1NANO(1)                     General Commands Manual                    NANO(1)
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NAME

6       nano - Nano's ANOther editor, inspired by Pico
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8

SYNOPSIS

10       nano [options] [[+line[,column]] file]...
11
12       nano [options] [[+[crCR](/|?)string] file]...
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14

NOTICE

16       Since version 4.0, nano by default:
17
18           • does not automatically hard-wrap lines that become overlong,
19           • includes the line below the title bar in the editing area,
20           • does linewise (smooth) scrolling.
21
22       If  you want the old, Pico behavior back, you can use --breaklonglines,
23       --emptyline, and --jumpyscrolling (or -bej for short).
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25

DESCRIPTION

27       nano is a small and friendly editor.  It copies the look  and  feel  of
28       Pico,  but  is free software, and implements several features that Pico
29       lacks, such as: opening multiple files, scrolling per line,  undo/redo,
30       syntax coloring, line numbering, and soft-wrapping overlong lines.
31
32       When  giving a filename on the command line, the cursor can be put on a
33       specific line by adding the line number with a plus sign (+) before the
34       filename,  and  even  in  a  specific column by adding it with a comma.
35       (Negative numbers count from the end of the file or line.)  The  cursor
36       can  be  put  on  the  first or last occurrence of a specific string by
37       specifying that string after +/ or +? before the filename.  The  string
38       can be made case sensitive and/or caused to be interpreted as a regular
39       expression by inserting c and/or r after  the  +  sign.   These  search
40       modes  can  be  explicitly  disabled  by using the uppercase variant of
41       those letters: C and/or R.  When the string contains spaces,  it  needs
42       to  be  enclosed  in quotes.  To give an example: to open a file at the
43       first occurrence of the word "Foo", one would do:
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45           nano +c/Foo file
46
47       As a special case: if instead of a filename a dash (-) is  given,  nano
48       will read data from standard input.
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50

EDITING

52       Entering  text  and  moving around in a file is straightforward: typing
53       the letters and using the normal cursor movement  keys.   Commands  are
54       entered by using the Control (^) and the Alt or Meta (M-) keys.  Typing
55       ^K deletes the current line and puts it in the cutbuffer.   Consecutive
56       ^Ks  will  put all deleted lines together in the cutbuffer.  Any cursor
57       movement or executing any other command will cause the next ^K to over‐
58       write  the cutbuffer.  A ^U will paste the current contents of the cut‐
59       buffer at the current cursor position.
60
61       When a more precise piece of text needs to be cut or  copied,  one  can
62       mark  its  start  with  ^6, move the cursor to its end (the marked text
63       will be highlighted), and then use ^K to cut it, or M-6 to copy  it  to
64       the cutbuffer.  One can also save the marked text to a file with ^O, or
65       spell check it with ^T.
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67       On some terminals, text can be selected  also  by  holding  down  Shift
68       while  using the arrow keys.  Holding down the Ctrl or Alt key too will
69       increase the stride.  Any cursor movement without Shift being held will
70       cancel such a selection.
71
72       The two lines at the bottom of the screen show some important commands;
73       the built-in help (^G) lists all the available ones.  The  default  key
74       bindings can be changed via a nanorc file -- see nanorc(5).
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76

