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1 *starting.txt* For Vim version 7.2b. Last change: 2008 Jun 21
4 VIM REFERENCE MANUAL by Bram Moolenaar
7 Starting Vim *starting*
9 1. Vim arguments |vim-arguments|
10 2. Vim on the Amiga |starting-amiga|
11 3. Running eVim |evim-keys|
12 4. Initialization |initialization|
13 5. $VIM and $VIMRUNTIME |$VIM|
14 6. Suspending |suspend|
15 7. Saving settings |save-settings|
16 8. Views and Sessions |views-sessions|
17 9. The viminfo file |viminfo-file|
19 ==============================================================================
20 1. Vim arguments *vim-arguments*
22 Most often, Vim is started to edit a single file with the command
24 vim filename *-vim*
26 More generally, Vim is started with:
28 vim [option | filename] ..
30 Option arguments and file name arguments can be mixed, and any number of them
31 can be given. However, watch out for options that take an argument.
33 For compatibility with various Vi versions, see |cmdline-arguments|.
35 Exactly one out of the following five items may be used to choose how to
36 start editing:
38 *-file* *---*
39 filename One or more file names. The first one will be the current
40 file and read into the buffer. The cursor will be positioned
41 on the first line of the buffer.
42 To avoid a file name starting with a '-' being interpreted as
43 an option, precede the arglist with "--", e.g.: >
44 vim -- -filename
45 < All arguments after the "--" will be interpreted as file names,
46 no other options or "+command" argument can follow.
48 *--*
49 - This argument can mean two things, depending on whether Ex
50 mode is to be used.
52 Starting in Normal mode: >
53 vim -
54 ex -v -
55 < Start editing a new buffer, which is filled with text
56 that is read from stdin. The commands that would normally be
57 read from stdin will now be read from stderr. Example: >
58 find . -name "*.c" -print | vim -
59 < The buffer will be marked modified, because it contains text
60 that needs to be saved. Except when in readonly mode, then
61 the buffer is not marked modified. Example: >
62 ls | view -
63 <
64 Starting in Ex mode: >
65 ex -
66 vim -e -
67 exim -
68 vim -E
69 < Start editing in silent mode. See |-s-ex|.
71 *-t* *-tag*
72 -t {tag} A tag. "tag" is looked up in the tags file, the associated
73 file becomes the current file, and the associated command is
74 executed. Mostly this is used for C programs, in which case
75 "tag" often is a function name. The effect is that the file
76 containing that function becomes the current file and the
77 cursor is positioned on the start of the function (see
78 |tags|).
80 *-q* *-qf*
81 -q [errorfile] QuickFix mode. The file with the name [errorfile] is read
82 and the first error is displayed. See |quickfix|.
83 If [errorfile] is not given, the 'errorfile' option is used
84 for the file name. See 'errorfile' for the default value.
85 {not in Vi}
87 (nothing) Without one of the four items above, Vim will start editing a
88 new buffer. It's empty and doesn't have a file name.
91 The startup mode can be changed by using another name instead of "vim", which
92 is equal to giving options:
93 ex vim -e Start in Ex mode (see |Ex-mode|). *ex*
94 exim vim -E Start in improved Ex mode (see |Ex-mode|). *exim*
95 (normally not installed)
96 view vim -R Start in read-only mode (see |-R|). *view*
97 gvim vim -g Start the GUI (see |gui|). *gvim*
98 gex vim -eg Start the GUI in Ex mode. *gex*
99 gview vim -Rg Start the GUI in read-only mode. *gview*
100 rvim vim -Z Like "vim", but in restricted mode (see |-Z|) *rvim*
101 rview vim -RZ Like "view", but in restricted mode. *rview*
102 rgvim vim -gZ Like "gvim", but in restricted mode. *rgvim*
103 rgview vim -RgZ Like "gview", but in restricted mode. *rgview*
104 evim vim -y Easy Vim: set 'insertmode' (see |-y|) *evim*
105 eview vim -yR Like "evim" in read-only mode *eview*
106 vimdiff vim -d Start in diff mode |diff-mode|
107 gvimdiff vim -gd Start in diff mode |diff-mode|
109 Additional characters may follow, they are ignored. For example, you can have
110 "gvim-5" to start the GUI. You must have an executable by that name then, of
111 course.
113 On Unix, you would normally have one executable called Vim, and links from the
114 different startup-names to that executable. If your system does not support
115 links and you do not want to have several copies of the executable, you could
116 use an alias instead. For example: >
117 alias view vim -R
118 alias gvim vim -g
119 <
120 *startup-options*
121 The option arguments may be given in any order. Single-letter options can be
122 combined after one dash. There can be no option arguments after the "--"
123 argument.
125 On VMS all option arguments are assumed to be lowercase, unless preceded with
126 a slash. Thus "-R" means recovery and "-/R" readonly.
128 --help *-h* *--help*
129 -h Give usage (help) message and exit. {not in Vi}
130 See |info-message| about capturing the text.
132 *--version*
133 --version Print version information and exit. Same output as for
134 |:version| command. {not in Vi}
135 See |info-message| about capturing the text.
137 *--noplugin*
138 --noplugin Skip loading plugins. Resets the 'loadplugins' option.
139 {not in Vi}
140 Note that the |-u| argument may also disable loading plugins:
141 argument load vimrc files load plugins ~
142 (nothing) yes yes
143 -u NONE no no
144 -u NORC no yes
145 --noplugin yes no
147 *--literal*
148 --literal Take file names literally, don't expand wildcards. Not needed
149 for Unix, because Vim always takes file names literally (the
150 shell expands wildcards).
151 Applies to all the names, also the ones that come before this
152 argument.
154 *-+*
155 +[num] The cursor will be positioned on line "num" for the first
156 file being edited. If "num" is missing, the cursor will be
157 positioned on the last line.
159 *-+/*
160 +/{pat} The cursor will be positioned on the first line containing
161 "pat" in the first file being edited (see |pattern| for the
162 available search patterns).
164 +{command} *-+c* *-c*
165 -c {command} {command} will be executed after the first file has been
166 read (and after autocommands and modelines for that file have
167 been processed). "command" is interpreted as an Ex command.
168 If the "command" contains spaces, it must be enclosed in
169 double quotes (this depends on the shell that is used).
170 Example: >
171 vim "+set si" main.c
172 vim "+find stdio.h"
173 vim -c "set ff=dos" -c wq mine.mak
174 <
175 Note: You can use up to 10 "+" or "-c" arguments in a Vim
176 command. They are executed in the order given. A "-S"
177 argument counts as a "-c" argument as well.
178 {Vi only allows one command}
180 --cmd {command} *--cmd*
181 {command} will be executed before processing any vimrc file.
182 Otherwise it acts like -c {command}. You can use up to 10 of
183 these commands, independently from "-c" commands.
184 {not in Vi}
186 *-S*
187 -S {file} The {file} will be sourced after the first file has been read.
188 This is an easy way to do the equivalent of: >
189 -c "source {file}"
190 < It can be mixed with "-c" arguments and repeated like "-c".
191 The limit of 10 "-c" arguments applies here as well.
192 {file} cannot start with a "-".
193 {not in Vi}
195 -S Works like "-S Session.vim". Only when used as the last
196 argument or when another "-" option follows.
198 *-r*
199 -r Recovery mode. Without a file name argument, a list of
200 existing swap files is given. With a file name, a swap file
201 is read to recover a crashed editing session. See
202 |crash-recovery|.
204 *-L*
205 -L Same as -r. {only in some versions of Vi: "List recoverable
206 edit sessions"}
208 *-R*
209 -R Readonly mode. The 'readonly' option will be set for all the
210 files being edited. You can still edit the buffer, but will
211 be prevented from accidentally overwriting a file. If you
212 forgot that you are in View mode and did make some changes,
213 you can overwrite a file by adding an exclamation mark to
214 the Ex command, as in ":w!". The 'readonly' option can be
215 reset with ":set noro" (see the options chapter, |options|).
216 Subsequent edits will not be done in readonly mode. Calling
217 the executable "view" has the same effect as the -R argument.
218 The 'updatecount' option will be set to 10000, meaning that
219 the swap file will not be updated automatically very often.
