name xterm -display $DISPLAY &
7058 then the WINDOWID environment variable should be inherited and the
7059 title of the window should change back to what it should be after
7063 'titlelen' number (default 85)
7066 {not available when compiled without the |+title|
7068 Gives the percentage of 'columns' to use for the length of the window
7069 title. When the title is longer, only the end of the path name is
7070 shown. A '<' character before the path name is used to indicate this.
7071 Using a percentage makes this adapt to the width of the window. But
7072 it won't work perfectly, because the actual number of characters
7073 available also depends on the font used and other things in the title
7074 bar. When 'titlelen' is zero the full path is used. Otherwise,
7075 values from 1 to 30000 percent can be used.
7076 'titlelen' is also used for the 'titlestring' option.
7079 'titleold' string (default "Thanks for flying Vim")
7082 {only available when compiled with the |+title|
7084 This option will be used for the window title when exiting Vim if the
7085 original title cannot be restored. Only happens if 'title' is on or
7086 'titlestring' is not empty.
7087 This option cannot be set from a |modeline| or in the |sandbox|, for
7090 'titlestring' string (default "")
7093 {not available when compiled without the |+title|
7095 When this option is not empty, it will be used for the title of the
7096 window. This happens only when the 'title' option is on.
7097 Only works if the terminal supports setting window titles (currently
7098 Amiga console, Win32 console, all GUI versions and terminals with a
7099 non-empty 't_ts' option).
7100 When Vim was compiled with HAVE_X11 defined, the original title will
7101 be restored if possible |X11|.
7102 When this option contains printf-style '%' items, they will be
7103 expanded according to the rules used for 'statusline'.
7105 :auto BufEnter * let &titlestring = hostname() . "/" . expand("%:p")
7106 :set title titlestring=%<%F%=%l/%L-%P titlelen=70
7107 < The value of 'titlelen' is used to align items in the middle or right
7108 of the available space.
7109 Some people prefer to have the file name first: >
7110 :set titlestring=%t%(\ %M%)%(\ (%{expand(\"%:~:.:h\")})%)%(\ %a%)
7111 < Note the use of "%{ }" and an expression to get the path of the file,
7112 without the file name. The "%( %)" constructs are used to add a
7113 separating space only when needed.
7114 NOTE: Use of special characters in 'titlestring' may cause the display
7115 to be garbled (e.g., when it contains a CR or NL character).
7116 {not available when compiled without the |+statusline| feature}
7119 'toolbar' 'tb' string (default "icons,tooltips")
7121 {only for |+GUI_GTK|, |+GUI_Athena|, |+GUI_Motif| and
7123 The contents of this option controls various toolbar settings. The
7124 possible values are:
7125 icons Toolbar buttons are shown with icons.
7126 text Toolbar buttons shown with text.
7127 horiz Icon and text of a toolbar button are
7128 horizontally arranged. {only in GTK+ 2 GUI}
7129 tooltips Tooltips are active for toolbar buttons.
7130 Tooltips refer to the popup help text which appears after the mouse
7131 cursor is placed over a toolbar button for a brief moment.
7133 If you want the toolbar to be shown with icons as well as text, do the
7136 < Motif and Athena cannot display icons and text at the same time. They
7137 will show icons if both are requested.
7139 If none of the strings specified in 'toolbar' are valid or if
7140 'toolbar' is empty, this option is ignored. If you want to disable
7141 the toolbar, you need to set the 'guioptions' option. For example: >
7143 < Also see |gui-toolbar|.
7145 *'toolbariconsize'* *'tbis'*
7146 'toolbariconsize' 'tbis' string (default "small")
7149 {only in the GTK+ 2 GUI}
7150 Controls the size of toolbar icons. The possible values are:
7151 tiny Use tiny toolbar icons.
7152 small Use small toolbar icons (default).
7153 medium Use medium-sized toolbar icons.
7154 large Use large toolbar icons.
7155 The exact dimensions in pixels of the various icon sizes depend on
7156 the current theme. Common dimensions are large=32x32, medium=24x24,
7157 small=20x20 and tiny=16x16.
7159 If 'toolbariconsize' is empty, the global default size as determined
7160 by user preferences or the current theme is used.
7162 *'ttybuiltin'* *'tbi'* *'nottybuiltin'* *'notbi'*
7163 'ttybuiltin' 'tbi' boolean (default on)
7166 When on, the builtin termcaps are searched before the external ones.
7167 When off the builtin termcaps are searched after the external ones.
7168 When this option is changed, you should set the 'term' option next for
7169 the change to take effect, for example: >
7170 :set notbi term=$TERM
7171 < See also |termcap|.