OPTIONS

78       -A, --smarthome
79              Make the Home key smarter.  When Home is pressed anywhere but at
80              the very beginning of non-whitespace characters on a  line,  the
81              cursor  will  jump  to  that beginning (either forwards or back‐
82              wards).  If the cursor is already at that position, it will jump
83              to the true beginning of the line.
84
85       -B, --backup
86              When  saving  a  file, back up the previous version of it, using
87              the current filename suffixed with a tilde (~).
88
89       -C directory, --backupdir=directory
90              Make and keep not just one backup file,  but  make  and  keep  a
91              uniquely numbered one every time a file is saved -- when backups
92              are enabled (-B).  The uniquely numbered files are stored in the
93              specified directory.
94
95       -D, --boldtext
96              For the interface, use bold instead of reverse video.  This will
97              be overridden by setting the  options  titlecolor,  statuscolor,
98              keycolor,  functioncolor,  numbercolor,  and/or selectedcolor in
99              your nanorc file.  See nanorc(5).
100
101       -E, --tabstospaces
102              Convert typed tabs to spaces.
103
104       -F, --multibuffer
105              Read a file into a new buffer by default.
106
107       -G, --locking
108              Use vim-style file locking when editing files.
109
110       -H, --historylog
111              Save the last hundred search strings and replacement strings and
112              executed  commands,  so  they can be easily reused in later ses‐
113              sions.
114
115       -I, --ignorercfiles
116              Don't look at the system's nanorc nor at the user's nanorc.
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118       -J number, --guidestripe=number
119              Draw a vertical stripe at the given column, to  help  judge  the
120              width of the text.  (The color of the stripe can be changed with
121              set stripecolor in your nanorc file.)
122
123       -K, --rawsequences
124              Interpret escape sequences directly (instead of  asking  ncurses
125              to  translate  them).   If you need this option to get your key‐
126              board to work properly, please report a bug.  Using this  option
127              disables nano's mouse support.
128
129       -L, --nonewlines
130              Don't  automatically add a newline when a text does not end with
131              one.  (This can cause you to save non-POSIX text files.)
132
133       -M, --trimblanks
134              Snip trailing whitespace from the wrapped  line  when  automatic
135              hard-wrapping occurs or when text is justified.
136
137       -N, --noconvert
138              Disable automatic conversion of files from DOS/Mac format.
139
140       -O, --bookstyle
141              When  justifying,  treat any line that starts with whitespace as
142              the beginning of a paragraph (unless auto-indenting is on).
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144       -P, --positionlog
145              For the 200 most recent files, log the last position of the cur‐
146              sor,  and  place it at that position again upon reopening such a
147              file.
148
149       -Q "regex", --quotestr="regex"
150              Set the regular expression for matching the quoting  part  of  a
151              line.   The default value is "^([ \t]*([!#%:;>|}]|//))+".  (Note
152              that \t stands for an actual Tab.)  This makes  it  possible  to
153              rejustify blocks of quoted text when composing email, and to re‐
154              wrap blocks of line comments when writing source code.
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156       -R, --restricted
157              Restricted mode: don't read or write to any file  not  specified
158              on  the  command  line.  This means: don't read or write history
159              files; don't allow suspending; don't allow spell checking; don't
160              allow  a  file to be appended to, prepended to, or saved under a
161              different name if it already has  one;  and  don't  make  backup
162              files.   Restricted  mode can also be activated by invoking nano
163              with any name beginning with 'r' (e.g. "rnano").
164
165       -S, --softwrap
166              Display over multiple screen rows lines that exceed the screen's
167              width.  (You can make this soft-wrapping occur at whitespace in‐
168              stead of rudely at the screen's edge, by using also --atblanks.)
169              (The old short option, -$, is deprecated.)
170
171       -T number, --tabsize=number
172              Set  the  size (width) of a tab to number columns.  The value of
173              number must be greater than 0.  The default value is 8.
174
175       -U, --quickblank
176              Make status-bar messages disappear after 1 keystroke instead  of
177              after 20.  Note that options -c (--constantshow) and -_ (--mini‐
178              bar) override this.
179
180       -V, --version
181              Show the current version number and exit.
182
183       -W, --wordbounds
184              Detect word boundaries differently by treating punctuation char‐
185              acters as part of a word.
186
187       -X "characters", --wordchars="characters"
188              Specify  which other characters (besides the normal alphanumeric
189              ones) should be considered as part of a word.  When  using  this
190              option, you probably want to omit -W (--wordbounds).
191
192       -Y name, --syntax=name
193              Specify  the  name  of the syntax highlighting to use from among
194              the ones defined in the nanorc files.
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196       -Z, --zap
197              Let an unmodified Backspace or Delete erase  the  marked  region
198              (instead  of  a single character, and without affecting the cut‐
199              buffer).
200
201       -a, --atblanks
202              When doing soft line wrapping, wrap lines at whitespace  instead
203              of always at the edge of the screen.
204
205       -b, --breaklonglines
206              Automatically  hard-wrap  the current line when it becomes over‐
207              long.  (This option is the opposite of -w (--nowrap) -- the last
208              one given takes effect.)
209
210       -c, --constantshow
211              Constantly  show  the  cursor  position on the status bar.  Note
212              that this overrides option -U (--quickblank).
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214       -d, --rebinddelete
215              Interpret the Delete and Backspace keys differently so that both
216              Backspace  and  Delete  work properly.  You should only use this
217              option when on your system either Backspace acts like Delete  or
218              Delete acts like Backspace.
