~dannf/ubuntu/saucy/screen/lp1213278-from-debian : revision 1

1

This is screen.info, produced by makeinfo version 4.5 from

2

./screen.texinfo.

3

4

INFO-DIR-SECTION General Commands

5

START-INFO-DIR-ENTRY

6

* Screen: (screen). Full-screen window manager.

7

END-INFO-DIR-ENTRY

8

9

This file documents the `Screen' virtual terminal manager.

10

11

12

13

Permission is granted to make and distribute verbatim copies of this

14

manual provided the copyright notice and this permission notice are

15

preserved on all copies.

16

17

Permission is granted to copy and distribute modified versions of

18

this manual under the conditions for verbatim copying, provided that

19

the entire resulting derived work is distributed under the terms of a

20

permission notice identical to this one.

21

22

Permission is granted to copy and distribute translations of this

23

manual into another language, under the above conditions for modified

24

versions, except that this permission notice may be stated in a

25

translation approved by the Foundation.

26

27

28

File: screen.info, Node: Input Translation, Next: Digraph, Prev: Control Sequences, Up: Virtual Terminal

29

30

Input Translation

31

=================

32

33

In order to do a full VT100 emulation `screen' has to detect that a

34

sequence of characters in the input stream was generated by a keypress

35

on the user's keyboard and insert the VT100 style escape sequence.

36

`Screen' has a very flexible way of doing this by making it possible to

37

map arbitrary commands on arbitrary sequences of characters. For

38

standard VT100 emulation the command will always insert a string in the

39

input buffer of the window (see also command `stuff', *note Paste::).

40

Because the sequences generated by a keypress can change after a

41

reattach from a different terminal type, it is possible to bind

42

commands to the termcap name of the keys. `Screen' will insert the

43

correct binding after each reattach. See *Note Bindkey:: for further

44

details on the syntax and examples.

45

46

Here is the table of the default key bindings. (A) means that the

47

command is executed if the keyboard is switched into application mode.

48

49

Key name Termcap name Command

50

-----------------------------------------------------

51

Cursor up ku stuff \033[A

52

stuff \033OA (A)

53

Cursor down kd stuff \033[B

54

stuff \033OB (A)

55

Cursor right kr stuff \033[C

56

stuff \033OC (A)

57

Cursor left kl stuff \033[D

58

stuff \033OD (A)

59

Function key 0 k0 stuff \033[10~

60

Function key 1 k1 stuff \033OP

61

Function key 2 k2 stuff \033OQ

62

Function key 3 k3 stuff \033OR

63

Function key 4 k4 stuff \033OS

64

Function key 5 k5 stuff \033[15~

65

Function key 6 k6 stuff \033[17~

66

Function key 7 k7 stuff \033[18~

67

Function key 8 k8 stuff \033[19~

68

Function key 9 k9 stuff \033[20~

69

Function key 10 k; stuff \033[21~

70

Function key 11 F1 stuff \033[23~

71

Function key 12 F2 stuff \033[24~

72

Home kh stuff \033[1~

73

End kH stuff \033[4~

74

Insert kI stuff \033[2~

75

Delete kD stuff \033[3~

76

Page up kP stuff \033[5~

77

Page down kN stuff \033[6~

78

Keypad 0 f0 stuff 0

79

stuff \033Op (A)

80

Keypad 1 f1 stuff 1

81

stuff \033Oq (A)

82

Keypad 2 f2 stuff 2

83

stuff \033Or (A)

84

Keypad 3 f3 stuff 3

85

stuff \033Os (A)

86

Keypad 4 f4 stuff 4

87

stuff \033Ot (A)

88

Keypad 5 f5 stuff 5

89

stuff \033Ou (A)

90

Keypad 6 f6 stuff 6

91

stuff \033Ov (A)

92

Keypad 7 f7 stuff 7

93

stuff \033Ow (A)

94

Keypad 8 f8 stuff 8

95

stuff \033Ox (A)

96

Keypad 9 f9 stuff 9

97

stuff \033Oy (A)

98

Keypad + f+ stuff +

99

stuff \033Ok (A)

100

Keypad - f- stuff -

101

stuff \033Om (A)

102

Keypad * f* stuff *

103

stuff \033Oj (A)

104

Keypad / f/ stuff /

105

stuff \033Oo (A)

106

Keypad = fq stuff =

107

stuff \033OX (A)

108

Keypad . f. stuff .

109

stuff \033On (A)

110

Keypad , f, stuff ,

111

stuff \033Ol (A)

112

Keypad enter fe stuff \015

113

stuff \033OM (A)

114

115

116

File: screen.info, Node: Digraph, Next: Bell, Prev: Input Translation, Up: Virtual Terminal

117

118

Digraph

119

=======

120

121

- Command: digraph [preset]

122

(none)

123

This command prompts the user for a digraph sequence. The next two

124

characters typed are looked up in a builtin table and the

125

resulting character is inserted in the input stream. For example,

126

if the user enters `a"', an a-umlaut will be inserted. If the

127

first character entered is a 0 (zero), `screen' will treat the

128

following characters (up to three) as an octal number instead.

129

The optional argument PRESET is treated as user input, thus one

130

can create an "umlaut" key. For example the command `bindkey ^K

131

digraph '"'' enables the user to generate an a-umlaut by typing

132

`CTRL-K a'.

133

134

135

File: screen.info, Node: Bell, Next: Clear, Prev: Digraph, Up: Virtual Terminal

136

137

Bell

138

====

139

140

- Command: bell_msg [message]

141

(none)

142

When a bell character is sent to a background window, `screen'

143

displays a notification in the message line. The notification

144

message can be re-defined by this command. Each occurrence of `%'

145

in MESSAGE is replaced by the number of the window to which a bell

146

has been sent, and each occurrence of `^G' is replaced by the

147

definition for bell in your termcap (usually an audible bell).

148

The default message is

149

150

'Bell in window %n'

151

152

An empty message can be supplied to the `bell_msg' command to

153

suppress output of a message line (`bell_msg ""'). Without

154

parameter, the current message is shown.

