1# Command bar
2
3The command bar is opened by pressing Ctrl-e. It is a single-line buffer,
4meaning that all keybindings from a normal buffer are supported (as well
5as mouse and selection).
6
7When running a command, you can use extra syntax that micro will expand before
8running the command. To use an argument with a space in it, put it in
9quotes. The command bar parser uses the same rules for parsing arguments that
10`/bin/sh` would use (single quotes, double quotes, escaping). The command bar
11does not look up environment variables.
12
13# Commands
14
15Micro provides the following commands that can be executed at the command-bar
16by pressing `Ctrl-e` and entering the command. Arguments are placed in single
17quotes here but these are not necessary when entering the command in micro.
18
19* `bind 'key' 'action'`: creates a keybinding from key to action. See the
20   `keybindings` documentation for more information about binding keys.
21   This command will modify `bindings.json` and overwrite any bindings to
22   `key` that already exist.
23
24* `help 'topic'?`: opens the corresponding help topic. If no topic is provided
25   opens the default help screen.
26
27* `save 'filename'?`: saves the current buffer. If the file is provided it
28   will 'save as' the filename.
29
30* `quit`: quits micro.
31
32* `replace 'search' 'value' 'flags'?`: This will replace `search` with `value`.
33   The `flags` are optional. Possible flags are:
34   * `-a`: Replace all occurrences at once
35   * `-l`: Do a literal search instead of a regex search
36
37   Note that `search` must be a valid regex (unless `-l` is passed). If one
38   of the arguments does not have any spaces in it, you may omit the quotes.
39
40* `replaceall 'search' 'value'`: this will replace all occurrences of `search`
41   with `value` without user confirmation.
42
43	See `replace` command for more information.
44
45* `set 'option' 'value'`: sets the option to value. See the `options` help
46   topic for a list of options you can set. This will modify your
47   `settings.json` with the new value.
48
49* `setlocal 'option' 'value'`: sets the option to value locally (only in the
50   current buffer). This will *not* modify `settings.json`.
51
52* `show 'option'`: shows the current value of the given option.
53
54* `run 'sh-command'`: runs the given shell command in the background. The
55   command's output will be displayed in one line when it finishes running.
56
57* `vsplit 'filename'`: opens a vertical split with `filename`. If no filename
58   is provided, a vertical split is opened with an empty buffer.
59
60* `hsplit 'filename'`: same as `vsplit` but opens a horizontal split instead
61   of a vertical split.
62
63* `tab 'filename'`: opens the given file in a new tab.
64
65* `tabmove '[-+]?n'`: Moves the active tab to another slot. `n` is an integer.
66   If `n` is prefixed with `-` or `+`, then it represents a relative position
67   (e.g. `tabmove +2` moves the tab to the right by `2`). If `n` has no prefix,
68   it represents an absolute position (e.g. `tabmove 2` moves the tab to slot `2`).
69
70* `tabswitch 'tab'`: This command will switch to the specified tab. The `tab`
71   can either be a tab number, or a name of a tab.
72
73* `textfilter 'sh-command'`: filters the current selection through a shell
74   command as standard input and replaces the selection with the stdout of
75   the shell command.  For example, to sort a list of numbers, first select
76   them, and then execute `> textfilter sort -n`.
77
78* `log`: opens a log of all messages and debug statements.
79
80* `plugin list`: lists all installed plugins.
81
82* `plugin install 'pl'`: install a plugin.
83
84* `plugin remove 'pl'`: remove a plugin.
85
86* `plugin update 'pl'`: update a plugin (if no arguments are provided
87   updates all plugins).
88
89* `plugin search 'pl'`: search available plugins for a keyword.
90
91* `plugin available`: show available plugins that can be installed.
92
93* `reload`: reloads all runtime files.
94
95* `cd 'path'`: Change the working directory to the given `path`.
96
97* `pwd`: Print the current working directory.
98
99* `open 'filename'`: Open a file in the current buffer.
100
101* `reset 'option'`: resets the given option to its default value
102
103* `retab`: Replaces all leading tabs with spaces or leading spaces with tabs
104   depending on the value of `tabstospaces`.
105
106* `raw`: micro will open a new tab and show the escape sequence for every event
107   it receives from the terminal. This shows you what micro actually sees from
108   the terminal and helps you see which bindings aren't possible and why. This
109   is most useful for debugging keybindings.
110
111* `showkey`: Show the action(s) bound to a given key. For example
112   running `> showkey Ctrl-c` will display `Copy`.
113
114* `term exec?`: Open a terminal emulator running the given executable. If no
115   executable is given, this will open the default shell in the terminal
116   emulator.
117
118---
119
120The following commands are provided by the default plugins:
121
122* `lint`: Lint the current file for errors.
123* `comment`: automatically comment or uncomment current selection or line.
124