VIM(1)                      General Commands Manual                     VIM(1)

NAME
       vim - Vi IMproved, a programmer's text editor

SYNOPSIS
       vim [options] [file ..]
       vim [options] -
       vim [options] -t tag
       vim [options] -q [errorfile]

       ex
       view
       gvim gview evim eview
       rvim rview rgvim rgview

DESCRIPTION
       Vim  is a text editor that is upwards compatible to Vi.  It can be used
       to edit all kinds of plain text.  It is especially useful  for  editing
       programs.

       There  are a lot of enhancements above Vi: multi level undo, multi win‐
       dows and buffers, syntax highlighting, command line  editing,  filename
       completion,   on-line   help,   visual  selection,  etc..   See  ":help
       vi_diff.txt" for a summary of the differences between Vim and Vi.

       While running Vim a lot of help can be obtained from the  on-line  help
       system, with the ":help" command.  See the ON-LINE HELP section below.

       Most often Vim is started to edit a single file with the command

            vim file

       More generally Vim is started with:

            vim [options] [filelist]

       If the filelist is missing, the editor will start with an empty buffer.
       Otherwise  exactly  one out of the following four may be used to choose
       one or more files to be edited.

       file ..     A list of filenames.  The first one  will  be  the  current
                   file  and  read  into the buffer.  The cursor will be posi‐
                   tioned on the first line of the buffer.  You can get to the
                   other files with the ":next" command.  To edit a file  that
                   starts with a dash, precede the filelist with "--".

       -           The  file  to  edit  is read from stdin.  Commands are read
                   from stderr, which should be a tty.

       -t {tag}    The file to edit and the initial cursor position depends on
                   a "tag", a sort of goto label.  {tag} is looked up  in  the
                   tags file, the associated file becomes the current file and
                   the  associated  command  is executed.  Mostly this is used
                   for C programs, in which case {tag}  could  be  a  function
                   name.  The effect is that the file containing that function
                   becomes  the  current  file and the cursor is positioned on
                   the start of the function.  See ":help tag-commands".

       -q [errorfile]
                   Start in quickFix mode.  The file [errorfile] is  read  and
                   the  first  error is displayed.  If [errorfile] is omitted,
                   the filename is obtained from the 'errorfile'  option  (de‐
                   faults to "AztecC.Err" for the Amiga, "errors.err" on other
                   systems).   Further  errors can be jumped to with the ":cn"
                   command.  See ":help quickfix".

       Vim behaves differently, depending on the name of the command (the exe‐
       cutable may still be the same file).

       vim       The "normal" way, everything is default.

       ex        Start in Ex mode.  Go to Normal mode with the ":vi"  command.
                 Can also be done with the "-e" argument.

       view      Start  in read-only mode.  You will be protected from writing
                 the files.  Can also be done with the "-R" argument.

       gvim gview
                 The GUI version.  Starts a new window.  Can also be done with
                 the "-g" argument.

       evim eview
                 The GUI version in easy mode.  Starts a new window.  Can also
                 be done with the "-y" argument.

       rvim rview rgvim rgview
                 Like the above, but with restrictions.  It will not be possi‐
                 ble to start shell commands, or suspend  Vim.   Can  also  be
                 done with the "-Z" argument.

OPTIONS
       The  options may be given in any order, before or after filenames.  Op‐
       tions without an argument can be combined after a single dash.

       +[num]      For the first file the cursor will be  positioned  on  line
                   "num".   If "num" is missing, the cursor will be positioned
                   on the last line.

       +/{pat}     For the first file the cursor will  be  positioned  in  the
                   line  with  the  first  occurrence  of  {pat}.   See ":help
                   search-pattern" for the available search patterns.

       +{command}

       -c {command}
                   {command} will be executed after the first  file  has  been
                   read.   {command}  is interpreted as an Ex command.  If the
                   {command} contains spaces it must  be  enclosed  in  double
                   quotes  (this depends on the shell that is used).  Example:
                   vim "+set si" main.c
                   Note: You can use up to 10 "+" or "-c" commands.

       -A          If Vim has been compiled with ARABIC  support  for  editing
                   right-to-left  oriented  files and Arabic keyboard mapping,
                   this option starts Vim in Arabic  mode,  i.e.  'arabic'  is
                   set.  Otherwise an error message is given and Vim aborts.

       -b          Binary  mode.  A few options will be set that makes it pos‐
                   sible to edit a binary or executable file.

       -C          Compatible.  Set the 'compatible' option.  This  will  make
                   Vim  behave  mostly  like Vi, even though a .vimrc file ex‐
                   ists.

       -d          Start in diff mode.  There should between two to eight file
                   name arguments.  Vim will open all the files and show  dif‐
                   ferences between them.  Works like vimdiff(1).

       -d {device}, -dev {device}
                   Open  {device}  for  use as a terminal.  Only on the Amiga.
                   Example: "-d con:20/30/600/150".

       -D          Debugging.  Go to debugging mode when executing  the  first
                   command from a script.

       -e          Start  Vim  in Ex mode, just like the executable was called
                   "ex".

       -display {display}
                   Run Vim on {display}, connecting to that X  server  instead
                   of  the  one in $DISPLAY.  The "--display" long form is ac‐
                   cepted only by the GTK+ 2 or GTK+ 3 GUI.   Both  forms  re‐
                   quire the +xterm_clipboard feature.

       -E          Start Vim in improved Ex mode, just like the executable was
                   called "exim".

       -f          Foreground.  For the GUI version, Vim will not fork and de‐
                   tach  from  the shell it was started in.  On the Amiga, Vim
                   is not restarted to open a new window.  This option  should
                   be  used  when  Vim is executed by a program that will wait
                   for the edit session to finish (e.g. mail).  On  the  Amiga
                   the ":sh" and ":!" commands will not work.

       -F          If  Vim  has  been  compiled with FKMAP support for editing
                   right-to-left oriented files and  Farsi  keyboard  mapping,
                   this  option  starts  Vim  in  Farsi mode, i.e. 'fkmap' and
                   'rightleft' are set.  Otherwise an error message  is  given
                   and Vim aborts.
                   Note: Farsi support has been removed in patch 8.1.0932.

       -g          If  Vim has been compiled with GUI support, this option en‐
                   ables the GUI.  If no GUI support was compiled in, an error
                   message is given and Vim aborts.

       -H          If Vim has been compiled with RIGHTLEFT support for editing
                   right-to-left oriented files and Hebrew  keyboard  mapping,
                   this  option  starts  Vim  in Hebrew mode, i.e. 'hkmap' and
                   'rightleft' are set.  Otherwise an error message  is  given
                   and Vim aborts.

       -i {viminfo}
                   Specifies  the  filename to use when reading or writing the
                   viminfo file, instead of the  default  "~/.viminfo".   This
                   can  also  be used to skip the use of the .viminfo file, by
                   giving the name "NONE".

       -l          Lisp mode.  Sets the 'lisp' and 'showmatch' options on.

       -L          Same as -r.

       -m          Modifying files is disabled.  Resets  the  'write'  option.
                   You  can still modify the buffer, but writing a file is not
                   possible.

       -M          Modifications not allowed.  The  'modifiable'  and  'write'
                   options  will be unset, so that changes are not allowed and
                   files can not be written.  Note that these options  can  be
                   set to enable making modifications.

       -n          No  swap file will be used.  Recovery after a crash will be
                   impossible.  Handy if you want to edit a  file  on  a  very
                   slow  medium  (e.g.  floppy).   Can also be done with ":set
                   uc=0".  Can be undone with ":set uc=200".

       -N          No-compatible mode.  Resets the 'compatible' option.   This
                   will  make Vim behave a bit better, but less Vi compatible,
                   even though a .vimrc file does not exist.

       -nb         Become an editor server for NetBeans.  See the docs for de‐
                   tails.

       -o[N]       Open N windows stacked.  When N is omitted, open one window
                   for each file.

       -O[N]       Open N windows side by side.  When N is omitted,  open  one
                   window for each file.

       -p[N]       Open N tab pages.  When N is omitted, open one tab page for
                   each file.

       -P {parent-title}
                   Win32  GUI  only:  Specify the title of the parent applica‐
                   tion.  When possible, Vim will run in an MDI window  inside
                   the  application.  {parent-title} must appear in the window
                   title of the parent application.  Make sure that it is spe‐
                   cific enough. Note that the implementation is still  primi‐
                   tive.   It  won't  work  with all applications and the menu
                   doesn't work.

       -r          List swap files, with information about using them for  re‐
                   covery.

       -r {file}   Recovery  mode.  The swap file is used to recover a crashed
                   editing session.  The swap file is a  file  with  the  same
                   filename as the text file with ".swp" appended.  See ":help
                   recovery".

       -R          Read-only  mode.   The  'readonly' option will be set.  You
                   can still edit the buffer, but will be prevented from acci‐
                   dentally overwriting a file.  If you do want to overwrite a
                   file, add an exclamation mark to  the  Ex  command,  as  in
                   ":w!".   The  -R  option  also  implies  the -n option (see
                   above).  The 'readonly' option  can  be  reset  with  ":set
                   noro".  See ":help 'readonly'".

       -s          Silent  mode.   Only  when started as "Ex" or when the "-e"
                   option was given before the "-s" option.

       -s {scriptin}
                   The script file {scriptin} is read.  The characters in  the
                   file  are  interpreted  as if you had typed them.  The same
                   can be done with the command ":source! {scriptin}".  If the
                   end of the file is reached before the editor exits, further
                   characters are read from the keyboard.

       -S {file}   {file} will be sourced after the first file has been  read.
                   This  is  equivalent  to -c "source {file}".  {file} cannot
                   start with '-'.  If {file} is omitted "Session.vim" is used
                   (only works when -S is the last argument).

       -T {terminal}
                   Tells Vim the name of the terminal you are using.  Only re‐
                   quired when the automatic way doesn't work.   Should  be  a
                   terminal  known  to Vim (builtin) or defined in the termcap
                   or terminfo file.

       -u {vimrc}  Use the commands in the file {vimrc}  for  initializations.
                   All  the  other  initializations  are skipped.  Use this to
                   edit a special kind of files.  It can also be used to  skip
                   all  initializations by giving the name "NONE".  See ":help
                   initialization" within vim for more details.

       -U {gvimrc} Use the commands in the file {gvimrc} for  GUI  initializa‐
                   tions.   All the other GUI initializations are skipped.  It
                   can also be used to skip all GUI initializations by  giving
                   the  name "NONE".  See ":help gui-init" within vim for more
                   details.

       -v          Start Vim in Vi mode, just like the executable  was  called
                   "vi".   This  only has effect when the executable is called
                   "ex".

       -V[N]       Verbose.  Give messages about which files are  sourced  and
                   for  reading and writing a viminfo file.  The optional num‐
                   ber N is the value for 'verbose'.  Default is 10.

       -V[N]{filename}
                   Like -V and set 'verbosefile' to {filename}.  The result is
                   that messages are not displayed but  written  to  the  file
                   {filename}.  {filename} must not start with a digit.

       -w{number}  Set the 'window' option to {number}.

       -w {scriptout}
                   All  the  characters that you type are recorded in the file
                   {scriptout}, until you exit Vim.  This  is  useful  if  you
                   want  to  create  a script file to be used with "vim -s" or
                   ":source!".  If the {scriptout} file exists, characters are
                   appended.

       -W {scriptout}
                   Like -w, but an existing file is overwritten.

       -x          If Vim has been compiled with encryption support,  use  en‐
                   cryption when writing files.  Will prompt for a crypt key.

       -X          Don't  connect to the X server.  Shortens startup time in a
                   terminal, but the window title and clipboard  will  not  be
                   used.

       -Y          Don't connect to the wayland compositor

       -y          Start Vim in easy mode, just like the executable was called
                   "evim"  or "eview".  Makes Vim behave like a click-and-type
                   editor.

       -Z          Restricted mode.  Works like  the  executable  starts  with
                   "r".

       --          Denotes  the end of the options.  Arguments after this will
                   be handled as a file name.  This can  be  used  to  edit  a
                   filename that starts with a '-'.

       --clean     Do  not  use  any  personal  configuration (vimrc, plugins,
                   etc.).  Useful to see if a problem reproduces with a  clean
                   Vim setup.

       --cmd {command}
                   Like  using  "-c",  but the command is executed just before
                   processing any vimrc file.  You can use up to 10  of  these
                   commands, independently from "-c" commands.

       --echo-wid  GTK GUI only: Echo the Window ID on stdout.

       --gui-dialog-file {name}
                   When  using the GUI, instead of showing a dialog, write the
                   title and message of the dialog to file {name}.   The  file
                   is  created  or  appended  to.  Only useful for testing, to
                   avoid that the test gets stuck on a dialog  that  can't  be
                   seen.  Without the GUI the argument is ignored.

       --help, -h, -?
                   Give a bit of help about the command line arguments and op‐
                   tions.  After this Vim exits.

       --literal   Take  file  name  arguments  literally, do not expand wild‐
                   cards.  This has no effect on Unix where the shell  expands
                   wildcards.

       --log {filename}
                   If  Vim  has  been  compiled with eval and channel feature,
                   start logging and write entries to {filename}.  This  works
                   like calling ch_logfile({filename}, 'ao') very early during
                   startup.

       --nofork    Foreground.  For the GUI version, Vim will not fork and de‐
                   tach from the shell it was started in.

       --noplugin  Skip loading plugins.  Implied by -u NONE.

       --not-a-term
                   Tells  Vim that the user knows that the input and/or output
                   is not connected to a terminal.  This will avoid the  warn‐
                   ing and the two second delay that would happen.

       --remote    Connect to a Vim server and make it edit the files given in
                   the rest of the arguments.  If no server is found a warning
                   is given and the files are edited in the current Vim.

       --remote-expr {expr}
                   Connect  to  a  Vim server, evaluate {expr} in it and print
                   the result on stdout.

       --remote-send {keys}
                   Connect to a Vim server and send {keys} to it.

       --remote-silent
                   As --remote, but without the  warning  when  no  server  is
                   found.

       --remote-wait
                   As  --remote,  but  Vim  does not exit until the files have
                   been edited.

       --remote-wait-silent
                   As --remote-wait, but without the warning when no server is
                   found.

       --serverlist
                   List the names of all Vim servers that can be found.

       --servername {name}
                   Use {name} as the server name.  Used for the  current  Vim,
                   unless used with a --remote argument, then it's the name of
                   the  server  to connect to.  If the socketserver backend is
                   being used, if the name starts with "/", "./", or "../", it
                   is taken as either an absolute, relative or  relative  path
                   to the socket.

       --clientserver {backend}
                   Use  {backend}  as the backend for clientserver functional‐
                   ity, either "socket", "x11", or "mswin" respectively.  Only
                   available when compiled with both socketserver and X11 fea‐
                   tures present, or if compiled with socketserver on  MS-Win‐
                   dows.  The  $VIM_CLIENTSERVER environment variable may also
                   be set which will be interpreted in the same way,  but  the
                   --clientserver argument will always take priority.

       --socketid {id}
                   GTK  GUI only: Use the GtkPlug mechanism to run gVim in an‐
                   other window.

       --startuptime {file}
                   During startup write timing messages to the file {fname}.

       --ttyfail   When stdin or stdout is not  a  terminal  (tty)  then  exit
                   right away.

       --version   Print version information and exit.

       --windowid {id}
                   Win32  GUI  only: Make gVim try to use the window {id} as a
                   parent, so that it runs inside that window.

ON-LINE HELP
       Type ":help" in Vim to get started.  Type ":help subject" to  get  help
       on  a  specific  subject.   For example: ":help ZZ" to get help for the
       "ZZ" command.  Use <Tab> and CTRL-D to complete subjects  (":help  cmd‐
       line-completion").   Tags are present to jump from one place to another
       (sort of hypertext links, see ":help").  All documentation files can be
       viewed in this way, for example ":help syntax.txt".

FILES
       /usr/local/share/vim/vim??/doc/*.txt
                      The Vim documentation files.  Use ":help  doc-file-list"
                      to get the complete list.
                      vim??  is short version number, like vim91 for Vim 9.1

       /usr/local/share/vim/vim??/doc/tags
                      The  tags file used for finding information in the docu‐
                      mentation files.

       /usr/local/share/vim/vim??/syntax/syntax.vim
                      System wide syntax initializations.

       /usr/local/share/vim/vim??/syntax/*.vim
                      Syntax files for various languages.

       /usr/local/share/vim/vimrc
                      System wide Vim initializations.

       ~/.vimrc, ~/.vim/vimrc, $XDG_CONFIG_HOME/vim/vimrc
                      Your personal Vim initializations (first  one  found  is
                      used).

       /usr/local/share/vim/gvimrc
                      System wide gvim initializations.

       ~/.gvimrc, ~/.vim/gvimrc, $XDG_CONFIG_HOME/vim/gvimrc
                      Your  personal  gVim initializations (first one found is
                      used).

       /usr/local/share/vim/vim??/optwin.vim
                      Script used for the ":options" command, a  nice  way  to
                      view and set options.

       /usr/local/share/vim/vim??/menu.vim
                      System wide menu initializations for gVim.

       /usr/local/share/vim/vim??/bugreport.vim
                      Script to generate a bug report.  See ":help bugs".

       /usr/local/share/vim/vim??/filetype.vim
                      Script  to  detect  the type of a file by its name.  See
                      ":help 'filetype'".

       /usr/local/share/vim/vim??/scripts.vim
                      Script to detect the type of a  file  by  its  contents.
                      See ":help 'filetype'".

       /usr/local/share/vim/vim??/print/*.ps
                      Files used for PostScript printing.

       For recent info read the VIM home page:
       <URL:http://www.vim.org/>

SEE ALSO
       vimtutor(1)

AUTHOR
       Most of Vim was made by Bram Moolenaar, with a lot of help from others.
       See ":help credits" in Vim.
       Vim  is  based  on Stevie, worked on by: Tim Thompson, Tony Andrews and
       G.R. (Fred) Walter.  Although hardly any of the original code remains.

BUGS
       Probably.  See ":help todo" for a list of known problems.

       Note that a number of things that may be regarded as bugs by some,  are
       in  fact  caused by a too-faithful reproduction of Vi's behaviour.  And
       if you think other things are bugs "because Vi  does  it  differently",
       you  should  take  a closer look at the vi_diff.txt file (or type :help
       vi_diff.txt when in Vim).  Also have a look  at  the  'compatible'  and
       'cpoptions' options.

                                  2026 Jun 05                           VIM(1)