221 *-m*
222 -m Modifications not allowed to be written. The 'write' option
223 will be reset, so that writing files is disabled. However,
224 the 'write' option can be set to enable writing again.
225 {not in Vi}
227 *-M*
228 -M Modifications not allowed. The 'modifiable' option will be
229 reset, so that changes are not allowed. The 'write' option
230 will be reset, so that writing files is disabled. However,
231 the 'modifiable' and 'write' options can be set to enable
232 changes and writing.
233 {not in Vi}
235 *-Z* *restricted-mode* *E145*
236 -Z Restricted mode. All commands that make use of an external
237 shell are disabled. This includes suspending with CTRL-Z,
238 ":sh", filtering, the system() function, backtick expansion,
239 etc.
240 {not in Vi}
242 *-g*
243 -g Start Vim in GUI mode. See |gui|. {not in Vi}
245 *-v*
246 -v Start Ex in Vi mode. Only makes a difference when the
247 executable is called "ex" or "gvim". For gvim the GUI is not
248 started if possible.
250 *-e*
251 -e Start Vim in Ex mode |Q|. Only makes a difference when the
252 executable is not called "ex".
254 *-E*
255 -E Start Vim in improved Ex mode |gQ|. Only makes a difference
256 when the executable is not called "exim".
257 {not in Vi}
259 *-s-ex*
260 -s Silent or batch mode. Only when Vim was started as "ex" or
261 when preceded with the "-e" argument. Otherwise see |-s|,
262 which does take an argument while this use of "-s" doesn't.
263 To be used when Vim is used to execute Ex commands from a file
264 instead of a terminal. Switches off most prompts and
265 informative messages. Also warnings and error messages.
266 The output of these commands is displayed (to stdout):
267 :print
268 :list
269 :number
270 :set to display option values.
271 When 'verbose' is non-zero messages are printed (for
272 debugging, to stderr).
273 'term' and $TERM are not used.
274 If Vim appears to be stuck try typing "qa!<Enter>". You don't
275 get a prompt thus you can't see Vim is waiting for you to type
276 something.
277 Initializations are skipped (except the ones given with the
278 "-u" argument).
279 Example: >
280 vim -e -s < thefilter thefile
281 <
282 *-b*
283 -b Binary mode. File I/O will only recognize <NL> to separate
284 lines. The 'expandtab' option will be reset. The 'textwidth'
285 option is set to 0. 'modeline' is reset. The 'binary' option
286 is set. This is done after reading the vimrc/exrc files but
287 before reading any file in the arglist. See also
288 |edit-binary|. {not in Vi}
290 *-l*
291 -l Lisp mode. Sets the 'lisp' and 'showmatch' options on.
293 *-A*
294 -A Arabic mode. Sets the 'arabic' option on. (Only when
295 compiled with the |+arabic| features (which include
296 |+rightleft|), otherwise Vim gives an error message
297 and exits.) {not in Vi}
299 *-F*
300 -F Farsi mode. Sets the 'fkmap' and 'rightleft' options on.
301 (Only when compiled with |+rightleft| and |+farsi| features,
302 otherwise Vim gives an error message and exits.) {not in Vi}
304 *-H*
305 -H Hebrew mode. Sets the 'hkmap' and 'rightleft' options on.
306 (Only when compiled with the |+rightleft| feature, otherwise
307 Vim gives an error message and exits.) {not in Vi}
309 *-V* *verbose*
310 -V[N] Verbose. Sets the 'verbose' option to [N] (default: 10).
311 Messages will be given for each file that is ":source"d and
312 for reading or writing a viminfo file. Can be used to find
313 out what is happening upon startup and exit. {not in Vi}
314 Example: >
315 vim -V8 foobar
317 -V[N]{filename}
318 Like -V and set 'verbosefile' to {filename}. The result is
319 that messages are not displayed but written to the file
320 {filename}. {filename} must not start with a digit.
321 Example: >
322 vim -V20vimlog foobar
323 <
324 *-D*
325 -D Debugging. Go to debugging mode when executing the first
326 command from a script. |debug-mode|
327 {not available when compiled without the |+eval| feature}
328 {not in Vi}
330 *-C*
331 -C Compatible mode. Sets the 'compatible' option. You can use
332 this to get 'compatible', even though a .vimrc file exists.
333 But the command ":set nocompatible" overrules it anyway.
334 Also see |compatible-default|. {not in Vi}
336 *-N*
337 -N Not compatible mode. Resets the 'compatible' option. You can
338 use this to get 'nocompatible', when there is no .vimrc file.
339 Also see |compatible-default|. {not in Vi}
341 *-y* *easy*
342 -y Easy mode. Implied for |evim| and |eview|. Starts with
343 'insertmode' set and behaves like a click-and-type editor.
344 This sources the script $VIMRUNTIME/evim.vim. Mappings are
345 set up to work like most click-and-type editors, see
346 |evim-keys|. The GUI is started when available.
347 {not in Vi}
349 *-n*
350 -n No swap file will be used. Recovery after a crash will be
351 impossible. Handy if you want to view or edit a file on a
352 very slow medium (e.g., a floppy).
353 Can also be done with ":set updatecount=0". You can switch it
354 on again by setting the 'updatecount' option to some value,
355 e.g., ":set uc=100".
356 'updatecount' is set to 0 AFTER executing commands from a
357 vimrc file, but before the GUI initializations. Thus it
358 overrides a setting for 'updatecount' in a vimrc file, but not
359 in a gvimrc file. See |startup|.
360 When you want to reduce accesses to the disk (e.g., for a
361 laptop), don't use "-n", but set 'updatetime' and
362 'updatecount' to very big numbers, and type ":preserve" when
363 you want to save your work. This way you keep the possibility
364 for crash recovery.
365 {not in Vi}
367 *-o*
368 -o[N] Open N windows, split horizontally. If [N] is not given,
369 one window is opened for every file given as argument. If
370 there is not enough room, only the first few files get a
371 window. If there are more windows than arguments, the last
372 few windows will be editing an empty file.
373 {not in Vi}
375 *-O*
376 -O[N] Open N windows, split vertically. Otherwise it's like -o.
377 If both the -o and the -O option are given, the last one on
378 the command line determines how the windows will be split.
379 {not in Vi}
381 *-p*
382 -p[N] Open N tab pages. If [N] is not given, one tab page is opened
383 for every file given as argument. The maximum is set with
384 'tabpagemax' pages (default 10). If there are more tab pages
385 than arguments, the last few tab pages will be editing an
386 empty file. Also see |tabpage|.
387 {not in Vi}
389 *-T*
390 -T {terminal} Set the terminal type to "terminal". This influences the
391 codes that Vim will send to your terminal. This is normally
392 not needed, because Vim will be able to find out what type
393 of terminal you are using. (See |terminal-info|.) {not in Vi}
395 *-d*
396 -d Start in diff mode, like |vimdiff|.
397 {not in Vi} {not available when compiled without the |+diff|
398 feature}
400 -d {device} Only on the Amiga and when not compiled with the |+diff|
401 feature. Works like "-dev".
402 *-dev*
403 -dev {device} Only on the Amiga: The {device} is opened to be used for
404 editing.
405 Normally you would use this to set the window position and
406 size: "-d con:x/y/width/height", e.g.,
407 "-d con:30/10/600/150". But you can also use it to start
408 editing on another device, e.g., AUX:. {not in Vi}
409 *-f*
410 -f Amiga: Do not restart Vim to open a new window. This
411 option should be used when Vim is started by a program that
412 will wait for the edit session to finish (e.g., mail or
413 readnews). See |amiga-window|.
415 GUI: Do not disconnect from the program that started Vim.
416 'f' stands for "foreground". If omitted, the GUI forks a new
417 process and exits the current one. "-f" should be used when
418 gvim is started by a program that will wait for the edit
419 session to finish (e.g., mail or readnews). If you want gvim
420 never to fork, include 'f' in 'guioptions' in your |gvimrc|.
421 Careful: You can use "-gf" to start the GUI in the foreground,
422 but "-fg" is used to specify the foreground color. |gui-fork|
423 {not in Vi}
425 *--nofork*
426 --nofork GUI: Do not fork. Same as |-f|.
