Explained here are commands have been added to use multiple windows and buffers. Additionally there are explanations for commands that work different when used in combination with more than one window.

A window is a viewport onto a buffer. You can use multiple windows on one buffer. Or several windows on different buffers.

A buffer is a file loaded into memory for editing. The original file remains unchanged until you write the buffer to the file.

A buffer can be in one of three states:

active

The buffer is displayed in a window. If there is a file for this buffer it has been read into the buffer. The buffer may have been modified.

hidden

The buffer is not displayed. If there is a file for this buffer it has been read into the buffer. The buffer may have been modified.

inactive

The buffer is not displayed and does not contain anything. Options for the buffer are remembered if the file was once loaded.

In a table:

state	displayed in window	loaded	:buffers shows
active	yes	yes	' '
hidden	no	yes	'h'
inactive	no	no	'-'

Starting Vim

The "-o" command line argument can be used to open a window for each file in the argument list: "Vim -o file1 file2 file3" will open three windows.

"-oN", where N is a decimal number, opens N windows. If there are more file names than windows, only N windows are opened, some files do not get a window. If there are more windows than file names, the last few windows will be editing empty buffers.

If there are many file names the windows will become very small. You might want to set the 'winheight' option to create a workable situation.

A status line will be used to separate windows. The 'laststatus' option tells when the last window also has a status line:

'laststatus' = 0	never a status line
'laststatus' = 1	status line if there is more than one window
'laststatus' = 2	always a status line

Normally inversion is used to display the status line. This can be changed with the 's' character in the 'highlight' option. For example "sb" sets it to bold characters. If no highlighting is used for the status line ("sn"), the '=' character is used. If the mouse is supported and enabled with the 'mouse' option a status line can be dragged to resize windows.

Note: If you expect your status line to be in reverse video and it isn't, check if the 'highlight' option contains "si". In version 3.0 this meant to invert the status line. Now it should be "sr", reverse the status line, "si" stands for italic! If italic is not available on your terminal the status line is inverted anyway, you will only see this problem on terminals that have termcap codes for italics.

Opening a new window

CTRL-W s

CTRL-W S

CTRL-W CTRL-S

:[N]sp[lit]

Split current window in two. The result is two viewports on the same file. Make new window N high (default is to use half the height of the current window). Reduces the current window height to create room (and others, if the 'equalalways' option is set).

CTRL-W n

CTRL-W CTRL_N

:[N]new

Create a new window and start editing an empty file in it. Make new window N high (default is to use half the existing height). Reduces the current window height to create room (and others, if the 'equalalways' option is set).

:[N]new [+command] fname

:[N]split [+command] fname

Create a new window and start editing file fname in it. If [+command] is given, execute the command when the file has been loaded. Make new window N high (default is to use half the existing height). Reduces the current window height to create room (and others, if the 'equalalways' option is set).

:[N]sv[iew] [+command] fname

Same as :split, but set 'readonly' option for this buffer.

CTRL-W CTRL-^

CTRL-W ^

Does ":split #", split window in two and edit alternate file. When a count is given it becomes ":split #N", split window and edit buffer N.

CTRL-W q

CTRL-W CTRL-Q

:quit

Quit current window, unless the buffer was changed and there are no other windows for this buffer. When quitting the last window (not counting help windows), exit Vim.

:quit!

Quit current window. If this was the last window for a buffer, any changes to that buffer are lost. When quitting the last window (not counting help windows), exit Vim.

CTRL-W CTRL-C

CTRL-W c

:clo[se]

Quit current window, unless it is the last window on the screen. The buffer becomes hidden (unless there is another window editing it). (Note: CTRL-W CTRL-C does not work).

CTRL-W o

CTRL-W CTRL-O

:on[ly]

Make the current window the only one on the screen. All other windows are closed. All buffers in the other windows become hidden.

CTRL-W <Down>

CTRL-W CTRL-J

CTRL-W j

move cursor to Nth window below current one.

CTRL-W <Up>

CTRL-W CTRL-K

CTRL-W k

move cursor to Nth window above current one.

CTRL-W w

CTRL-W CTRL-W

Without count: move cursor to window below current one. If there is no window below, go to upper window. With count: go to Nth window.

CTRL-W t

CTRL-W CTRL-T

move cursor to top window.

CTRL-W b

CTRL-W CTRL-B

move cursor to bottom window.

CTRL-W p

CTRL-W CTRL-P

go to previous (last accessed) window.

CTRL-W r

CTRL-W CTRL-R

Rotate windows downwards. The first window becomes the second one, the second one the third one, etc. The last window becomes the first window. The cursor remains in the same window.

CTRL-W R

Rotate windows upwards. The second window becomes the first one, the third one the second one, etc. The first window becomes the last window. The cursor remains in the same window.

CTRL-W x

CTRL-W CTRL-X

Without count: Exchange current window with next one. If there is no next window, exchange with previous window. With count: Exchange current window with Nth window (first window is 1). The cursor is put in the other window.