7172 Rationale: The default for this option is "on", because the builtin
7173 termcap entries are generally better (many systems contain faulty
7176 *'ttyfast'* *'tf'* *'nottyfast'* *'notf'*
7177 'ttyfast' 'tf' boolean (default off, on when 'term' is xterm, hpterm,
7178 sun-cmd, screen, rxvt, dtterm or
7179 iris-ansi; also on when running Vim in
7183 Indicates a fast terminal connection. More characters will be sent to
7184 the screen for redrawing, instead of using insert/delete line
7185 commands. Improves smoothness of redrawing when there are multiple
7186 windows and the terminal does not support a scrolling region.
7187 Also enables the extra writing of characters at the end of each screen
7188 line for lines that wrap. This helps when using copy/paste with the
7189 mouse in an xterm and other terminals.
7191 *'ttymouse'* *'ttym'*
7192 'ttymouse' 'ttym' string (default depends on 'term')
7195 {only in Unix and VMS, doesn't work in the GUI; not
7196 available when compiled without |+mouse|}
7197 Name of the terminal type for which mouse codes are to be recognized.
7198 Currently these strings are valid:
7200 xterm xterm-like mouse handling. The mouse generates
7201 "<Esc>[Mscr", where "scr" is three bytes:
7203 "c" = column plus 33
7205 This only works up to 223 columns! See "dec" for a
7207 xterm2 Works like "xterm", but with the xterm reporting the
7208 mouse position while the mouse is dragged. This works
7209 much faster and more precise. Your xterm must at
7210 least at patchlevel 88 / XFree 3.3.3 for this to
7211 work. See below for how Vim detects this
7214 netterm NetTerm mouse handling. The mouse generates
7215 "<Esc>}r,c<CR>", where "r,c" are two decimal numbers
7216 for the row and column.
7218 dec DEC terminal mouse handling. The mouse generates a
7219 rather complex sequence, starting with "<Esc>[".
7220 This is also available for an Xterm, if it was
7221 configured with "--enable-dec-locator".
7223 jsbterm JSB term mouse handling.
7225 pterm QNX pterm mouse handling.
7227 The mouse handling must be enabled at compile time |+mouse_xterm|
7228 |+mouse_dec| |+mouse_netterm|.
7229 Only "xterm"(2) is really recognized. NetTerm mouse codes are always
7230 recognized, if enabled at compile time. DEC terminal mouse codes
7231 are recognized if enabled at compile time, and 'ttymouse' is not
7232 "xterm" (because the xterm and dec mouse codes conflict).
7233 This option is automatically set to "xterm", when the 'term' option is
7234 set to a name that starts with "xterm", and 'ttymouse' is not "xterm"
7235 or "xterm2" already. The main use of this option is to set it to
7236 "xterm", when the terminal name doesn't start with "xterm", but it can
7237 handle xterm mouse codes.
7238 The "xterm2" value will be set if the xterm version is reported to be
7239 95 or higher. This only works when compiled with the |+termresponse|
7240 feature and if |t_RV| is set to the escape sequence to request the
7241 xterm version number. Otherwise "xterm2" must be set explicitly.
7242 If you do not want 'ttymouse' to be set to "xterm2" automatically, set
7243 t_RV to an empty string: >
7246 *'ttyscroll'* *'tsl'*
7247 'ttyscroll' 'tsl' number (default 999)
7249 Maximum number of lines to scroll the screen. If there are more lines
7250 to scroll the window is redrawn. For terminals where scrolling is
7251 very slow and redrawing is not slow this can be set to a small number,
7252 e.g., 3, to speed up displaying.
7255 'ttytype' 'tty' string (default from $TERM)
7257 Alias for 'term', see above.
7259 *'undodir'* *'udir'*
7260 'undodir' 'udir' string (default for Unix: "$HOME/.vim/undo"
7261 for Amiga: "home:vimfiles/undo"
7262 for OS/2, MS-DOS, Win32: "$HOME/vimfiles/undo"
7263 for Macintosh: "$VIM:vimfiles/undo"
7264 for RISC-OS: "Choices:vimfiles/undo"
7265 for VMS: "sys$login:vimfiles/undo")
7268 List of directory names for undo files, separated with commas.
7269 See |'directory'| for a list of caveats.
7271 *'undofile'* *'udf'*
7272 'undofile' 'udf' boolean (default off)
7275 When on, Vim automatically saves undo history to an undo file in
7276 'undodir' on saves, and restores undo history from the same file on
7278 See |undo-persistence|.
7280 *'undolevels'* *'ul'*
7281 'undolevels' 'ul' number (default 100, 1000 for Unix, VMS,
7285 Maximum number of changes that can be undone. Since undo information
7286 is kept in memory, higher numbers will cause more memory to be used
7287 (nevertheless, a single change can use an unlimited amount of memory).
