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VI/VIM Power User Guide

Last updated: December 12, 2025 Author: Paul Namalomba
- SESKA Computational Engineer
- Software Developer
- PhD Candidate (Civil Engineering Spec. Computational and Applied Mechanics)

Contact: kabwenzenamalomba@gmail.com
Website: paulnamalomba.github.io

Editor: Vi/Vim License: MIT

Overview

This guide provides a comprehensive overview of Vi/Vim text editors, focusing on advanced navigation, editing techniques, and customization options. It is designed for power users who want to enhance their productivity and efficiency while working with text files in Vi/Vim.

Contents

Mode System

Vi/Vim operates in different modes: - Normal Mode (Command Mode) - Default mode for navigation and commands - Insert Mode - For typing text - Visual Mode - For selecting text - Command-Line Mode - For executing ex commands

Press Esc to return to Normal Mode from any other mode.

Basic Navigation

Character Movement

Command Action
h Move left one character
j Move down one line
k Move up one line
l Move right one character
Arrow keys Also work for movement

Word Movement

Command Action
w Move forward to start of next word
W Move forward to start of next WORD (whitespace-delimited)
e Move forward to end of word
E Move forward to end of WORD
b Move backward to start of word
B Move backward to start of WORD
ge Move backward to end of previous word
gE Move backward to end of previous WORD

Line Movement

Command Action
0 Move to beginning of line (column 0)
^ Move to first non-blank character of line
$ Move to end of line
g_ Move to last non-blank character of line
| Move to column 0
5| Move to column 5
f{char} Move forward to next occurrence of {char} on line
F{char} Move backward to previous occurrence of {char} on line
t{char} Move forward to character before next {char}
T{char} Move backward to character after previous {char}
; Repeat last f, F, t, or T command forward
, Repeat last f, F, t, or T command backward

Advanced Navigation

Screen Movement

Command Action
H Move to top of screen (High)
M Move to middle of screen (Middle)
L Move to bottom of screen (Low)
zt Scroll current line to top of screen
zz Scroll current line to center of screen
zb Scroll current line to bottom of screen

Scrolling

Command Action
Ctrl-f Scroll forward one full screen (Page Down)
Ctrl-b Scroll backward one full screen (Page Up)
Ctrl-d Scroll down half screen
Ctrl-u Scroll up half screen
Ctrl-e Scroll down one line (cursor stays)
Ctrl-y Scroll up one line (cursor stays)

File Movement

Command Action
gg Go to first line of file
G Go to last line of file
50G Go to line 50
:50 Go to line 50 (command mode)
:$ Go to last line
50% Go to 50% through file
1G Go to first line

Jump Commands

Command Action
Ctrl-o Jump to older position in jump list
Ctrl-i Jump to newer position in jump list
` Jump to last cursor position
'' Jump to beginning of last line
`[ Jump to beginning of last changed/yanked text
`] Jump to end of last changed/yanked text
`< Jump to beginning of last visual selection
`> Jump to end of last visual selection
g; Jump to position of last change
g, Jump forward through change list

Marks

Command Action
ma Set mark 'a' at current position
`a Jump to mark 'a'
'a Jump to beginning of line with mark 'a'
:marks List all marks
mA Set global mark 'A' (works across files)
`. Jump to position of last change
`" Jump to position when last exited file

Searching

Command Action
/pattern Search forward for pattern
?pattern Search backward for pattern
n Repeat search in same direction
N Repeat search in opposite direction
* Search forward for word under cursor
# Search backward for word under cursor
g* Search forward for partial word under cursor
g# Search backward for partial word under cursor

Search Options

Command Action
/pattern/e Search and place cursor at end of match
/pattern/+2 Search and place cursor 2 lines below match
:set ic Ignore case in searches
:set noic Case-sensitive searches
:set hls Highlight search matches
:noh Clear search highlighting
:set incsearch Incremental search (search as you type)

Editing Commands

Insert Mode

Command Action
i Insert before cursor
I Insert at beginning of line
a Append after cursor
A Append at end of line
o Open new line below
O Open new line above
s Substitute character (delete char and insert)
S Substitute line (delete line and insert)
C Change to end of line
cc Change entire line
cw Change word
ciw Change inner word
ci" Change text inside quotes
ci( Change text inside parentheses
cit Change text inside HTML/XML tag

Delete Commands

Command Action
x Delete character under cursor
X Delete character before cursor
dw Delete word
dW Delete WORD
dd Delete line
D Delete to end of line
d$ Delete to end of line
d0 Delete to beginning of line
dgg Delete to beginning of file
dG Delete to end of file
d50G Delete to line 50
dt{char} Delete until {char}
df{char} Delete including {char}
diw Delete inner word
di" Delete inside quotes
da" Delete around quotes (including quotes)
dap Delete around paragraph

