Andrew Fletcher published: 13 December 2019 (updated) 25 October 2023 3 minutes read
In Vim, following is an outline of the vi(m) functions you can utilise whilst in command mode - yes they are case sensitive
| action | outcome |
|---|---|
| a | change to insert mode (after cursor) |
| A | change to insert mode (at end of line) |
| dd | delete one line |
| G | go to end of the file |
| 1G | go to top of the file |
| i | change to insert mode (before cursor) |
| J | merge next line with this one |
| p | paste deleted or yanked text after cursor |
| P | paste deleted or yanked text before cursor |
| r | replace one character |
| R | overwrite text |
| x | delete one character |
| yy | yank line (copy) |
| $ | The $ key in normal mode will move the cursor to the end of the current line |
| 0 | 0 (zero) in normal mode will move the cursor to the start of the current line |
| / | search, follow / with text to find |
| {esc}:wq! | write file and quit |
| {esc}:q! | quit without saving |
| %s/old/new/g | substitute; replace "old" with "new" on all lines |
| :g/pattern/d | delete all lines that match the pattern |
Note: when editing a file and the permission is 444 or r--r--r--, to save the file you need to add an exclamation mark... for example :wq!
Vim is a highly customisable text editor with a rich set of commands and features. Here are some of the most commonly used Vim commands to help you get started:
Basic Movement
| key | outcome |
|---|---|
| h | Move the cursor left |
| j | Move the cursor down |
| k | Move the cursor up |
| i | Move the cursor right |
Word Movement
| key | outcome |
|---|---|
| w | Move the cursor to the beginning of the next word |
| b | Move the cursor to the end of the current word |
| e | Move the cursor to the end of the current word |
| ge | Move the cursor to the end of the previous word |
Line Movement
| key | outcome |
|---|---|
| 0 (zero) | Move to the beginning of the line |
| $ | Move to the end of the line |
| e | Move the cursor to the end of the current word |
| ^ | Move to the first non-whitespace character of the line |
Page Movement
| key | outcome |
|---|---|
| ctrl u | Scroll up (half page) |
| ctrl d | Scroll down (half page) |
| ctrl b | Page up (full page) |
| ctrl f | Page down (full page) |
Search and Find
| key | outcome |
|---|---|
| /search_term | Search forward for search_term |
| ?search_term | Search backward for search_term |
| n | Move to the next search result |
| N | Move to the previous search result |
Insert Mode
| key | outcome |
|---|---|
| i | Insert text before the cursor |
| I | Insert text at the beginning of the line |
| a | Insert text after the cursor |
| N | Insert text at the end of the line |
| o | Open a new line below the current line |
| O | Open a new line above the current line |
Visual Mode
| key | outcome |
|---|---|
| v | Enter visual mode to select text character by character |
| V | Enter visual mode to select whole lines |
| ctrl v | Enter visual block mode to select rectangular blocks of text |
Copy, Cut, Paste
| key | outcome |
|---|---|
| yy | Yank (copy) the current line |
| dd | Delete (cut) the current line |
| p | Paste the yanked or deleted text after the cursor |
| P | Paste the text before the cursor |
Undo and Redo
| key | outcome |
|---|---|
| u | Undo the last change |
| ctrl r | Redo the last undone change |
Save and Quit
| key | outcome |
|---|---|
| :w | Save the current file |
| :q | Quit Vim |
| :wq | Save and quit |
| :q! | Quit without saving |
Other Commands
| key | outcome |
|---|---|
| :e file_path | Edit a different file |
| :sp file_path | Split the screen and open a different file |
| :vsp file_path | Vertical split and open a different file |
| :set number | Display line numbers |
| :set nonumber | Hide line numbers |
These are just a few of the many Vim commands available. Vim has a steep learning curve but offers powerful text-editing capabilities once you become familiar with its commands and concepts. You can access Vim's built-in help system by typing :help to learn more.