7288 Set to 0 for Vi compatibility: One level of undo and "u" undoes
7291 < But you can also get Vi compatibility by including the 'u' flag in
7292 'cpoptions', and still be able to use CTRL-R to repeat undo.
7293 Set to a negative number for no undo at all: >
7295 < This helps when you run out of memory for a single change.
7296 Also see |undo-two-ways|.
7298 *'updatecount'* *'uc'*
7299 'updatecount' 'uc' number (default: 200)
7302 After typing this many characters the swap file will be written to
7303 disk. When zero, no swap file will be created at all (see chapter on
7304 recovery |crash-recovery|). 'updatecount' is set to zero by starting
7305 Vim with the "-n" option, see |startup|. When editing in readonly
7306 mode this option will be initialized to 10000.
7307 The swapfile can be disabled per buffer with |'swapfile'|.
7308 When 'updatecount' is set from zero to non-zero, swap files are
7309 created for all buffers that have 'swapfile' set. When 'updatecount'
7310 is set to zero, existing swap files are not deleted.
7311 Also see |'swapsync'|.
7312 This option has no meaning in buffers where |'buftype'| is "nofile"
7315 *'updatetime'* *'ut'*
7316 'updatetime' 'ut' number (default 4000)
7319 If this many milliseconds nothing is typed the swap file will be
7320 written to disk (see |crash-recovery|). Also used for the
7321 |CursorHold| autocommand event.
7323 *'varsofttabstop'* *'vsts'*
7324 'varsofttabstop' 'vsts' string (default "")
7326 {only available when compiled with the |+vartabs|
7329 A list of the number of spaces that a <Tab> counts for while editing,
7330 such as inserting a <Tab> or using <BS>. It "feels" like variable-
7331 width <Tab>s are being inserted, while in fact a mixture of spaces
7332 and <Tab>s is used. Tab widths are separated with commas, with the
7333 final value applying to all subsequent tabs.
7335 For example, when editing assembly language files where statements
7336 start in the 8th column and comments in the 40th, it may be useful
7337 to use the following: >
7338 :set varsofttabstop=8,32,8
7339 < This will set soft tabstops at the 8th and 40th columns, and at every
7340 8th column thereafter.
7342 Note that the value of |'softtabstop'| will be ignored while
7343 'varsofttabstop' is set.
7345 *'vartabstop'* *'vts'*
7346 'vartabstop' 'vts' string (default 8)
7348 {only available when compiled with the |+vartabs|
7351 A list of the number of spaces that a <Tab> in the file counts for,
7352 separated by commas. Each value corresponds to one tab, with the
7353 final value applying to all subsequent tabs. For example: >
7354 :set vartabstop=4,20,10,8
7355 < This will make the first tab 4 spaces wide, the second 20 spaces,
7356 the third 10 spaces, and all following tabs 8 spaces.
7358 Note that the value of |'tabstop'| will be ignored while 'vartabstop'
7362 'verbose' 'vbs' number (default 0)
7364 {not in Vi, although some versions have a boolean
7366 When bigger than zero, Vim will give messages about what it is doing.
7367 Currently, these messages are given:
7368 >= 1 When the viminfo file is read or written.
7369 >= 2 When a file is ":source"'ed.
7370 >= 5 Every searched tags file and include file.
7371 >= 8 Files for which a group of autocommands is executed.
7372 >= 9 Every executed autocommand.
7373 >= 12 Every executed function.
7374 >= 13 When an exception is thrown, caught, finished, or discarded.
7375 >= 14 Anything pending in a ":finally" clause.
7376 >= 15 Every executed Ex command (truncated at 200 characters).
7378 This option can also be set with the "-V" argument. See |-V|.
7379 This option is also set by the |:verbose| command.
7381 When the 'verbosefile' option is set then the verbose messages are not
7384 *'verbosefile'* *'vfile'*
7385 'verbosefile' 'vfile' string (default empty)
7388 When not empty all messages are written in a file with this name.
7389 When the file exists messages are appended.
7390 Writing to the file ends when Vim exits or when 'verbosefile' is made
7392 Setting 'verbosefile' to a new value is like making it empty first.
7393 The difference with |:redir| is that verbose messages are not
7394 displayed when 'verbosefile' is set.