Copy (Yank) Commands

Command Action
yw Yank word
yy Yank line
Y Yank line (same as yy)
y$ Yank to end of line
y0 Yank to beginning of line
ygg Yank to beginning of file
yG Yank to end of file
yiw Yank inner word
yi" Yank inside quotes
yap Yank around paragraph

Paste Commands

Command Action
p Paste after cursor/below line
P Paste before cursor/above line
gp Paste and move cursor after pasted text
gP Paste before and move cursor
]p Paste and adjust indentation

Undo/Redo

Command Action
u Undo last change
U Undo all changes on line
Ctrl-r Redo
. Repeat last change
& Repeat last :substitute

Visual Mode

Entering Visual Mode

Command Action
v Enter character-wise visual mode
V Enter line-wise visual mode
Ctrl-v Enter block-wise visual mode
gv Reselect last visual selection

Visual Mode Operations

Command Action
o Move to other end of selection
O Move to other corner (block mode)
d Delete selection
c Change selection
y Yank selection
> Indent selection
< Unindent selection
= Auto-indent selection
~ Toggle case
u Make lowercase
U Make uppercase
J Join lines

Text Objects

Text objects work with operator commands (d, c, y, etc.)

Inner vs Around

Command Action
iw Inner word
aw Around word (includes whitespace)
iW Inner WORD
aW Around WORD
is Inner sentence
as Around sentence
ip Inner paragraph
ap Around paragraph

Paired Objects

Command Action
i" Inside double quotes
a" Around double quotes
i' Inside single quotes
a' Around single quotes
i` Inside backticks
a` Around backticks
i( or i) or ib Inside parentheses
a( or a) or ab Around parentheses
i{ or i} or iB Inside braces
a{ or a} or aB Around braces
i[ or i] Inside brackets
a[ or a] Around brackets
i< or i> Inside angle brackets
a< or a> Around angle brackets
it Inside tag (HTML/XML)
at Around tag

Command-Line Mode (Ex Commands)

Enter with : from Normal mode

File Operations

Command Action
:w Write (save) file
:w filename Save as filename
:q Quit
:q! Quit without saving
:wq Write and quit
:x Write and quit (only if changes)
ZZ Write and quit (normal mode)
ZQ Quit without saving (normal mode)
:e filename Edit (open) file
:e! Reload current file (discard changes)
:saveas filename Save as and continue editing new file
:r filename Read file and insert below cursor
:r !command Read command output and insert

Line Numbers and Ranges

Command Action
:set nu Show line numbers
:set nonu Hide line numbers
:set rnu Show relative line numbers
:50 Go to line 50
:$ Go to last line
:+5 Go 5 lines down
:-3 Go 3 lines up
:. Current line
:% All lines
:1,50 Lines 1 to 50
:'a,'b From mark a to mark b

Search and Replace

Command Action
:s/old/new/ Substitute first occurrence on line
:s/old/new/g Substitute all occurrences on line
:s/old/new/gc Substitute with confirmation
:%s/old/new/g Substitute in entire file
:%s/old/new/gi Substitute case-insensitive
:5,12s/old/new/g Substitute in lines 5-12
:'<,'>s/old/new/g Substitute in visual selection
:g/pattern/d Delete all lines matching pattern
:g!/pattern/d or :v/pattern/d Delete non-matching lines
:g/pattern/m$ Move matching lines to end
:g/pattern/t$ Copy matching lines to end

Multiple Files

Command Action
:bn Next buffer
:bp Previous buffer
:bd Delete buffer (close file)
:ls or :buffers List buffers
:b5 Switch to buffer 5
:b filename Switch to buffer (tab completion)
:ball Open all buffers in windows
:e# Switch to alternate file

Windows (Splits)

Command Action
:sp filename Split window horizontally
:vs filename Split window vertically
Ctrl-w s Split current window horizontally
Ctrl-w v Split current window vertically
Ctrl-w q Close current window
Ctrl-w w Switch to next window
Ctrl-w h/j/k/l Move to window (left/down/up/right)
Ctrl-w H/J/K/L Move window to edge
Ctrl-w = Make all windows equal size
Ctrl-w + Increase window height
Ctrl-w - Decrease window height
Ctrl-w > Increase window width
Ctrl-w < Decrease window width
Ctrl-w _ Maximize window height
Ctrl-w | Maximize window width

Tabs

Command Action
:tabnew New tab
:tabe filename Edit file in new tab
:tabc Close current tab
:tabo Close all other tabs
gt or :tabn Next tab
gT or :tabp Previous tab
5gt Go to tab 5
:tabs List all tabs
:tabm 3 Move tab to position 3