219
220       -e, --emptyline
221              Do  not  use  the  line below the title bar, leaving it entirely
222              blank.
223
224       -f file, --rcfile=file
225              Read only this file for setting nano's options, instead of read‐
226              ing both the system-wide and the user's nanorc files.
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228       -g, --showcursor
229              Make  the  cursor visible in the file browser (putting it on the
230              highlighted item) and in the help viewer.   Useful  for  braille
231              users and people with poor vision.
232
233       -h, --help
234              Show a summary of the available command-line options and exit.
235
236       -i, --autoindent
237              Automatically  indent a newly created line to the same number of
238              tabs and/or spaces as the previous line (or as the next line  if
239              the previous line is the beginning of a paragraph).
240
241       -j, --jumpyscrolling
242              Scroll the buffer contents per half-screen instead of per line.
243
244       -k, --cutfromcursor
245              Make  the  'Cut Text' command (normally ^K) cut from the current
246              cursor position to the end of the line, instead of  cutting  the
247              entire line.
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249       -l, --linenumbers
250              Display  line  numbers  to the left of the text area.  (Any line
251              with an anchor additionally gets a mark in the margin.)
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253       -m, --mouse
254              Enable mouse support, if available for your  system.   When  en‐
255              abled,  mouse  clicks  can  be used to place the cursor, set the
256              mark (with a double click), and execute  shortcuts.   The  mouse
257              will work in the X Window System, and on the console when gpm is
258              running.  Text can still be selected through dragging by holding
259              down the Shift key.
260
261       -n, --noread
262              Treat  any  name  given on the command line as a new file.  This
263              allows nano to write to named pipes: it will start with a  blank
264              buffer,  and  will  write  to  the  pipe when the user saves the
265              "file".  This way nano can be used as an editor  in  combination
266              with  for instance gpg without having to write sensitive data to
267              disk first.
268
269       -o directory, --operatingdir=directory
270              Set the operating directory.  This makes nano set  up  something
271              similar to a chroot.
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273       -p, --preserve
274              Preserve  the XON and XOFF sequences (^Q and ^S) so they will be
275              caught by the terminal.
276
277       -q, --indicator
278              Display a "scrollbar" on the righthand side of the edit  window.
279              It shows the position of the viewport in the buffer and how much
280              of the buffer is covered by the viewport.
281
282       -r number, --fill=number
283              Set the target width for justifying and automatic  hard-wrapping
284              at  this number of columns.  If the value is 0 or less, wrapping
285              will occur at the width of the screen minus number columns,  al‐
286              lowing the wrap point to vary along with the width of the screen
287              if the screen is resized.  The default value is -8.
288
289       -s "program [argument ...]", --speller="program [argument ...]"
290              Use this command to perform spell checking and  correcting,  in‐
291              stead  of using the built-in corrector that calls hunspell(1) or
292              spell(1).
293
294       -t, --saveonexit
295              Save a changed buffer without prompting (when exiting with  ^X).
296              (The old form of the long option, --tempfile, is deprecated.)
297
298       -u, --unix
299              Save  a  file  by default in Unix format.  This overrides nano's
300              default behavior of saving a file in the  format  that  it  had.
301              (This option has no effect when you also use --noconvert.)
302
303       -v, --view
304              Just  view  the file and disallow editing: read-only mode.  This
305              mode allows the user to open also other files for  viewing,  un‐
306              less --restricted is given too.
307
308       -w, --nowrap
309              Do  not automatically hard-wrap the current line when it becomes
310              overlong.  This is the default.  (This option is the opposite of
311              -b (--breaklonglines) -- the last one given takes effect.)
312
313       -x, --nohelp
314              Don't show the two help lines at the bottom of the screen.
315
316       -y, --afterends
317              Make Ctrl+Right and Ctrl+Delete stop at word ends instead of be‐
318              ginnings.
319
320       -z, --suspendable
321              Allow the user to suspend the editor (with ^Z by default).
322
323       -%, --stateflags
324              Use the top-right corner of the screen for  showing  some  state
325              flags:  I  when  auto-indenting,  M  when the mark is on, L when
326              hard-wrapping (breaking long lines), R when recording  a  macro,
327              and  S  when soft-wrapping.  When the buffer is modified, a star
328              (*) is shown after the filename in the center of the title bar.
329
330       -_, --minibar
331              Suppress the title bar and instead show  information  about  the
332              current buffer at the bottom of the screen, in the space for the
333              status bar.  In this "minibar" the file name  is  shown  on  the
334              left,  followed  by an asterisk if the buffer has been modified.
335              On the right are displayed the current line and  column  number,
336              the  code  of the character under the cursor (in Unicode format:
337              U+xxxx), the same flags as are shown by --stateflags, and a per‐
338              centage  that  expresses  how  far  the  cursor is into the file
339              (linewise).  When a file is  loaded  or  saved,  and  also  when
340              switching  between buffers, the number of lines in the buffer is
341              displayed after the file name.  This number is cleared upon  the
342              next  keystroke, or replaced with an [i/n] counter when multiple
343              buffers are open.  The line plus column numbers and the  charac‐
344              ter code are displayed only when --constantshow is used, and can
345              be toggled on and off with M-C.  The state flags  are  displayed
346              only when --stateflags is used.
347
348       -!, --magic
349              When neither the file's name nor its first line give a clue, try
350              using libmagic to determine the applicable syntax.
351
352

