Below you can see some of the most important vi commands.
Starting, Exiting, Reading and Writing Files in vi
| Command | Description |
|---|---|
| vi myfile | Start vi and edit myfile |
| vi -r myfile | Start vi and edit myfile in recovery mode from a system crash |
| :r file2<RET> | Read in file2 and insert at current position |
| :w<RET> | Write out the file |
| :w myfile<RET> | Write out the file to myfile |
| :w! file2<RET> | Overwrite file2 |
| :x<RET> or :wq<RET> | Exit vi and write out modified file |
| :q<RET> | Quit vi |
| :q!<RET> | Quit vi even though modifications have not been saved |
Changing Position in vi
| Command | Description |
|---|---|
| arrow keys | Use the arrow keys for up, down, left and right; or: |
| j or <RET> | One line down |
| k | One line up |
| h or Backspace | One character left |
| l or Space | One character right |
| 0 | Move to beginning of line |
| $ | Move to end of line |
| w | Move to beginning of next word |
| b | Move back to beginning of preceding word |
| :0 <RET> or 1G | Move to beginning of file |
| :n <RET> or nG | Move to line n |
| :$ <RET> or G | Move to last line in file |
| ^f or PageDown | Move forward one page |
| ^b or PageUp | Move backward one page |
| ^l | Refresh and center screen |
Searching for Text in vi
| Command | Description |
|---|---|
| /pattern<RET> | Search forward for pattern |
| n | Move to next occurrence of search pattern |
| string<RET> | Search backward for pattern |
| N | Move to previous occurrence of search pattern |
Changing, Adding and Deleting Text in vi
| Command | Description |
|---|---|
| a | Append text after cursor; stop upon Escape key |
| A | Append text at end of current line; stop upon Escape key |
| i | Insert text before cursor; stop upon Escape key |
| I | Insert text at beginning of current line; stop upon Escape key |
| o | Start a new line below current line, insert text there; stop upon Escape key |
| O | Start a new line above current line, insert text there; stop upon Escape key |
| r | Replace character at current position |
| R | Replace text starting with current position; stop upon Escape key |
| x | Delete character at current position |
| Nx | Delete N characters, starting at current position |
| dw | Delete the word at the current position |
| D | Delete the rest of the current line |
| dd | Delete the current line |
| Ndd or dNd | Delete N lines |
| u | Undo the previous operation |
| yy | Yank (cut) the current line and put it in buffer |
| Nyy or yNy | Yank (cut) N lines and put it in buffer |
| p | Paste at the current position the yanked line or lines from the buffer |