427 *-u* *E282*
428 -u {vimrc} The file {vimrc} is read for initializations. Most other
429 initializations are skipped; see |initialization|. This can
430 be used to start Vim in a special mode, with special
431 mappings and settings. A shell alias can be used to make
432 this easy to use. For example: >
433 alias vimc vim -u ~/.c_vimrc !*
434 < Also consider using autocommands; see |autocommand|.
435 When {vimrc} is equal to "NONE" (all uppercase), all
436 initializations from files and environment variables are
437 skipped, including reading the |gvimrc| file when the GUI
438 starts. Loading plugins is also skipped.
439 When {vimrc} is equal to "NORC" (all uppercase), this has the
440 same effect as "NONE", but loading plugins is not skipped.
441 Using the "-u" argument has the side effect that the
442 'compatible' option will be on by default. This can have
443 unexpected effects. See |'compatible'|.
444 {not in Vi}
446 *-U* *E230*
447 -U {gvimrc} The file {gvimrc} is read for initializations when the GUI
448 starts. Other GUI initializations are skipped. When {gvimrc}
449 is equal to "NONE", no file is read for GUI initializations at
450 all. |gui-init|
451 Exception: Reading the system-wide menu file is always done.
452 {not in Vi}
454 *-i*
455 -i {viminfo} The file "viminfo" is used instead of the default viminfo
456 file. If the name "NONE" is used (all uppercase), no viminfo
457 file is read or written, even if 'viminfo' is set or when
458 ":rv" or ":wv" are used. See also |viminfo-file|.
459 {not in Vi}
461 *-x*
462 -x Use encryption to read/write files. Will prompt for a key,
463 which is then stored in the 'key' option. All writes will
464 then use this key to encrypt the text. The '-x' argument is
465 not needed when reading a file, because there is a check if
466 the file that is being read has been encrypted, and Vim asks
467 for a key automatically. |encryption|
469 *-X*
470 -X Do not try connecting to the X server to get the current
471 window title and copy/paste using the X clipboard. This
472 avoids a long startup time when running Vim in a terminal
473 emulator and the connection to the X server is slow.
474 Only makes a difference on Unix or VMS, when compiled with the
475 |+X11| feature. Otherwise it's ignored.
476 To disable the connection only for specific terminals, see the
477 'clipboard' option.
478 When the X11 Session Management Protocol (XSMP) handler has
479 been built in, the -X option also disables that connection as
480 it, too, may have undesirable delays.
481 When the connection is desired later anyway (e.g., for
482 client-server messages), call the |serverlist()| function.
483 This does not enable the XSMP handler though.
484 {not in Vi}
486 *-s*
487 -s {scriptin} The script file "scriptin" is read. The characters in the
488 file are interpreted as if you had typed them. The same can
489 be done with the command ":source! {scriptin}". If the end
490 of the file is reached before the editor exits, further
491 characters are read from the keyboard. Only works when not
492 started in Ex mode, see |-s-ex|. See also |complex-repeat|.
493 {not in Vi}
495 *-w_nr*
496 -w {number}
497 -w{number} Set the 'window' option to {number}.
499 *-w*
500 -w {scriptout} All the characters that you type are recorded in the file
501 "scriptout", until you exit Vim. This is useful if you want
502 to create a script file to be used with "vim -s" or
503 ":source!". When the "scriptout" file already exists, new
504 characters are appended. See also |complex-repeat|.
505 {scriptout} cannot start with a digit.
506 {not in Vi}
508 *-W*
509 -W {scriptout} Like -w, but do not append, overwrite an existing file.
510 {not in Vi}
512 --remote [+{cmd}] {file} ...
513 Open the {file} in another Vim that functions as a server.
514 Any non-file arguments must come before this.
515 See |--remote|. {not in Vi}
517 --remote-silent [+{cmd}] {file} ...
518 Like --remote, but don't complain if there is no server.
519 See |--remote-silent|. {not in Vi}
521 --remote-wait [+{cmd}] {file} ...
522 Like --remote, but wait for the server to finish editing the
523 file(s).
524 See |--remote-wait|. {not in Vi}
526 --remote-wait-silent [+{cmd}] {file} ...
527 Like --remote-wait, but don't complain if there is no server.
528 See |--remote-wait-silent|. {not in Vi}
530 --servername {name}
531 Specify the name of the Vim server to send to or to become.
532 See |--servername|. {not in Vi}
534 --remote-send {keys}
535 Send {keys} to a Vim server and exit.
536 See |--remote-send|. {not in Vi}
538 --remote-expr {expr}
539 Evaluate {expr} in another Vim that functions as a server.
540 The result is printed on stdout.
541 See |--remote-expr|. {not in Vi}
543 --serverlist Output a list of Vim server names and exit. See
544 |--serverlist|. {not in Vi}
546 --socketid {id} *--socketid*
547 GTK+ GUI Vim only. Make gvim try to use GtkPlug mechanism, so
548 that it runs inside another window. See |gui-gtk-socketid|
549 for details. {not in Vi}
551 --windowid {id} *--windowid*
552 Win32 GUI Vim only. Make gvim try to use the window {id} as a
553 parent, so that it runs inside that window. See
554 |gui-w32-windowid| for details. {not in Vi}
556 --echo-wid *--echo-wid*
557 GTK+ GUI Vim only. Make gvim echo the Window ID on stdout,
558 which can be used to run gvim in a kpart widget. The format
559 of the output is: >
560 WID: 12345\n
561 < {not in Vi}
563 --role {role} *--role*
564 GTK+ 2 GUI only. Set the role of the main window to {role}.
565 The window role can be used by a window manager to uniquely
566 identify a window, in order to restore window placement and
567 such. The --role argument is passed automatically when
568 restoring the session on login. See |gui-gnome-session|
569 {not in Vi}
571 -P {parent-title} *-P* *MDI* *E671* *E672*
572 Win32 only: Specify the title of the parent application. When
573 possible, Vim will run in an MDI window inside the
574 application.
575 {parent-title} must appear in the window title of the parent
576 application. Make sure that it is specific enough.
577 Note that the implementation is still primitive. It won't
578 work with all applications and the menu doesn't work.
580 -nb *-nb*
581 -nb={fname}
582 -nb:{hostname}:{addr}:{password}
583 Attempt connecting to Netbeans and become an editor server for
584 it. The second form specifies a file to read connection info
585 from. The third form specifies the hostname, address and
586 password for connecting to Netbeans. |netbeans-run|
588 Example for using a script file to change a name in several files:
589 Create a file "subs.vi" containing substitute commands and a :wq
590 command: >
591 :%s/Jones/Smith/g
592 :%s/Allen/Peter/g
593 :wq
594 <
595 Execute Vim on all files you want to change: >
597 foreach i ( *.let ) vim -s subs.vi $i
599 If the executable is called "view", Vim will start in Readonly mode. This is
600 useful if you can make a hard or symbolic link from "view" to "vim".
601 Starting in Readonly mode can also be done with "vim -R".
603 If the executable is called "ex", Vim will start in "Ex" mode. This means it
604 will accept only ":" commands. But when the "-v" argument is given, Vim will
605 start in Normal mode anyway.
607 Additional arguments are available on unix like systems when compiled with
608 X11 GUI support. See |gui-resources|.
610 ==============================================================================
611 2. Vim on the Amiga *starting-amiga*
613 Starting Vim from the Workbench *workbench*
614 -------------------------------
616 Vim can be started from the Workbench by clicking on its icon twice. It will
617 then start with an empty buffer.
619 Vim can be started to edit one or more files by using a "Project" icon. The
620 "Default Tool" of the icon must be the full pathname of the Vim executable.
621 The name of the ".info" file must be the same as the name of the text file.
622 By clicking on this icon twice, Vim will be started with the file name as
623 current file name, which will be read into the buffer (if it exists). You can
624 edit multiple files by pressing the shift key while clicking on icons, and
625 clicking twice on the last one. The "Default Tool" for all these icons must
626 be the same.
628 It is not possible to give arguments to Vim, other than file names, from the
629 workbench.
631 Vim window *amiga-window*
632 ----------
634 Vim will run in the CLI window where it was started. If Vim was started with
635 the "run" or "runback" command, or if Vim was started from the workbench, it
636 will open a window of its own.
638 Technical detail:
639 To open the new window a little trick is used. As soon as Vim
640 recognizes that it does not run in a normal CLI window, it will
641 create a script file in "t:". This script file contains the same
642 command as the one Vim was started with, and an "endcli" command.
643 This script file is then executed with a "newcli" command (the "c:run"
644 and "c:newcli" commands are required for this to work). The script
645 file will hang around until reboot, or until you delete it. This
646 method is required to get the ":sh" and ":!" commands to work
647 correctly. But when Vim was started with the -f option (foreground
648 mode), this method is not used. The reason for this is that
649 when a program starts Vim with the -f option it will wait for Vim to
650 exit. With the script trick, the calling program does not know when
651 Vim exits. The -f option can be used when Vim is started by a mail
652 program which also waits for the edit session to finish. As a
653 consequence, the ":sh" and ":!" commands are not available when the
654 -f option is used.
656 Vim will automatically recognize the window size and react to window
657 resizing. Under Amiga DOS 1.3, it is advised to use the fastfonts program,
658 "FF", to speed up display redrawing.
660 ==============================================================================
661 3. Running eVim *evim-keys*
663 EVim runs Vim as click-and-type editor. This is very unlike the original Vi
664 idea. But it helps for people that don't use Vim often enough to learn the
665 commands. Hopefully they will find out that learning to use Normal mode
666 commands will make their editing much more effective.
668 In Evim these options are changed from their default value:
670 :set nocompatible Use Vim improvements
671 :set insertmode Remain in Insert mode most of the time
672 :set hidden Keep invisible buffers loaded
673 :set backup Keep backup files (not for VMS)
674 :set backspace=2 Backspace over everything
675 :set autoindent auto-indent new lines
676 :set history=50 keep 50 lines of Ex commands
677 :set ruler show the cursor position
678 :set incsearch show matches halfway typing a pattern
679 :set mouse=a use the mouse in all modes
680 :set hlsearch highlight all matches for a search pattern
681 :set whichwrap+=<,>,[,] <Left> and <Right> wrap around line breaks
682 :set guioptions-=a non-Unix only: don't do auto-select
684 Key mappings:
685 <Down> moves by screen lines rather than file lines
686 <Up> idem
687 Q does "gq", formatting, instead of Ex mode
688 <BS> in Visual mode: deletes the selection
689 CTRL-X in Visual mode: Cut to clipboard
690 <S-Del> idem
691 CTRL-C in Visual mode: Copy to clipboard
692 <C-Insert> idem
693 CTRL-V Pastes from the clipboard (in any mode)
694 <S-Insert> idem
695 CTRL-Q do what CTRL-V used to do
696 CTRL-Z undo
697 CTRL-Y redo
698 <M-Space> system menu
699 CTRL-A select all
700 <C-Tab> next window, CTRL-W w
701 <C-F4> close window, CTRL-W c
703 Additionally:
704 - ":behave mswin" is used |:behave|
705 - syntax highlighting is enabled
706 - filetype detection is enabled, filetype plugins and indenting is enabled
707 - in a text file 'textwidth' is set to 78
709 One hint: If you want to go to Normal mode to be able to type a sequence of
710 commands, use CTRL-L. |i_CTRL-L|
712 ==============================================================================
713 4. Initialization *initialization* *startup*
715 This section is about the non-GUI version of Vim. See |gui-fork| for
716 additional initialization when starting the GUI.
718 At startup, Vim checks environment variables and files and sets values
719 accordingly. Vim proceeds in this order:
721 1. Set the 'shell' and 'term' option *SHELL* *COMSPEC* *TERM*
722 The environment variable SHELL, if it exists, is used to set the
723 'shell' option. On MS-DOS and Win32, the COMSPEC variable is used
724 if SHELL is not set.
725 The environment variable TERM, if it exists, is used to set the 'term'
726 option. However, 'term' will change later when starting the GUI (step
727 8 below).
729 2. Process the arguments
730 The options and file names from the command that start Vim are
731 inspected. Buffers are created for all files (but not loaded yet).
732 The |-V| argument can be used to display or log what happens next,
733 useful for debugging the initializations.
735 3. Execute Ex commands, from environment variables and/or files
736 An environment variable is read as one Ex command line, where multiple
737 commands must be separated with '|' or "<NL>".
738 *vimrc* *exrc*
739 A file that contains initialization commands is called a "vimrc" file.
740 Each line in a vimrc file is executed as an Ex command line. It is
741 sometimes also referred to as "exrc" file. They are the same type of
742 file, but "exrc" is what Vi always used, "vimrc" is a Vim specific
743 name. Also see |vimrc-intro|.
745 Recommended place for your personal initializations:
746 Unix $HOME/.vimrc
747 OS/2 $HOME/.vimrc or $VIM/.vimrc (or _vimrc)
748 MS-DOS and Win32 $HOME/_vimrc or $VIM/_vimrc
749 Amiga s:.vimrc or $VIM/.vimrc
751 If Vim was started with "-u filename", the file "filename" is used.
752 All following initializations until 4. are skipped.
753 "vim -u NORC" can be used to skip these initializations without
754 reading a file. "vim -u NONE" also skips loading plugins. |-u|
756 If Vim was started in Ex mode with the "-s" argument, all following
757 initializations until 4. are skipped. Only the "-u" option is
758 interpreted.
759 *evim.vim*
760 a. If vim was started as |evim| or |eview| or with the |-y| argument, the
761 script $VIMRUNTIME/evim.vim will be loaded.
762 *system-vimrc*
763 b. For Unix, MS-DOS, MS-Windows, OS/2, VMS, Macintosh, RISC-OS and Amiga
764 the system vimrc file is read for initializations. The path of this
765 file is shown with the ":version" command. Mostly it's "$VIM/vimrc".
766 Note that this file is ALWAYS read in 'compatible' mode, since the
767 automatic resetting of 'compatible' is only done later. Add a ":set
768 nocp" command if you like.
769 For the Macintosh the $VIMRUNTIME/macmap.vim is read (not on
770 MacVim.app, this only applies to the older Carbon version).
772 *VIMINIT* *.vimrc* *_vimrc* *EXINIT* *.exrc* *_exrc*
773 c. Four places are searched for initializations. The first that exists
774 is used, the others are ignored. The $MYVIMRC environment variable is
775 set to the file that was first found, unless $MYVIMRC was already set.
776 - The environment variable VIMINIT (see also |compatible-default|) (*)
777 The value of $VIMINIT is used as an Ex command line.
778 - The user vimrc file(s):
779 "$HOME/.vimrc" (for Unix and OS/2) (*)
780 "s:.vimrc" (for Amiga) (*)
781 "home:.vimrc" (for Amiga) (*)
782 "$VIM/.vimrc" (for OS/2 and Amiga) (*)
783 "$HOME/_vimrc" (for MS-DOS and Win32) (*)
784 "$VIM/_vimrc" (for MS-DOS and Win32) (*)
785 Note: For Unix, OS/2 and Amiga, when ".vimrc" does not exist,
786 "_vimrc" is also tried, in case an MS-DOS compatible file
787 system is used. For MS-DOS and Win32 ".vimrc" is checked
788 after "_vimrc", in case long file names are used.
789 Note: For MS-DOS and Win32, "$HOME" is checked first. If no
790 "_vimrc" or ".vimrc" is found there, "$VIM" is tried.
791 See |$VIM| for when $VIM is not set.
792 - The environment variable EXINIT.
793 The value of $EXINIT is used as an Ex command line.
794 - The user exrc file(s). Same as for the user vimrc file, but with
795 "vimrc" replaced by "exrc". But only one of ".exrc" and "_exrc" is
796 used, depending on the system. And without the (*)!
798 d. If the 'exrc' option is on (which is not the default), the current
799 directory is searched for three files. The first that exists is used,
800 the others are ignored.
801 - The file ".vimrc" (for Unix, Amiga and OS/2) (*)
802 "_vimrc" (for MS-DOS and Win32) (*)
803 - The file "_vimrc" (for Unix, Amiga and OS/2) (*)
804 ".vimrc" (for MS-DOS and Win32) (*)
805 - The file ".exrc" (for Unix, Amiga and OS/2)
806 "_exrc" (for MS-DOS and Win32)
808 (*) Using this file or environment variable will cause 'compatible' to be
809 off by default. See |compatible-default|.
811 4. Load the plugin scripts. *load-plugins*
812 This does the same as the command: >
813 :runtime! plugin/**/*.vim
814 < The result is that all directories in the 'runtimepath' option will be
815 searched for the "plugin" sub-directory and all files ending in ".vim"
816 will be sourced (in alphabetical order per directory), also in
817 subdirectories.
818 Loading plugins won't be done when:
819 - The 'loadplugins' option was reset in a vimrc file.
820 - The |--noplugin| command line argument is used.
821 - The "-u NONE" command line argument is used |-u|.
822 - When Vim was compiled without the |+eval| feature.
823 Note that using "-c 'set noloadplugins'" doesn't work, because the
824 commands from the command line have not been executed yet. You can
825 use "--cmd 'set noloadplugins'" |--cmd|.
827 5. Set 'shellpipe' and 'shellredir'
828 The 'shellpipe' and 'shellredir' options are set according to the
829 value of the 'shell' option, unless they have been set before.
830 This means that Vim will figure out the values of 'shellpipe' and
831 'shellredir' for you, unless you have set them yourself.
833 6. Set 'updatecount' to zero, if "-n" command argument used
835 7. Set binary options
836 If the "-b" flag was given to Vim, the options for binary editing will
837 be set now. See |-b|.
839 8. Perform GUI initializations
840 Only when starting "gvim", the GUI initializations will be done. See
841 |gui-init|.
843 9. Read the viminfo file
844 If the 'viminfo' option is not empty, the viminfo file is read. See
845 |viminfo-file|.
847 10. Read the quickfix file
848 If the "-q" flag was given to Vim, the quickfix file is read. If this
849 fails, Vim exits.
851 11. Open all windows
852 When the |-o| flag was given, windows will be opened (but not
853 displayed yet).
854 When the |-p| flag was given, tab pages will be created (but not
855 displayed yet).
856 When switching screens, it happens now. Redrawing starts.
857 If the "-q" flag was given to Vim, the first error is jumped to.
858 Buffers for all windows will be loaded.
860 12. Execute startup commands
861 If a "-t" flag was given to Vim, the tag is jumped to.
862 The commands given with the |-c| and |+cmd| arguments are executed.
863 If the 'insertmode' option is set, Insert mode is entered.
864 The |VimEnter| autocommands are executed.
866 Some hints on using initializations:
868 Standard setup:
869 Create a vimrc file to set the default settings and mappings for all your edit
870 sessions. Put it in a place so that it will be found by 3b:
871 ~/.vimrc (Unix and OS/2)
872 s:.vimrc (Amiga)
873 $VIM\_vimrc (MS-DOS and Win32)
874 Note that creating a vimrc file will cause the 'compatible' option to be off
875 by default. See |compatible-default|.
877 Local setup:
878 Put all commands that you need for editing a specific directory only into a
879 vimrc file and place it in that directory under the name ".vimrc" ("_vimrc"
880 for MS-DOS and Win32). NOTE: To make Vim look for these special files you
881 have to turn on the option 'exrc'. See |trojan-horse| too.
883 System setup:
884 This only applies if you are managing a Unix system with several users and
885 want to set the defaults for all users. Create a vimrc file with commands
886 for default settings and mappings and put it in the place that is given with
887 the ":version" command.
889 Saving the current state of Vim to a file:
890 Whenever you have changed values of options or when you have created a
891 mapping, then you may want to save them in a vimrc file for later use. See
892 |save-settings| about saving the current state of settings to a file.
894 Avoiding setup problems for Vi users:
895 Vi uses the variable EXINIT and the file "~/.exrc". So if you do not want to
896 interfere with Vi, then use the variable VIMINIT and the file "vimrc" instead.
898 Amiga environment variables:
899 On the Amiga, two types of environment variables exist. The ones set with the
900 DOS 1.3 (or later) setenv command are recognized. See the AmigaDos 1.3
901 manual. The environment variables set with the old Manx Set command (before
902 version 5.0) are not recognized.
904 MS-DOS line separators:
905 On MS-DOS-like systems (MS-DOS itself, Win32, and OS/2), Vim assumes that all
906 the vimrc files have <CR> <NL> pairs as line separators. This will give
907 problems if you have a file with only <NL>s and have a line like
908 ":map xx yy^M". The trailing ^M will be ignored.
910 *compatible-default*
911 When Vim starts, the 'compatible' option is on. This will be used when Vim
912 starts its initializations. But as soon as a user vimrc file is found, or a
913 vimrc file in the current directory, or the "VIMINIT" environment variable is
914 set, it will be set to 'nocompatible'. This has the side effect of setting or
915 resetting other options (see 'compatible'). But only the options that have
916 not been set or reset will be changed. This has the same effect like the
917 value of 'compatible' had this value when starting Vim. Note that this
918 doesn't happen for the system-wide vimrc file nor when Vim was started with
919 the |-u| command line argument. It does also happen for gvimrc files. The
920 $MYVIMRC or $MYGVIMRC file will be set to the first found vimrc and/or gvimrc
921 file.
923 But there is a side effect of setting or resetting 'compatible' at the moment
924 a .vimrc file is found: Mappings are interpreted the moment they are
925 encountered. This makes a difference when using things like "<CR>". If the
926 mappings depend on a certain value of 'compatible', set or reset it before
927 giving the mapping.
929 The above behavior can be overridden in these ways:
930 - If the "-N" command line argument is given, 'nocompatible' will be used,
931 even when no vimrc file exists.
932 - If the "-C" command line argument is given, 'compatible' will be used, even
933 when a vimrc file exists.
934 - If the "-u {vimrc}" argument is used, 'compatible' will be used.
935 - When the name of the executable ends in "ex", then this works like the "-C"
936 argument was given: 'compatible' will be used, even when a vimrc file
937 exists. This has been done to make Vim behave like "ex", when it is started
938 as "ex".
940 Avoiding trojan horses: *trojan-horse*
941 While reading the "vimrc" or the "exrc" file in the current directory, some
942 commands can be disabled for security reasons by setting the 'secure' option.
943 This is always done when executing the command from a tags file. Otherwise it
944 would be possible that you accidentally use a vimrc or tags file that somebody
945 else created and contains nasty commands. The disabled commands are the ones
946 that start a shell, the ones that write to a file, and ":autocmd". The ":map"
947 commands are echoed, so you can see which keys are being mapped.
948 If you want Vim to execute all commands in a local vimrc file, you
949 can reset the 'secure' option in the EXINIT or VIMINIT environment variable or
950 in the global "exrc" or "vimrc" file. This is not possible in "vimrc" or
951 "exrc" in the current directory, for obvious reasons.
952 On Unix systems, this only happens if you are not the owner of the
953 vimrc file. Warning: If you unpack an archive that contains a vimrc or exrc
954 file, it will be owned by you. You won't have the security protection. Check
955 the vimrc file before you start Vim in that directory, or reset the 'exrc'
956 option. Some Unix systems allow a user to do "chown" on a file. This makes
957 it possible for another user to create a nasty vimrc and make you the owner.
958 Be careful!
959 When using tag search commands, executing the search command (the last
960 part of the line in the tags file) is always done in secure mode. This works
961 just like executing a command from a vimrc/exrc in the current directory.
963 *slow-start*
964 If Vim takes a long time to start up, there may be a few causes:
965 - If the Unix version was compiled with the GUI and/or X11 (check the output
966 of ":version" for "+GUI" and "+X11"), it may need to load shared libraries
967 and connect to the X11 server. Try compiling a version with GUI and X11
968 disabled. This also should make the executable smaller.
969 Use the |-X| command line argument to avoid connecting to the X server when
970 running in a terminal.
971 - If you have "viminfo" enabled, the loading of the viminfo file may take a
972 while. You can find out if this is the problem by disabling viminfo for a
973 moment (use the Vim argument "-i NONE", |-i|). Try reducing the number of
974 lines stored in a register with ":set viminfo='20,<50,s10". |viminfo-file|.
976 *:intro*
977 When Vim starts without a file name, an introductory message is displayed (for
978 those who don't know what Vim is). It is removed as soon as the display is
979 redrawn in any way. To see the message again, use the ":intro" command (if
980 there is not enough room, you will see only part of it).
981 To avoid the intro message on startup, add the 'I' flag to 'shortmess'.
983 *info-message*
984 The |--help| and |--version| arguments cause Vim to print a message and then
985 exit. Normally the message is send to stdout, thus can be redirected to a
986 file with: >
988 vim --help >file
990 From inside Vim: >
992 :read !vim --help
994 When using gvim, it detects that it might have been started from the desktop,
995 without a terminal to show messages on. This is detected when both stdout and
996 stderr are not a tty. This breaks the ":read" command, as used in the example
997 above. To make it work again, set 'shellredir' to ">" instead of the default
998 ">&": >
1000 :set shellredir=>
1001 :read !gvim --help
1003 This still won't work for systems where gvim does not use stdout at all
1004 though.
1006 ==============================================================================
1007 5. $VIM and $VIMRUNTIME
1008 *$VIM*
1009 The environment variable "$VIM" is used to locate various user files for Vim,
1010 such as the user startup script ".vimrc". This depends on the system, see
1011 |startup|.
1013 To avoid the need for every user to set the $VIM environment variable, Vim
1014 will try to get the value for $VIM in this order:
1015 1. The value defined by the $VIM environment variable. You can use this to
1016 make Vim look in a specific directory for its support files. Example: >
1017 setenv VIM /home/paul/vim
1018 2. The path from 'helpfile' is used, unless it contains some environment
1019 variable too (the default is "$VIMRUNTIME/doc/help.txt": chicken-egg
1020 problem). The file name ("help.txt" or any other) is removed. Then
1021 trailing directory names are removed, in this order: "doc", "runtime" and
1022 "vim{version}" (e.g., "vim54").
1023 3. For MSDOS, Win32 and OS/2 Vim tries to use the directory name of the
1024 executable. If it ends in "/src", this is removed. This is useful if you
1025 unpacked the .zip file in some directory, and adjusted the search path to
1026 find the vim executable. Trailing directory names are removed, in this
1027 order: "runtime" and "vim{version}" (e.g., "vim54").
1028 4. For Unix the compile-time defined installation directory is used (see the
1029 output of ":version").
1031 Once Vim has done this once, it will set the $VIM environment variable. To
1032 change it later, use a ":let" command like this: >
1033 :let $VIM = "/home/paul/vim/"
1034 <
1035 *$VIMRUNTIME*
1036 The environment variable "$VIMRUNTIME" is used to locate various support
1037 files, such as the on-line documentation and files used for syntax
1038 highlighting. For example, the main help file is normally
1039 "$VIMRUNTIME/doc/help.txt".
1040 You don't normally set $VIMRUNTIME yourself, but let Vim figure it out. This
1041 is the order used to find the value of $VIMRUNTIME:
1042 1. If the environment variable $VIMRUNTIME is set, it is used. You can use
1043 this when the runtime files are in an unusual location.
1044 2. If "$VIM/vim{version}" exists, it is used. {version} is the version
1045 number of Vim, without any '-' or '.'. For example: "$VIM/vim54". This is
1046 the normal value for $VIMRUNTIME.
1047 3. If "$VIM/runtime" exists, it is used.
1048 4. The value of $VIM is used. This is for backwards compatibility with older
1049 versions.
1050 5. When the 'helpfile' option is set and doesn't contain a '$', its value is
1051 used, with "doc/help.txt" removed from the end.
1053 For Unix, when there is a compiled-in default for $VIMRUNTIME (check the
1054 output of ":version"), steps 2, 3 and 4 are skipped, and the compiled-in
1055 default is used after step 5. This means that the compiled-in default
1056 overrules the value of $VIM. This is useful if $VIM is "/etc" and the runtime
1057 files are in "/usr/share/vim/vim54".
1059 Once Vim has done this once, it will set the $VIMRUNTIME environment variable.
1060 To change it later, use a ":let" command like this: >
1061 :let $VIMRUNTIME = "/home/piet/vim/vim54"
1063 In case you need the value of $VIMRUNTIME in a shell (e.g., for a script that
1064 greps in the help files) you might be able to use this: >
1066 VIMRUNTIME=`vim -e -T dumb --cmd 'exe "set t_cm=\<C-M>"|echo $VIMRUNTIME|quit' | tr -d '\015' `
1068 ==============================================================================
1069 6. Suspending *suspend*
1071 *iconize* *iconise* *CTRL-Z* *v_CTRL-Z*
1072 CTRL-Z Suspend Vim, like ":stop".
1073 Works in Normal and in Visual mode. In Insert and
1074 Command-line mode, the CTRL-Z is inserted as a normal
1075 character. In Visual mode Vim goes back to Normal
1076 mode.
1077 Note: if CTRL-Z undoes a change see |mswin.vim|.
1080 :sus[pend][!] or *:sus* *:suspend* *:st* *:stop*
1081 :st[op][!] Suspend Vim.
1082 If the '!' is not given and 'autowrite' is set, every
1083 buffer with changes and a file name is written out.
1084 If the '!' is given or 'autowrite' is not set, changed
1085 buffers are not written, don't forget to bring Vim
1086 back to the foreground later!
1088 In the GUI, suspending is implemented as iconising gvim. In Windows 95/NT,
1089 gvim is minimized.
1091 On many Unix systems, it is possible to suspend Vim with CTRL-Z. This is only
1092 possible in Normal and Visual mode (see next chapter, |vim-modes|). Vim will
1093 continue if you make it the foreground job again. On other systems, CTRL-Z
1094 will start a new shell. This is the same as the ":sh" command. Vim will
1095 continue if you exit from the shell.
1097 In X-windows the selection is disowned when Vim suspends. this means you
1098 can't paste it in another application (since Vim is going to sleep an attempt
1099 to get the selection would make the program hang).
1101 ==============================================================================
1102 7. Saving settings *save-settings*
1104 Mostly you will edit your vimrc files manually. This gives you the greatest
1105 flexibility. There are a few commands to generate a vimrc file automatically.
1106 You can use these files as they are, or copy/paste lines to include in another
1107 vimrc file.
1109 *:mk* *:mkexrc*
1110 :mk[exrc] [file] Write current key mappings and changed options to
1111 [file] (default ".exrc" in the current directory),
1112 unless it already exists. {not in Vi}
1114 :mk[exrc]! [file] Always write current key mappings and changed
1115 options to [file] (default ".exrc" in the current
1116 directory). {not in Vi}
1118 *:mkv* *:mkvimrc*
1119 :mkv[imrc][!] [file] Like ":mkexrc", but the default is ".vimrc" in the
1120 current directory. The ":version" command is also
1121 written to the file. {not in Vi}
1123 These commands will write ":map" and ":set" commands to a file, in such a way
1124 that when these commands are executed, the current key mappings and options
1125 will be set to the same values. The options 'columns', 'endofline',
1126 'fileformat', 'key', 'lines', 'modified', 'scroll', 'term', 'textmode',
1127 'ttyfast' and 'ttymouse' are not included, because these are terminal or file
1128 dependent. Note that the options 'binary', 'paste' and 'readonly' are
1129 included, this might not always be what you want.
1131 When special keys are used in mappings, The 'cpoptions' option will be
1132 temporarily set to its Vim default, to avoid the mappings to be
1133 misinterpreted. This makes the file incompatible with Vi, but makes sure it
1134 can be used with different terminals.
1136 Only global mappings are stored, not mappings local to a buffer.
1138 A common method is to use a default ".vimrc" file, make some modifications
1139 with ":map" and ":set" commands and write the modified file. First read the
1140 default ".vimrc" in with a command like ":source ~piet/.vimrc.Cprogs", change
1141 the settings and then save them in the current directory with ":mkvimrc!". If
1142 you want to make this file your default .vimrc, move it to your home directory
1143 (on Unix), s: (Amiga) or $VIM directory (MS-DOS). You could also use
1144 autocommands |autocommand| and/or modelines |modeline|.
1146 *vimrc-option-example*
1147 If you only want to add a single option setting to your vimrc, you can use
1148 these steps:
1149 1. Edit your vimrc file with Vim.
1150 2. Play with the option until it's right. E.g., try out different values for
1151 'guifont'.
1152 3. Append a line to set the value of the option, using the expression register
1153 '=' to enter the value. E.g., for the 'guifont' option: >
1154 o:set guifont=<C-R>=&guifont<CR><Esc>
1155 < [<C-R> is a CTRL-R, <CR> is a return, <Esc> is the escape key]
1156 You need to escape special characters, esp. spaces.
1158 Note that when you create a .vimrc file, this can influence the 'compatible'
1159 option, which has several side effects. See |'compatible'|.
1160 ":mkvimrc", ":mkexrc" and ":mksession" write the command to set or reset the
1161 'compatible' option to the output file first, because of these side effects.
1163 ==============================================================================
1164 8. Views and Sessions *views-sessions*
1166 This is introduced in sections |21.4| and |21.5| of the user manual.
1168 *View* *view-file*
1169 A View is a collection of settings that apply to one window. You can save a
1170 View and when you restore it later, the text is displayed in the same way.
1171 The options and mappings in this window will also be restored, so that you can
1172 continue editing like when the View was saved.
1174 *Session* *session-file*
1175 A Session keeps the Views for all windows, plus the global settings. You can
1176 save a Session and when you restore it later the window layout looks the same.
1177 You can use a Session to quickly switch between different projects,
1178 automatically loading the files you were last working on in that project.
1180 Views and Sessions are a nice addition to viminfo-files, which are used to
1181 remember information for all Views and Sessions together |viminfo-file|.
1183 You can quickly start editing with a previously saved View or Session with the
1184 |-S| argument: >
1185 vim -S Session.vim
1186 <
1187 All this is {not in Vi} and {not available when compiled without the
1188 |+mksession| feature}.
1190 *:mks* *:mksession*
1191 :mks[ession][!] [file] Write a Vim script that restores the current editing
1192 session.
1193 When [!] is included an existing file is overwritten.
1194 When [file] is omitted "Session.vim" is used.
1196 The output of ":mksession" is like ":mkvimrc", but additional commands are
1197 added to the file. Which ones depends on the 'sessionoptions' option. The
1198 resulting file, when executed with a ":source" command:
1199 1. Restores global mappings and options, if 'sessionoptions' contains
1200 "options". Script-local mappings will not be written.
1201 2. Restores global variables that start with an uppercase letter and contain
1202 at least one lowercase letter, if 'sessionoptions' contains "globals".
1203 3. Unloads all currently loaded buffers.
1204 4. Restores the current directory if 'sessionoptions' contains "curdir", or
1205 sets the current directory to where the Session file is if 'sessionoptions'
1206 contains "sesdir".
1207 5. Restores GUI Vim window position, if 'sessionoptions' contains "winpos".
1208 6. Restores screen size, if 'sessionoptions' contains "resize".
1209 7. Reloads the buffer list, with the last cursor positions. If
1210 'sessionoptions' contains "buffers" then all buffers are restored,
1211 including hidden and unloaded buffers. Otherwise only buffers in windows
1212 are restored.
1213 8. Restores all windows with the same layout. If 'sessionoptions' contains
1214 "help", help windows are restored. If 'sessionoptions' contains "blank",
1215 windows editing a buffer without a name will be restored.
1216 If 'sessionoptions' contains "winsize" and no (help/blank) windows were
1217 left out, the window sizes are restored (relative to the screen size).
1218 Otherwise, the windows are just given sensible sizes.
1219 9. Restores the Views for all the windows, as with |:mkview|. But
1220 'sessionoptions' is used instead of 'viewoptions'.
1221 10. If a file exists with the same name as the Session file, but ending in
1222 "x.vim" (for eXtra), executes that as well. You can use *x.vim files to
1223 specify additional settings and actions associated with a given Session,
1224 such as creating menu items in the GUI version.
1226 After restoring the Session, the full filename of your current Session is
1227 available in the internal variable "v:this_session" |this_session-variable|.
1228 An example mapping: >
1229 :nmap <F2> :wa<Bar>exe "mksession! " . v:this_session<CR>:so ~/sessions/
1230 This saves the current Session, and starts off the command to load another.
1232 A session includes all tab pages, unless "tabpages" was removed from
1233 'sessionoptions'. |tab-page|
1235 The |SessionLoadPost| autocmd event is triggered after a session file is
1236 loaded/sourced.
1237 *SessionLoad-variable*
1238 While the session file is loading the SessionLoad global variable is set to 1.
1239 Plugins can use this to postpone some work until the SessionLoadPost event is
1240 triggered.
1242 *:mkvie* *:mkview*
1243 :mkvie[w][!] [file] Write a Vim script that restores the contents of the
1244 current window.
1245 When [!] is included an existing file is overwritten.
1246 When [file] is omitted or is a number from 1 to 9, a
1247 name is generated and 'viewdir' prepended. When the
1248 last directory name in 'viewdir' does not exist, this
1249 directory is created.
1250 An existing file is always overwritten then. Use
1251 |:loadview| to load this view again.
1252 When [file] is the name of a file ('viewdir' is not
1253 used), a command to edit the file is added to the
1254 generated file.
1256 The output of ":mkview" contains these items:
1257 1. The argument list used in the window. When the global argument list is
1258 used it is reset to the global list.
1259 The index in the argument list is also restored.
1260 2. The file being edited in the window. If there is no file, the window is
1261 made empty.
1262 3. Restore mappings, abbreviations and options local to the window if
1263 'viewoptions' contains "options" or "localoptions". For the options it
1264 restores only values that are local to the current buffer and values local
1265 to the window.
1266 When storing the view as part of a session and "options" is in
1267 'sessionoptions', global values for local options will be stored too.
1268 4. Restore folds when using manual folding and 'viewoptions' contains
1269 "folds". Restore manually opened and closed folds.
1270 5. The scroll position and the cursor position in the file. Doesn't work very
1271 well when there are closed folds.
1272 6. The local current directory, if it is different from the global current
1273 directory.
1275 Note that Views and Sessions are not perfect:
1276 - They don't restore everything. For example, defined functions, autocommands
1277 and ":syntax on" are not included. Things like register contents and
1278 command line history are in viminfo, not in Sessions or Views.
1279 - Global option values are only set when they differ from the default value.
1280 When the current value is not the default value, loading a Session will not
1281 set it back to the default value. Local options will be set back to the
1282 default value though.
1283 - Existing mappings will be overwritten without warning. An existing mapping
1284 may cause an error for ambiguity.
1285 - When storing manual folds and when storing manually opened/closed folds,
1286 changes in the file between saving and loading the view will mess it up.
1287 - The Vim script is not very efficient. But still faster than typing the
1288 commands yourself!
1290 *:lo* *:loadview*
1291 :lo[adview] [nr] Load the view for the current file. When [nr] is
1292 omitted, the view stored with ":mkview" is loaded.
1293 When [nr] is specified, the view stored with ":mkview
1294 [nr]" is loaded.
1296 The combination of ":mkview" and ":loadview" can be used to store up to ten
1297 different views of a file. These are remembered in the directory specified
1298 with the 'viewdir' option. The views are stored using the file name. If a
1299 file is renamed or accessed through a (symbolic) link the view will not be
1300 found.
1302 You might want to clean up your 'viewdir' directory now and then.
1304 To automatically save and restore views for *.c files: >
1305 au BufWinLeave *.c mkview
1306 au BufWinEnter *.c silent loadview
1308 ==============================================================================
1309 9. The viminfo file *viminfo* *viminfo-file* *E136*
1310 *E575* *E576* *E577*
1311 If you exit Vim and later start it again, you would normally lose a lot of
1312 information. The viminfo file can be used to remember that information, which
1313 enables you to continue where you left off.