7396 *'viewdir'* *'vdir'*
7397 'viewdir' 'vdir' string (default for Amiga, MS-DOS, OS/2 and Win32:
7398 "$VIM/vimfiles/view",
7399 for Unix: "~/.vim/view",
7400 for Macintosh: "$VIM:vimfiles:view"
7401 for VMS: "sys$login:vimfiles/view"
7402 for RiscOS: "Choices:vimfiles/view")
7405 {not available when compiled without the +mksession
7407 Name of the directory where to store files for |:mkview|.
7408 This option cannot be set from a |modeline| or in the |sandbox|, for
7411 *'viewoptions'* *'vop'*
7412 'viewoptions' 'vop' string (default: "folds,options,cursor")
7415 {not available when compiled without the +mksession
7417 Changes the effect of the |:mkview| command. It is a comma separated
7418 list of words. Each word enables saving and restoring something:
7419 word save and restore ~
7420 cursor cursor position in file and in window
7421 folds manually created folds, opened/closed folds and local
7423 options options and mappings local to a window or buffer (not
7424 global values for local options)
7425 slash backslashes in file names replaced with forward
7427 unix with Unix end-of-line format (single <NL>), even when
7430 "slash" and "unix" are useful on Windows when sharing view files
7431 with Unix. The Unix version of Vim cannot source dos format scripts,
7432 but the Windows version of Vim can source unix format scripts.
7434 *'viminfo'* *'vi'* *E526* *E527* *E528*
7435 'viminfo' 'vi' string (Vi default: "", Vim default for MS-DOS,
7436 Windows and OS/2: '100,<50,s10,h,rA:,rB:,
7437 for Amiga: '100,<50,s10,h,rdf0:,rdf1:,rdf2:
7438 for others: '100,<50,s10,h)
7441 {not available when compiled without the |+viminfo|
7443 When non-empty, the viminfo file is read upon startup and written
7444 when exiting Vim (see |viminfo-file|). The string should be a comma
7445 separated list of parameters, each consisting of a single character
7446 identifying the particular parameter, followed by a number or string
7447 which specifies the value of that parameter. If a particular
7448 character is left out, then the default value is used for that
7449 parameter. The following is a list of the identifying characters and
7450 the effect of their value.
7452 ! When included, save and restore global variables that start
7453 with an uppercase letter, and don't contain a lowercase
7454 letter. Thus "KEEPTHIS and "K_L_M" are stored, but "KeepThis"
7455 and "_K_L_M" are not. Only String and Number types are
7457 " Maximum number of lines saved for each register. Old name of
7458 the '<' item, with the disadvantage that you need to put a
7459 backslash before the ", otherwise it will be recognized as the
7461 % When included, save and restore the buffer list. If Vim is
7462 started with a file name argument, the buffer list is not
7463 restored. If Vim is started without a file name argument, the
7464 buffer list is restored from the viminfo file. Buffers
7465 without a file name and buffers for help files are not written
7466 to the viminfo file.
7467 When followed by a number, the number specifies the maximum
7468 number of buffers that are stored. Without a number all
7470 ' Maximum number of previously edited files for which the marks
7471 are remembered. This parameter must always be included when
7472 'viminfo' is non-empty.
7473 Including this item also means that the |jumplist| and the
7474 |changelist| are stored in the viminfo file.
7475 / Maximum number of items in the search pattern history to be
7476 saved. If non-zero, then the previous search and substitute
7477 patterns are also saved. When not included, the value of
7479 : Maximum number of items in the command-line history to be
7480 saved. When not included, the value of 'history' is used.
7481 < Maximum number of lines saved for each register. If zero then
7482 registers are not saved. When not included, all lines are
7483 saved. '"' is the old name for this item.
7484 Also see the 's' item below: limit specified in Kbyte.
7485 @ Maximum number of items in the input-line history to be
7486 saved. When not included, the value of 'history' is used.
7487 c When included, convert the text in the viminfo file from the
7488 'encoding' used when writing the file to the current
7489 'encoding'. See |viminfo-encoding|.
7490 f Whether file marks need to be stored. If zero, file marks ('0
7491 to '9, 'A to 'Z) are not stored. When not present or when
7492 non-zero, they are all stored. '0 is used for the current
7493 cursor position (when exiting or when doing ":wviminfo").
7494 h Disable the effect of 'hlsearch' when loading the viminfo
7495 file. When not included, it depends on whether ":nohlsearch"
7496 has been used since the last search command.
7497 n Name of the viminfo file. The name must immediately follow
7498 the 'n'. Must be the last one! If the "-i" argument was
7499 given when starting Vim, that file name overrides the one
7500 given here with 'viminfo'. Environment variables are expanded
7501 when opening the file, not when setting the option.
7502 r Removable media. The argument is a string (up to the next
7503 ','). This parameter can be given several times. Each
7504 specifies the start of a path for which no marks will be
7505 stored. This is to avoid removable media. For MS-DOS you
7506 could use "ra:,rb:", for Amiga "rdf0:,rdf1:,rdf2:". You can
7507 also use it for temp files, e.g., for Unix: "r/tmp". Case is
7508 ignored. Maximum length of each 'r' argument is 50
7510 s Maximum size of an item in Kbyte. If zero then registers are
7511 not saved. Currently only applies to registers. The default
7512 "s10" will exclude registers with more than 10 Kbyte of text.
