1.2. Quitting Without Saving Edits
When you are first learning
vi, especially if you are an intrepid experimenter,
there are two other ex commands that are handy for getting out of
any mess that you might create.
What if you want to wipe out all of the edits you have made in
a session and then return to the original file? The command:
:e! RETURN
returns you to the last saved version of the file, so you can start over.
Suppose, however, that you want to wipe out your edits and then
just quit vi?
The command:
:q! RETURN
quits the file you're editing and returns you to the UNIX prompt.
With both of these commands, you lose all edits made in the
buffer since the last time you saved the file.
vi normally won't let you throw away your edits. The
exclamation point added to the :e or :q command causes
vi to override this prohibition, performing the operation even
though the buffer has been modified.
1.2.1. Problems Saving Files
You try to write your file, but you get one of the following messages:
File exists
File file exists - use w!
[Existing file]
File is read only
Type :w! file to overwrite the existing file, or type
:w newfile to save the edited version in a new file.
You want to write a file, but you don't have write permission for
it. You get the message "Permission denied."
Use :w newfile to write out the buffer into a new file.
If you have write permission for the directory, you can use
mv to replace the original version with your copy of it.
If you don't have write permission for the directory,
type :w pathname/file to
write out the buffer to a directory in which you do have write
permission (such as your home directory, or /tmp).
You try to write your file, but you get a message telling you that
the file system is full.
Type :!rm junkfile to delete
a (large) unneeded file and
free some space.
(Starting an ex command with an exclamation point gives you
access to UNIX.)
Or type :!df to see whether there's any space on another file system.
If there is, choose a directory on that file system and write your
file to it with :w pathname.
(df is the UNIX command to check a
disk's free space.)
The system puts you into open mode and tells you that the
file system is full.
The disk with vi's temporary files is filled up.
Type
:!ls /tmp to see whether there are any files you can remove to
gain some disk space.[5]
If there are, create a temporary UNIX shell from which you can remove files or issue
other UNIX commands.
You can create a shell by typing :sh;
type
CTRL-D
or exit to terminate the shell and return to vi. (On
most UNIX systems, when using a job-control shell, you can simply type
CTRL-Z
to suspend vi and return to the UNIX prompt;
type fg to return to
vi.)
Once you've freed up some space, write your file with :w!.
You try to write your file, but you get a message telling you that your
disk quota has been reached.
Try to force the system to save your buffer with the ex command
:pre (short for :preserve).
If that doesn't work, look for some files to remove.
Use :sh (or
CTRL-Z
if you are using a job-control system) to move out of vi and remove
files.
Use
CTRL-D
(or fg) to return to vi when you're done.
Then write your file with :w!.
1.2.2. Exercises
The only way to learn vi is to practice.
You now know enough to create a new file and to return to the
UNIX prompt.
Create a file called practice, insert some text, and then
save and quit the file.
Open a file called practice in the current directory: |
vi practice |
Insert text: |
i any text you like |
Return to command mode: |
ESC |
Quit vi, saving edits: |
ZZ |
| | | 1. The vi Text Editor | | 2. Simple Editing |
Copyright © 2003 O'Reilly & Associates. All rights reserved.
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