155

156

- Command: vbell [state]

157

(`C-a C-g')

158

Sets or toggles the visual bell setting for the current window. If

159

`vbell' is switched to `on', but your terminal does not support a

160

visual bell, the visual bell message is displayed in the status

161

line when the bell character is received. Visual bell support of

162

a terminal is defined by the termcap variable `vb'. *Note Visual

163

Bell: (termcap)Bell, for more information on visual bells. The

164

equivalent terminfo capability is `flash'.

165

166

Per default, `vbell' is `off', thus the audible bell is used.

167

168

- Command: vbell_msg [message]

169

(none)

170

Sets the visual bell message. MESSAGE is printed to the status

171

line if the window receives a bell character (^G), `vbell' is set

172

to `on' and the terminal does not support a visual bell. The

173

default message is `Wuff, Wuff!!'. Without parameter, the current

174

message is shown.

175

176

- Command: vbellwait sec

177

(none)

178

Define a delay in seconds after each display of `screen' 's visual

179

bell message. The default is 1 second.

180

181

182

File: screen.info, Node: Clear, Next: Info, Prev: Bell, Up: Virtual Terminal

183

184

Clear

185

=====

186

187

- Command: clear

188

(`C-a C')

189

Clears the screen and saves its contents to the scrollback buffer.

190

191

192

File: screen.info, Node: Info, Next: Redisplay, Prev: Clear, Up: Virtual Terminal

193

194

Info

195

====

196

197

- Command: info

198

(`C-a i', `C-a C-i')

199

Uses the message line to display some information about the current

200

window: the cursor position in the form `(COLUMN,ROW)' starting

201

with `(1,1)', the terminal width and height plus the size of the

202

scrollback buffer in lines, like in `(80,24)+50', the current

203

state of window XON/XOFF flow control is shown like this (*note

204

Flow Control::):

205

+flow automatic flow control, currently on.

206

-flow automatic flow control, currently off.

207

+(+)flow flow control enabled. Agrees with automatic control.

208

-(+)flow flow control disabled. Disagrees with automatic control.

209

+(-)flow flow control enabled. Disagrees with automatic control.

210

-(-)flow flow control disabled. Agrees with automatic control.

211

212

The current line wrap setting (`+wrap' indicates enabled, `-wrap'

213

not) is also shown. The flags `ins', `org', `app', `log', `mon'

214

and `nored' are displayed when the window is in insert mode,

215

origin mode, application-keypad mode, has output logging, activity

216

monitoring or partial redraw enabled.

217

218

The currently active character set (`G0', `G1', `G2', or `G3'),

219

and in square brackets the terminal character sets that are

220

currently designated as `G0' through `G3'. If the window is in

221

UTF-8 mode, the string `UTF-8' is shown instead. Additional modes

222

depending on the type of the window are displayed at the end of

223

the status line (*note Window Types::).

224

225

If the state machine of the terminal emulator is in a non-default

226

state, the info line is started with a string identifying the

227

current state.

228

229

For system information use `time'.

230

231

- Command: dinfo

232

(none)

233

Show what screen thinks about your terminal. Useful if you want to

234

know why features like color or the alternate charset don't work.

235

236

237

File: screen.info, Node: Redisplay, Next: Wrap, Prev: Info, Up: Virtual Terminal

238

239

Redisplay

240

=========

241

242

- Command: allpartial state

243

(none)

244

If set to on, only the current cursor line is refreshed on window

245

change. This affects all windows and is useful for slow terminal

246

lines. The previous setting of full/partial refresh for each

247

window is restored with `allpartial off'. This is a global flag

248

that immediately takes effect on all windows overriding the

249

`partial' settings. It does not change the default redraw behavior

250

of newly created windows.

251

252

- Command: altscreen state

253

(none)

254

If set to on, "alternate screen" support is enabled in virtual

255

terminals, just like in xterm. Initial setting is `off'.

256

257

- Command: partial state

258

(none)

259

Defines whether the display should be refreshed (as with

260

`redisplay') after switching to the current window. This command

261

only affects the current window. To immediately affect all

262

windows use the `allpartial' command. Default is `off', of

263

course. This default is fixed, as there is currently no

264

`defpartial' command.

265

266

- Command: redisplay

267

(`C-a l', `C-a C-l')

268

Redisplay the current window. Needed to get a full redisplay in

269

partial redraw mode.

270

271

272

File: screen.info, Node: Wrap, Next: Reset, Prev: Redisplay, Up: Virtual Terminal

273

274

Wrap

275

====

276

277

- Command: wrap state

278

(`C-a r', `C-a C-r')

279

Sets the line-wrap setting for the current window. When line-wrap

280

is on, the second consecutive printable character output at the

281

last column of a line will wrap to the start of the following

282

line. As an added feature, backspace (^H) will also wrap through

283

the left margin to the previous line. Default is `on'.

284

285

- Command: defwrap state

286

(none)

287

Same as the `wrap' command except that the default setting for new

288

windows is changed. Initially line-wrap is on and can be toggled

289

with the `wrap' command (`C-a r') or by means of "C-a : wrap

290

on|off".

291

292

293

File: screen.info, Node: Reset, Next: Window Size, Prev: Wrap, Up: Virtual Terminal

294

295

Reset

296

=====

297

298

- Command: reset

299

(`C-a Z')

300

Reset the virtual terminal to its "power-on" values. Useful when

301

strange settings (like scroll regions or graphics character set)

302

are left over from an application.

303

304

305

File: screen.info, Node: Window Size, Next: Character Processing, Prev: Reset, Up: Virtual Terminal

306

307

Window Size

308

===========

309

310

- Command: width [`-w'|`-d'] [cols [lines]]

311

(`C-a W')

312

Toggle the window width between 80 and 132 columns, or set it to

313

COLS columns if an argument is specified. This requires a capable

314

terminal and the termcap entries `Z0' and `Z1'. See the `termcap'

315

command (*note Termcap::), for more information. You can also

316

specify a height if you want to change both values. The `-w'

317

option tells screen to leave the display size unchanged and just

318

set the window size, `-d' vice versa.

319

320

- Command: height [`-w'|`-d'] [lines [cols]]

321

(none)

322

Set the display height to a specified number of lines. When no

323

argument is given it toggles between 24 and 42 lines display.

324

325

326

File: screen.info, Node: Character Processing, Prev: Window Size, Up: Virtual Terminal

327

328

Character Processing

329

====================

330

331

- Command: c1 [state]

332

(none)

333

Change c1 code processing. `c1 on' tells screen to treat the input

334

characters between 128 and 159 as control functions. Such an

335

8-bit code is normally the same as ESC followed by the

336

corresponding 7-bit code. The default setting is to process c1

337

codes and can be changed with the `defc1' command. Users with

338

fonts that have usable characters in the c1 positions may want to

339

turn this off.

340

341

342

- Command: gr [state]

343

(none)

344

Turn GR charset switching on/off. Whenever screen sees an input

345

char with an 8th bit set, it will use the charset stored in the GR

346

slot and print the character with the 8th bit stripped. The

347

default (see also `defgr') is not to process GR switching because

348

otherwise the ISO88591 charset would not work.

349

350

- Command: bce [state]

351

(none)

352

Change background-color-erase setting. If `bce' is set to on, all

353

characters cleared by an erase/insert/scroll/clear operation will

354

be displayed in the current background color. Otherwise the

355

default background color is used.

356

357

- Command: encoding enc [denc]

358

(none)

359

Tell screen how to interpret the input/output. The first argument

360

sets the encoding of the current window. Each window can emulate

361

a different encoding. The optional second parameter overwrites the

362

encoding of the connected terminal. It should never be needed as

363

screen uses the locale setting to detect the encoding. There is

364

also a way to select a terminal encoding depending on the terminal

365

type by using the `KJ' termcap entry. *Note Special Capabilities::.

366

367

Supported encodings are `eucJP', `SJIS', `eucKR', `eucCN', `Big5',

368

`GBK', `KOI8-R', `CP1251', `UTF-8', `ISO8859-2', `ISO8859-3',

369

`ISO8859-4', `ISO8859-5', `ISO8859-6', `ISO8859-7', `ISO8859-8',

370

`ISO8859-9', `ISO8859-10', `ISO8859-15', `jis'.

371

372

See also `defencoding', which changes the default setting of a new

373

window.

374

375

- Command: charset set

376

(none)

377

Change the current character set slot designation and charset

378

mapping. The first four character of SET are treated as charset

379

designators while the fifth and sixth character must be in range

380

`0' to `3' and set the GL/GR charset mapping. On every position a

381

`.' may be used to indicate that the corresponding charset/mapping

382

should not be changed (SET is padded to six characters internally

383

by appending `.' chars). New windows have `BBBB02' as default

384

charset, unless a `encoding' command is active.

385

386

The current setting can be viewed with the *Note Info:: command.

387

388

- Command: utf8 [state [dstate]]

389

(none)

390

Change the encoding used in the current window. If utf8 is

391

enabled, the strings sent to the window will be UTF-8 encoded and

392

vice versa. Omitting the parameter toggles the setting. If a

393

second parameter is given, the display's encoding is also changed

394

(this should rather be done with screen's `-U' option). See also

395

`defutf8', which changes the default setting of a new window.

396

397

- Command: defc1 state

398

(none)

399

Same as the `c1' command except that the default setting for new

400

windows is changed. Initial setting is `on'.

401

402

- Command: defgr state

403

(none)

404

Same as the `gr' command except that the default setting for new

405

windows is changed. Initial setting is `off'.

406

407

- Command: defbce state

408

(none)

409

Same as the `bce' command except that the default setting for new

410

windows is changed. Initial setting is `off'.

411

412

- Command: defencoding enc

413

(none)

414

Same as the `encoding' command except that the default setting for

415

new windows is changed. Initial setting is the encoding taken from

416

the terminal.

417

418

- Command: defcharset [set]

419

Like the `charset' command except that the default setting for new

420

windows is changed. Shows current default if called without

421

argument.

422

423

- Command: defutf8 state

424

(none)

425

Same as the `utf8' command except that the default setting for new

426

windows is changed. Initial setting is `on' if screen was started

427

with `-U', otherwise `off'.

428

429

430

File: screen.info, Node: Copy and Paste, Next: Subprocess Execution, Prev: Virtual Terminal, Up: Top

431

432

Copy and Paste

433

**************

434

435

For those confined to a hardware terminal, these commands provide a

436

cut and paste facility more powerful than those provided by most

437

windowing systems.

438

439

* Menu:

440

441

* Copy:: Copy from scrollback to buffer

442

* Paste:: Paste from buffer into window

443

* Registers:: Longer-term storage

444

* Screen Exchange:: Sharing data between screen users

445

* History:: Recalling previous input

446

447

448

File: screen.info, Node: Copy, Next: Paste, Up: Copy and Paste

449

450

Copying

451

=======

452

453

- Command: copy

454

(`C-a [', `C-a C-[', `C-a <ESC>')

455

Enter copy/scrollback mode. This allows you to copy text from the

456

current window and its history into the paste buffer. In this mode

457

a `vi'-like full screen editor is active, with controls as

458

outlined below.

459

460

* Menu:

461

462

* Line Termination:: End copied lines with CR/LF

463

* Scrollback:: Set the size of the scrollback buffer

464

* Copy Mode Keys:: Remap keys in copy mode

465

* Movement:: Move around in the scrollback buffer

466

* Marking:: Select the text you want

467

* Repeat count:: Repeat a command

468

* Searching:: Find the text you want

469

* Specials:: Other random keys

470

471

472

File: screen.info, Node: Line Termination, Next: Scrollback, Up: Copy

473

474

CR/LF

475

-----

476

477

- Command: crlf [state]

478

(none)

479

This affects the copying of text regions with the `C-a [' command.

480

If it is set to `on', lines will be separated by the two character

481

sequence `CR'/`LF'. Otherwise only `LF' is used. `crlf' is off

482

by default. When no parameter is given, the state is toggled.

483

484

485

File: screen.info, Node: Scrollback, Next: Copy Mode Keys, Prev: Line Termination, Up: Copy

486

487

Scrollback

488

----------

489

490

- Command: defscrollback num

491

(none)

492

Same as the `scrollback' command except that the default setting

493

for new windows is changed. Defaults to 100.

494

495

- Command: scrollback num

496

(none)

497

Set the size of the scrollback buffer for the current window to

498

NUM lines. The default scrollback is 100 lines. Use `C-a i' to

499

view the current setting.

500

501

- Command: compacthist [state]

502

(none)

503

This tells screen whether to suppress trailing blank lines when

504

scrolling up text into the history buffer. Turn compacting `on' to

505

hold more useful lines in your scrollback buffer.

506

507

508

File: screen.info, Node: Copy Mode Keys, Next: Movement, Prev: Scrollback, Up: Copy

509

510

markkeys

511

--------

512

513

- Command: markkeys string

514

(none)

515

This is a method of changing the keymap used for copy/history

516

mode. The string is made up of OLDCHAR=NEWCHAR pairs which are

517

separated by `:'. Example: The command `markkeys h=^B:l=^F:$=^E'

518

would set some keys to be more familiar to `emacs' users. If your

519

terminal sends characters, that cause you to abort copy mode, then

520

this command may help by binding these characters to do nothing.

521

The no-op character is `a'nd is used like this: `markkeys @=L=H'

522

if you do not want to use the `H' or `L' commands any longer. As

523

shown in this example, multiple keys can be assigned to one

524

function in a single statement.

525

526

527

File: screen.info, Node: Movement, Next: Marking, Prev: Copy Mode Keys, Up: Copy

528

529

Movement Keys

530

-------------

531

532

`h', `j', `k', `l' move the cursor line by line or column by column.

533

534

`0', `^' and `$' move to the leftmost column or to the first or last

535

non-whitespace character on the line.

536

537

`H', `M' and `L' move the cursor to the leftmost column of the top,

538

center or bottom line of the window.

539

540

`+' and `-' move the cursor to the leftmost column of the next or

541

previous line.

542

543

`G' moves to the specified absolute line (default: end of buffer).

544

545

`|' moves to the specified absolute column.

546

547

`w', `b', `e' move the cursor word by word.

548

549

`B', `E' move the cursor WORD by WORD (as in vi).

550

551

`C-u' and `C-d' scroll the display up/down by the specified amount of

552

lines while preserving the cursor position. (Default: half screenfull).

553

554

`C-b' and `C-f' move the cursor up/down a full screen.

555

556

`g' moves to the beginning of the buffer.

557

558

`%' jumps to the specified percentage of the buffer.

559

560

Note that Emacs-style movement keys can be specified by a .screenrc

561

command. (`markkeys "h=^B:l=^F:$=^E"') There is no simple method for a

562

full emacs-style keymap, however, as this involves multi-character

563

codes.

564

565

566

File: screen.info, Node: Marking, Next: Repeat count, Prev: Movement, Up: Copy

567

568

Marking

569

-------

570

571

The copy range is specified by setting two marks. The text between

572

these marks will be highlighted. Press `space' to set the first or

573

second mark respectively.

574

575

`Y' and `y' can be used to mark one whole line or to mark from start of

576

line.

577

578

`W' marks exactly one word.

579

580

581

File: screen.info, Node: Repeat count, Next: Searching, Prev: Marking, Up: Copy

582

583

Repeat Count

584

------------

585

586

Any command in copy mode can be prefixed with a number (by pressing

587

digits `0...9') which is taken as a repeat count. Example: `C-a C-[ H

588

10 j 5 Y' will copy lines 11 to 15 into the paste buffer.

589

590

591

File: screen.info, Node: Searching, Next: Specials, Prev: Repeat count, Up: Copy

592

593

Searching

594

---------

595

596

`/' `vi'-like search forward.

597

598

`?' `vi'-like search backward.

599

600

`C-a s' `emacs' style incremental search forward.

601

602

`C-r' `emacs' style reverse i-search.

603

604

- Command: ignorecase [state]

605

(none)

606

Tell screen to ignore the case of characters in searches. Default

607

is `off'.

608

609

610

File: screen.info, Node: Specials, Prev: Searching, Up: Copy

611

612

Specials

613

--------

614

615

There are, however, some keys that act differently here from in

616

`vi'. `Vi' does not allow to yank rectangular blocks of text, but

617

`screen' does. Press

618

619

`c' or `C' to set the left or right margin respectively. If no repeat

620

count is given, both default to the current cursor position.

621

Example: Try this on a rather full text screen: `C-a [ M 20 l SPACE c

622

10 l 5 j C SPACE'.

623

624

This moves one to the middle line of the screen, moves in 20 columns

625

left, marks the beginning of the paste buffer, sets the left column,

626

moves 5 columns down, sets the right column, and then marks the end of

627

the paste buffer. Now try:

628

`C-a [ M 20 l SPACE 10 l 5 j SPACE'

629

630

and notice the difference in the amount of text copied.

631

632

`J' joins lines. It toggles between 4 modes: lines separated by a

633

newline character (012), lines glued seamless, lines separated by a

634

single space or comma separated lines. Note that you can prepend the

635

newline character with a carriage return character, by issuing a `set

636

crlf on'.

637

638

`v' is for all the `vi' users who use `:set numbers' - it toggles the

639

left margin between column 9 and 1.

640

641

`a' before the final space key turns on append mode. Thus the contents

642

of the paste buffer will not be overwritten, but appended to.

643

644

`A' turns on append mode and sets a (second) mark.

645

646

`>' sets the (second) mark and writes the contents of the paste buffer

647

to the screen-exchange file (`/tmp/screen-exchange' per default) once

648

copy-mode is finished. *Note Screen Exchange::.

649

This example demonstrates how to dump the whole scrollback buffer to

650

that file:

651

`C-a [ g SPACE G $ >'.

652

653

`C-g' gives information about the current line and column.

654

655

`x' exchanges the first mark and the current cursor position. You can

656

use this to adjust an already placed mark.

657

658

`@' does nothing. Absolutely nothing. Does not even exit copy mode.

659

660

All keys not described here exit copy mode.

661

662

663

File: screen.info, Node: Paste, Next: Registers, Prev: Copy, Up: Copy and Paste

664

665

Paste

666

=====

667

668

- Command: paste [registers [destination]]

669

(`C-a ]', `C-a C-]')

670

Write the (concatenated) contents of the specified registers to

671

the stdin stream of the current window. The register `.' is

672

treated as the paste buffer. If no parameter is specified the user

673

is prompted to enter a single register. The paste buffer can be

674

filled with the `copy', `history' and `readbuf' commands. Other

675

registers can be filled with the `register', `readreg' and `paste'

676

commands. If `paste' is called with a second argument, the

677

contents of the specified registers is pasted into the named

678

destination register rather than the window. If `.' is used as the

679

second argument, the display's paste buffer is the destination.

680

Note, that `paste' uses a wide variety of resources: Usually both,

681

a current window and a current display are required. But whenever

682

a second argument is specified no current window is needed. When

683

the source specification only contains registers (not the paste

684

buffer) then there need not be a current display (terminal

685

attached), as the registers are a global resource. The paste

686

buffer exists once for every user.

687

688

- Command: stuff string

689

(none)

690

Stuff the string STRING in the input buffer of the current window.

691

This is like the `paste' command, but with much less overhead.

692

You cannot paste large buffers with the `stuff' command. It is most

693

useful for key bindings. *Note Bindkey::.

694

695

- Command: pastefont [state]

696

Tell screen to include font information in the paste buffer. The

697

default is not to do so. This command is especially useful for

698

multi character fonts like kanji.

699

700

- Command: slowpaste msec

701

- Command: defslowpaste msec

702

(none)

703

Define the speed text is inserted in the current window by the

704

`paste' command. If the slowpaste value is nonzero text is written

705

character by character. `screen' will pause for MSEC milliseconds

706

after each write to allow the application to process the input.

707

only use `slowpaste' if your underlying system exposes flow

708

control problems while pasting large amounts of text.

709

`defslowpaste' specifies the default for new windows.

710

711

- Command: readreg [-e encoding] [register [filename]]

712

(none)

713

Does one of two things, dependent on number of arguments: with

714

zero or one arguments it it duplicates the paste buffer contents

715

into the register specified or entered at the prompt. With two

716

arguments it reads the contents of the named file into the

717

register, just as `readbuf' reads the screen-exchange file into

718

the paste buffer. You can tell screen the encoding of the file

719

via the `-e' option. The following example will paste the

720

system's password file into the screen window (using register p,

721

where a copy remains):

722

723

C-a : readreg p /etc/passwd

724

C-a : paste p

725

726

727

File: screen.info, Node: Registers, Next: Screen Exchange, Prev: Paste, Up: Copy and Paste

728

729

Registers

730

=========

731

732

- Command: copy_reg [key]

733

(none)

734

Removed. Use `readreg' instead.

735

736

- Command: ins_reg [key]

737

(none)

738

Removed. Use `paste' instead.

739

740

- Command: process [key]

741

(none)

742

Stuff the contents of the specified register into the `screen'

743

input queue. If no argument is given you are prompted for a

744

register name. The text is parsed as if it had been typed in from

745

the user's keyboard. This command can be used to bind multiple

746

actions to a single key.

747

748

- Command: register [-e encoding] key string

749

(none)

750

Save the specified STRING to the register KEY. The encoding of

751

the string can be specified via the `-e' option.

752

753

754

File: screen.info, Node: Screen Exchange, Next: History, Prev: Registers, Up: Copy and Paste

755

756

Screen Exchange

757

===============

758

759

- Command: bufferfile [EXCHANGE-FILE]

760

(none)

761

Change the filename used for reading and writing with the paste

762

buffer. If the EXCHANGE-FILE parameter is omitted, `screen'

763

reverts to the default of `/tmp/screen-exchange'. The following

764

example will paste the system's password file into the screen

765

window (using the paste buffer, where a copy remains):

766

767

C-a : bufferfile /etc/passwd

768

C-a < C-a ]

769

C-a : bufferfile

770

771

- Command: readbuf [-e ENCODING] [FILENAME]

772

(`C-a <')

773

Reads the contents of the specified file into the paste buffer.

774

You can tell screen the encoding of the file via the `-e' option.

775

If no file is specified, the screen-exchange filename is used.

776

777

- Command: removebuf

778

(`C-a =')

779

Unlinks the screen-exchange file.

780

781

- Command: writebuf [-e ENCODING] [FILENAME]

782

(`C-a >')

783

Writes the contents of the paste buffer to the specified file, or

784

the public accessible screen-exchange file if no filename is given.

785

This is thought of as a primitive means of communication between

786

`screen' users on the same host. If an encoding is specified the

787

paste buffer is recoded on the fly to match the encoding. See also

788

`C-a <ESC>' (*note Copy::).

789

790

791

File: screen.info, Node: History, Prev: Screen Exchange, Up: Copy and Paste

792

793

History

794

=======

795

796

- Command: history

797

(`C-a {')

798

Usually users work with a shell that allows easy access to previous

799

commands. For example, `csh' has the command `!!' to repeat the

800

last command executed. `screen' provides a primitive way of

801

recalling "the command that started ...": You just type the first

802

letter of that command, then hit `C-a {' and `screen' tries to

803

find a previous line that matches with the prompt character to the

804

left of the cursor. This line is pasted into this window's input

805

queue. Thus you have a crude command history (made up by the

806

visible window and its scrollback buffer).