TOGGLES

354       Several of the above options can be switched on and off also while nano
355       is  running.  For example, M-L toggles the hard-wrapping of long lines,
356       M-S toggles soft-wrapping, M-N toggles line numbers,  M-M  toggles  the
357       mouse, M-I auto-indentation, and M-X the help lines.  See at the end of
358       the ^G help text for a complete list.
359
360       The M-X toggle is special: it works in all menus except the help viewer
361       and the linter.  All other toggles work in the main menu only.
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363

FILES

365       When --rcfile is given, nano will read just the specified file for set‐
366       ting its options and syntaxes and key bindings.  Without  that  option,
367       nano  will  read two configuration files: first the system's nanorc (if
368       it exists), and then the user's nanorc (if it exists), either ~/.nanorc
369       or  $XDG_CONFIG_HOME/nano/nanorc or ~/.config/nano/nanorc, whichever is
370       encountered first.  See nanorc(5) for more information on the  possible
371       contents of those files.
372
373       See  /usr/share/nano/  and /usr/share/nano/extra/ for available syntax-
374       coloring definitions.
375
376

NOTES

378       If no alternative spell checker command is  specified  on  the  command
379       line nor in one of the nanorc files, nano will check the SPELL environ‐
380       ment variable for one.
381
382       In some cases nano will try to dump the buffer into an emergency  file.
383       This  will  happen  mainly if nano receives a SIGHUP or SIGTERM or runs
384       out of memory.  It will write the buffer into a file named nano.save if
385       the  buffer didn't have a name already, or will add a ".save" suffix to
386       the current filename.  If an emergency file with that name already  ex‐
387       ists  in the current directory, it will add ".save" plus a number (e.g.
388       ".save.1") to the current filename in order  to  make  it  unique.   In
389       multibuffer mode, nano will write all the open buffers to their respec‐
390       tive emergency files.
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392

BUGS

394       The recording and playback of keyboard macros works correctly only on a
395       terminal emulator, not on a Linux console (VT), because the latter does
396       not by default distinguish modified from unmodified arrow keys.
397
398       Please report any other bugs that you encounter via:
399       https://savannah.gnu.org/bugs/?group=nano.
400
401       When nano crashes, it will save any modified buffers to emergency .save
402       files.   If  you  are able to reproduce the crash and you want to get a
403       backtrace, define the environment variable NANO_NOCATCH.
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405

HOMEPAGE

407       https://nano-editor.org/
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409

SEE ALSO

411       nanorc(5)
412
413       /usr/share/doc/nano/ (or equivalent on your system)
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417June 2021                         version 5.8                          NANO(1)
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