vim

Text processing

Usage

vim [file]

A modal editor: typing does nothing until you press i, and you leave with Esc then :wq to save or :q! to discard.

Common flags

Flag	Meaning
:wq	Write the file and quit; :x does the same
:q!	Quit and throw every change away
i	Enter insert mode; Esc goes back to normal mode
dd	Delete the current line; u undoes the last change
/word	Search forward; n jumps to the next hit
:%s/old/new/g	Replace throughout the file
-R	Open read-only so you cannot save by accident

Examples

vim +100 config.yml

Opens at line 100.

vim -d a.txt b.txt

Opens the two files side by side as a diff.

vim -R big.log

Reads a log without any risk of writing to it.

These were built to be piped together. Three joined commands are usually shorter than one that does everything.

How to read this

Q. What does vim do?

A modal editor: typing does nothing until you press i, and you leave with Esc then :wq to save or :q! to discard.

Q. How do I type it?

vim [file] — square brackets mark the parts you can leave out.

Q. How many flags are worth knowing?

7 are listed here; the full set is in man vim. This command sits under Text processing.

man page: man vim