1315 This is introduced in section |21.3| of the user manual.
1317 The viminfo file is used to store:
1318 - The command line history.
1319 - The search string history.
1320 - The input-line history.
1321 - Contents of non-empty registers.
1322 - Marks for several files.
1323 - File marks, pointing to locations in files.
1324 - Last search/substitute pattern (for 'n' and '&').
1325 - The buffer list.
1326 - Global variables.
1328 The viminfo file is not supported when the |+viminfo| feature has been
1329 disabled at compile time.
1331 You could also use a Session file. The difference is that the viminfo file
1332 does not depend on what you are working on. There normally is only one
1333 viminfo file. Session files are used to save the state of a specific editing
1334 Session. You could have several Session files, one for each project you are
1335 working on. Viminfo and Session files together can be used to effectively
1336 enter Vim and directly start working in your desired setup. |session-file|
1338 *viminfo-read*
1339 When Vim is started and the 'viminfo' option is non-empty, the contents of
1340 the viminfo file are read and the info can be used in the appropriate places.
1341 The marks are not read in at startup (but file marks are). See
1342 |initialization| for how to set the 'viminfo' option upon startup.
1344 *viminfo-write*
1345 When Vim exits and 'viminfo' is non-empty, the info is stored in the viminfo
1346 file (it's actually merged with the existing one, if one exists). The
1347 'viminfo' option is a string containing information about what info should be
1348 stored, and contains limits on how much should be stored (see 'viminfo').
1350 Notes for Unix:
1351 - The file protection for the viminfo file will be set to prevent other users
1352 from being able to read it, because it may contain any text or commands that
1353 you have worked with.
1354 - If you want to share the viminfo file with other users (e.g. when you "su"
1355 to another user), you can make the file writable for the group or everybody.
1356 Vim will preserve this when writing new viminfo files. Be careful, don't
1357 allow just anybody to read and write your viminfo file!
1358 - Vim will not overwrite a viminfo file that is not writable by the current
1359 "real" user. This helps for when you did "su" to become root, but your
1360 $HOME is still set to a normal user's home directory. Otherwise Vim would
1361 create a viminfo file owned by root that nobody else can read.
1362 - The viminfo file cannot be a symbolic link. This is to avoid security
1363 issues.
1365 Marks are stored for each file separately. When a file is read and 'viminfo'
1366 is non-empty, the marks for that file are read from the viminfo file. NOTE:
1367 The marks are only written when exiting Vim, which is fine because marks are
1368 remembered for all the files you have opened in the current editing session,
1369 unless ":bdel" is used. If you want to save the marks for a file that you are
1370 about to abandon with ":bdel", use ":wv". The '[' and ']' marks are not
1371 stored, but the '"' mark is. The '"' mark is very useful for jumping to the
1372 cursor position when the file was last exited. No marks are saved for files
1373 that start with any string given with the "r" flag in 'viminfo'. This can be
1374 used to avoid saving marks for files on removable media (for MS-DOS you would
1375 use "ra:,rb:", for Amiga "rdf0:,rdf1:,rdf2:").
1377 *viminfo-file-marks*
1378 Uppercase marks ('A to 'Z) are stored when writing the viminfo file. The
1379 numbered marks ('0 to '9) are a bit special. When the viminfo file is written
1380 (when exiting or with the ":wviminfo" command), '0 is set to the current cursor
1381 position and file. The old '0 is moved to '1, '1 to '2, etc. This
1382 resembles what happens with the "1 to "9 delete registers. If the current
1383 cursor position is already present in '0 to '9, it is moved to '0, to avoid
1384 having the same position twice. The result is that with "'0", you can jump
1385 back to the file and line where you exited Vim. To do that right away, try
1386 using this command: >
1388 vim -c "normal '0"
1390 In a csh compatible shell you could make an alias for it: >
1392 alias lvim vim -c '"'normal "'"0'"'
1394 For a bash-like shell: >
1396 alias lvim='vim -c "normal '\''0"'
1398 Use the "r" flag in 'viminfo' to specify for which files no marks should be
1399 remembered.
1402 VIMINFO FILE NAME *viminfo-file-name*
1404 - The default name of the viminfo file is "$HOME/.viminfo" for Unix and OS/2,
1405 "s:.viminfo" for Amiga, "$HOME\_viminfo" for MS-DOS and Win32. For the last
1406 two, when $HOME is not set, "$VIM\_viminfo" is used. When $VIM is also not
1407 set, "c:\_viminfo" is used. For OS/2 "$VIM/.viminfo" is used when $HOME is
1408 not set and $VIM is set.
1409 - The 'n' flag in the 'viminfo' option can be used to specify another viminfo
1410 file name |'viminfo'|.
1411 - The "-i" Vim argument can be used to set another file name, |-i|. When the
1412 file name given is "NONE" (all uppercase), no viminfo file is ever read or
1413 written. Also not for the commands below!
1414 - For the commands below, another file name can be given, overriding the
1415 default and the name given with 'viminfo' or "-i" (unless it's NONE).
1418 CHARACTER ENCODING *viminfo-encoding*
1420 The text in the viminfo file is encoded as specified with the 'encoding'
1421 option. Normally you will always work with the same 'encoding' value, and
1422 this works just fine. However, if you read the viminfo file with another
1423 value for 'encoding' than what it was written with, some of the text
1424 (non-ASCII characters) may be invalid. If this is unacceptable, add the 'c'
1425 flag to the 'viminfo' option: >
1426 :set viminfo+=c
1427 Vim will then attempt to convert the text in the viminfo file from the
1428 'encoding' value it was written with to the current 'encoding' value. This
1429 requires Vim to be compiled with the |+iconv| feature. Filenames are not
1430 converted.
1433 MANUALLY READING AND WRITING
1435 Two commands can be used to read and write the viminfo file manually. This
1436 can be used to exchange registers between two running Vim programs: First
1437 type ":wv" in one and then ":rv" in the other. Note that if the register
1438 already contained something, then ":rv!" would be required. Also note
1439 however that this means everything will be overwritten with information from
1440 the first Vim, including the command line history, etc.
1442 The viminfo file itself can be edited by hand too, although we suggest you
1443 start with an existing one to get the format right. It is reasonably
1444 self-explanatory once you're in there. This can be useful in order to
1445 create a second file, say "~/.my_viminfo" which could contain certain
1446 settings that you always want when you first start Vim. For example, you
1447 can preload registers with particular data, or put certain commands in the
1448 command line history. A line in your .vimrc file like >
1449 :rviminfo! ~/.my_viminfo
1450 can be used to load this information. You could even have different viminfos
1451 for different types of files (e.g., C code) and load them based on the file
1452 name, using the ":autocmd" command (see |:autocmd|).
1454 *viminfo-errors*
1455 When Vim detects an error while reading a viminfo file, it will not overwrite
1456 that file. If there are more than 10 errors, Vim stops reading the viminfo
1457 file. This was done to avoid accidentally destroying a file when the file
1458 name of the viminfo file is wrong. This could happen when accidentally typing
1459 "vim -i file" when you wanted "vim -R file" (yes, somebody accidentally did
1460 that!). If you want to overwrite a viminfo file with an error in it, you will
1461 either have to fix the error, or delete the file (while Vim is running, so
1462 most of the information will be restored).
1464 *:rv* *:rviminfo* *E195*
1465 :rv[iminfo][!] [file] Read from viminfo file [file] (default: see above).
1466 If [!] is given, then any information that is
1467 already set (registers, marks, etc.) will be
1468 overwritten. {not in Vi}
1470 *:wv* *:wviminfo* *E137* *E138* *E574*
1471 :wv[iminfo][!] [file] Write to viminfo file [file] (default: see above).
1472 The information in the file is first read in to make
1473 a merge between old and new info. When [!] is used,
1474 the old information is not read first, only the
1475 internal info is written. If 'viminfo' is empty, marks
1476 for up to 100 files will be written.
1477 When you get error "E138: Can't write viminfo file"
1478 check that no old temp files were left behind (e.g.
1479 ~/.viminf*) and that you can write in the directory of
1480 the .viminfo file.
1481 {not in Vi}
1483 vim:tw=78:ts=8:ft=help:norl: