1*editing.txt* For Vim version 7.3. Last change: 2010 Jul 28 2 3 4 VIM REFERENCE MANUAL by Bram Moolenaar 5 6 7Editing files *edit-files* 8 91. Introduction |edit-intro| 102. Editing a file |edit-a-file| 113. The argument list |argument-list| 124. Writing |writing| 135. Writing and quitting |write-quit| 146. Dialogs |edit-dialogs| 157. The current directory |current-directory| 168. Editing binary files |edit-binary| 179. Encryption |encryption| 1810. Timestamps |timestamps| 1911. File Searching |file-searching| 20 21============================================================================== 221. Introduction *edit-intro* 23 24Editing a file with Vim means: 25 261. reading the file into a buffer 272. changing the buffer with editor commands 283. writing the buffer into a file 29 30 *current-file* 31As long as you don't write the buffer, the original file remains unchanged. 32If you start editing a file (read a file into the buffer), the file name is 33remembered as the "current file name". This is also known as the name of the 34current buffer. It can be used with "%" on the command line |:_%|. 35 36 *alternate-file* 37If there already was a current file name, then that one becomes the alternate 38file name. It can be used with "#" on the command line |:_#| and you can use 39the |CTRL-^| command to toggle between the current and the alternate file. 40However, the alternate file name is not changed when |:keepalt| is used. 41 42 *:keepalt* *:keepa* 43:keepalt {cmd} Execute {cmd} while keeping the current alternate file 44 name. Note that commands invoked indirectly (e.g., 45 with a function) may still set the alternate file 46 name. {not in Vi} 47 48All file names are remembered in the buffer list. When you enter a file name, 49for editing (e.g., with ":e filename") or writing (e.g., with ":w filename"), 50the file name is added to the list. You can use the buffer list to remember 51which files you edited and to quickly switch from one file to another (e.g., 52to copy text) with the |CTRL-^| command. First type the number of the file 53and then hit CTRL-^. {Vi: only one alternate file name is remembered} 54 55 56CTRL-G or *CTRL-G* *:f* *:fi* *:file* 57:f[ile] Prints the current file name (as typed, unless ":cd" 58 was used), the cursor position (unless the 'ruler' 59 option is set), and the file status (readonly, 60 modified, read errors, new file). See the 'shortmess' 61 option about how to make this message shorter. 62 {Vi does not include column number} 63 64:f[ile]! like |:file|, but don't truncate the name even when 65 'shortmess' indicates this. 66 67{count}CTRL-G Like CTRL-G, but prints the current file name with 68 full path. If the count is higher than 1 the current 69 buffer number is also given. {not in Vi} 70 71 *g_CTRL-G* *word-count* *byte-count* 72g CTRL-G Prints the current position of the cursor in five 73 ways: Column, Line, Word, Character and Byte. If the 74 number of Characters and Bytes is the same then the 75 Character position is omitted. 76 If there are characters in the line that take more 77 than one position on the screen (<Tab> or special 78 character), both the "real" column and the screen 79 column are shown, separated with a dash. 80 See also 'ruler' option. {not in Vi} 81 82 *v_g_CTRL-G* 83{Visual}g CTRL-G Similar to "g CTRL-G", but Word, Character, Line, and 84 Byte counts for the visually selected region are 85 displayed. 86 In Blockwise mode, Column count is also shown. (For 87 {Visual} see |Visual-mode|.) 88 {not in VI} 89 90 *:file_f* 91:f[ile][!] {name} Sets the current file name to {name}. The optional ! 92 avoids truncating the message, as with |:file|. 93 If the buffer did have a name, that name becomes the 94 |alternate-file| name. An unlisted buffer is created 95 to hold the old name. 96 *:0file* 97:0f[ile][!] Remove the name of the current buffer. The optional ! 98 avoids truncating the message, as with |:file|. {not 99 in Vi} 100 101:buffers 102:files 103:ls List all the currently known file names. See 104 'windows.txt' |:files| |:buffers| |:ls|. {not in 105 Vi} 106 107Vim will remember the full path name of a file name that you enter. In most 108cases when the file name is displayed only the name you typed is shown, but 109the full path name is being used if you used the ":cd" command |:cd|. 110 111 *home-replace* 112If the environment variable $HOME is set, and the file name starts with that 113string, it is often displayed with HOME replaced with "~". This was done to 114keep file names short. When reading or writing files the full name is still 115used, the "~" is only used when displaying file names. When replacing the 116file name would result in just "~", "~/" is used instead (to avoid confusion 117between options set to $HOME with 'backupext' set to "~"). 118 119When writing the buffer, the default is to use the current file name. Thus 120when you give the "ZZ" or ":wq" command, the original file will be 121overwritten. If you do not want this, the buffer can be written into another 122file by giving a file name argument to the ":write" command. For example: > 123 124 vim testfile 125 [change the buffer with editor commands] 126 :w newfile 127 :q 128 129This will create a file "newfile", that is a modified copy of "testfile". 130The file "testfile" will remain unchanged. Anyway, if the 'backup' option is 131set, Vim renames or copies the original file before it will be overwritten. 132You can use this file if you discover that you need the original file. See 133also the 'patchmode' option. The name of the backup file is normally the same 134as the original file with 'backupext' appended. The default "~" is a bit 135strange to avoid accidentally overwriting existing files. If you prefer ".bak" 136change the 'backupext' option. Extra dots are replaced with '_' on MS-DOS 137machines, when Vim has detected that an MS-DOS-like filesystem is being used 138(e.g., messydos or crossdos) or when the 'shortname' option is on. The 139backup file can be placed in another directory by setting 'backupdir'. 140 141 *auto-shortname* 142Technical: On the Amiga you can use 30 characters for a file name. But on an 143 MS-DOS-compatible filesystem only 8 plus 3 characters are 144 available. Vim tries to detect the type of filesystem when it is 145 creating the .swp file. If an MS-DOS-like filesystem is suspected, 146 a flag is set that has the same effect as setting the 'shortname' 147 option. This flag will be reset as soon as you start editing a 148 new file. The flag will be used when making the file name for the 149 ".swp" and ".~" files for the current file. But when you are 150 editing a file in a normal filesystem and write to an MS-DOS-like 151 filesystem the flag will not have been set. In that case the 152 creation of the ".~" file may fail and you will get an error 153 message. Use the 'shortname' option in this case. 154 155When you started editing without giving a file name, "No File" is displayed in 156messages. If the ":write" command is used with a file name argument, the file 157name for the current file is set to that file name. This only happens when 158the 'F' flag is included in 'cpoptions' (by default it is included) |cpo-F|. 159This is useful when entering text in an empty buffer and then writing it to a 160file. If 'cpoptions' contains the 'f' flag (by default it is NOT included) 161|cpo-f| the file name is set for the ":read file" command. This is useful 162when starting Vim without an argument and then doing ":read file" to start 163editing a file. 164When the file name was set and 'filetype' is empty the filetype detection 165autocommands will be triggered. 166 *not-edited* 167Because the file name was set without really starting to edit that file, you 168are protected from overwriting that file. This is done by setting the 169"notedited" flag. You can see if this flag is set with the CTRL-G or ":file" 170command. It will include "[Not edited]" when the "notedited" flag is set. 171When writing the buffer to the current file name (with ":w!"), the "notedited" 172flag is reset. 173 174 *abandon* 175Vim remembers whether you have changed the buffer. You are protected from 176losing the changes you made. If you try to quit without writing, or want to 177start editing another file, Vim will refuse this. In order to overrule this 178protection, add a '!' to the command. The changes will then be lost. For 179example: ":q" will not work if the buffer was changed, but ":q!" will. To see 180whether the buffer was changed use the "CTRL-G" command. The message includes 181the string "[Modified]" if the buffer has been changed. 182 183If you want to automatically save the changes without asking, switch on the 184'autowriteall' option. 'autowrite' is the associated Vi-compatible option 185that does not work for all commands. 186 187If you want to keep the changed buffer without saving it, switch on the 188'hidden' option. See |hidden-buffer|. 189 190============================================================================== 1912. Editing a file *edit-a-file* 192 193 *:e* *:edit* 194:e[dit] [++opt] [+cmd] Edit the current file. This is useful to re-edit the 195 current file, when it has been changed outside of Vim. 196 This fails when changes have been made to the current 197 buffer and 'autowriteall' isn't set or the file can't 198 be written. 199 Also see |++opt| and |+cmd|. 200 {Vi: no ++opt} 201 202 *:edit!* 203:e[dit]! [++opt] [+cmd] 204 Edit the current file always. Discard any changes to 205 the current buffer. This is useful if you want to 206 start all over again. 207 Also see |++opt| and |+cmd|. 208 {Vi: no ++opt} 209 210 *:edit_f* 211:e[dit] [++opt] [+cmd] {file} 212 Edit {file}. 213 This fails when changes have been made to the current 214 buffer, unless 'hidden' is set or 'autowriteall' is 215 set and the file can be written. 216 Also see |++opt| and |+cmd|. 217 {Vi: no ++opt} 218 219 *:edit!_f* 220:e[dit]! [++opt] [+cmd] {file} 221 Edit {file} always. Discard any changes to the 222 current buffer. 223 Also see |++opt| and |+cmd|. 224 {Vi: no ++opt} 225 226:e[dit] [++opt] [+cmd] #[count] 227 Edit the [count]th buffer (as shown by |:files|). 228 This command does the same as [count] CTRL-^. But ":e 229 #" doesn't work if the alternate buffer doesn't have a 230 file name, while CTRL-^ still works then. 231 Also see |++opt| and |+cmd|. 232 {Vi: no ++opt} 233 234 *:ene* *:enew* 235:ene[w] Edit a new, unnamed buffer. This fails when changes 236 have been made to the current buffer, unless 'hidden' 237 is set or 'autowriteall' is set and the file can be 238 written. 239 If 'fileformats' is not empty, the first format given 240 will be used for the new buffer. If 'fileformats' is 241 empty, the 'fileformat' of the current buffer is used. 242 {not in Vi} 243 244 *:ene!* *:enew!* 245:ene[w]! Edit a new, unnamed buffer. Discard any changes to 246 the current buffer. 247 Set 'fileformat' like |:enew|. 248 {not in Vi} 249 250 *:fin* *:find* 251:fin[d][!] [++opt] [+cmd] {file} 252 Find {file} in 'path' and then |:edit| it. 253 {not in Vi} {not available when the |+file_in_path| 254 feature was disabled at compile time} 255 256:{count}fin[d][!] [++opt] [+cmd] {file} 257 Just like ":find", but use the {count} match in 258 'path'. Thus ":2find file" will find the second 259 "file" found in 'path'. When there are fewer matches 260 for the file in 'path' than asked for, you get an 261 error message. 262 263 *:ex* 264:ex [++opt] [+cmd] [file] 265 Same as |:edit|. 266 267 *:vi* *:visual* 268:vi[sual][!] [++opt] [+cmd] [file] 269 When used in Ex mode: Leave |Ex-mode|, go back to 270 Normal mode. Otherwise same as |:edit|. 271 272 *:vie* *:view* 273:vie[w][!] [++opt] [+cmd] file 274 When used in Ex mode: Leave |Ex mode|, go back to 275 Normal mode. Otherwise same as |:edit|, but set 276 'readonly' option for this buffer. {not in Vi} 277 278 *CTRL-^* *CTRL-6* 279CTRL-^ Edit the alternate file (equivalent to ":e #"). 280 Mostly the alternate file is the previously edited 281 file. This is a quick way to toggle between two 282 files. 283 If the 'autowrite' or 'autowriteall' option is on and 284 the buffer was changed, write it. 285 Mostly the ^ character is positioned on the 6 key, 286 pressing CTRL and 6 then gets you what we call CTRL-^. 287 But on some non-US keyboards CTRL-^ is produced in 288 another way. 289 290{count}CTRL-^ Edit [count]th file in the buffer list (equivalent to 291 ":e #[count]"). This is a quick way to switch between 292 files. 293 See |CTRL-^| above for further details. 294 {not in Vi} 295 296[count]]f *]f* *[f* 297[count][f Same as "gf". Deprecated. 298 299 *gf* *E446* *E447* 300[count]gf Edit the file whose name is under or after the cursor. 301 Mnemonic: "goto file". 302 Uses the 'isfname' option to find out which characters 303 are supposed to be in a file name. Trailing 304 punctuation characters ".,:;!" are ignored. 305 Uses the 'path' option as a list of directory names to 306 look for the file. See the 'path' option for details 307 about relative directories and wildcards. 308 Uses the 'suffixesadd' option to check for file names 309 with a suffix added. 310 If the file can't be found, 'includeexpr' is used to 311 modify the name and another attempt is done. 312 If a [count] is given, the count'th file that is found 313 in the 'path' is edited. 314 This command fails if Vim refuses to |abandon| the 315 current file. 316 If you want to edit the file in a new window use 317 |CTRL-W_CTRL-F|. 318 If you do want to edit a new file, use: > 319 :e <cfile> 320< To make gf always work like that: > 321 :map gf :e <cfile><CR> 322< If the name is a hypertext link, that looks like 323 "type://machine/path", you need the |netrw| plugin. 324 For Unix the '~' character is expanded, like in 325 "~user/file". Environment variables are expanded too 326 |expand-env|. 327 {not in Vi} 328 {not available when the |+file_in_path| feature was 329 disabled at compile time} 330 331 *v_gf* 332{Visual}[count]gf Same as "gf", but the highlighted text is used as the 333 name of the file to edit. 'isfname' is ignored. 334 Leading blanks are skipped, otherwise all blanks and 335 special characters are included in the file name. 336 (For {Visual} see |Visual-mode|.) 337 {not in VI} 338 339 *gF* 340[count]gF Same as "gf", except if a number follows the file 341 name, then the cursor is positioned on that line in 342 the file. The file name and the number must be 343 separated by a non-filename (see 'isfname') and 344 non-numeric character. White space between the 345 filename, the separator and the number are ignored. 346 Examples: 347 eval.c:10 ~ 348 eval.c @ 20 ~ 349 eval.c (30) ~ 350 eval.c 40 ~ 351 352 *v_gF* 353{Visual}[count]gF Same as "v_gf". 354 355These commands are used to start editing a single file. This means that the 356file is read into the buffer and the current file name is set. The file that 357is opened depends on the current directory, see |:cd|. 358 359See |read-messages| for an explanation of the message that is given after the 360file has been read. 361 362You can use the ":e!" command if you messed up the buffer and want to start 363all over again. The ":e" command is only useful if you have changed the 364current file name. 365 366 *:filename* *{file}* 367Besides the things mentioned here, more special items for where a filename is 368expected are mentioned at |cmdline-special|. 369 370Note for systems other than Unix: When using a command that accepts a single 371file name (like ":edit file") spaces in the file name are allowed, but 372trailing spaces are ignored. This is useful on systems that regularly embed 373spaces in file names (like MS-Windows and the Amiga). Example: The command 374":e Long File Name " will edit the file "Long File Name". When using a 375command that accepts more than one file name (like ":next file1 file2") 376embedded spaces must be escaped with a backslash. 377 378 *wildcard* *wildcards* 379Wildcards in {file} are expanded. Which wildcards are supported depends on 380the system. These are the common ones: 381 ? matches one character 382 * matches anything, including nothing 383 ** matches anything, including nothing, recurses into directories 384 [abc] match 'a', 'b' or 'c' 385 386To avoid the special meaning of the wildcards prepend a backslash. However, 387on MS-Windows the backslash is a path separator and "path\[abc]" is still seen 388as a wildcard when "[" is in the 'isfname' option. A simple way to avoid this 389is to use "path\[[]abc]". Then the file "path[abc]" literally. 390 391 *starstar-wildcard* 392Expanding "**" is possible on Unix, Win32, Mac OS/X and a few other systems. 393This allows searching a directory tree. This goes up to 100 directories deep. 394Note there are some commands where this works slightly different, see 395|file-searching|. 396Example: > 397 :n **/*.txt 398Finds files: 399 ttt.txt 400 subdir/ttt.txt 401 a/b/c/d/ttt.txt 402When non-wildcard characters are used these are only matched in the first 403directory. Example: > 404 :n /usr/inc**/*.h 405Finds files: 406 /usr/include/types.h 407 /usr/include/sys/types.h 408 /usr/inc_old/types.h 409 *backtick-expansion* *`-expansion* 410On Unix and a few other systems you can also use backticks in the file name, 411for example: > 412 :e `find . -name ver\\*.c -print` 413The backslashes before the star are required to prevent "ver*.c" to be 414expanded by the shell before executing the find program. 415This also works for most other systems, with the restriction that the 416backticks must be around the whole item. It is not possible to have text 417directly before the first or just after the last backtick. 418 419 *`=* 420You can have the backticks expanded as a Vim expression, instead of an 421external command, by using the syntax `={expr}` e.g.: > 422 :e `=tempname()` 423The expression can contain just about anything, thus this can also be used to 424avoid the special meaning of '"', '|', '%' and '#'. Names are to be separated 425with line breaks. When the result is a |List| then each item is used as a 426name. Line breaks also separate names. 427 428 *++opt* *[++opt]* 429The [++opt] argument can be used to force the value of 'fileformat', 430'fileencoding' or 'binary' to a value for one command, and to specify the 431behavior for bad characters. The form is: > 432 ++{optname} 433Or: > 434 ++{optname}={value} 435 436Where {optname} is one of: *++ff* *++enc* *++bin* *++nobin* *++edit* 437 ff or fileformat overrides 'fileformat' 438 enc or encoding overrides 'fileencoding' 439 bin or binary sets 'binary' 440 nobin or nobinary resets 'binary' 441 bad specifies behavior for bad characters 442 edit for |:read| only: keep option values as if editing 443 a file 444 445{value} cannot contain white space. It can be any valid value for these 446options. Examples: > 447 :e ++ff=unix 448This edits the same file again with 'fileformat' set to "unix". > 449 450 :w ++enc=latin1 newfile 451This writes the current buffer to "newfile" in latin1 format. 452 453There may be several ++opt arguments, separated by white space. They must all 454appear before any |+cmd| argument. 455 456 *++bad* 457The argument of "++bad=" specifies what happens with characters that can't be 458converted and illegal bytes. It can be one of three things: 459 ++bad=X A single-byte character that replaces each bad character. 460 ++bad=keep Keep bad characters without conversion. Note that this may 461 result in illegal bytes in your text! 462 ++bad=drop Remove the bad characters. 463 464The default is like "++bad=?": Replace each bad character with a question 465mark. In some places an inverted question mark is used (0xBF). 466 467Note that not all commands use the ++bad argument, even though they do not 468give an error when you add it. E.g. |:write|. 469 470Note that when reading, the 'fileformat' and 'fileencoding' options will be 471set to the used format. When writing this doesn't happen, thus a next write 472will use the old value of the option. Same for the 'binary' option. 473 474 475 *+cmd* *[+cmd]* 476The [+cmd] argument can be used to position the cursor in the newly opened 477file, or execute any other command: 478 + Start at the last line. 479 +{num} Start at line {num}. 480 +/{pat} Start at first line containing {pat}. 481 +{command} Execute {command} after opening the new file. 482 {command} is any Ex command. 483To include a white space in the {pat} or {command}, precede it with a 484backslash. Double the number of backslashes. > 485 :edit +/The\ book file 486 :edit +/dir\ dirname\\ file 487 :edit +set\ dir=c:\\\\temp file 488Note that in the last example the number of backslashes is halved twice: Once 489for the "+cmd" argument and once for the ":set" command. 490 491 *file-formats* 492The 'fileformat' option sets the <EOL> style for a file: 493'fileformat' characters name ~ 494 "dos" <CR><NL> or <NL> DOS format *DOS-format* 495 "unix" <NL> Unix format *Unix-format* 496 "mac" <CR> Mac format *Mac-format* 497Previously 'textmode' was used. It is obsolete now. 498 499When reading a file, the mentioned characters are interpreted as the <EOL>. 500In DOS format (default for MS-DOS, OS/2 and Win32), <CR><NL> and <NL> are both 501interpreted as the <EOL>. Note that when writing the file in DOS format, 502<CR> characters will be added for each single <NL>. Also see |file-read|. 503 504When writing a file, the mentioned characters are used for <EOL>. For DOS 505format <CR><NL> is used. Also see |DOS-format-write|. 506 507You can read a file in DOS format and write it in Unix format. This will 508replace all <CR><NL> pairs by <NL> (assuming 'fileformats' includes "dos"): > 509 :e file 510 :set fileformat=unix 511 :w 512If you read a file in Unix format and write with DOS format, all <NL> 513characters will be replaced with <CR><NL> (assuming 'fileformats' includes 514"unix"): > 515 :e file 516 :set fileformat=dos 517 :w 518 519If you start editing a new file and the 'fileformats' option is not empty 520(which is the default), Vim will try to detect whether the lines in the file 521are separated by the specified formats. When set to "unix,dos", Vim will 522check for lines with a single <NL> (as used on Unix and Amiga) or by a <CR> 523<NL> pair (MS-DOS). Only when ALL lines end in <CR><NL>, 'fileformat' is set 524to "dos", otherwise it is set to "unix". When 'fileformats' includes "mac", 525and no <NL> characters are found in the file, 'fileformat' is set to "mac". 526 527If the 'fileformat' option is set to "dos" on non-MS-DOS systems the message 528"[dos format]" is shown to remind you that something unusual is happening. On 529MS-DOS systems you get the message "[unix format]" if 'fileformat' is set to 530"unix". On all systems but the Macintosh you get the message "[mac format]" 531if 'fileformat' is set to "mac". 532 533If the 'fileformats' option is empty and DOS format is used, but while reading 534a file some lines did not end in <CR><NL>, "[CR missing]" will be included in 535the file message. 536If the 'fileformats' option is empty and Mac format is used, but while reading 537a file a <NL> was found, "[NL missing]" will be included in the file message. 538 539If the new file does not exist, the 'fileformat' of the current buffer is used 540when 'fileformats' is empty. Otherwise the first format from 'fileformats' is 541used for the new file. 542 543Before editing binary, executable or Vim script files you should set the 544'binary' option. A simple way to do this is by starting Vim with the "-b" 545option. This will avoid the use of 'fileformat'. Without this you risk that 546single <NL> characters are unexpectedly replaced with <CR><NL>. 547 548You can encrypt files that are written by setting the 'key' option. This 549provides some security against others reading your files. |encryption| 550 551 552============================================================================== 5533. The argument list *argument-list* *arglist* 554 555If you give more than one file name when starting Vim, this list is remembered 556as the argument list. You can jump to each file in this list. 557 558Do not confuse this with the buffer list, which you can see with the 559|:buffers| command. The argument list was already present in Vi, the buffer 560list is new in Vim. Every file name in the argument list will also be present 561in the buffer list (unless it was deleted with |:bdel| or |:bwipe|). But it's 562common that names in the buffer list are not in the argument list. 563 564This subject is introduced in section |07.2| of the user manual. 565 566There is one global argument list, which is used for all windows by default. 567It is possible to create a new argument list local to a window, see 568|:arglocal|. 569 570You can use the argument list with the following commands, and with the 571expression functions |argc()| and |argv()|. These all work on the argument 572list of the current window. 573 574 *:ar* *:args* 575:ar[gs] Print the argument list, with the current file in 576 square brackets. 577 578:ar[gs] [++opt] [+cmd] {arglist} *:args_f* 579 Define {arglist} as the new argument list and edit 580 the first one. This fails when changes have been made 581 and Vim does not want to |abandon| the current buffer. 582 Also see |++opt| and |+cmd|. 583 {Vi: no ++opt} 584 585:ar[gs]! [++opt] [+cmd] {arglist} *:args_f!* 586 Define {arglist} as the new argument list and edit 587 the first one. Discard any changes to the current 588 buffer. 589 Also see |++opt| and |+cmd|. 590 {Vi: no ++opt} 591 592:[count]arge[dit][!] [++opt] [+cmd] {name} *:arge* *:argedit* 593 Add {name} to the argument list and edit it. 594 When {name} already exists in the argument list, this 595 entry is edited. 596 This is like using |:argadd| and then |:edit|. 597 Note that only one file name is allowed, and spaces 598 inside the file name are allowed, like with |:edit|. 599 [count] is used like with |:argadd|. 600 [!] is required if the current file cannot be 601 |abandon|ed. 602 Also see |++opt| and |+cmd|. 603 {not in Vi} 604 605:[count]arga[dd] {name} .. *:arga* *:argadd* *E479* 606 Add the {name}s to the argument list. 607 If [count] is omitted, the {name}s are added just 608 after the current entry in the argument list. 609 Otherwise they are added after the [count]'th file. 610 If the argument list is "a b c", and "b" is the 611 current argument, then these commands result in: 612 command new argument list ~ 613 :argadd x a b x c 614 :0argadd x x a b c 615 :1argadd x a x b c 616 :99argadd x a b c x 617 There is no check for duplicates, it is possible to 618 add a file to the argument list twice. 619 The currently edited file is not changed. 620 {not in Vi} {not available when compiled without the 621 |+listcmds| feature} 622 Note: you can also use this method: > 623 :args ## x 624< This will add the "x" item and sort the new list. 625 626:argd[elete] {pattern} .. *:argd* *:argdelete* *E480* 627 Delete files from the argument list that match the 628 {pattern}s. {pattern} is used like a file pattern, 629 see |file-pattern|. "%" can be used to delete the 630 current entry. 631 This command keeps the currently edited file, also 632 when it's deleted from the argument list. 633 Example: > 634 :argdel *.obj 635< {not in Vi} {not available when compiled without the 636 |+listcmds| feature} 637 638:{range}argd[elete] Delete the {range} files from the argument list. 639 When the last number in the range is too high, up to 640 the last argument is deleted. Example: > 641 :10,1000argdel 642< Deletes arguments 10 and further, keeping 1-9. 643 {not in Vi} {not available when compiled without the 644 |+listcmds| feature} 645 646 *:argu* *:argument* 647:[count]argu[ment] [count] [++opt] [+cmd] 648 Edit file [count] in the argument list. When [count] 649 is omitted the current entry is used. This fails 650 when changes have been made and Vim does not want to 651 |abandon| the current buffer. 652 Also see |++opt| and |+cmd|. 653 {not in Vi} {not available when compiled without the 654 |+listcmds| feature} 655 656:[count]argu[ment]! [count] [++opt] [+cmd] 657 Edit file [count] in the argument list, discard any 658 changes to the current buffer. When [count] is 659 omitted the current entry is used. 660 Also see |++opt| and |+cmd|. 661 {not in Vi} {not available when compiled without the 662 |+listcmds| feature} 663 664:[count]n[ext] [++opt] [+cmd] *:n* *:ne* *:next* *E165* *E163* 665 Edit [count] next file. This fails when changes have 666 been made and Vim does not want to |abandon| the 667 current buffer. Also see |++opt| and |+cmd|. {Vi: no 668 count or ++opt}. 669 670:[count]n[ext]! [++opt] [+cmd] 671 Edit [count] next file, discard any changes to the 672 buffer. Also see |++opt| and |+cmd|. {Vi: no count 673 or ++opt}. 674 675:n[ext] [++opt] [+cmd] {arglist} *:next_f* 676 Same as |:args_f|. 677 678:n[ext]! [++opt] [+cmd] {arglist} 679 Same as |:args_f!|. 680 681:[count]N[ext] [count] [++opt] [+cmd] *:Next* *:N* *E164* 682 Edit [count] previous file in argument list. This 683 fails when changes have been made and Vim does not 684 want to |abandon| the current buffer. 685 Also see |++opt| and |+cmd|. {Vi: no count or ++opt}. 686 687:[count]N[ext]! [count] [++opt] [+cmd] 688 Edit [count] previous file in argument list. Discard 689 any changes to the buffer. Also see |++opt| and 690 |+cmd|. {Vi: no count or ++opt}. 691 692:[count]prev[ious] [count] [++opt] [+cmd] *:prev* *:previous* 693 Same as :Next. Also see |++opt| and |+cmd|. {Vi: 694 only in some versions} 695 696 *:rew* *:rewind* 697:rew[ind] [++opt] [+cmd] 698 Start editing the first file in the argument list. 699 This fails when changes have been made and Vim does 700 not want to |abandon| the current buffer. 701 Also see |++opt| and |+cmd|. {Vi: no ++opt} 702 703:rew[ind]! [++opt] [+cmd] 704 Start editing the first file in the argument list. 705 Discard any changes to the buffer. Also see |++opt| 706 and |+cmd|. {Vi: no ++opt} 707 708 *:fir* *:first* 709:fir[st][!] [++opt] [+cmd] 710 Other name for ":rewind". {not in Vi} 711 712 *:la* *:last* 713:la[st] [++opt] [+cmd] 714 Start editing the last file in the argument list. 715 This fails when changes have been made and Vim does 716 not want to |abandon| the current buffer. 717 Also see |++opt| and |+cmd|. {not in Vi} 718 719:la[st]! [++opt] [+cmd] 720 Start editing the last file in the argument list. 721 Discard any changes to the buffer. Also see |++opt| 722 and |+cmd|. {not in Vi} 723 724 *:wn* *:wnext* 725:[count]wn[ext] [++opt] 726 Write current file and start editing the [count] 727 next file. Also see |++opt| and |+cmd|. {not in Vi} 728 729:[count]wn[ext] [++opt] {file} 730 Write current file to {file} and start editing the 731 [count] next file, unless {file} already exists and 732 the 'writeany' option is off. Also see |++opt| and 733 |+cmd|. {not in Vi} 734 735:[count]wn[ext]! [++opt] {file} 736 Write current file to {file} and start editing the 737 [count] next file. Also see |++opt| and |+cmd|. {not 738 in Vi} 739 740:[count]wN[ext][!] [++opt] [file] *:wN* *:wNext* 741:[count]wp[revious][!] [++opt] [file] *:wp* *:wprevious* 742 Same as :wnext, but go to previous file instead of 743 next. {not in Vi} 744 745The [count] in the commands above defaults to one. For some commands it is 746possible to use two counts. The last one (rightmost one) is used. 747 748If no [+cmd] argument is present, the cursor is positioned at the last known 749cursor position for the file. If 'startofline' is set, the cursor will be 750positioned at the first non-blank in the line, otherwise the last know column 751is used. If there is no last known cursor position the cursor will be in the 752first line (the last line in Ex mode). 753 754 *{arglist}* 755The wildcards in the argument list are expanded and the file names are sorted. 756Thus you can use the command "vim *.c" to edit all the C files. From within 757Vim the command ":n *.c" does the same. 758 759White space is used to separate file names. Put a backslash before a space or 760tab to include it in a file name. E.g., to edit the single file "foo bar": > 761 :next foo\ bar 762 763On Unix and a few other systems you can also use backticks, for example: > 764 :next `find . -name \\*.c -print` 765The backslashes before the star are required to prevent "*.c" to be expanded 766by the shell before executing the find program. 767 768 *arglist-position* 769When there is an argument list you can see which file you are editing in the 770title of the window (if there is one and 'title' is on) and with the file 771message you get with the "CTRL-G" command. You will see something like 772 (file 4 of 11) 773If 'shortmess' contains 'f' it will be 774 (4 of 11) 775If you are not really editing the file at the current position in the argument 776list it will be 777 (file (4) of 11) 778This means that you are position 4 in the argument list, but not editing the 779fourth file in the argument list. This happens when you do ":e file". 780 781 782LOCAL ARGUMENT LIST 783 784{not in Vi} 785{not available when compiled without the |+windows| or |+listcmds| features} 786 787 *:arglocal* 788:argl[ocal] Make a local copy of the global argument list. 789 Doesn't start editing another file. 790 791:argl[ocal][!] [++opt] [+cmd] {arglist} 792 Define a new argument list, which is local to the 793 current window. Works like |:args_f| otherwise. 794 795 *:argglobal* 796:argg[lobal] Use the global argument list for the current window. 797 Doesn't start editing another file. 798 799:argg[lobal][!] [++opt] [+cmd] {arglist} 800 Use the global argument list for the current window. 801 Define a new global argument list like |:args_f|. 802 All windows using the global argument list will see 803 this new list. 804 805There can be several argument lists. They can be shared between windows. 806When they are shared, changing the argument list in one window will also 807change it in the other window. 808 809When a window is split the new window inherits the argument list from the 810current window. The two windows then share this list, until one of them uses 811|:arglocal| or |:argglobal| to use another argument list. 812 813 814USING THE ARGUMENT LIST 815 816 *:argdo* 817:argdo[!] {cmd} Execute {cmd} for each file in the argument list. 818 It works like doing this: > 819 :rewind 820 :{cmd} 821 :next 822 :{cmd} 823 etc. 824< When the current file can't be |abandon|ed and the [!] 825 is not present, the command fails. 826 When an error is detected on one file, further files 827 in the argument list will not be visited. 828 The last file in the argument list (or where an error 829 occurred) becomes the current file. 830 {cmd} can contain '|' to concatenate several commands. 831 {cmd} must not change the argument list. 832 Note: While this command is executing, the Syntax 833 autocommand event is disabled by adding it to 834 'eventignore'. This considerably speeds up editing 835 each file. 836 {not in Vi} {not available when compiled without the 837 |+listcmds| feature} 838 Also see |:windo|, |:tabdo| and |:bufdo|. 839 840Example: > 841 :args *.c 842 :argdo set ff=unix | update 843This sets the 'fileformat' option to "unix" and writes the file if it is now 844changed. This is done for all *.c files. 845 846Example: > 847 :args *.[ch] 848 :argdo %s/\<my_foo\>/My_Foo/ge | update 849This changes the word "my_foo" to "My_Foo" in all *.c and *.h files. The "e" 850flag is used for the ":substitute" command to avoid an error for files where 851"my_foo" isn't used. ":update" writes the file only if changes were made. 852 853============================================================================== 8544. Writing *writing* *save-file* 855 856Note: When the 'write' option is off, you are not able to write any file. 857 858 *:w* *:write* 859 *E502* *E503* *E504* *E505* 860 *E512* *E514* *E667* *E796* 861:w[rite] [++opt] Write the whole buffer to the current file. This is 862 the normal way to save changes to a file. It fails 863 when the 'readonly' option is set or when there is 864 another reason why the file can't be written. 865 For ++opt see |++opt|, but only ++bin, ++nobin, ++ff 866 and ++enc are effective. 867 868:w[rite]! [++opt] Like ":write", but forcefully write when 'readonly' is 869 set or there is another reason why writing was 870 refused. 871 Note: This may change the permission and ownership of 872 the file and break (symbolic) links. Add the 'W' flag 873 to 'cpoptions' to avoid this. 874 875:[range]w[rite][!] [++opt] 876 Write the specified lines to the current file. This 877 is unusual, because the file will not contain all 878 lines in the buffer. 879 880 *:w_f* *:write_f* 881:[range]w[rite] [++opt] {file} 882 Write the specified lines to {file}, unless it 883 already exists and the 'writeany' option is off. 884 885 *:w!* 886:[range]w[rite]! [++opt] {file} 887 Write the specified lines to {file}. Overwrite an 888 existing file. 889 890 *:w_a* *:write_a* *E494* 891:[range]w[rite][!] [++opt] >> 892 Append the specified lines to the current file. 893 894:[range]w[rite][!] [++opt] >> {file} 895 Append the specified lines to {file}. '!' forces the 896 write even if file does not exist. 897 898 *:w_c* *:write_c* 899:[range]w[rite] [++opt] !{cmd} 900 Execute {cmd} with [range] lines as standard input 901 (note the space in front of the '!'). {cmd} is 902 executed like with ":!{cmd}", any '!' is replaced with 903 the previous command |:!|. 904 905The default [range] for the ":w" command is the whole buffer (1,$). If you 906write the whole buffer, it is no longer considered changed. When you 907write it to a different file with ":w somefile" it depends on the "+" flag in 908'cpoptions'. When included, the write command will reset the 'modified' flag, 909even though the buffer itself may still be different from its file. 910 911If a file name is given with ":w" it becomes the alternate file. This can be 912used, for example, when the write fails and you want to try again later with 913":w #". This can be switched off by removing the 'A' flag from the 914'cpoptions' option. 915 916 *:sav* *:saveas* 917:sav[eas][!] [++opt] {file} 918 Save the current buffer under the name {file} and set 919 the filename of the current buffer to {file}. The 920 previous name is used for the alternate file name. 921 The [!] is needed to overwrite an existing file. 922 When 'filetype' is empty filetype detection is done 923 with the new name, before the file is written. 924 When the write was successful 'readonly' is reset. 925 {not in Vi} 926 927 *:up* *:update* 928:[range]up[date][!] [++opt] [>>] [file] 929 Like ":write", but only write when the buffer has been 930 modified. {not in Vi} 931 932 933WRITING WITH MULTIPLE BUFFERS *buffer-write* 934 935 *:wa* *:wall* 936:wa[ll] Write all changed buffers. Buffers without a file 937 name or which are readonly are not written. {not in 938 Vi} 939 940:wa[ll]! Write all changed buffers, even the ones that are 941 readonly. Buffers without a file name are not 942 written. {not in Vi} 943 944 945Vim will warn you if you try to overwrite a file that has been changed 946elsewhere. See |timestamp|. 947 948 *backup* *E207* *E506* *E507* *E508* *E509* *E510* 949If you write to an existing file (but do not append) while the 'backup', 950'writebackup' or 'patchmode' option is on, a backup of the original file is 951made. The file is either copied or renamed (see 'backupcopy'). After the 952file has been successfully written and when the 'writebackup' option is on and 953the 'backup' option is off, the backup file is deleted. When the 'patchmode' 954option is on the backup file may be renamed. 955 956 *backup-table* 957'backup' 'writebackup' action ~ 958 off off no backup made 959 off on backup current file, deleted afterwards (default) 960 on off delete old backup, backup current file 961 on on delete old backup, backup current file 962 963When the 'backupskip' pattern matches with the name of the file which is 964written, no backup file is made. The values of 'backup' and 'writebackup' are 965ignored then. 966 967When the 'backup' option is on, an old backup file (with the same name as the 968new backup file) will be deleted. If 'backup' is not set, but 'writebackup' 969is set, an existing backup file will not be deleted. The backup file that is 970made while the file is being written will have a different name. 971 972On some filesystems it's possible that in a crash you lose both the backup and 973the newly written file (it might be there but contain bogus data). In that 974case try recovery, because the swap file is synced to disk and might still be 975there. |:recover| 976 977The directories given with the 'backupdir' option is used to put the backup 978file in. (default: same directory as the written file). 979 980Whether the backup is a new file, which is a copy of the original file, or the 981original file renamed depends on the 'backupcopy' option. See there for an 982explanation of when the copy is made and when the file is renamed. 983 984If the creation of a backup file fails, the write is not done. If you want 985to write anyway add a '!' to the command. 986 987 *write-readonly* 988When the 'cpoptions' option contains 'W', Vim will refuse to overwrite a 989readonly file. When 'W' is not present, ":w!" will overwrite a readonly file, 990if the system allows it (the directory must be writable). 991 992 *write-fail* 993If the writing of the new file fails, you have to be careful not to lose 994your changes AND the original file. If there is no backup file and writing 995the new file failed, you have already lost the original file! DON'T EXIT VIM 996UNTIL YOU WRITE OUT THE FILE! If a backup was made, it is put back in place 997of the original file (if possible). If you exit Vim, and lose the changes 998you made, the original file will mostly still be there. If putting back the 999original file fails, there will be an error message telling you that you 1000lost the original file. 1001 1002 *DOS-format-write* 1003If the 'fileformat' is "dos", <CR> <NL> is used for <EOL>. This is default 1004for MS-DOS, Win32 and OS/2. On other systems the message "[dos format]" is 1005shown to remind you that an unusual <EOL> was used. 1006 *Unix-format-write* 1007If the 'fileformat' is "unix", <NL> is used for <EOL>. On MS-DOS, Win32 and 1008OS/2 the message "[unix format]" is shown. 1009 *Mac-format-write* 1010If the 'fileformat' is "mac", <CR> is used for <EOL>. On non-Mac systems the 1011message "[mac format]" is shown. 1012 1013See also |file-formats| and the 'fileformat' and 'fileformats' options. 1014 1015 *ACL* 1016ACL stands for Access Control List. It is an advanced way to control access 1017rights for a file. It is used on new MS-Windows and Unix systems, but only 1018when the filesystem supports it. 1019 Vim attempts to preserve the ACL info when writing a file. The backup file 1020will get the ACL info of the original file. 1021 The ACL info is also used to check if a file is read-only (when opening the 1022file). 1023 1024 *read-only-share* 1025When MS-Windows shares a drive on the network it can be marked as read-only. 1026This means that even if the file read-only attribute is absent, and the ACL 1027settings on NT network shared drives allow writing to the file, you can still 1028not write to the file. Vim on Win32 platforms will detect read-only network 1029drives and will mark the file as read-only. You will not be able to override 1030it with |:write|. 1031 1032 *write-device* 1033When the file name is actually a device name, Vim will not make a backup (that 1034would be impossible). You need to use "!", since the device already exists. 1035Example for Unix: > 1036 :w! /dev/lpt0 1037and for MS-DOS or MS-Windows: > 1038 :w! lpt0 1039For Unix a device is detected when the name doesn't refer to a normal file or 1040a directory. A fifo or named pipe also looks like a device to Vim. 1041For MS-DOS and MS-Windows the device is detected by its name: 1042 AUX 1043 CON 1044 CLOCK$ 1045 NUL 1046 PRN 1047 COMn n=1,2,3... etc 1048 LPTn n=1,2,3... etc 1049The names can be in upper- or lowercase. 1050 1051============================================================================== 10525. Writing and quitting *write-quit* 1053 1054 *:q* *:quit* 1055:q[uit] Quit the current window. Quit Vim if this is the last 1056 window. This fails when changes have been made and 1057 Vim refuses to |abandon| the current buffer, and when 1058 the last file in the argument list has not been 1059 edited. 1060 If there are other tab pages and quitting the last 1061 window in the current tab page the current tab page is 1062 closed |tab-page|. 1063 1064:conf[irm] q[uit] Quit, but give prompt when changes have been made, or 1065 the last file in the argument list has not been 1066 edited. See |:confirm| and 'confirm'. {not in Vi} 1067 1068:q[uit]! Quit without writing, also when visible buffers have 1069 changes. Does not exit when there are changed hidden 1070 buffers. Use ":qall!" to exit always. 1071 1072:cq[uit] Quit always, without writing, and return an error 1073 code. See |:cq|. Used for Manx's QuickFix mode (see 1074 |quickfix|). {not in Vi} 1075 1076 *:wq* 1077:wq [++opt] Write the current file and quit. Writing fails when 1078 the file is read-only or the buffer does not have a 1079 name. Quitting fails when the last file in the 1080 argument list has not been edited. 1081 1082:wq! [++opt] Write the current file and quit. Writing fails when 1083 the current buffer does not have a name. 1084 1085:wq [++opt] {file} Write to {file} and quit. Quitting fails when the 1086 last file in the argument list has not been edited. 1087 1088:wq! [++opt] {file} Write to {file} and quit. 1089 1090:[range]wq[!] [++opt] [file] 1091 Same as above, but only write the lines in [range]. 1092 1093 *:x* *:xit* 1094:[range]x[it][!] [++opt] [file] 1095 Like ":wq", but write only when changes have been 1096 made. 1097 When 'hidden' is set and there are more windows, the 1098 current buffer becomes hidden, after writing the file. 1099 1100 *:exi* *:exit* 1101:[range]exi[t][!] [++opt] [file] 1102 Same as :xit. 1103 1104 *ZZ* 1105ZZ Write current file, if modified, and quit (same as 1106 ":x"). (Note: If there are several windows for the 1107 current file, the file is written if it was modified 1108 and the window is closed). 1109 1110 *ZQ* 1111ZQ Quit without checking for changes (same as ":q!"). 1112 {not in Vi} 1113 1114MULTIPLE WINDOWS AND BUFFERS *window-exit* 1115 1116 *:qa* *:qall* 1117:qa[ll] Exit Vim, unless there are some buffers which have been 1118 changed. (Use ":bmod" to go to the next modified buffer). 1119 When 'autowriteall' is set all changed buffers will be 1120 written, like |:wqall|. {not in Vi} 1121 1122:conf[irm] qa[ll] 1123 Exit Vim. Bring up a prompt when some buffers have been 1124 changed. See |:confirm|. {not in Vi} 1125 1126:qa[ll]! Exit Vim. Any changes to buffers are lost. {not in Vi} 1127 Also see |:cquit|, it does the same but exits with a non-zero 1128 value. 1129 1130 *:quita* *:quitall* 1131:quita[ll][!] Same as ":qall". {not in Vi} 1132 1133:wqa[ll] [++opt] *:wqa* *:wqall* *:xa* *:xall* 1134:xa[ll] Write all changed buffers and exit Vim. If there are buffers 1135 without a file name, which are readonly or which cannot be 1136 written for another reason, Vim will not quit. {not in Vi} 1137 1138:conf[irm] wqa[ll] [++opt] 1139:conf[irm] xa[ll] 1140 Write all changed buffers and exit Vim. Bring up a prompt 1141 when some buffers are readonly or cannot be written for 1142 another reason. See |:confirm|. {not in Vi} 1143 1144:wqa[ll]! [++opt] 1145:xa[ll]! Write all changed buffers, even the ones that are readonly, 1146 and exit Vim. If there are buffers without a file name or 1147 which cannot be written for another reason, Vim will not quit. 1148 {not in Vi} 1149 1150============================================================================== 11516. Dialogs *edit-dialogs* 1152 1153 *:confirm* *:conf* 1154:conf[irm] {command} Execute {command}, and use a dialog when an 1155 operation has to be confirmed. Can be used on the 1156 ":q", ":qa" and ":w" commands (the latter to over-ride 1157 a read-only setting). 1158 1159Examples: > 1160 :confirm w foo 1161< Will ask for confirmation when "foo" already exists. > 1162 :confirm q 1163< Will ask for confirmation when there are changes. > 1164 :confirm qa 1165< If any modified, unsaved buffers exist, you will be prompted to save 1166 or abandon each one. There are also choices to "save all" or "abandon 1167 all". 1168 1169If you want to always use ":confirm", set the 'confirm' option. 1170 1171 *:browse* *:bro* *E338* *E614* *E615* *E616* *E578* 1172:bro[wse] {command} Open a file selection dialog for an argument to 1173 {command}. At present this works for |:e|, |:w|, 1174 |:wall|, |:wq|, |:wqall|, |:x|, |:xall|, |:exit|, 1175 |:view|, |:sview|, |:r|, |:saveas|, |:sp|, |:mkexrc|, 1176 |:mkvimrc|, |:mksession|, |:mkview|, |:split|, 1177 |:vsplit|, |:tabe|, |:tabnew|, |:cfile|, |:cgetfile|, 1178 |:caddfile|, |:lfile|, |:lgetfile|, |:laddfile|, 1179 |:diffsplit|, |:diffpatch|, |:open|, |:pedit|, 1180 |:redir|, |:source|, |:update|, |:visual|, |:vsplit|, 1181 and |:qall| if 'confirm' is set. 1182 {only in Win32, Athena, Motif, GTK and Mac GUI} 1183 When ":browse" is not possible you get an error 1184 message. If the |+browse| feature is missing or the 1185 {command} doesn't support browsing, the {command} is 1186 executed without a dialog. 1187 ":browse set" works like |:options|. 1188 See also |:oldfiles| for ":browse oldfiles". 1189 1190The syntax is best shown via some examples: > 1191 :browse e $vim/foo 1192< Open the browser in the $vim/foo directory, and edit the 1193 file chosen. > 1194 :browse e 1195< Open the browser in the directory specified with 'browsedir', 1196 and edit the file chosen. > 1197 :browse w 1198< Open the browser in the directory of the current buffer, 1199 with the current buffer filename as default, and save the 1200 buffer under the filename chosen. > 1201 :browse w C:/bar 1202< Open the browser in the C:/bar directory, with the current 1203 buffer filename as default, and save the buffer under the 1204 filename chosen. 1205Also see the |'browsedir'| option. 1206For versions of Vim where browsing is not supported, the command is executed 1207unmodified. 1208 1209 *browsefilter* 1210For MS Windows, you can modify the filters that are used in the browse dialog. 1211By setting the g:browsefilter or b:browsefilter variables, you can change the 1212filters globally or locally to the buffer. The variable is set to a string in 1213the format "{filter label}\t{pattern};{pattern}\n" where {filter label} is the 1214text that appears in the "Files of Type" comboBox, and {pattern} is the 1215pattern which filters the filenames. Several patterns can be given, separated 1216by ';'. 1217 1218For Motif the same format is used, but only the very first pattern is actually 1219used (Motif only offers one pattern, but you can edit it). 1220 1221For example, to have only Vim files in the dialog, you could use the following 1222command: > 1223 1224 let g:browsefilter="Vim Scripts\t*.vim\nVim Startup Files\t*vimrc\n" 1225 1226You can override the filter setting on a per-buffer basis by setting the 1227b:browsefilter variable. You would most likely set b:browsefilter in a 1228filetype plugin, so that the browse dialog would contain entries related to 1229the type of file you are currently editing. Disadvantage: This makes it 1230difficult to start editing a file of a different type. To overcome this, you 1231may want to add "All Files\t*.*\n" as the final filter, so that the user can 1232still access any desired file. 1233 1234============================================================================== 12357. The current directory *current-directory* 1236 1237You may use the |:cd| and |:lcd| commands to change to another directory, so 1238you will not have to type that directory name in front of the file names. It 1239also makes a difference for executing external commands, e.g. ":!ls". 1240 1241Changing directory fails when the current buffer is modified, the '.' flag is 1242present in 'cpoptions' and "!" is not used in the command. 1243 1244 *:cd* *E747* *E472* 1245:cd[!] On non-Unix systems: Print the current directory 1246 name. On Unix systems: Change the current directory 1247 to the home directory. Use |:pwd| to print the 1248 current directory on all systems. 1249 1250:cd[!] {path} Change the current directory to {path}. 1251 If {path} is relative, it is searched for in the 1252 directories listed in |'cdpath'|. 1253 Does not change the meaning of an already opened file, 1254 because its full path name is remembered. Files from 1255 the |arglist| may change though! 1256 On MS-DOS this also changes the active drive. 1257 To change to the directory of the current file: > 1258 :cd %:h 1259< 1260 *:cd-* *E186* 1261:cd[!] - Change to the previous current directory (before the 1262 previous ":cd {path}" command). {not in Vi} 1263 1264 *:chd* *:chdir* 1265:chd[ir][!] [path] Same as |:cd|. 1266 1267 *:lc* *:lcd* 1268:lc[d][!] {path} Like |:cd|, but only set the current directory for the 1269 current window. The current directory for other 1270 windows is not changed. {not in Vi} 1271 1272 *:lch* *:lchdir* 1273:lch[dir][!] Same as |:lcd|. {not in Vi} 1274 1275 *:pw* *:pwd* *E187* 1276:pw[d] Print the current directory name. {Vi: no pwd} 1277 Also see |getcwd()|. 1278 1279So long as no |:lcd| command has been used, all windows share the same current 1280directory. Using a command to jump to another window doesn't change anything 1281for the current directory. 1282When a |:lcd| command has been used for a window, the specified directory 1283becomes the current directory for that window. Windows where the |:lcd| 1284command has not been used stick to the global current directory. When jumping 1285to another window the current directory will become the last specified local 1286current directory. If none was specified, the global current directory is 1287used. 1288When a |:cd| command is used, the current window will lose his local current 1289directory and will use the global current directory from now on. 1290 1291After using |:cd| the full path name will be used for reading and writing 1292files. On some networked file systems this may cause problems. The result of 1293using the full path name is that the file names currently in use will remain 1294referring to the same file. Example: If you have a file a:test and a 1295directory a:vim the commands ":e test" ":cd vim" ":w" will overwrite the file 1296a:test and not write a:vim/test. But if you do ":w test" the file a:vim/test 1297will be written, because you gave a new file name and did not refer to a 1298filename before the ":cd". 1299 1300============================================================================== 13018. Editing binary files *edit-binary* 1302 1303Although Vim was made to edit text files, it is possible to edit binary 1304files. The |-b| Vim argument (b for binary) makes Vim do file I/O in binary 1305mode, and sets some options for editing binary files ('binary' on, 'textwidth' 1306to 0, 'modeline' off, 'expandtab' off). Setting the 'binary' option has the 1307same effect. Don't forget to do this before reading the file. 1308 1309There are a few things to remember when editing binary files: 1310- When editing executable files the number of characters must not change. 1311 Use only the "R" or "r" command to change text. Do not delete characters 1312 with "x" or by backspacing. 1313- Set the 'textwidth' option to 0. Otherwise lines will unexpectedly be 1314 split in two. 1315- When there are not many <EOL>s, the lines will become very long. If you 1316 want to edit a line that does not fit on the screen reset the 'wrap' option. 1317 Horizontal scrolling is used then. If a line becomes too long (more than 1318 about 32767 characters on the Amiga, much more on 32-bit systems, see 1319 |limits|) you cannot edit that line. The line will be split when reading 1320 the file. It is also possible that you get an "out of memory" error when 1321 reading the file. 1322- Make sure the 'binary' option is set BEFORE loading the 1323 file. Otherwise both <CR> <NL> and <NL> are considered to end a line 1324 and when the file is written the <NL> will be replaced with <CR> <NL>. 1325- <Nul> characters are shown on the screen as ^@. You can enter them with 1326 "CTRL-V CTRL-@" or "CTRL-V 000" {Vi cannot handle <Nul> characters in the 1327 file} 1328- To insert a <NL> character in the file split up a line. When writing the 1329 buffer to a file a <NL> will be written for the <EOL>. 1330- Vim normally appends an <EOL> at the end of the file if there is none. 1331 Setting the 'binary' option prevents this. If you want to add the final 1332 <EOL>, set the 'endofline' option. You can also read the value of this 1333 option to see if there was an <EOL> for the last line (you cannot see this 1334 in the text). 1335 1336============================================================================== 13379. Encryption *encryption* 1338 1339Vim is able to write files encrypted, and read them back. The encrypted text 1340cannot be read without the right key. 1341{only available when compiled with the |+cryptv| feature} *E833* 1342 1343The text in the swap file and the undo file is also encrypted. 1344 1345Note: The text in memory is not encrypted. A system administrator may be able 1346to see your text while you are editing it. When filtering text with 1347":!filter" or using ":w !command" the text is not encrypted, this may reveal 1348it to others. The 'viminfo' file is not encrypted. 1349 1350WARNING: If you make a typo when entering the key and then write the file and 1351exit, the text will be lost! 1352 1353The normal way to work with encryption, is to use the ":X" command, which will 1354ask you to enter a key. A following write command will use that key to 1355encrypt the file. If you later edit the same file, Vim will ask you to enter 1356a key. If you type the same key as that was used for writing, the text will 1357be readable again. If you use a wrong key, it will be a mess. 1358 1359 *:X* 1360:X Prompt for an encryption key. The typing is done without showing the 1361 actual text, so that someone looking at the display won't see it. 1362 The typed key is stored in the 'key' option, which is used to encrypt 1363 the file when it is written. The file will remain unchanged until you 1364 write it. See also |-x|. 1365 1366The value of the 'key' options is used when text is written. When the option 1367is not empty, the written file will be encrypted, using the value as the 1368encryption key. A magic number is prepended, so that Vim can recognize that 1369the file is encrypted. 1370 1371To disable the encryption, reset the 'key' option to an empty value: > 1372 :set key= 1373 1374You can use the 'cryptmethod' option to select the type of encryption, use one 1375of these two: > 1376 :setlocal cm=zip " weak method, backwards compatible 1377 :setlocal cm=blowfish " strong method 1378Do this before writing the file. When reading an encrypted file it will be 1379set automatically to the method used when that file was written. You can 1380change 'cryptmethod' before writing that file to change the method. 1381To set the default method, used for new files, use one of these in your 1382|vimrc| file: > 1383 set cm=zip 1384 set cm=blowfish 1385 1386When writing an undo file, the same key and method will be used for the text 1387in the undo file. |persistent-undo|. 1388 1389 *E817* *E818* *E819* *E820* 1390When encryption does not work properly, you would be able to write your text 1391to a file and never be able to read it back. Therefore a test is performed to 1392check if the encryption works as expected. If you get one of these errors 1393don't write the file encrypted! You need to rebuild the Vim binary to fix 1394this. 1395 1396*E831* This is an internal error, "cannot happen". If you can reproduce it, 1397please report to the developers. 1398 1399When reading a file that has been encrypted and the 'key' option is not empty, 1400it will be used for decryption. If the value is empty, you will be prompted 1401to enter the key. If you don't enter a key, or you enter the wrong key, the 1402file is edited without being decrypted. There is no warning about using the 1403wrong key (this makes brute force methods to find the key more difficult). 1404 1405If want to start reading a file that uses a different key, set the 'key' 1406option to an empty string, so that Vim will prompt for a new one. Don't use 1407the ":set" command to enter the value, other people can read the command over 1408your shoulder. 1409 1410Since the value of the 'key' option is supposed to be a secret, its value can 1411never be viewed. You should not set this option in a vimrc file. 1412 1413An encrypted file can be recognized by the "file" command, if you add these 1414lines to "/etc/magic", "/usr/share/misc/magic" or wherever your system has the 1415"magic" file: > 1416 0 string VimCrypt~ Vim encrypted file 1417 >9 string 01 - "zip" cryptmethod 1418 >9 string 02 - "blowfish" cryptmethod 1419 1420 1421Notes: 1422- Encryption is not possible when doing conversion with 'charconvert'. 1423- Text you copy or delete goes to the numbered registers. The registers can 1424 be saved in the .viminfo file, where they could be read. Change your 1425 'viminfo' option to be safe. 1426- Someone can type commands in Vim when you walk away for a moment, he should 1427 not be able to get the key. 1428- If you make a typing mistake when entering the key, you might not be able to 1429 get your text back! 1430- If you type the key with a ":set key=value" command, it can be kept in the 1431 history, showing the 'key' value in a viminfo file. 1432- There is never 100% safety. The encryption in Vim has not been tested for 1433 robustness. 1434- The algorithm used is breakable. A 4 character key in about one hour, a 6 1435 character key in one day (on a Pentium 133 PC). This requires that you know 1436 some text that must appear in the file. An expert can break it for any key. 1437 When the text has been decrypted, this also means that the key can be 1438 revealed, and other files encrypted with the same key can be decrypted. 1439- Pkzip uses the same encryption, and US Govt has no objection to its export. 1440 Pkzip's public file APPNOTE.TXT describes this algorithm in detail. 1441- Vim originates from the Netherlands. That is where the sources come from. 1442 Thus the encryption code is not exported from the USA. 1443 1444============================================================================== 144510. Timestamps *timestamp* *timestamps* 1446 1447Vim remembers the modification timestamp of a file when you begin editing it. 1448This is used to avoid that you have two different versions of the same file 1449(without you knowing this). 1450 1451After a shell command is run (|:!cmd| |suspend| |:read!| |K|) timestamps are 1452compared for all buffers in a window. Vim will run any associated 1453|FileChangedShell| autocommands or display a warning for any files that have 1454changed. In the GUI this happens when Vim regains input focus. 1455 1456 *E321* *E462* 1457If you want to automatically reload a file when it has been changed outside of 1458Vim, set the 'autoread' option. This doesn't work at the moment you write the 1459file though, only when the file wasn't changed inside of Vim. 1460 1461Note that if a FileChangedShell autocommand is defined you will not get a 1462warning message or prompt. The autocommand is expected to handle this. 1463 1464There is no warning for a directory (e.g., with |netrw-browse|). But you do 1465get warned if you started editing a new file and it was created as a directory 1466later. 1467 1468When Vim notices the timestamp of a file has changed, and the file is being 1469edited in a buffer but has not changed, Vim checks if the contents of the file 1470is equal. This is done by reading the file again (into a hidden buffer, which 1471is immediately deleted again) and comparing the text. If the text is equal, 1472you will get no warning. 1473 1474If you don't get warned often enough you can use the following command. 1475 1476 *:checkt* *:checktime* 1477:checkt[ime] Check if any buffers were changed outside of Vim. 1478 This checks and warns you if you would end up with two 1479 versions of a file. 1480 If this is called from an autocommand, a ":global" 1481 command or is not typed the actual check is postponed 1482 until a moment the side effects (reloading the file) 1483 would be harmless. 1484 Each loaded buffer is checked for its associated file 1485 being changed. If the file was changed Vim will take 1486 action. If there are no changes in the buffer and 1487 'autoread' is set, the buffer is reloaded. Otherwise, 1488 you are offered the choice of reloading the file. If 1489 the file was deleted you get an error message. 1490 If the file previously didn't exist you get a warning 1491 if it exists now. 1492 Once a file has been checked the timestamp is reset, 1493 you will not be warned again. 1494 1495:[N]checkt[ime] {filename} 1496:[N]checkt[ime] [N] 1497 Check the timestamp of a specific buffer. The buffer 1498 may be specified by name, number or with a pattern. 1499 1500 1501 *E813* *E814* 1502Vim will reload the buffer if you chose to. If a window is visible that 1503contains this buffer, the reloading will happen in the context of this window. 1504Otherwise a special window is used, so that most autocommands will work. You 1505can't close this window. A few other restrictions apply. Best is to make 1506sure nothing happens outside of the current buffer. E.g., setting 1507window-local options may end up in the wrong window. Splitting the window, 1508doing something there and closing it should be OK (if there are no side 1509effects from other autocommands). Closing unrelated windows and buffers will 1510get you into trouble. 1511 1512Before writing a file the timestamp is checked. If it has changed, Vim will 1513ask if you really want to overwrite the file: 1514 1515 WARNING: The file has been changed since reading it!!! 1516 Do you really want to write to it (y/n)? 1517 1518If you hit 'y' Vim will continue writing the file. If you hit 'n' the write is 1519aborted. If you used ":wq" or "ZZ" Vim will not exit, you will get another 1520chance to write the file. 1521 1522The message would normally mean that somebody has written to the file after 1523the edit session started. This could be another person, in which case you 1524probably want to check if your changes to the file and the changes from the 1525other person should be merged. Write the file under another name and check for 1526differences (the "diff" program can be used for this). 1527 1528It is also possible that you modified the file yourself, from another edit 1529session or with another command (e.g., a filter command). Then you will know 1530which version of the file you want to keep. 1531 1532There is one situation where you get the message while there is nothing wrong: 1533On a Win32 system on the day daylight saving time starts. There is something 1534in the Win32 libraries that confuses Vim about the hour time difference. The 1535problem goes away the next day. 1536 1537============================================================================== 153811. File Searching *file-searching* 1539 1540{not available when compiled without the |+path_extra| feature} 1541 1542The file searching is currently used for the 'path', 'cdpath' and 'tags' 1543options, for |finddir()| and |findfile()|. Other commands use |wildcards| 1544which is slightly different. 1545 1546There are three different types of searching: 1547 15481) Downward search: *starstar* 1549 Downward search uses the wildcards '*', '**' and possibly others 1550 supported by your operating system. '*' and '**' are handled inside Vim, 1551 so they work on all operating systems. Note that "**" only acts as a 1552 special wildcard when it is at the start of a name. 1553 1554 The usage of '*' is quite simple: It matches 0 or more characters. In a 1555 search pattern this would be ".*". Note that the "." is not used for file 1556 searching. 1557 1558 '**' is more sophisticated: 1559 - It ONLY matches directories. 1560 - It matches up to 30 directories deep by default, so you can use it to 1561 search an entire directory tree 1562 - The maximum number of levels matched can be given by appending a number 1563 to '**'. 1564 Thus '/usr/**2' can match: > 1565 /usr 1566 /usr/include 1567 /usr/include/sys 1568 /usr/include/g++ 1569 /usr/lib 1570 /usr/lib/X11 1571 .... 1572< It does NOT match '/usr/include/g++/std' as this would be three 1573 levels. 1574 The allowed number range is 0 ('**0' is removed) to 100 1575 If the given number is smaller than 0 it defaults to 30, if it's 1576 bigger than 100 then 100 is used. The system also has a limit on the 1577 path length, usually 256 or 1024 bytes. 1578 - '**' can only be at the end of the path or be followed by a path 1579 separator or by a number and a path separator. 1580 1581 You can combine '*' and '**' in any order: > 1582 /usr/**/sys/* 1583 /usr/*tory/sys/** 1584 /usr/**2/sys/* 1585 15862) Upward search: 1587 Here you can give a directory and then search the directory tree upward for 1588 a file. You could give stop-directories to limit the upward search. The 1589 stop-directories are appended to the path (for the 'path' option) or to 1590 the filename (for the 'tags' option) with a ';'. If you want several 1591 stop-directories separate them with ';'. If you want no stop-directory 1592 ("search upward till the root directory) just use ';'. > 1593 /usr/include/sys;/usr 1594< will search in: > 1595 /usr/include/sys 1596 /usr/include 1597 /usr 1598< 1599 If you use a relative path the upward search is started in Vim's current 1600 directory or in the directory of the current file (if the relative path 1601 starts with './' and 'd' is not included in 'cpoptions'). 1602 1603 If Vim's current path is /u/user_x/work/release and you do > 1604 :set path=include;/u/user_x 1605< and then search for a file with |gf| the file is searched in: > 1606 /u/user_x/work/release/include 1607 /u/user_x/work/include 1608 /u/user_x/include 1609 16103) Combined up/downward search: 1611 If Vim's current path is /u/user_x/work/release and you do > 1612 set path=**;/u/user_x 1613< and then search for a file with |gf| the file is searched in: > 1614 /u/user_x/work/release/** 1615 /u/user_x/work/** 1616 /u/user_x/** 1617< 1618 BE CAREFUL! This might consume a lot of time, as the search of 1619 '/u/user_x/**' includes '/u/user_x/work/**' and 1620 '/u/user_x/work/release/**'. So '/u/user_x/work/release/**' is searched 1621 three times and '/u/user_x/work/**' is searched twice. 1622 1623 In the above example you might want to set path to: > 1624 :set path=**,/u/user_x/** 1625< This searches: 1626 /u/user_x/work/release/** ~ 1627 /u/user_x/** ~ 1628 This searches the same directories, but in a different order. 1629 1630 Note that completion for ":find", ":sfind", and ":tabfind" commands do not 1631 currently work with 'path' items that contain a url or use the double star 1632 (/usr/**2) or upward search (;) notations. > 1633 1634 vim:tw=78:ts=8:ft=help:norl: 1635