CTRL-W =

make all windows (almost) equal high.

:res[ize] -N

CTRL-W -

decrease current window height by N

:resize +N

CTRL-W +

increase current window height by N

:resize [N]

CTRL-W CTRL-_

CTRL-W _

set current window height to N (default: highest possible)

z<nr><CR>

set current window height to nr

The option 'winheight' ('wh') is used to set the minimal window height of the current window. This option is used each time another window becomes the current window. If the option is '0' it is disabled. Set 'winheight' to a very large value, e.g. '9999', to make the current window always fill all available space. Set it to a reasonable value, e.g. '10', to make editing in the current window comfortable.

When the option 'equalalways' ('ea') is set all the windows are automatically made the same size after splitting or closing a window. If you don't set this option, splitting a window will reduce the size of the current window and leave the other windows the same. When closing a window the extra lines are given the the window above it.

The option 'commandheight' ('ch') is used to set the height of the command line. If you are annoyed by the "hit return to continue" questions for long messages, set this option to 2 or 3.

If there is only one window, resizing that window will also change the command line height. If there are several windows, resizing the current window will also change the height of the window below it (and sometimes the window above it).

Exiting Vim with multiple windows or buffers

:qa[ll]

Exit Vim, unless there are some buffers which have been changed. (Use :bmod to go to the next modified buffer).

:qall!

Exit Vim. Any changes to buffers are lost.

:wqa[ll]

:xa[ll]

Write all changed buffers and exit Vim. If there are buffers without a file name, which are readonly or cannot be written for another reason, Vim is not quit.

:wqall!

:xall!

Write all changed buffers, also the ones that are readonly, and exit Vim. If there are buffers without a file name or cannot be written for another reason, Vim is not quit.

:wa[ll]

Write all changed buffers. Buffers without a file name or which are readonly are not written.

:wa[ll]!

Write all changed buffers, also the ones that are readonly. Buffers without a file name are not written.

• [N] is number of buffers to go forward/backward on ?2, ?3, ?4
• [N] is an argument number, defaulting to current argument, for 1, 21
• [N] is a buffer number, defaulting to current buffer, for 11, 31
• [N] is a count for 19, 39

All the entries in the argument list are added to the buffer list. Thus you can also get to them with the buffer list commands, like ":bnext".

:[N]al[l] [N]

:[N]sal[l] [N]

Rearrange the screen to open one window for each argument. All other windows are closed (buffers become hidden). When a count is given this is the maximum number of windows to open.

:[N]sa[rgument][!] [N]

Short for ":split | argument [N]": split window and go to Nth argument. But when there is no such argument, the window is not split.

:[N]sn[ext][!] [file ..]

Short for ":split | [N]next": split window and go to Nth next argument. But when there is no next file, the window is not split.

:[N]spr[evious][!] [N]

:[N]sN[ext][!] [N]

Short for ":split | [N]Next": split window and go to Nth previous argument. But when there is no previous file, the window is not split.

:sr[ewind][!]

Short for ":split | rewind": split window and go to first argument. But when there is no argument list the window is not split.

:sla[st][!]

Short for ":split | last": split window and go to last argument. But when there is no argument list the window is not split.

:sta[g][!] [tagname]

Does ":tag[!] [tagname]" and splits the window for the found tag. See also :tag.

CTRL-W ]

CTRL-W CTRL-]

split current window in two. Use identifier under cursor as a tag and jump to it in the new upper window. Make new window N high.

CTRL-W f

CTRL-W CTRL-F

split current window in two. Edit file name under cursor. Like ":split ]f", but window isn't split if the file does not exist. Uses the 'path' variable as a list of directory names where to look for the file. Also the path for current file is used to search for the file name. If the name is a hypertext link, that looks like "type://machine/path", only "/path" is used.

If the option 'hidden' ('hid') is set, abandoned buffers are kept for all commands that start editing another file: ":edit", ":next", ":tag", etc. The commands that move through the buffer list make the current buffer hidden although the 'hidden' option is not set (see below).

You can make a hidden buffer not hidden, by starting to edit it with any command. Or by deleting it with the ":bdelete" command.

When trying to quit Vim while there is a hidden, modified buffer, will cause and error message and Vim will make that buffer the current buffer. You can then decide to write this buffer (":wq") or quit without writing (":q!"). Be careful, there may be more hidden, modified buffers!

:files

:buffers

:ls

Show all buffers. Example:

	1 #h  "/test/text" line 1
	2  -  "asdf" line 0
	3 % + "version.c" line 1
		

Each buffer has a unique number. That number will not change, so you can always go to a specific buffer with ":buffer N" or "N CTRL-^", where N is the buffer number.

'-' indicates a buffer that is not loaded. 'h' indicates a hidden buffer: It is loaded, but currently not displayed in a window. '%' indicates the buffer in the current window. '#' indicates the alternate buffer for ":e #" or CTRL-^. '+' indicates a modified buffer.

:[N]bd[elete]

:bd[elete] [N]

Unload buffer [N] (default: current buffer) and delete it from the buffer list. If the buffer was changed this fails. The file remains unaffected. Any windows for this buffer are closed. If buffer [N] is the current buffer, the next buffer (displayed in a window) becomes the current buffer.

:[N]bdelete!

:bdelete! [N]

Unload buffer [N] (default: current buffer) and delete it from the buffer list. If the buffer was changed the changes are lost. The file remains unaffected. Any windows for this buffer are closed. If buffer [N] is the current buffer, the next buffer (displayed in a window) becomes the current buffer.

:bdelete[!] {bufname}

Like ":bdelete[!] [N]", but buffer given by name. Note that a buffer whose name is a number cannot be referenced by that name, use the buffer number instead. Insert a backslash before a space in a buffer name.

:N,Mbdelete[!]

do :bdelete[!] for all buffers in the range N to M (inclusive).

:bdelete[!] N1 N2 ..

do :bdelete[!] for buffer N1, N2, etc. The arguments can be buffer numbers or buffer names (but not buffer names that are a number). Insert a backslash before a space in a buffer name.

:[N]bun[load]

:bun[load] [N]

Unload buffer [N] (default: current buffer). The memory allocated for this buffer will be freed. The buffer remains in the buffer list. If the buffer was changed this fails. Any windows for this buffer are closed. If buffer [N] is the current buffer, the next buffer (displayed in a window) becomes the current buffer.

:[N]bunload!

:bunload! [N]

Unload buffer [N] (default: current buffer). The memory allocated for this buffer will be freed. The buffer remains in the buffer list. If the buffer was changed the changes are lost. Any windows for this buffer are closed. If buffer [N] is the current buffer, the next buffer (displayed in a window) becomes the current buffer.

:bunload[!] {bufname}

Like ":bunload[!] [N]", but buffer given by name. Note that a buffer whose name is a number cannot be referenced by that name, use the buffer number instead. Insert a backslash before a space in a buffer name.

:N,Mbunload[!]

do :bunload[!] for all buffers in the range N to M (inclusive).

:bunload[!] N1 N2 ..

do :bunload[!] for buffer N1, N2, etc. The arguments can be buffer numbers or buffer names (but not buffer names that are a number). Insert a backslash before a space in a buffer name.

:[N]b[uffer] [N]

Edit buffer [N] from the buffer list. If [N] is not given, the current buffer remains being edited.

:[N]b[uffer] {filename}

Edit buffer for {filename} from the buffer list.

:[N]sb[uffer] [N]

Split window and edit buffer [N] from the buffer list. If [N] is not given, the current buffer is edited.

:[N]sb[uffer] {filename}

Split window and edit buffer for {filename} from the buffer list.

:[N]bn[ext] [N]

Go to [N]th next buffer in buffer list. [N] defaults to one. Wrap around the end of the buffer list.

:[N]sbn[ext] [N]

Split window and go to [N]th next buffer in buffer list. Wrap around the end of the buffer list.

:[N]bN[ext] [N]

:[N]bp[revious] [N]

Go to [N]th previous buffer in buffer list. [N] defaults to one. Wrap around the start of the buffer list.

:[N]sbN[ext] [N]

:[N]sbp[revious] [N]

Split window and go to [N]th previous buffer in buffer list. Wrap around the start of the buffer list.

:br[ewind]

Go to first buffer in buffer list.

:sbr[ewind]

split window and go to first buffer in buffer list

:bl[ast]

Go to last buffer in buffer list.

:sbl[ast]

Split window and go to last buffer in buffer list.

:[N]bm[odified] [N]

Go to [N]th next modified buffer in buffer list.

:[N]sbm[odified] [N]

Split window and go to [N]th next modified buffer in buffer list.

:[N]unh[ide] [N]

:[N]sun[hide] [N]

Rearrange the screen to open one window for each loaded buffer in the buffer list. When a count is given this is the maximum number of windows to open.

:[N]ba[ll] [N]

:[N]sba[ll] [N]

Rearrange the screen to open one window for each buffer in the buffer list. When a count is given this is the maximum number of windows to open.

The option 'maxmem' ('mm') is used to set the maximal memory used for one buffer (in Kbyte). 'maxmemtot' is used to set the maximal memory used for all buffers (in Kbyte). The defaults depend on the system used. For the Amiga and MSDOS 'maxmemtot' is set depending on the amount of memory available. If you don't like Vim to swap to a file, set 'maxmem' and 'maxmemtot' to a very large value. The swap file will then only be used for recovery. If you don't want a swap file at all, set 'updatecount' to 0, or use the "-n" argument when starting Vim. Note that the 'maxmem' option is only used when a buffer is created. Changing this option does not affect buffers that have already been loaded. Thus you can set it to different values for different files. 'maxmemtot' works always.