7513 Also see the '<' item above: line count limit.
7516 :set viminfo='50,<1000,s100,:0,n~/vim/viminfo
7518 '50 Marks will be remembered for the last 50 files you
7520 <1000 Contents of registers (up to 1000 lines each) will be
7522 s100 Registers with more than 100 Kbyte text are skipped.
7523 :0 Command-line history will not be saved.
7524 n~/vim/viminfo The name of the file to use is "~/vim/viminfo".
7525 no / Since '/' is not specified, the default will be used,
7526 that is, save all of the search history, and also the
7527 previous search and substitute patterns.
7528 no % The buffer list will not be saved nor read back.
7529 no h 'hlsearch' highlighting will be restored.
7531 When setting 'viminfo' from an empty value you can use |:rviminfo| to
7532 load the contents of the file, this is not done automatically.
7534 This option cannot be set from a |modeline| or in the |sandbox|, for
7537 *'virtualedit'* *'ve'*
7538 'virtualedit' 've' string (default "")
7541 {not available when compiled without the
7542 |+virtualedit| feature}
7543 A comma separated list of these words:
7544 block Allow virtual editing in Visual block mode.
7545 insert Allow virtual editing in Insert mode.
7546 all Allow virtual editing in all modes.
7547 onemore Allow the cursor to move just past the end of the line
7549 Virtual editing means that the cursor can be positioned where there is
7550 no actual character. This can be halfway into a tab or beyond the end
7551 of the line. Useful for selecting a rectangle in Visual mode and
7553 "onemore" is not the same, it will only allow moving the cursor just
7554 after the last character of the line. This makes some commands more
7555 consistent. Previously the cursor was always past the end of the line
7556 if the line was empty. But it is far from Vi compatible. It may also
7557 break some plugins or Vim scripts. For example because |l| can move
7558 the cursor after the last character. Use with care!
7559 Using the |$| command will move to the last character in the line, not
7560 past it. This may actually move the cursor to the left!
7561 It doesn't make sense to combine "all" with "onemore", but you will
7562 not get a warning for it.
7564 *'visualbell'* *'vb'* *'novisualbell'* *'novb'* *beep*
7565 'visualbell' 'vb' boolean (default off)
7568 Use visual bell instead of beeping. The terminal code to display the
7569 visual bell is given with 't_vb'. When no beep or flash is wanted,
7570 use ":set vb t_vb=".
7571 Note: When the GUI starts, 't_vb' is reset to its default value. You
7572 might want to set it again in your |gvimrc|.
7573 In the GUI, 't_vb' defaults to "<Esc>|f", which inverts the display
7574 for 20 msec. If you want to use a different time, use "<Esc>|40f",
7575 where 40 is the time in msec.
7576 Does not work on the Amiga, you always get a screen flash.
7577 Also see 'errorbells'.
7580 'warn' boolean (default on)
7582 Give a warning message when a shell command is used while the buffer
7585 *'weirdinvert'* *'wiv'* *'noweirdinvert'* *'nowiv'*
7586 'weirdinvert' 'wiv' boolean (default off)
7589 This option has the same effect as the 't_xs' terminal option.
7590 It is provided for backwards compatibility with version 4.x.
7591 Setting 'weirdinvert' has the effect of making 't_xs' non-empty, and
7592 vice versa. Has no effect when the GUI is running.
7594 *'whichwrap'* *'ww'*
7595 'whichwrap' 'ww' string (Vim default: "b,s", Vi default: "")
7598 Allow specified keys that move the cursor left/right to move to the
7599 previous/next line when the cursor is on the first/last character in
7600 the line. Concatenate characters to allow this for these keys:
7602 b <BS> Normal and Visual
7603 s <Space> Normal and Visual
7604 h "h" Normal and Visual (not recommended)
7605 l "l" Normal and Visual (not recommended)
7606 < <Left> Normal and Visual
7607 > <Right> Normal and Visual
7609 [ <Left> Insert and Replace
7610 ] <Right> Insert and Replace
7613 < allows wrap only when cursor keys are used.
7614 When the movement keys are used in combination with a delete or change
7615 operator, the <EOL> also counts for a character. This makes "3h"
7616 different from "3dh" when the cursor crosses the end of a line. This
7617 is also true for "x" and "X", because they do the same as "dl" and
7618 "dh". If you use this, you may also want to use the mapping
7619 ":map <BS> X" to make backspace delete the character in front of the
7621 When 'l' is included and it is used after an operator at the end of a
7622 line then it will not move to the next line. This makes "dl", "cl",
7623 "yl" etc. work normally.
7624 NOTE: This option is set to the Vi default value when 'compatible' is
7625 set and to the Vim default value when 'compatible' is reset.
7628 'wildchar' 'wc' number (Vim default: <Tab>, Vi default: CTRL-E)
7631 Character you have to type to start wildcard expansion in the
7632 command-line, as specified with 'wildmode'.
7633 More info here: |cmdline-completion|.
7634 The character is not recognized when used inside a macro. See
7635 'wildcharm' for that.
7636 Although 'wc' is a number option, you can set it to a special key: >
7638 < NOTE: This option is set to the Vi default value when 'compatible' is
7639 set and to the Vim default value when 'compatible' is reset.
7641 *'wildcharm'* *'wcm'*
7642 'wildcharm' 'wcm' number (default: none (0))
7645 'wildcharm' works exactly like 'wildchar', except that it is
7646 recognized when used inside a macro. You can find "spare" command-line
7647 keys suitable for this option by looking at |ex-edit-index|. Normally
7648 you'll never actually type 'wildcharm', just use it in mappings that
7649 automatically invoke completion mode, e.g.: >
7651 :cnoremap ss so $vim/sessions/*.vim<C-Z>
7652 < Then after typing :ss you can use CTRL-P & CTRL-N.
7654 *'wildignore'* *'wig'*
7655 'wildignore' 'wig' string (default "")
7658 {not available when compiled without the |+wildignore|
7660 A list of file patterns. A file that matches with one of these
7661 patterns is ignored when completing file or directory names, and
7662 influences the result of |expand()|, |glob()| and |globpath()| unless
7663 a flag is passed to disable this.
7664 The pattern is used like with |:autocmd|, see |autocmd-patterns|.
7665 Also see 'suffixes'.
7667 :set wildignore=*.o,*.obj
7668 < The use of |:set+=| and |:set-=| is preferred when adding or removing
7669 a pattern from the list. This avoids problems when a future version
7670 uses another default.
7672 *'wildmenu'* *'wmnu'* *'nowildmenu'* *'nowmnu'*
7673 'wildmenu' 'wmnu' boolean (default off)
7676 {not available if compiled without the |+wildmenu|
7678 When 'wildmenu' is on, command-line completion operates in an enhanced
7679 mode. On pressing 'wildchar' (usually <Tab>) to invoke completion,
7680 the possible matches are shown just above the command line, with the
7681 first match highlighted (overwriting the status line, if there is
7682 one). Keys that show the previous/next match, such as <Tab> or
7683 CTRL-P/CTRL-N, cause the highlight to move to the appropriate match.
7684 When 'wildmode' is used, "wildmenu" mode is used where "full" is
7685 specified. "longest" and "list" do not start "wildmenu" mode.
7686 If there are more matches than can fit in the line, a ">" is shown on
7687 the right and/or a "<" is shown on the left. The status line scrolls
7689 The "wildmenu" mode is abandoned when a key is hit that is not used
7690 for selecting a completion.
7691 While the "wildmenu" is active the following keys have special
7694 <Left> <Right> - select previous/next match (like CTRL-P/CTRL-N)
7695 <Down> - in filename/menu name completion: move into a
7696 subdirectory or submenu.
7697 <CR> - in menu completion, when the cursor is just after a
7698 dot: move into a submenu.
7699 <Up> - in filename/menu name completion: move up into
7700 parent directory or parent menu.
7702 This makes the menus accessible from the console |console-menus|.
7704 If you prefer the <Left> and <Right> keys to move the cursor instead
7705 of selecting a different match, use this: >
7706 :cnoremap <Left> <Space><BS><Left>
7707 :cnoremap <Right> <Space><BS><Right>
7709 The "WildMenu" highlighting is used for displaying the current match
7712 *'wildmode'* *'wim'*
7713 'wildmode' 'wim' string (Vim default: "full")
7716 Completion mode that is used for the character specified with
7717 'wildchar'. It is a comma separated list of up to four parts. Each
7718 part specifies what to do for each consecutive use of 'wildchar'. The
7719 first part specifies the behavior for the first use of 'wildchar',
7720 The second part for the second use, etc.
7721 These are the possible values for each part:
7722 "" Complete only the first match.
7723 "full" Complete the next full match. After the last match,
7724 the original string is used and then the first match
7726 "longest" Complete till longest common string. If this doesn't
7727 result in a longer string, use the next part.
7728 "longest:full" Like "longest", but also start 'wildmenu' if it is
7730 "list" When more than one match, list all matches.
7731 "list:full" When more than one match, list all matches and
7732 complete first match.
7733 "list:longest" When more than one match, list all matches and
7734 complete till longest common string.