807

808

809

File: screen.info, Node: Subprocess Execution, Next: Key Binding, Prev: Copy and Paste, Up: Top

810

811

Subprocess Execution

812

********************

813

814

Control Input or Output of a window by another filter process. Use

815

with care!

816

817

* Menu:

818

819

* Exec:: The `exec' command syntax.

820

* Using Exec:: Weird things that filters can do.

821

822

823

File: screen.info, Node: Exec, Next: Using Exec, Up: Subprocess Execution

824

825

Exec

826

====

827

828

- Command: exec [[FDPAT] NEWCOMMAND [ARGS ... ]]

829

(none)

830

Run a unix subprocess (specified by an executable path NEWCOMMAND

831

and its optional arguments) in the current window. The flow of

832

data between newcommands stdin/stdout/stderr, the process

833

originally started (let us call it "application-process") and

834

screen itself (window) is controlled by the filedescriptor pattern

835

FDPAT. This pattern is basically a three character sequence

836

representing stdin, stdout and stderr of newcommand. A dot (`.')

837

connects the file descriptor to screen. An exclamation mark (`!')

838

causes the file descriptor to be connected to the

839

application-process. A colon (`:') combines both.

840

User input will go to newcommand unless newcommand receives the

841

application-process' output (FDPATs first character is `!' or `:')

842

or a pipe symbol (`|') is added to the end of FDPAT.

843

Invoking `exec' without arguments shows name and arguments of the

844

currently running subprocess in this window. Only one subprocess

845

can be running per window.

846

When a subprocess is running the `kill' command will affect it

847

instead of the windows process. Only one subprocess a time can be

848

running in each window.

849

Refer to the postscript file `doc/fdpat.ps' for a confusing

850

illustration of all 21 possible combinations. Each drawing shows

851

the digits 2, 1, 0 representing the three file descriptors of

852

newcommand. The box marked `W' is usual pty that has the

853

application-process on its slave side. The box marked `P' is the

854

secondary pty that now has screen at its master side.

855

856

857

File: screen.info, Node: Using Exec, Prev: Exec, Up: Subprocess Execution

858

859

Using Exec

860

==========

861

862

Abbreviations:

863

864

* Whitespace between the word `exec' and FDPAT and the command name

865

can be omitted.

866

867

* Trailing dots and a FDPAT consisting only of dots can be omitted.

868

869

* A simple `|' is synonymous for the `!..|' pattern.

870

871

* The word `exec' can be omitted when the `|' abbreviation is used.

872

873

* The word `exec' can always be replaced by leading `!'.

874

875

Examples:

876

877

`!/bin/sh'

878

`exec /bin/sh'

879

`exec ... /bin/sh'

880

All of the above are equivalent. Creates another shell in the

881

same window, while the original shell is still running. Output of

882

both shells is displayed and user input is sent to the new

883

`/bin/sh'.

884

885

`!!stty 19200'

886

`exec!stty 19200'

887

`exec !.. stty 19200'

888

All of the above are equivalent. Set the speed of the window's

889

tty. If your stty command operates on stdout, then add another

890

`!'. This is a useful command, when a screen window is directly

891

connected to a serial line that needs to be configured.

892

893

`|less'

894

`exec !..| less'

895

Both are equivalent. This adds a pager to the window output. The

896

special character `|' is needed to give the user control over the

897

pager although it gets its input from the window's process. This

898

works, because `less' listens on stderr (a behavior that `screen'

899

would not expect without the `|') when its stdin is not a tty.

900

`Less' versions newer than 177 fail miserably here; good old `pg'

901

still works.

902

903

`!:sed -n s/.*Error.*/\007/p'

904

Sends window output to both, the user and the sed command. The sed

905

inserts an additional bell character (oct. 007) to the window

906

output seen by screen. This will cause 'Bell in window x'

907

messages, whenever the string `Error' appears in the window.

908

909

910

File: screen.info, Node: Key Binding, Next: Flow Control, Prev: Subprocess Execution, Up: Top

911

912

Key Binding

913

***********

914

915

You may disagree with some of the default bindings (I know I do).

916

The `bind' command allows you to redefine them to suit your preferences.

917

918

* Menu:

919

920

* Bind:: `bind' syntax.

921

* Bind Examples:: Using `bind'.

922

* Command Character:: The character used to start keyboard commands.

923

* Help:: Show current key bindings.

924

* Bindkey:: `bindkey' syntax.

925

* Bindkey Examples:: Some easy examples.

926

* Bindkey Control:: How to control the bindkey mechanism.

927

928

929

File: screen.info, Node: Bind, Next: Bind Examples, Up: Key Binding

930

931

The `bind' command

932

==================

933

934

- Command: bind [-c class] key [command [args]]

935

(none)

936

Bind a command to a key. The KEY argument is either a single

937

character, a two-character sequence of the form `^x' (meaning

938

`C-x'), a backslash followed by an octal number (specifying the

939

ASCII code of the character), or a backslash followed by a second

940

character, such as `\^' or `\\'. The argument can also be quoted,

941

if you like. If no further argument is given, any previously

942

established binding for this key is removed. The COMMAND argument

943

can be any command (*note Command Index::).

944

945

If a command class is specified via the `-c' option, the key is

946

bound for the specified class. Use the `command' command to

947

activate a class. Command classes can be used to create multiple

948

command keys or multi-character bindings.

949

950

By default, most suitable commands are bound to one or more keys

951

(*note Default Key Bindings::; for instance, the command to create

952

a new window is bound to `C-c' and `c'. The `bind' command can be

953

used to redefine the key bindings and to define new bindings.

954

955

956

File: screen.info, Node: Bind Examples, Next: Command Character, Prev: Bind, Up: Key Binding

957

958

Examples of the `bind' command

959

==============================

960

961

Some examples:

962

963

bind ' ' windows

964

bind ^f screen telnet foobar

965

bind \033 screen -ln -t root -h 1000 9 su

966

967

would bind the space key to the command that displays a list of windows

968

(so that the command usually invoked by `C-a C-w' would also be

969

available as `C-a space'), bind `C-f' to the command "create a window

970

with a TELNET connection to foobar", and bind <ESC> to the command that

971

creates an non-login window with title `root' in slot #9, with a

972

superuser shell and a scrollback buffer of 1000 lines.

973

974

bind -c demo1 0 select 10

975

bind -c demo1 1 select 11

976

bind -c demo1 2 select 12

977

bindkey "^B" command -c demo1

978

makes `C-b 0' select window 10, `C-b 1' window 11, etc.

979

980

bind -c demo2 0 select 10

981

bind -c demo2 1 select 11

982

bind -c demo2 2 select 12

983

bind - command -c demo2

984

makes `C-a - 0' select window 10, `C-a - 1' window 11, etc.

985

986

987

File: screen.info, Node: Command Character, Next: Help, Prev: Bind Examples, Up: Key Binding

988

989

Command Character

990

=================

991

992

- Command: escape xy

993

(none)

994

Set the command character to X and the character generating a

995

literal command character (by triggering the `meta' command) to Y

996

(similar to the `-e' option). Each argument is either a single

997

character, a two-character sequence of the form `^x' (meaning

998

`C-x'), a backslash followed by an octal number (specifying the

999

ASCII code of the character), or a backslash followed by a second

1000

character, such as `\^' or `\\'. The default is `^Aa', but ```'

1001

is recommended by one of the authors.

1002

1003

- Command: defescape xy

1004

(none)

1005

Set the default command characters. This is equivalent to the

1006

command `escape' except that it is useful for multiuser sessions

1007

only. In a multiuser session `escape' changes the command

1008

character of the calling user, where `defescape' changes the

1009

default command characters for users that will be added later.

1010

1011

- Command: meta

1012

(`C-a a')

1013

Send the command character (`C-a') to the process in the current

1014

window. The keystroke for this command is the second parameter to

1015

the `-e' command line switch (*note Invoking Screen::), or the

1016

`escape' .screenrc directive.

1017

1018

- Command: command [-c CLASS]

1019

(none)

1020

This command has the same effect as typing the screen escape

1021

character (`C-a'). It is probably only useful for key bindings.

1022

If the `-c' option is given, select the specified command class.

1023

*Note Bind::, *Note Bindkey::.

1024

1025

1026

File: screen.info, Node: Help, Next: Bindkey, Prev: Command Character, Up: Key Binding

1027

1028

Help

1029

====

1030

1031

- Command: help

1032

(`C-a ?')

1033

Displays a help screen showing you all the key bindings. The first

1034

pages list all the internal commands followed by their bindings.

1035

Subsequent pages will display the custom commands, one command per

1036

key. Press space when you're done reading each page, or return to

1037

exit early. All other characters are ignored. If the `-c' option

1038

is given, display all bound commands for the specified command

1039

class. *Note Default Key Bindings::.

1040

1041

1042

File: screen.info, Node: Bindkey, Next: Bindkey Examples, Prev: Help, Up: Key Binding

1043

1044

Bindkey

1045

=======

1046

1047

- Command: bindkey [OPTS] [STRING [CMD ARGS]]

1048

(none)

1049

This command manages screen's input translation tables. Every

1050

entry in one of the tables tells screen how to react if a certain

1051

sequence of characters is encountered. There are three tables: one

1052

that should contain actions programmed by the user, one for the

1053

default actions used for terminal emulation and one for screen's

1054

copy mode to do cursor movement. See *Note Input Translation:: for

1055

a list of default key bindings.

1056

1057

If the `-d' option is given, bindkey modifies the default table,

1058

`-m' changes the copy mode table and with neither option the user

1059

table is selected. The argument `string' is the sequence of

1060

characters to which an action is bound. This can either be a fixed

1061

tring or a termcap keyboard capability name (selectable with the

1062

`-k' option).

1063

1064

Some keys on a VT100 terminal can send a different string if

1065

application mode is turned on (e.g. the cursor keys). Such keys

1066

have two entries in the translation table. You can select the

1067

application mode entry by specifying the `-a' option.

1068

1069

The `-t' option tells screen not to do inter-character timing. One

1070

cannot turn off the timing if a termcap capability is used.

1071

1072

`cmd' can be any of screen's commands with an arbitrary number of

1073

`args'. If `cmd' is omitted the key-binding is removed from the

1074

table.

1075

1076

1077

File: screen.info, Node: Bindkey Examples, Next: Bindkey Control, Prev: Bindkey, Up: Key Binding

1078

1079

Bindkey Examples

1080

================

1081

1082

Here are some examples of keyboard bindings:

1083

1084

bindkey -d

1085

1086

Show all of the default key bindings. The application mode entries are

1087

marked with [A].

1088

1089

bindkey -k k1 select 1

1090

1091

Make the "F1" key switch to window one.

1092

1093

bindkey -t foo stuff barfoo

1094

1095

Make `foo' an abbreviation of the word `barfoo'. Timeout is disabled so

1096

that users can type slowly.

1097

1098

bindkey "\024" mapdefault

1099

1100

This key-binding makes `C-t' an escape character for key-bindings. If

1101

you did the above `stuff barfoo' binding, you can enter the word `foo'

1102

by typing `C-t foo'. If you want to insert a `C-t' you have to press

1103

the key twice (i.e. escape the escape binding).

1104

1105

bindkey -k F1 command

1106

1107

Make the F11 (not F1!) key an alternative screen escape (besides `C-a').

1108

1109

1110

File: screen.info, Node: Bindkey Control, Prev: Bindkey Examples, Up: Key Binding

1111

1112

Bindkey Control

1113

===============

1114

1115

- Command: mapdefault

1116

(none)

1117

Tell screen that the next input character should only be looked up

1118

in the default bindkey table.

1119

1120

- Command: mapnotnext

1121

(none)

1122

Like mapdefault, but don't even look in the default bindkey table.

1123

1124

- Command: maptimeout timo

1125

(none)

1126

Set the intercharacter timer for input sequence detection to a

1127

timeout of TIMO ms. The default timeout is 300ms. Maptimeout with

1128

no arguments shows the current setting.

1129

1130

1131

File: screen.info, Node: Flow Control, Next: Termcap, Prev: Key Binding, Up: Top

1132

1133

Flow Control

1134

************

1135

1136

`screen' can trap flow control characters or pass them to the

1137

program, as you see fit. This is useful when your terminal wants to use

1138

XON/XOFF flow control and you are running a program which wants to use

1139

^S/^Q for other purposes (i.e. `emacs').

1140

1141

* Menu:

1142

1143

* Flow Control Summary:: The effect of `screen' flow control

1144

* Flow:: Setting the flow control behavior

1145

* XON/XOFF:: Sending XON or XOFF to the window

1146

1147

1148

File: screen.info, Node: Flow Control Summary, Next: Flow, Up: Flow Control

1149

1150

About `screen' flow control settings

1151

====================================

1152

1153

Each window has a flow-control setting that determines how screen

1154

deals with the XON and XOFF characters (and perhaps the interrupt

1155

character). When flow-control is turned off, screen ignores the XON

1156

and XOFF characters, which allows the user to send them to the current

1157

program by simply typing them (useful for the `emacs' editor, for

1158

instance). The trade-off is that it will take longer for output from a

1159

"normal" program to pause in response to an XOFF. With flow-control

1160

turned on, XON and XOFF characters are used to immediately pause the

1161

output of the current window. You can still send these characters to

1162

the current program, but you must use the appropriate two-character

1163

screen commands (typically `C-a q' (xon) and `C-a s' (xoff)). The

1164

xon/xoff commands are also useful for typing C-s and C-q past a

1165

terminal that intercepts these characters.

1166

1167

Each window has an initial flow-control value set with either the

1168

`-f' option or the `defflow' command. By default the windows are set

1169

to automatic flow-switching. It can then be toggled between the three

1170

states 'fixed on', 'fixed off' and 'automatic' interactively with the

1171

`flow' command bound to `C-a f'.

1172

1173

The automatic flow-switching mode deals with flow control using the

1174

TIOCPKT mode (like `rlogin' does). If the tty driver does not support

1175

TIOCPKT, screen tries to determine the right mode based on the current

1176

setting of the application keypad -- when it is enabled, flow-control

1177

is turned off and visa versa. Of course, you can still manipulate

1178

flow-control manually when needed.

1179

1180

If you're running with flow-control enabled and find that pressing

1181

the interrupt key (usually C-c) does not interrupt the display until

1182

another 6-8 lines have scrolled by, try running screen with the

1183

`interrupt' option (add the `interrupt' flag to the `flow' command in

1184

your .screenrc, or use the `-i' command-line option). This causes the

1185

output that `screen' has accumulated from the interrupted program to be

1186

flushed. One disadvantage is that the virtual terminal's memory

1187

contains the non-flushed version of the output, which in rare cases can

1188

cause minor inaccuracies in the output. For example, if you switch

1189

screens and return, or update the screen with `C-a l' you would see the

1190

version of the output you would have gotten without `interrupt' being

1191

on. Also, you might need to turn off flow-control (or use auto-flow

1192

mode to turn it off automatically) when running a program that expects

1193

you to type the interrupt character as input, as the `interrupt'

1194

parameter only takes effect when flow-control is enabled. If your

1195

program's output is interrupted by mistake, a simple refresh of the

1196

screen with `C-a l' will restore it. Give each mode a try, and use

1197

whichever mode you find more comfortable.

1198

1199

1200

File: screen.info, Node: Flow, Next: XON/XOFF, Prev: Flow Control Summary, Up: Flow Control

1201

1202

Flow

1203

====

1204

1205

- Command: defflow fstate [interrupt]

1206

(none)

1207

Same as the `flow' command except that the default setting for new

1208

windows is changed. Initial setting is `auto'. Specifying `flow

1209

auto interrupt' has the same effect as the command-line options

1210

`-fa' and `-i'. Note that if `interrupt' is enabled, all existing

1211

displays are changed immediately to forward interrupt signals.

1212

1213

- Command: flow [fstate]

1214

(`C-a f', `C-a C-f')

1215

Sets the flow-control mode for this window to FSTATE, which can be

1216

`on', `off' or `auto'. Without parameters it cycles the current

1217

window's flow-control setting. Default is set by `defflow'.

1218

1219

1220

File: screen.info, Node: XON/XOFF, Prev: Flow, Up: Flow Control

1221

1222

XON and XOFF

1223

============

1224

1225

- Command: xon

1226

(`C-a q', `C-a C-q')

1227

Send a ^Q (ASCII XON) to the program in the current window.

1228

Redundant if flow control is set to `off' or `auto'.

1229

1230

- Command: xoff

1231

(`C-a s', `C-a C-s')

1232

Send a ^S (ASCII XOFF) to the program in the current window.

1233

1234

1235

File: screen.info, Node: Termcap, Next: Message Line, Prev: Flow Control, Up: Top

1236

1237

Termcap

1238

*******

1239

1240

`screen' demands the most out of your terminal so that it can

1241

perform its VT100 emulation most efficiently. These functions provide

1242

means for tweaking the termcap entries for both your physical terminal

1243

and the one simulated by `screen'.

1244

1245

* Menu:

1246

1247

* Window Termcap:: Choosing a termcap entry for the window.

1248

* Dump Termcap:: Write out a termcap entry for the window.

1249

* Termcap Syntax:: The `termcap' and `terminfo' commands.

1250

* Termcap Examples:: Uses for `termcap'.

1251

* Special Capabilities:: Non-standard capabilities used by `screen'.

1252

* Autonuke:: Flush unseen output

1253

* Obuflimit:: Allow pending output when reading more

1254

* Character Translation:: Emulating fonts and charsets.

1255