Advanced Features

Macros

Command Action
qa Record macro in register 'a'
q Stop recording
@a Execute macro 'a'
@@ Repeat last macro
5@a Execute macro 'a' 5 times
qA Append to macro 'a'
:reg View register contents

Registers

Command Action
"ayy Yank line into register 'a'
"ap Paste from register 'a'
"Ayy Append line to register 'a'
"+y Yank to system clipboard
"+p Paste from system clipboard
"*y Yank to selection clipboard (Linux)
"*p Paste from selection clipboard
"0p Paste from yank register (not delete)
"1p Paste from delete register
:reg View all registers

Folding

Command Action
zf Create fold (in visual mode)
zf50j Create fold for 50 lines
za Toggle fold
zo Open fold
zc Close fold
zO Open all folds recursively
zC Close all folds recursively
zM Close all folds in file
zR Open all folds in file
zd Delete fold
zE Delete all folds

Indentation

Command Action
>> Indent line
<< Unindent line
5>> Indent 5 lines
>% Indent block (cursor on bracket)
=% Auto-indent block
gg=G Auto-indent entire file
=ap Auto-indent paragraph
== Auto-indent current line

Case Manipulation

Command Action
~ Toggle case of character
g~~ Toggle case of line
gUU Uppercase line
guu Lowercase line
gUw Uppercase word
guw Lowercase word
gUiw Uppercase inner word
guiw Lowercase inner word

Increment/Decrement Numbers

Command Action
Ctrl-a Increment number under cursor
Ctrl-x Decrement number under cursor
5 Ctrl-a Add 5 to number
g Ctrl-a Increment sequence (visual mode)

Configuration

Settings

Command Action
:set all Show all settings
:set Show modified settings
:set option? Show value of option
:set option Enable boolean option
:set nooption Disable boolean option
:set option=value Set option value
:set option+=value Append to option

Common Settings

:set number              " Show line numbers
:set relativenumber      " Show relative line numbers
:set ignorecase          " Case-insensitive search
:set smartcase           " Case-sensitive if uppercase used
:set hlsearch            " Highlight search results
:set incsearch           " Incremental search
:set expandtab           " Use spaces instead of tabs
:set tabstop=4           " Tab width
:set shiftwidth=4        " Indent width
:set autoindent          " Auto-indent new lines
:set smartindent         " Smart auto-indent
:set wrap                " Wrap long lines
:set nowrap              " Don't wrap lines
:set mouse=a             " Enable mouse
:set clipboard=unnamed   " Use system clipboard
:set syntax=on           " Enable syntax highlighting

Power User Combinations

Quick Navigation Patterns

5j          - Move down 5 lines
10k         - Move up 10 lines
3w          - Move forward 3 words
2b          - Move back 2 words
5G          - Go to line 5
/pattern    - Search forward, then n n n to jump through matches
?pattern    - Search backward
*           - Search word under cursor, use n/N to navigate

Efficient Editing

ciw         - Change inner word (cursor anywhere in word)
ci"         - Change text inside quotes
ca"         - Change text and quotes
dap         - Delete paragraph
yap         - Yank paragraph
>ap         - Indent paragraph
=ap         - Auto-indent paragraph
gqap        - Format/wrap paragraph

Multiple Operations

d3w         - Delete 3 words
c2j         - Change current and next 2 lines
y5k         - Yank current and previous 5 lines
5dd         - Delete 5 lines
3p          - Paste 3 times
10i*<Esc>   - Insert 10 asterisks

Complex Commands

:%s/\s\+$//g              - Remove trailing whitespace
:g/^$/d                   - Delete empty lines
:g/pattern/normal @a      - Execute macro on matching lines
:.,+5s/old/new/g          - Substitute in next 5 lines
:'<,'>normal I#           - Comment visual selection
:%!sort                   - Sort entire file
:r !date                  - Insert current date

Cheat Sheet Quick Reference

Essential Commands

Speed Tips

  1. Use relative line numbers (:set rnu) for quick jumps
  2. Use * to search word under cursor
  3. Use . to repeat last change
  4. Use text objects: ciw, ci", dap etc.
  5. Record macros for repetitive tasks
  6. Use marks (ma, `a) for quick navigation
  7. Use :noh to clear search highlighting
  8. Use Ctrl-o and Ctrl-i to jump back and forward
  9. Use visual block mode (Ctrl-v) for column editing
  10. Use :earlier 5m to go back 5 minutes in undo history

Help System

Command Action
:help Open help
:help topic Help on specific topic
:help :command Help on ex command
:help 'option' Help on option
Ctrl-] Jump to tag under cursor (in help)
Ctrl-o Jump back
:q Close help window

Example help topics: - :help navigation - :help motion - :help text-objects - :help registers - :help patterns

This guide covers vi/vim commands. Most commands work in both vi and vim, though vim has additional features.