7735 When there is only a single match, it is fully completed in all cases.
7739 < Complete first full match, next match, etc. (the default) >
7740 :set wildmode=longest,full
7741 < Complete longest common string, then each full match >
7742 :set wildmode=list:full
7743 < List all matches and complete each full match >
7744 :set wildmode=list,full
7745 < List all matches without completing, then each full match >
7746 :set wildmode=longest,list
7747 < Complete longest common string, then list alternatives.
7748 More info here: |cmdline-completion|.
7750 *'wildoptions'* *'wop'*
7751 'wildoptions' 'wop' string (default "")
7754 {not available when compiled without the |+wildignore|
7756 A list of words that change how command line completion is done.
7757 Currently only one word is allowed:
7758 tagfile When using CTRL-D to list matching tags, the kind of
7759 tag and the file of the tag is listed. Only one match
7760 is displayed per line. Often used tag kinds are:
7763 Also see |cmdline-completion|.
7765 *'winaltkeys'* *'wak'*
7766 'winaltkeys' 'wak' string (default "menu")
7769 {only used in Win32, Motif, GTK and Photon GUI}
7770 Some GUI versions allow the access to menu entries by using the ALT
7771 key in combination with a character that appears underlined in the
7772 menu. This conflicts with the use of the ALT key for mappings and
7773 entering special characters. This option tells what to do:
7774 no Don't use ALT keys for menus. ALT key combinations can be
7775 mapped, but there is no automatic handling. This can then be
7776 done with the |:simalt| command.
7777 yes ALT key handling is done by the windowing system. ALT key
7778 combinations cannot be mapped.
7779 menu Using ALT in combination with a character that is a menu
7780 shortcut key, will be handled by the windowing system. Other
7782 If the menu is disabled by excluding 'm' from 'guioptions', the ALT
7783 key is never used for the menu.
7784 This option is not used for <F10>; on Win32 and with GTK <F10> will
7785 select the menu, unless it has been mapped.
7788 'window' 'wi' number (default screen height - 1)
7790 Window height. Do not confuse this with the height of the Vim window,
7791 use 'lines' for that.
7792 Used for |CTRL-F| and |CTRL-B| when there is only one window and the
7793 value is smaller than 'lines' minus one. The screen will scroll
7794 'window' minus two lines, with a minimum of one.
7795 When 'window' is equal to 'lines' minus one CTRL-F and CTRL-B scroll
7796 in a much smarter way, taking care of wrapping lines.
7797 When resizing the Vim window, the value is smaller than 1 or more than
7798 or equal to 'lines' it will be set to 'lines' minus 1.
7799 {Vi also uses the option to specify the number of displayed lines}
7801 *'winheight'* *'wh'* *E591*
7802 'winheight' 'wh' number (default 1)
7805 {not available when compiled without the +windows
7807 Minimal number of lines for the current window. This is not a hard
7808 minimum, Vim will use fewer lines if there is not enough room. If the
7809 focus goes to a window that is smaller, its size is increased, at the
7810 cost of the height of other windows.
7811 Set 'winheight' to a small number for normal editing.
7812 Set it to 999 to make the current window fill most of the screen.
7813 Other windows will be only 'winminheight' high. This has the drawback
7814 that ":all" will create only two windows. To avoid "vim -o 1 2 3 4"
7815 to create only two windows, set the option after startup is done,
7816 using the |VimEnter| event: >
7817 au VimEnter * set winheight=999
7818 < Minimum value is 1.
7819 The height is not adjusted after one of the commands that change the
7820 height of the current window.
7821 'winheight' applies to the current window. Use 'winminheight' to set
7822 the minimal height for other windows.
7824 *'winfixheight'* *'wfh'* *'nowinfixheight'* *'nowfh'*
7825 'winfixheight' 'wfh' boolean (default off)
7828 {not available when compiled without the +windows
7830 Keep the window height when windows are opened or closed and
7831 'equalalways' is set. Also for |CTRL-W_=|. Set by default for the
7832 |preview-window| and |quickfix-window|.
7833 The height may be changed anyway when running out of room.
7835 *'winfixwidth'* *'wfw'* *'nowinfixwidth'* *'nowfw'*
7836 'winfixwidth' 'wfw' boolean (default off)
7839 {not available when compiled without the +windows
7841 Keep the window width when windows are opened or closed and
7842 'equalalways' is set. Also for |CTRL-W_=|.
7843 The width may be changed anyway when running out of room.
7845 *'winminheight'* *'wmh'*
7846 'winminheight' 'wmh' number (default 1)
7849 {not available when compiled without the +windows
7851 The minimal height of a window, when it's not the current window.
7852 This is a hard minimum, windows will never become smaller.
7853 When set to zero, windows may be "squashed" to zero lines (i.e. just a
7854 status bar) if necessary. They will return to at least one line when
7855 they become active (since the cursor has to have somewhere to go.)
7856 Use 'winheight' to set the minimal height of the current window.
7857 This option is only checked when making a window smaller. Don't use a
7858 large number, it will cause errors when opening more than a few
7859 windows. A value of 0 to 3 is reasonable.
7861 *'winminwidth'* *'wmw'*
7862 'winminwidth' 'wmw' number (default 1)
7865 {not available when compiled without the +vertsplit
7867 The minimal width of a window, when it's not the current window.
7868 This is a hard minimum, windows will never become smaller.
7869 When set to zero, windows may be "squashed" to zero columns (i.e. just
7870 a vertical separator) if necessary. They will return to at least one
7871 line when they become active (since the cursor has to have somewhere
7873 Use 'winwidth' to set the minimal width of the current window.
7874 This option is only checked when making a window smaller. Don't use a
7875 large number, it will cause errors when opening more than a few
7876 windows. A value of 0 to 12 is reasonable.
7878 *'winwidth'* *'wiw'* *E592*
7879 'winwidth' 'wiw' number (default 20)
7882 {not available when compiled without the +vertsplit
7884 Minimal number of columns for the current window. This is not a hard
7885 minimum, Vim will use fewer columns if there is not enough room. If
7886 the current window is smaller, its size is increased, at the cost of
7887 the width of other windows. Set it to 999 to make the current window
7888 always fill the screen. Set it to a small number for normal editing.
7889 The width is not adjusted after one of the commands to change the
7890 width of the current window.
7891 'winwidth' applies to the current window. Use 'winminwidth' to set
7892 the minimal width for other windows.
7895 'wrap' boolean (default on)
7898 This option changes how text is displayed. It doesn't change the text
7899 in the buffer, see 'textwidth' for that.
7900 When on, lines longer than the width of the window will wrap and
7901 displaying continues on the next line. When off lines will not wrap
7902 and only part of long lines will be displayed. When the cursor is
7903 moved to a part that is not shown, the screen will scroll
7905 The line will be broken in the middle of a word if necessary. See
7906 'linebreak' to get the break at a word boundary.
7907 To make scrolling horizontally a bit more useful, try this: >
7909 :set listchars+=precedes:<,extends:>
7910 < See 'sidescroll', 'listchars' and |wrap-off|.
7911 This option can't be set from a |modeline| when the 'diff' option is
7914 *'wrapmargin'* *'wm'*
7915 'wrapmargin' 'wm' number (default 0)
7917 Number of characters from the right window border where wrapping
7918 starts. When typing text beyond this limit, an <EOL> will be inserted
7919 and inserting continues on the next line.
7920 Options that add a margin, such as 'number' and 'foldcolumn', cause
7921 the text width to be further reduced. This is Vi compatible.
7922 When 'textwidth' is non-zero, this option is not used.
7923 See also 'formatoptions' and |ins-textwidth|. {Vi: works differently
7926 *'wrapscan'* *'ws'* *'nowrapscan'* *'nows'*
7927 'wrapscan' 'ws' boolean (default on) *E384* *E385*
7929 Searches wrap around the end of the file. Also applies to |]s| and
7930 |[s|, searching for spelling mistakes.
7932 *'write'* *'nowrite'*
7933 'write' boolean (default on)
7936 Allows writing files. When not set, writing a file is not allowed.
7937 Can be used for a view-only mode, where modifications to the text are
7938 still allowed. Can be reset with the |-m| or |-M| command line
7939 argument. Filtering text is still possible, even though this requires
7940 writing a temporary file.
7942 *'writeany'* *'wa'* *'nowriteany'* *'nowa'*
7943 'writeany' 'wa' boolean (default off)
7945 Allows writing to any file with no need for "!" override.
7947 *'writebackup'* *'wb'* *'nowritebackup'* *'nowb'*
7948 'writebackup' 'wb' boolean (default on with |+writebackup| feature, off
7952 Make a backup before overwriting a file. The backup is removed after
7953 the file was successfully written, unless the 'backup' option is
7954 also on. Reset this option if your file system is almost full. See
7955 |backup-table| for another explanation.
7956 When the 'backupskip' pattern matches, a backup is not made anyway.
7957 NOTE: This option is set to the default value when 'compatible' is
7960 *'writedelay'* *'wd'*
7961 'writedelay' 'wd' number (default 0)
7964 The number of microseconds to wait for each character sent to the
7965 screen. When non-zero, characters are sent to the terminal one by
7966 one. For MS-DOS pcterm this does not work. For debugging purposes.
7968 vim:tw=78:ts=8:ft=help:norl: